Flu season

[Penguin27]

I've heard that the flu season in Australia was particularly bad this year and they're expecting the same over here.

I just have some, probably dumb, questions that you lovely lot might be able to answer...

When does flu season start?
What are the initial symptoms and how does the illness progress?
How do you know if it's just a cold or actually flu?

Asking as this afternoon I've developed a sore throat, cold sores and now feel a bit run down it's probably not flu, I am a worrier!! Maybe this could be a flu support thread for anyone else that feels a bit rubbish.

I think it usually knocks you out completely. I now always have the jab.

It usually does. You're a wise woman to always get the jab, as you Brits so charmingly call it.

You're also doing a service for your community. Once immunized you are no longer a vector who could transmit the flu to others who are much more vulnerable to it's danger than you likely are. The elderly and those who's immune systems are compromised as well as those who are allergic to eggs and can't take the vaccine are all safer because of you.

When enough people are in a population are immunized and the virus can't find a path to the more vulnerable this is what's called herd immunity.

I've had flu twice. First time I had it as a teen had a bit of a cold felt ok but come out with a horrendous rash on my legs. Blood tests confirmed that I had the flu and not septicaemia (that's what the rash looked like!) I had the rash for over 6 months and had to take medication for over a year. 2nd time I was early 20's and was bed ridden for over a week! I had achy joints (I actually cried going to the toilet it was so painful to walk) high temp cough, snotty nose and an awful headache. Colds can make you feel crappy but nothing like the flu can!

I'm in Australia and recently had the flu strain mentioned in the media.

It started with all over aches, and a horrible sore throat that made it difficult to swallow, over a couple of days then deteriorated and I was bedridden for the best part of a week. Not much snot or sneezing like a regular cold.

Like many people I know it then progressed to a bacterial chest infection (pleurisy in my case, I know others with pneumonia).

Apparently the vaccination isn't very effective on this strain as it keeps evolving.

BinkyandBunty Influenza A (H3N2) is the strain that causing the deaths and serious complications in Australia this season. Fortunately for those in the states, there was time to include it in the trivalent vaccines we're distributing right now. It's probably in the British version as well. I don't know if it was in your vaccine or not.

A big part of your problem is that fewer than 10% of Australian children get the vaccine That means more pediatric cases and more people catching it from the children they're exposed to.

www.nytimes.com/2017/09/19/world/australia/flu-vaccination-deaths.html

I suspect it's going to be a bad season here anyway.

Oh binky that sounds so horrible, I hope you've made a good recovery?

Miss you seem very knowledgable, thank you for your contribution! I'm definitely going to get the jab

I've had flu once in my life, am almost 40 and iirc I was 20. I can still remember how horrendous it was and how quickly it came on me.
Every single part of my body hurt. It took about 2 weeks to get fully better.

I know a woman a bit older than me who died this year from flu. It seems shocking to me but it does happen and lots of people are all to quick to declare they have " the flu " when they're still out shopping/cleaning the house/going to work as " I don't want to let them down "

I had recently started a new job and was on probation but nothing on earth could have got me out of the house for at least the first 10 days. Wouldn't wish it on anyone even my toxic ex sil

Thanks, I'm all better after a course of antibiotics :)

Our flu vax did include H3N2 but Australian media is reporting 40% effectiveness. That fits with my experiences, most people I know who had the flu were vaccinated. The vast majority of deaths were nursing home patients, who are routinely vaccinated.

I hope a newer better version has been developed for the northern hemisphere season.

Miss you seem very knowledgable, thank you for your contribution!

Penguin you're quite welcome. I'm a health care professional.

Binky, first I'm sorry you had such a rough set of complications, and I should have mentioned that earlier. Pleurisy and a cough are a very painful combination. I'm glad you're on the mend.

40% effectiveness is on the very low end of normal, so the virus was probably spreading in a mutated form. Most of the people here who die from influenza here are elderly as well. Their immune systems just don't produce antibodies as rapidly or in the amounts that they used to. We've started giving geriatric doses of vaccines here that are typically double the normal dose and that does seem to help.

Unfortunately, it takes so long to make millions of doses of vaccines (they're still cultured in hen's eggs) that we probably have exactly the same vaccine you do. Some vaccines are now produced with genetic engineering techniques that are much more agile. Let's hope they figure out how to do that with influenza soon.