Pregnant and been diagnosed with swine flu, someone please reassure me...

[ClarasMummy]

37 + 1 today and been diagnosed with swine flu, I'm terrified the Tamiflu will hurt the baby or I'll end up in the hospital. I've literally never felt so unwell and on Christmas eve as well :(.

Please someone give me some reassurance, and tell me it will all be fine and I haven't hurt my baby boy.

I had it last December when I was about 10 weeks and it was hideous but we were all (toddler included) absolutely fine.

Baby is now 6 months old and absolutely fine, very bright, no problems whatsoever.

Huge sympathies to you, what a horrible thing to happen at christmas, rest plenty and keep an eye on your symptoms.

I am asthmatic too and still didn't have any complications at all.

Hope you get better soon x

I had the jab last year and this is supposed to protect for this year so my GP advised I didn't have it this year (I didn't want to either). He also told me that he had never had a patient lose a baby because of flu (and at your stage they would just induce if they were worried) and only a very small minority of people will have complications from it so try not to worry even though the papers are full of it.

Try to stay calm

whatever terrifying stats you have read, they represent a small proportion of all infections

now that you have been diagnosed with swine flu, you will be monitored closely I should think, and any change in your condition would have you rushed to the front of any queue

you are 37 weeks pg, your baby is as good as term, and is pretty much ready to be born, should it come to that

I hope this reassures you a bit
X

Hi

I really hope you feel better soon. I am 34 weeks and freaking myself out about the swine flu it's ridiculous how much the news has scared everyone.
I woke up with a cough and have convinced myself that I am getting it and imagining myself in hopital or dying and got upset this morning!

It's really reasuring to read good stories instead in negative ones

get lots of rest and I'll be sending lots of get well vibes for you.

Hi, i'm 32+4 and i was diagnosed with probable swine flu on Tuesday. Like you, i had literally never felt so poorly, and was given tamiflu as the more pregnancy-recommended alternative that you inhale (the name escapes me) is completely unavailable. Whilst i was wary about taking it, my MW and GP assured me it was far safer than ending up seriously ill and hospitalised. I'm now on day 4 of the tamiflu, and feel so much better, and Bubs is very active and seems fine

Ironically, i was refused the flu jabs on the basis that i was pregnant, despite the fact that i've always had the annual jab before in my professional capacity as an ITU nurse. Now my MW has informed me that they've seriously backtracked and are now offering all pregnant women the jabs! Hmm, bit late for me now, methinks!

Do make sure you keep hydrated, many small sips are better than drinking half a glass at the time, this is if you have the swine flu with vomitting (not everybody with swine flu has that). Are you taking the tamiflu? Did your GP tell you that if you want to take it you should do as soon as the symptoms start and definitely before 48 hours since onset of the symptoms otherwise it is no longer effective (virus too widespread to contain). Taking tamiflu also protects those around you as it reduces the shedding of the virus, especially if those around you take tamiflu profylactically.

When dh had swine flu during summer 09 he was terribly ill with very high fever Friday evening, Friday night and Saturday morning then a nurse came and tested whether it was influenza A (it was) and took a swab to send of to the lab (confirmed swine flu 10 days later) and straight away gave all of us tamiflu. DH 2 times a day for five days and dd and I 1 time a day for 10 days. Already on Sunday he started feeling much better (still high fever though) and fever was virtually gone from Monday onwards. He did feel very achey and weak for many weeks afterwards though. DD and I did not get ill, but we also stayed away as much as possible (we were on holiday in a small apartment, it was summer, dd was only 3, so we went out most of the time, keeping in touch by phone).

Hope you get better soon and that the rest of your family doesn't get it.