Pregnant Ladies - will you be having the swine flu vaccine?

[waitingwaiting]

Hi,

I'm currently 21 weeks pregnant and must admit that the swine flu is worrying me somewhat silly, particularly as the baby is due in December when things are predicted to get a lot worse. I'm undecided about taking the swine flu vaccine as I hear that it may not be 100% safe..... but then worry that if I didnt have it and caught swine flu, it would put me and baby at risk.

would be interested to hear your thoughts on this, if you are pregnant, will you be having the vaccine? Are you worrying yourselves silly about the winter months like me?????!

xx

jujubean

Thanks for that. Sorry to be cheeky but could you ask your mum a question for me please? Does she know if it will be possible to do a blood test to check for swine flu antibodies before vaccinating? I probably had swine flu a few weeks ago, but because they were no longer swabbing I don't know for certain. I would probably be happy to vaccinate, but don't want to do it if it's unnecessary.

Thanks again and sorry for cheekiness!

No way will I have the vaccination it might be just like any other flu vaccine but there is s risk that it could do more harm than good, remember thalidomide that was routinely given and thought safe, fair enough its not quite the same but i'd rather not risk it. I work in a school and if I feel at risk will start my mat leave early.

Hi there,
I was interested to see this thread as I am a teacher and will not go on maternity leave until mid-oct so plenty of time to be exposed to all the germs. Really am very undecided as am also worried about what the vaccine could do but also concerned about getting the flu or my baby getting it once born. I wonder if there is any trustworthy medical advice out there?

Hi Gizboss, I'm going to see my consultant on wednesday so I'll quizz him loads about it and then let you know what he says!!!

I am also undecided and worried. I am a primary teacher, due end of November and supposed to be working until early Nov. Really don't know what to do and am panicking somewhat! I am inclined to vote against having it, but then what if I get it, and am v ill??? V interested to see what your consultant says, waitingwaiting. Am seeing my MW tomorrow, but she doesn't seem to have too much to say on the matter

We don't know how safe the vaccine is.

Remember the thalidomide babies.....

just to add my two cents worth I'm in NZ and we are in the thick of swine flu and winter. It is the dominant strain of flu here and has been for the last 2 months. however, fewer than 30 people are considered to have died from it and none pregnant..so far. I teach and so far, none of the kids at my school have had it and I know of no friends or family members who have caught it. Like any virus I guess it clusters - there have been whole schools that have closed for a while. Personally I think I have come to the conclusion that if it hits my immediate circle of friends, colleagues or community then is the time to consider vaccination or alternative prevention.

For me it's a wait and see. I am not due till Feb, so will be pg throughout the Winter months which are expected to be worst, and also have a toddler already so can't really avoid people or germs - I have to get out of the house with him or lose my mind, plus he goes to nursery some days where everything gets passed around like mad!

But then if the vaccine isn't available till at least October, there is still time to get more information both about the testing that has/hasn't been done, and about how bad the flu is by then (both in terms of effects, and how much of it is going around once schools go back etc). So I will wait until it's actually being offered, then get as much information as possible before deciding.

JUJUBEAN

I don't know if NHS Scotland and NHS England have different policies on vaccinating pregnant women with the seasonal flu jab, this may be the case as obviously your mum works for the NHS and knows what she is talking about....

But I am in Scotland and usually get the seasonal jab and I have been told in the past by the nurse at my surgery who vaccinates, and more recently by my doctor and my midwife, that they DO NOT usually recommend vaccinating pregnant women with the annual seasonal flu jab, as it is not tested enough in pregnancy.

An relevant article in Nursing Times:

The Department of Health?s director of immunisation Professor David Salisbury has said nurses have a responsibility to be vaccinated against swine flu, after a Nursing Times survey reveals one third of frontline nurses do not want the jab...... see link:

www.nursingtimes.net/whats-new-in-nursing/swine-flu/nurses-reluctant-to-have-swine-f lu-jabs/5005221.article

hmm.... so nurses are reluctant to have it as well, that says something!

one word no!!!! no way would I have it or allow a child to have it, beware of bigpharma ladies. Scary stuff, untested, has caused permanent nerve damage in 25 children so far in the US which can become fatal, Guillain Barre Syndrome, no tests on unborn babies. Don't become the test cases people refer to next time there's a flu pandemic, please!

I'll not be having it - too little is known about the effects on unborn babies (or indeed breastfed babies). As said above take out hte "swine" and this is just another flu - and a mild one at that. I think the main risk is going into premature labour - so if I was earlier in my preg I might weigh up the risk differently (I'm 30 weeks)

Hi... been to see my consultant today and tried to quizz her about the swine flu but she didnt have much more to say apart from that she is going on a training course in two weeks and will know more then. She did say that the best person to ask advice from is your doctor as these are the people who have first hand information on patients with swine flu in the area, how bad they are, etc etc..... one thing she did say is that they dont normally give pregnant women anything other than a chicken pox vaccine if caught late on in the pregnancy to stop baby getting it.

Wow, it's so different here in Canada. I have asthma so get a flu shot every autumn, and last year I had one when pregnant. I will definitely get it as usual. It's not a "big pharma" conspiracy, how ridiculous. It can't be that different from the ordinary flu vaccine.

Hi Ladies, I came across this article which might be worth a read:

www.safeminds.org/news/swine-flu-h1n1-vaccine.html

It says amongst other things that "the vaccine has never been evaluated for carcinogenic or mutagenic potential and that animal studies have never been conducted to investigate possible fetal harm" A recent report found that when a pregnant mother?s immune system becomes activated, as happens with vaccine administration, it can influence fetal brain development and neuronal growth. Sometimes side efects could take years to manifest, such schizophrenia.

Obviously make your own minds up, but given that the flu virus will in most cases be mild and non-fatal, I personally would not touch this with a barge pole!

I had my first check in appointment with mw last week. I asked her about it, said I would be reluctant to take the vaccine, as it is untested. She replied that she understood why and that she would be, if she was pregnant too. I got the impression that she wouldn't be encouraging her patients to get vaccinated.

At the moment, I am urring on the side of no. But, obviously the situation changes all of the time.

This is probably a stupid question, but is Relenza tested? I don't understand how an inhaler is considered safer, as it doesn't enter the bloodstream, but cigarettes are hardly safe? Nicotine etc enters the bloodstream. I'm confused.

Id rather go for a swim in nuclear waste! Drugs company's and the goverment are deeply involved with each other financially and I hate to dispute jujubean but immunisations are the least tested drugs out there. Normal meds are tested, re tested and tested again before being allowed into the public domain but immunisations are a whole different ball game with their own set of rules. The WHO (world health organisation) are the ones who advise our doctors and medical staff. They are also deeply involved financially with drugs company's so unless a doctor or other medical staff start to look at different evidence and study the other side of immunisations - it's the blind leading the blind like little sheep. Whenever a new vacination has been approved with whatever fat cat drug co. suddenly there is a huge campaign on TV, posters, leaflets scaring the public silly with promises of death unl;ess you are vacinated. WAtch this space, chicken pox will be a huge child killer soon!! In 1976 there was an outbreak of swine flu and the EXACT SAME immunisation was given to many at the time. There was a large number of people who developed (this will be spelt wrong) Gulane bar syndrome. It is a serious degenerative disease, I think, of the brain. During last week a british goverment document was leaked and in that document it was urging medical authority's to 'keep an eye out' for this condition re emerging when they TEST it out on us. They are testing it out on scottish children and pregnant woman first!
Im due 6th January and am really worried so don't think im just not bothered about swine flu, I am. Im not having an unnecessary drug along with it's cancerous chemicals injected into me and my unborn child. If you think this sounds paranoid ask yourself this, If they can easily remove things like mercury, fumaldahide and immersal from the jabs and eliminate a lot of the main concerns surrounding these jabs, why don't they? They don't because those ingredients give a longer shelf life and are far cheaper to make. AND you would want to take the word of these people why?
Every other country had removed mercury from the immunisations 12 YEARS before britain were forced to do so. They tried very very hard to ignore the warnings in order to save the cash for themselves. I could go on and on because i've read up alot (not via internet) and been to a few seminars on the other side of immunisations and it really opens your eyes to a world you would not believe could be so greedy and carefree of the public's health.

Im usually a light hearted cheery soul, honest!

Im not a mad tree hugging looney - I have a cousin who had a rubella vac at 16 years old, she was a beautiful fit healthy girl just left school and ready to start her new job. The jab caused serious rubella symptoms such as black bruises all over her arms with 2 days of vaccination, within one week she was in bed paralised from the neck down and within 2 weeks she was blind. My beautiful cousin sits unable to move, do anything for herself or even see at 36 years old and her life has been still since the day she took on that vaccine. Her dad at the time tried very hard to get to the bottom of it and did a lot of research to find the same scary world I came across. when I fell pregnant with my DS 2 years ago. The shutters were put down on him and his family and she was swept under the carpet like she was nothing. Back then there wasn't as easy to get compensation either, not that that was my uncle's main priority. He just wanted recognition, an appology and the vaccine looked into more carefully. No chance, the numbers of vaccine damaged people (who can prove it) are not enough to stop them raking the money in.

Oh rant over, im away for coffee and biscuits!"

Just wanted to thank you all for your thoughts - I'm nearly 16 wks and was wondering about it all too. Perhaps if your consultant, waitingwaiting (or anyone else with a heads up) gives you anything more you could post in future? Thanks.