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Original poster

Anyway worried about swine flu this year?

49 replies

peggy0062 · 28/10/2010 17:08

I hear this year's seasonal flu jab includes swine flu protection.

Is anyone giving their kids seasonal flu jab from private? That's because our GP isn't going to give flu jabs to children.

OP posts:

Abr1de · 16/12/2010 15:14

Both my children have had swine flu injections two years running. They had no adverse reactions.

Flu is a nasty disease. I had 'ordinary' flu five years ago and one thing I noticed was that it aged me terribly. I lost five pounds in five days from the profuse sweating and not being able to eat because I was so hot and ill. I looked haggard round the face and that has never altered.

Also, you might not be badly ill with SF but those you pass it on to may be.

DylthanThroughTheSnow · 16/12/2010 15:15

Ds is booked in for the jab tomorrow.

mears · 16/12/2010 17:08

swine flu mum in intensive care

DylthanThroughTheSnow · 16/12/2010 17:16

mears I hope she makes a speedy recovery.

itsatiggerday · 16/12/2010 17:20

DS booked in for flu jab. Under the age cohort but has asthma so accepted for the jab. Had at least 1 confirmed swine flu case in our practice and having seen how bad his breathing gets from a normal cold, I don't want to find out what effect swine flu would have.

Elibean · 16/12/2010 19:08

Yep, had a feeling that was the calm before the flu, Musu. Bet you're very busy - hope you have time off for Christmas! RSV...ugh, dd2 nearly died of it aged 4 weeks (laryngomalacia didn't help). Hospital was absolutely full of RSV babies at the time I always think about them at this time of year.

helenbalancelife · 16/12/2010 23:00

i'm booked in to have combined jab two days before xmas - wasn't too worried at first but now with recent publicity more so...always hgard to know what to do when you are pregnant!

brihoney · 16/12/2010 23:53

The seasonal flu jab includes the swine flu variant they think might hit uk as well as a few other non-swine flu proteins.

I'm pregnant and had it.
I know it is hard when pregnant and told to be so careful about what you put in your body with a little fragile thing growing in you. However I would urge people to try to be rational and not emotional about it.

Yes, if you have the jab you are 100% likely to have the jab in you, and if you don't you don't know what the chance of you getting flu is (might only by 20% chance, but if you already have a toddler its much higher)

However, the chance of an adverse reaction to a flu jab is incredibly small. The risks to your unborn baby if you get the flu or swine flu are VERY high. Not only miscarriage, but risks of long term problems to the child after birth.

I personally didn't think it was worth the risk. This is also why the medical profession recommend it for pregnant women. After all, what you get with a jab is some of the proteins that exist on the outside of the flu virus, if you get the flu, you have a living virus inside you attacking you.

Beaches · 17/12/2010 00:13

Elibean my dd has the same condition, had her vac last year was not sure what to do this year but thinking now maybe she should be.... Such a worry even with a cold her chest recession gets really bad :(

jg3kids · 17/12/2010 09:22

I would look at the insert if I were you. Then come away and google the ingredients. Then you'll probably decide not to have the jab! Lol

Elibean · 17/12/2010 09:46

((Beaches)) I would get it for her. I got it for dd2, even though she's now 4, and has had surgery (tonsils, adenoids, and small snip in larynx to enlarge opening) and is much, much, much better. Only sign is noisy breathing when asleep with a cold - some of the time.

I will never forget the stress, my heart goes out to you. Anything that can help protect your dd, and your peace of mind, is probably a good idea!

ps we found humidifiers helped the most with night breathing with colds, by the way - really made a difference. How old is your dd?

sorry to hijack!

ragged · 17/12/2010 09:50

Not worried, though I'd get the jab for DH & DC if it was free and easy to access.
I had swine flu last year so hopefully have retained immunity. That was nasty. Rigors anyone? Puking and fever management? Not fun. Give me aluminium adjuvants and bizarre preservatives instead, any time.
DS3 had the jab last April or so -- he's the most vulnerable one (gets illness badly), am hoping that's him covered for this year, too.

Beaches · 17/12/2010 13:46

Thanks elibean, she is 2 now, not as scary as it was in the begining you learn to adapt! I used to take dettol spray to playgroups I was so worried about her getting ill I did get funny looks! Glad your little one is much better must of been hard facing surgery, well done you xx

Honeymoonmummy · 18/12/2010 21:57

Can someone who is medically trained please comment on that Natural News article? I had just convinced myself to get the jab before reading that! I'm 27 weeks.

TheHeathenOfSuburbia · 18/12/2010 22:32

OK, honeymoonmummy, have taken a quick look at said link for you.

My first thought is that 700% is an oddly exact number to come out of any scientific study.

Next thought - where are they getting their data from?

What they're talking about (the 'data presented to CDC') is a report on progressiveconvergence.com, as linked at the bottom of the page. Having had a quick scan of their report, they've said 126 women miscarried in the first trimester after vaccination (out of 1 million PG women vaccinated).
What they haven't accounted for at all as far as I can see, is that the normal rate of MC is the first trimester is sadly very high, as we all know. So no attempt to consider whether these reported MC are any more than you'd see normally.

It's just basically a cobbling together of random anecdotes with some numbers and jargon thrown in to make it sound impressive.

I know it's tough deciding what you are prepared to risk putting into your body when PG (I had DS in October, luckily before flu season kicked off) but I don't think that article adds any useful information to the dilemma.

AitchTwoOh · 18/12/2010 22:40

they were talking about swine flu the other day on Radio 4. a doctor from some govt body said that 10,000 people died last year from flu, which was substantially up on the average. (presenter queried the fig, btw, so am pretty sure of it).

anyway, she was saying that she would urge anyone to get the jag, and the other doc they had on, a virologist, was saying that last year's swine flu was a pussycat compared to this year's.

so i dunno. i was thinking of phoning the GP. last year a person i know lost their beautiful daughter to it, although they only found out later that's what she had. it is so awful, i think about them a lot. but equally i don't want to do anything in a blind panic.

nellieisstilltired · 18/12/2010 22:49

I suspect from what I've seen so far that last years sf wasn't as bad as this one seems to be.
If you can have the jab I would suggest it good to do so.

ReshapeWhileDamp · 19/12/2010 00:01

Agree with Brihoney. There doesn't seem to be anything more than anecdotal evidence of pregnancy complications with vaccination of pregnant women, but plenty of documented evidence (ok, I still know of it via anecdotal routes!) that swine flu carries a very high risk for pregnant women and unborn babies. To me, that's a no-brainer.

(And yet I waited until nearly 39 weeks to have it, this week. I am very, very stupid. I wish I'd had it months earlier and just hope I won't meet anyone with flu before I get full immunity.)

Honeymoonmummy · 19/12/2010 21:21

Thank you so much The Heathen, that's really put my mind at rest. How long does it take to get full immunity after you've had the jab Reshape?

Musukebba · 20/12/2010 16:34

10-14 days

bubbleymummy · 20/12/2010 17:35

Aitch - most doctors are saying that swine flu hasn't mutated since last year so I'm not sure why that virologist made that comment. There were around 420 deaths from swine flu out of several hundreds of thousands of cases (there are usually several thousand flu deaths every year but they don't get reported as well as swine flu does!). Personally i think there is a lot of scaremongering going on again - not least by the media. I'm not saying that you shouldn't have the vaccine if that is what you feel is the right decision for you but I really think it's terrible that people are completely panicking again over this. Try to remember that for every hospitalised case there were several hundreds of mild cases, 1/3 of which are predicted to be completely asymptomatic and many people may already be immune from last year. Yes, pregnant women may be more at risk but that risk is still very small. It's up to you to make your decision but please try not to let fear alone make it for you.

Honeymoonmummy · 20/12/2010 22:22

Sensible words Bubbleymummy

Elibean · 21/12/2010 19:49

Beaches: yes, it was hard, but a no-brainer as she was choking on her own tonsils and losing weight Now a flourishing, noisy 4 yr old: worth every bit of worrying about surgery!

Hope your dd stays well all winter - so much better at 2 than as a baby, I know xx

PeachesMac · 23/12/2010 19:30

I remember going through the same dilemma last winter while pregnant. I got myself into such a panic that I went and got the swine flu jab when I was 14 weeks pregnant. It wasn't an easy decision but my baby was born in May this year, five days overdue, completely healthy and is now a joyful seven month old. So please go with your instincts. I had the jab and all was well thankfully.

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