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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

offered swine flu jab...

51 replies

goodlifemummy · 11/06/2010 09:05

Morning! Got a letter from my GP offering me the swine flu jab, I am 12 weeks tomorrow. I am usually quite fit and healthy and don't tend to get really ill. Just wondering if anyone has any opinions one way or the other, I am leaning pretty strongly towards not getting it. I didn't get my two 5 year olds done either. Thanks!

OP posts:

heymango · 12/06/2010 09:59

Tangle, that is incredibly sad - I am so sorry for your loss.

DetectivePotato · 12/06/2010 10:47

How awful Tangle. So sorry for your loss. Your experience has confirmed for me that I will definitely be having it.

LuluF · 12/06/2010 12:08

Oh LeonieDelt - you mis-understood my question. I understand the different ways in which the mercury gets into our bodies. From your previous post, it seemed that you were saying that there was a difference between the mercury - and that was what I was asking you to clarify.

ArthurPewty · 12/06/2010 17:02

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

DetectivePotato · 12/06/2010 18:41

Sorry Leonie but we haven't heard of problems with the swine flu jab at all. Pregnant women dying on the other hand, we have.

MrsGangly · 12/06/2010 20:02

I have no idea why anyone would refuse a vaccine on the basis of a vague unsubstantiated theory, without ANY mainstream medical evidence, about mercury (a question that you've not really dealt with properly) when the reason that children don't die of childhood illnesses is because of vaccination!

ArthurPewty · 12/06/2010 21:59

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

DetectivePotato · 12/06/2010 22:17

Good idea. Its not unnesessary at all when people actually die from it, yet a vaccination can change that.

sassy34264 · 13/06/2010 11:38

When my friend was pregnant last oct and was offered the swine flu jab, i researched it for her over the internet- including some proper scientific papers (not just articles in a newspaper). I came to the conclusion that that it was more of a risk than a cure. First thing that put me off, was, that they are not ethically allowed to test pregnant women when conducting studies- so it has never been tested on them. And secondly, it actually says not suitable for pregnant woman on some of the brands packets.
I also came across a blog with lots and lots of entries by woman who had lost their babies right after having it. Whether they would have MC anyway, you can't know.
I did feel that if you were to have it though the evidence suggests that must pregnant woman get it in the 3rd trimester (about triple the number who get it in the 1st) so it would be better to have it later.
Obviously in the interest of fairness, i did come across lots of articles and blogs by women who had, had it and were perfectly fine. It's a judgement call and not a very nice one. I'm pregnant myself now and i won't be having it. Just have to hope that's the right decision.

sassy34264 · 13/06/2010 11:41

Sorry i mean most and women! Pregnant and knackered!

DetectivePotato · 13/06/2010 15:07

I'm hoping now that as so many pregnant women have had it, they would have discovered if it wasn't safe by now. Unfortunately they were the guinea pigs and I will hopefully have it in my 3rd trimester, which will be just as winter is coming.

CarGirl · 13/06/2010 15:13

A friend of friend lost her baby after contracting swine flu and then died herself , her husband went from being newly married with a pregnant wife to a widower within 6 months

I just don't think it's an easy choice to make.

nunnie · 13/06/2010 15:25

I haven't been offered it my DD had it before I knew I was pregnant. Then there was an article saying that it had been scrapped for certain groups. With not hearign anything I guessed pregnant women were one of the groups dropped.
Obviously not, maybe I will here something before the 3rd trimester kicks in.

DetectivePotato · 13/06/2010 18:30

Cargirl thats really awful. That poor man.

dragonrides · 13/06/2010 20:43

Just read about the scandal of WHO taking kickbacks from H1N1 vaccine manufacturers. I chose not to have it back in Nov last year and now it's not the season yet for the unborn twins to catch on any flu during this time of the year so I am still not worried about them getting the flu. I personally have never taken any flu shots in my whole life. Maybe strengthening your immune system through alternatives means will help, such as taking D3 (or getting enough sunshine), having a healthy diet and getting enough rest and reducing stress during your pregnancy.

I am sorry to read about some stories from H1N1 infection though, there're risks and benefits to virtually anything in life. Good luck in making your own decision!

www.infowars.com/who-scandal-exposed-advisors-received-kickbacks-from-h1n1-vacci ne-manufacturers/

LuluF · 14/06/2010 12:56

Right - I've just been to the doctors and I'm mentioned the Swine Flu vaccination to my GP as an aside. He was really happy to talk to me about it. He said that it is safe for pregnant women to have at any time during their pregnancy, that many, many woment have had it sucessfully.

I asked him about the mercury. He said that, yes, there is a mercury based preservative in the vaccination, but that there is no evidence to suggest that it causes any problems.

He is baffled by the amount of people refusing the vaccination, specially as those under 60 are naive to the virus. He did say everything's gone very quiet, but no one can predict what will happen in the autumn and winter.

He said that there is an alternative vaccination, but that 2 shots are required and that as not as many people have had this, there are not the statistics so readily available.

As I mentioned before, it makes no difference if you're a normally healthy person, the influenza virus doesn't discriminate. There are many statistics to show that in previous pandemics the young and healthy are the hardest hit. A viral infection of any kind is more dangerous in pregnancy.

Yes, there are risks in everyday life, but I feel I've got the chance to protect myself, my unborn baby and be there for my three other children. It's clear to me (but then I have faith in science and medicine, my kids have been vacciated against MMR and I don't really believe that organic food is beneficial, but that's possibly for another thread).

I know it's a hard decision to make, and we all have to make up our own minds. But maybe go and get one opinion from your GP. You might not agree with him/her or even decide to go ahead with it, but the information will be fact based and not based on rumour or on a conspiracy theory dredged up on the internet, even if it is only one side of the argument.

LuluF · 14/06/2010 12:58

And nunnie - I wasn't offered it, but because all the hype has died down our surgery seems to have put it on the back burner. My GP has now put me on a list to be contacted when they're going to be doing some more - might be worth ringing your surgery if to see if they have a similar practice?

You can always change your mind if you decide not to go ahead with it.

nunnie · 14/06/2010 13:02

I will mention it when I see the midwife. I know with the annual flu jab they send letters out to all vunerable people, they always send one to me and have never been able to tell me why, some date of birth mix up.
Maybe they will do the same with the swine flu when they start them again.
They sent a letter for DD as well, so that might be their practice, but will check thank you.

LuluF · 14/06/2010 13:07

The GP said that the ampules contain enough vaccine to vaccinate 10 people, so it might be a case of waiting until they've got enough people to vaccinate at once.

Weird mix up - so they think you're over 65 and pregnant?!! ;)

nunnie · 14/06/2010 13:16

No this was before my pregnancy, I have never been I always ring and say, I don't think I am entitled to the flu jab as I don't fit into therequired groups, and they always use the same excuse, that it is a date of birth mix up, but my date of birth is always right when they read it out to me very odd, maybe they just think I look 35 years older than I do, or it's just a standard excuse when someone queries the letter. Or maybe I am classed as a risk with something in my medical history but not sure what it might be .

That's what it was like with DD, got the letter rang and said I wanted her to have it, and they said they need a clinic of 10 and will get a phonecall at a later date with appointment.
Will hang fire, and if haven't got letter by the time I go to see midwife I will mention it.

Thank you.

LuluF · 14/06/2010 22:40

I'm sure they would have told you if it was anything on your medical history that made you a risk. But I think I'd be suspicious, too - because I'm naturally suspicious!!

oldmum42 · 15/06/2010 22:02

I had the swine flu jab while TTC, and have the seasonal flu jab every year (as do my 3ds). We have no particular risk factors, but DH is a Doctor and I have a science degree.

our thinking is, seasonal flu jabs protect you against 2 or 3 flu viruses that are the most active circulating each year, but they do something else which may be far more important,
which is to build up an immune library of virus segments which could offer protection or partial protection from new flu strains which emerge in the future - and this seems to have happened with swine flu, older people who were exposed to virus fragments (by vaccination or by natural exposure to the flu)which are in the new swine flu are not catching/dying of swine flu in the numbers you would have expected (swine flu has not gone away, it's still circulating round the globe).

Real flu (rather than the common cold)is dangerous, and kills a lot of people. All flu strains are dangerous to the fetus - and real flu frequently causes fetal death. My own mother lost a baby during a wave of the Hong-Kong flu outbreak.

Swine flu is VERY much more serious in pregnant women (no matter how fit and healthy) than in other adults. The death rate is about 6 times higher in pregnant women than in the general population, and higher than other risk groups. The fetal loss rate was much, much higher than the maternal death rate.

So, yes I'd advice taking the jab, in fact if I'd not had it already I'd be actively asking for it and not waiting for it to be offered.

oldmum42 · 15/06/2010 22:15

Detective potato, if you want to have the swine flu jab I'd suggest you have it now - the risks to you, if you catch it after 20 weeks, rise steeply, and the jab takes about 10 days to 2 weeks to give full protection. It may be summer but the doctor will have, or be able to get the vaccine for you.

Although you can get the jab at any stage, before 20 weeks would give you the best protection.

DetectivePotato · 16/06/2010 09:59

Thanks oldmum. I'm going to wait until I'm 12 weeks (6 weeks to go) then make an appointment.

Do you know is it is safe to have the normal flu jab at the same time? I have been offered both of them at the same time.

MrsGangly · 16/06/2010 10:28

Lots of people had both injections at the same time last winter. I found the worst thing about it was having two sore arms rather than just one!

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