Petrified with newborn and 2.6 year old DD's.

[LauLauLemon]

I have a 3 week old newborn DD and a 2.6 year old DD, neither of whom have come into contact with the virus. Swine flu is rife here with the next city just 10 miles away having reported deaths in children and whole schools closing down with a pandemic. I am absolutely petrified.

DD1 and DD2 have both had a cold in the past week. While there was no raised temperature or other signs of Swine flu other than general congestion and sore throat/tickly cough, I was a little worried. We've since stayed home, been as hygienic as possible and tried not to worry too much.

Neither me or DH have had Swine flu in the past. We have not been immunised and neither has DD1. I'm considering phoning the GP for advice and to see whether we're eligable for the H1N1 vaccine to protect DD1 and DD2 from this. I know DD2 is too young for the vaccine but me, DH and DD1 have no underlying health problems.

If we can't get the vaccine on the NHS, does anyone have any idea where they do it privately, how much and personal opinion on whether we should vaccinate us three to protect us? We can't live our lives indoors being afraid.

Adults can get the vaccine in pharmacies (Boots, Lloyds, etc), supermarkets (Tesco, Asda, etc.), you have to check which ones near you do it though. Cost around £12.

For DD you can contact the Portland Childrens Hospital in London and have it done there or ask if they have a private paediatrician in your area.

Good luck and hope you will all be alright.

There are no pharmacies or supermarkets doing them in my city only in the next city which is the aforementioned city that is rife with the disease. It doesn't help the Superdrug they are giving it is right in the middle of a busy town centre.

We live in South Wales so no Portland Childrens Hospital for us. Have phoned the GP and was told nothing about DD1, only the vaccine for me and DH. Will have to re-ring and ask someone who knows what they're talking about about DD1's vaccine.

Thank you, though. We're not eligible for NHS treatment so we're going to pay to go privately after Christmas.

If you want your dd vaccinated privately you can still ring the Portland Hospital and ask if they know a private paediatrician in your area. I have always been going to London and only recently found out that there is a private paediatrician near me who works with them, simply had never occurred to me. So they may have one in Wales as well (basically it is a network of paediatricians kind of associated to the Portland Hospital or to the paediatricians who work in the Portland Consulting rooms), alternatively you could consider a trip to London and have some fun as well. Some of the private paediatricians in the Portland Consulting rooms (they are not Portland paediatricians but rent space there, have Saturday clinics, we have used them and they are all very good in our experience, also expensive about £200 per consultation because they will do full examination if it is a new patient even if you just want flu vaccination). If you go to the Portland Hospital website you can find out contact details of paediatricians and ask them if they have connections in South Wales as well in addition to the central Portland phone number (reception desk). Also, in case you are unlucky and do get swine flu, we found when DH got it Summer 09 that tamiflu taken within 24 hours was the only thing that brought his temperature down, before he had nurofen and paracetamol which did not a thing. Clearly the tamiflu must have reduced the virus and then fever could be controlled with nurofen and paracetamol (still high for several days though). He was still completely exhausted many weeks after (he was a confirmed case, lab test). DD and I were given tamiflu profylactically which seemed to have worked because we didn't get it, we did not have major side effects (I did have headache though but controllable), taste of children tamiflu is horrible though. Anyway, hopefully you will all be fine and not need any of this.