Flu shot reaction?

[Pixiedust34]

I got my flu shot yesterday afternoon. This is the regular flu shot, not the H1N1 shot.

I've been getting a flu shot every year for the past few years and all has been fine. Today my arm is still a little sore, which is to be expected within 24 hours of getting the shot. However, there's a red welt (kind of like a big bug bite) around the shot area. Is this normal? I don't remember having a welt like this with previous flu shots.

I'm taking the kids in today for their shots, and if my welt is still there I might ask their nurse what she thinks about it.

 

[Linda in sunny SC]

I had a similar reaction one year. I am allergic to thimerosal (preservative used in some vaccines) but I have gotten the shots anyway for about 20 years because i'd rather risk a reaction than have the flu. I only had the reaction once but I do still have a small scar on my arm from it. I had the shot last year with no problem.

 

[ohiomom28]

I have had the flue shot once and will never do it again. That year I got the worst case of flu ever! I'm talking 103 degree fever for a week. My employer is paying for flu shots this year and they are very strongly encouraging I get one. Just seems they are afraid a lot of people will be out with it. I'm not doing it and I don't think they are gonna like it.

 

[missypie]

My employer arranges for employees to have the flu shot for free...I did it for years...each year I would have a worse reaction...within 30 minutes, horrible back pain, a large green knot on my arm that would last for a week, pain in my arm so bad that it would wake me up in the night. My doctor finally told me to stop getting flu shots.

 

[sbell111]

I got my flu shot yesterday afternoon. This is the regular flu shot, not the H1N1 shot.

I've been getting a flu shot every year for the past few years and all has been fine. Today my arm is still a little sore, which is to be expected within 24 hours of getting the shot. However, there's a red welt (kind of like a big bug bite) around the shot area. Is this normal? I don't remember having a welt like this with previous flu shots.

I'm taking the kids in today for their shots, and if my welt is still there I might ask their nurse what she thinks about it.

Possible side effects from the injected vaccine include:

Soreness, redness or pain at the injection site
Low grade fever
Body aches

I have had the flue shot once and will never do it again. That year I got the worst case of flu ever! I'm talking 103 degree fever for a week. My employer is paying for flu shots this year and they are very strongly encouraging I get one. Just seems they are afraid a lot of people will be out with it. I'm not doing it and I don't think they are gonna like it.

The vaccine shot is actually made from dead virus. You can't actually catch the flu from teh vaccine shot. That being said, many people don't understand that you are not immediately protected by a vaccine shot. It typically takes that body a week or two after receiving the vaccine to build up protection against the flu. Therefore, you may have caught the flu around the time that you received the vaccine and thought that it was the vaccine that gave it to you. Also, you may have confused vaccine side effects with the flu.

 

[sbell111]

My employer arranges for employees to have the flu shot for free...I did it for years...each year I would have a worse reaction...within 30 minutes, horrible back pain, a large green knot on my arm that would last for a week, pain in my arm so bad that it would wake me up in the night. My doctor finally told me to stop getting flu shots.

That's like the old joke:

"Doctor, my arm hurts when I bend it like this."
"Stop bending it like that."

 

[C.Ann]

I typically get sick (along with the sore arm) within 2 to 4 hours of having the regular flu shot.. I'm assuming there's something in there that I may be slightly allergic to - or perhaps it's just a normal reaction for some people.. I get a fever; the chills; a headache; achiness all over; and occasionally diarrhea.. Considering it would be much more dangerous for me to actually get the flu (due to other health problems), I go ahead and get the shot anyhow and plan it around a good time for me to be sick and laid up for a couple of days..

Just one of those things where you have to weigh the good against the bad..

Hope your arm feels better soon!

 

[Pixiedust34]

Thanks, everyone. Yesterday I showed my arm to the nurse who gave our kids their flu shots. She said that sometimes welts such as these happen. The kids seem to be doing fine with their arms.

My arm is still sore and now there are 2 smaller welts near the original injection site. I'm going to keep an eye on it and if it gets a lot worse I might call the dr. This is the first time I've had a reaction to a flu shot. I don't have a fever and other than the soreness/redness of the arm I do feel just fine.

 

[missypie]

I typically get sick (along with the sore arm) within 2 to 4 hours of having the regular flu shot.. I'm assuming there's something in there that I may be slightly allergic to - or perhaps it's just a normal reaction for some people.. I get a fever; the chills; a headache; achiness all over; and occasionally diarrhea.. Considering it would be much more dangerous for me to actually get the flu (due to other health problems), I go ahead and get the shot anyhow and plan it around a good time for me to be sick and laid up for a couple of days..

Just one of those things where you have to weigh the good against the bad..

Hope your arm feels better soon!

That's the opposite of what my doctor told me...I guess it depends on one's overall health. He said that I'm obviously reacting to something in the vaccine and it is getting worse. He said that some day I could have a severe allergic reaction. He said that he can treat the flu, but that there may not be time to treat a severe allergic reaction.

 

[disney1990]

I had a similar reaction one year. I am allergic to thimerosal (preservative used in some vaccines) but I have gotten the shots anyway for about 20 years because i'd rather risk a reaction than have the flu. I only had the reaction once but I do still have a small scar on my arm from it. I had the shot last year with no problem.

This could indeed be part of the problem that some people have. It is possible to get the shot without this additive, you just have to search a little harder to find them.