Fed up of hearing about the flu

[SpoonBaloon]

I know I’m being unreasonable but am I the only one who’s getting wound up by the constant coverage of the flu on every national news outlet?

It is December. Of course the flu is going around! Every winter we hear about the NHS being overwhelmed.

I can accept minor coverage but it’s been the main story for days on end and it doesn’t seem like it’s going to stop! And I know the flu kills and people need to be aware to take precautions but surely people don’t need it to be pointed out to them that they have an increased chance of catching the cold or flu in the run up to Christmas?

I was deathly ill with it last year but luckily have managed to avoid it up to now.

@AInightingale much safer with some windows open !!
Usually firmly closed so everyone can breathe in infected air in max doses !

I’ve name changed for this because I don’t want to be linked to any previous comments.

I work in a large NHS hospital. I’m middle management for the cleaning department. This means I’m involved in all outbreak meetings as the cleaning arrangements need altered during outbreaks on wards.
This flu is wicked. It’s knocking young, fit and healthy staff on their asses for weeks.
I’m required to do track and trace again (which I haven’t had to do since Covid) and the ignorance is horrifying.

I have to ask staff if they’ve had their flu jab and some of the things I’ve heard are:
”sure it gives you the flu”
”no I’m not high risk so never bother”
”it made me achy last time for a few days so I refused it this year”
”isn’t Covid and flu the same virus? I was fine when I had Covid”
”it’s only the flu”

The vaccine uptake is shockingly low. The vaccinator team have been standing in busy corridors with trolleys trying to offer vaccines to staff as they pass.

The number of ongoing outbreaks is shocking. I can honestly say that I don’t remember there being this many outbreaks of covid at any one time.

People are still being so blasé about it. It kills. It can cause schools to have to close because their staff ratios are unsafe due to absences. Because the jab made them a bit sore, they’re refusing it this year. Would you rather be bed ridden for 2 weeks? And what about the vulnerable people if your community? Back to the “I’m alright jack” shitty attitude.

Please get vaccinated.
Please wash your hands frequently.
Please wear mask in enclosed, crowded places.
The same steps to prevent the spread of COVID works for flu. It’s not hard.

The government of course…. They’re in cahoots with the medical gurus who got us wearing masks during Covid. I think I stockpiled on masks and probably have a few dozen boxes somewhere.

@quicknamechangearoonie and open windows and let the infected air out.

Would you risk going into London tomorrow ? We are all vaccinated but youngest is a week into immunity

Yeah, right.

@quicknamechangearoonie how can NHS own staff not have one ?? 😫

@SpoonBaloon "Of course flu is going to kill people, duh! It needs to get off the news so we can hear more coverage about important issues like Love Island and Taylor Swift!"

Ventilating really helps. If you can, even just a few minutes with a window open front and back to change the air helps.

You won't lose as much heat as you might think doing that, either, just some of the warm air. The body of the house and everything in it stays warm, so the fresh air you've brought in also warms up quite quickly.

I’m thrilled to share that I haven’t heard a single thing about it outside of mumsnet because I don’t watch the depressing, draining, miserable and propoganda-pushing news 😍 nor do I know of anyone who’s been ill! Fabulous.

Let me guess, you don't believe in getting vaccinated....

We can all say “It won’t happen to me because I don’t have any underlying conditions,” until it does, and the underlying condition you didn’t know you had is diagnosed as a result.

I caught the flu in 2016 which led to the diagnosis of the underlying heart condition I have had since birth but had no awareness of. But not before the flu had damaged the bit of my heart which wasn’t already compromised, caused me to have sepsis and nearly die.

And before that I thought I was healthy, walked for miles, swam for miles, exercised regularly, would never have known.

This year I had a heart transplant.

Masks in many countries are standard. Why people have such an issue with wearing them is bizarre.

Handwashing should be standard. I find it baffling that people need to be told they should be washing their hands. Seriously.

If people lived more hygienically in the first place they wouldn’t have to start. And perhaps these illnesses would be less prevalent.

The signs were always there that flu was going to be nasty this year as Australia had a bad season. Bed occupancy was already really high in November and will be a real problem pretty soon. The issue really is we don’t have enough acute beds in this country. There is no flex at all when things hit the fan (as will be noted in the Covid inquiry reports). Beds are run too hot because politicians aren’t willing to put the funding in place to open more. Everyone is talking about shifting care into the community which is lovely but in the short term doesn’t fix the fact there aren’t enough beds.

My husband had it a few weeks ago. He was bedbound for 2 full weeks and properly ill. More than once I thought I was going to have to take him to hospital. He's still not fully well even now, it's been three weeks since he was able to get out of bed, not have a raging temperature and go about his normal life but he has a horrible hacking cough he can't shift and absolutely no energy. The slightest exertion wipes him out. He's lost a ton of weight and it's like he's aged ten years.

I suspect a lot of the media attention is due to the doctors strike, they want people to get vaccinated as the doctors strike means they can’t cope.

i got something a couple of weeks ago, sore throat, runny nose etc, took about 8 days to pass, was taking dual nurofen and paracetamol, and sucking on strepsils. Don’t know if it was flu or covid, and It this flu is a variation of covid, but I was fully functioning throughout. And I’m hoping that’s no given me some immunity,

If you actually take notice of what's being said it's a different strain to what the flu jab protects against. Me and DD are having our jabs and COVID jabs tomorrow. We are being advised to go back to wearing masks. I've heard of people coughing to the point of coughing up blood. blood. The hospitals are overwhelmed.

Because it doesn't always work. People think "oh well it won't work anyway if they've got the wrong strain" but they'll still have a couple of days of feeling under the weather. Ok in the scheme of things it's better to have the vaccine but if it doesn't work and you're ill anyway, you'd wonder why you bothered. I don't know if it's like the covid vaccine and makes it less bad if you get it.

Also, most people don't qualify for one, so you've got to go looking. Even my husband's employer who have always got a nurse to do them in-house, have stopped that now. In fact, that could be the reason there are more people in hospital this year, because fewer people were eligible and employers aren't providing it to their employees. My DH was eligible before on the NHS as well but isn't now. He hasn't had got younger ;)

That really does sound more like COVID.

I am going to start wearing masks on the train again when I go to work. I don't want flu (or COVID) for Christmas. Masks might not be the universal panacea but might help to avoid it when someone starts spluttering on the train because their employers are stupid and have a RTO policy even if you are ill.

I don’t watch Love Island or listen to Taylor Swift. I can’t remember a time they were headline news on the BBC or Sky or ITV, either.

I would like to hear more about the doctor’s strike, Sandie Peggie, Trump, Europe and Ukraine.

I was going to suggest the same. We went to a concert during covid and didn't get ill. We had the FFP2 masks.

I work in a school and it's been knocking kids and staff out for a few weeks. Supply has been insane. I hate, hate, hate being ill, so I got a jab back in October. And that felt fairly late in terms of protection from the diseases 2000 kids bring. Or is it 4000, if I look at my kids' exposure too?

I'd rather risk discomfort from a vaccine than catch flu and have it knock me out for ages. Because let's face it, even if the flu lasts a week, you're still not able to get straight back to the gym are you?

I'm just going to point out that if hospitals are overwhelmed with flu patients, that has a knock on effect on other patients.

Hi

There are 10 staff members off with this. Some came in and tried to work. Temperature, aching with coughs. You always have to be present, don't be off sick that makes you a better person. Some people on zero contracts they do not get paid It's called "presentationism" even though you are ill. How great are you for turning up, guilt of not being there because you muddle through? Spread it to everyone else now 10 off and one hospitalised with pneumonia and one at at home very ill. Not an aged workforce young. Be careful what you say...

Why? Can you make that make sense for me?

Well good for you, but what does that have to do with the topic?

I've never had the flu, or at least not symptomatically. I'm not currently pregnant but have 3 DCs.

Do I win?

I agree Op.

The main issue is that theres no way of knowing who will get sick even in workplace where obviously ill people have been spreading germs. Mild flu, Covid or just a cold? Who knows but far from everyone gets ill at work.
Flu vaccinations can make you feel rough and they don’t work against all strains.
My poor elderly parents get a bad chest infection and serious cold/ flu symptoms most years now ,despite having the flu jab, living fairly remotely and being outside a lot.