Flu Shot...Are you getting one?

[Dax]

I have the oppertunity to get a free flu shot through my work...I work at the airport, and am around a lot of....well lets just say the "Unwashed masses"...and I currently DO NOT have health insurance...I am scared to get the shot because I may get sick from it, and I am worried to NOT get it, as I cannot afford to get the flu...Stuck between a rock and a hard place...

Are you getting one this year?

 

[scrapquitler]

Not planning on getting one, never do.

 

[TEENEE]

My company offers free flu shots too. I have been getting them for 3 or 4 years now. Other than a little soreness at the injection site I have never had any adverse reaction to the shot. I will be getting the shot again this year.

 

[DMass]

I have the oppertunity to get a free flu shot through my work...I work at the airport, and am around a lot of....well lets just say the "Unwashed masses"...and I currently DO NOT have health insurance...I am scared to get the shot because I may get sick from it, and I am worried to NOT get it, as I cannot afford to get the flu...Stuck between a rock and a hard place...

Are you getting one this year?

Get it. It's free and with all those people around spreading their germs, it can only help. Plus I think I heard this shot can also prevent H1N1.

 

[tlbwriter]

Yep. I always do. "Getting sick" from the vaccine doesn't mean you'll get the flu. The vaccine is a killed virus that cannot infect you. Some people do have a reaction to the shot. And it's possible that you can still catch the flu, but it's often a much milder case than you'd have if you hadn't been vaccinated. If I were in your shoes, with lots of public contact, and had no history of adverse reactions? I'd do it yesterday.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Both of my kids got it Friday and my MIL got hers last week with no complaints from anyone. I am going to do a walk in at Walgreens as soon as I heal up a teensy bit more from surgery. I have had the shot every year since having a preemie and have never gotten sick from the vaccine. Just make sure you go in there healthy and remember how many people are touching all that stuff so clean your hands well when you leave.

 

[FireDancer]

Nope. It isn't about getting sick from the shot but I don't take any medication I don't find necessary and I don't view the flu shot as necessary. I personally feel my immune system can handle the flu so I'll take the risk (this is the only criteria I consider when deciding). My personal view on health is the first line of defense is lifestyle (eating, exercise, not smoking, ect) and drugs (including most but not all vaccines) are only secondary lines once the primary fails.

I would also not tell anyone else they should feel this way, it is just how I do. Whether you get one or not is a personal decision and no one else should tell you what to do.

 

[lemondog]

Get the shot! Any minor ailment you may get due to the shot is NOTHING compared to the full blown flu. I get one every year without fail. The last time I had the actual flu I was 12 years old and out of school for 2 weeks. I can STILL to this day remember how terribly sick I felt, and that was back in 1984. Never want to feel that way again. The body aches and coughing were brutal.

 

[dodukes]

Not planning on getting one, never do.

same here.

only time i got one was in college as they were in the breezeway and it was free. what a mistake!

I've only gotten the real flu once in my life, ill take my chances.

 

[PrincessSuzanne]

Everyone in a high risk job or classification (children, asthmatics, older people) should definitely. I work in a hospital and I get 1 every year. They have included the H1N1 in the vaccination this year.

You CAN NOT get sick from the flu shot (that is a HUGE MYTH), you may have a reaction to something in the shot, but the flu shot is not a live virus like some vaccinations. If you got sick afterwards, it was a coincidence, not the flu shot itself.

Suzanne

 

[monkeybug]

My family all just got the flu shot.
Unless you have had an adverse reaction in the past, or are allergic to eggs (and they always ask about latex too, but I think that's because of the gloves they wear, not because there is latex in the shot), you don't need to worry about the flu shot making you sick. At least not sick with the flu. The shot is not made with live virus, so it is impossible to get the actual flu from the shot.
You can have some symptoms when your immune system reacts to the shot and makes the antibodies that will protect you from the flu, but most people don't experience any thing more than a sore arm. I think often times people think the shot made them sick, when actually they just happened to come down with something at around the same time they got the shot. With schools starting back up, and people spending more time indoors, it's the time of year for bugs to start back up again. The shot also doesn't give you immunity right away, so some people get the flu shortly after getting the shot simply because they were exposed to it before they had immunity, and they then blame it on the shot.
I got the shot a few days after having a baby, and had just gotten the whooping cough vaccine, so my body was worn out and sleep deprived, and I didn't have any symptoms at all.
I'd much rather get a quick shot in the arm than be knocked out with the flu for a few weeks.

 

[Disnydad]

Yeah in a couple of weeks I'll go get one.

 

[Gretchen]

Yup-always get the shot, have forever. DH is in healthcare, DD and DS have respiratory issues (asthma, allergies) We all get the shot.

 

[marcyinPA]

I teach two year olds, so YUP!

 

[knitster]

Nope. Never. Then again, we don't vaccinate period, so take that for what it's worth.

 

[castleview]

Probably not. The kids did get the swine flu shot last year, but unless that's recommended by the doctors - we'll pass. I'm all for vaccinations, but don't think the flu shot is necessary if you're in good health and not exposed to the young or sick constantly.

 

[Hedy]

Already got mine.

 

[krcit]

I'll probably get one and try to convince DH to get one also. I've gotten them in the past, never had a problem.

 

[Mermaid02]

No- the last time I had one I broke out in a horrendous rash and my doc said that was my LAST flu shot.

Since it's free and you are uninsured I would get it- it might save you from being ill later and having to pay to see the doctor or pay for Tamiflu out of pocket!!

 

[MinnyGranny]

I get a flu shot every year and had just got mine yesteday. Wasn't planning to but WalMart was giving them and there I was so got it early.