If you have read my blog for awhile, you know I am very pro-vaccines. I should like to think I’m preaching to the choir, but I know many of my readers feel the complete opposite.
With the widespread occurrence of various flu strains going around, please, please, please get your flu shot! Make sure your children get theirs. Summer and I both got ours at her appointment last week. She got a poke, but I was able to get the mist. Awesome!
If you do wind up getting the flu this year, and I ask if you got your flu shot and you say “no”, I will feel ZERO sorry for you. ZERO. I’ll hand you a tissue, and then I’ll say “I told you so.”
You may say, “I did get my flu shot and I still got the flu!” Well, that’s the way it goes. These things are not 100% accurate. But if you had the opportunity to do something to prevent getting it at all, wouldn’t you take it??
200,000 people each year will be hospitalized due to the seasonal flu, and 36,000 will die from it.
On top of the seasonal flu vaccine, we now have a vaccine for H1N1, or Swine Flu.
I’ll make it easy for you and outline who should be getting these vaccines, per the CDC:
- Pregnant women
- Household contacts and caregivers for children younger than 6 months of age
- Healthcare and emergency medical services personnel
- All persons between 6 months through 24 years of age
- 6 months through 18 years because there have been many cases of H1N1 (Swine) flu in children and they are in close contact with each other in school and day care settings, which increases the likelihood of disease spread.
- Young adults 19 through 24 years of age because there have been many cases of H1N1 (Swine) flu in these healthy young adults and they often live, work, and study in close proximity, and they are a frequently mobile population.
- Persons aged 25 through 64 years who have health conditions associated with higher risk of medical complications from influenza.
As a medical professional, I feel very strongly about this. I see the kids that get admitted from the flu, and it isn’t pretty. Especially when it could have been prevented.
And as always, make sure you are practicing rigorous hand hygiene, using sanitizer and washing often!! There’s really no such thing as washing your hands too much!
9 comments:
Good post Karen! I agree with you! I've been thinking about posting something on my blog...my OB and my pediatrician both recommend getting regular flu shot early...you have to wait 20-30 days between vaccines.
amen...and no no no there is no such thing as washing too often, although sometimes my hands bleed from it. and then i must wash them to make sure nothing gets inside! ocd???
I heard that Flu-shots are financed by drug money which ultimately leads to terrorism. But I got one anyway.
We got our flu shots last month. But I'm a little apprehensive about the Swine Flu vaccine. I've heard all sorts of bad things about it. I'm calling the pediatrician.
K! I can't believe your post. I just had this EXACT same conversation with several people. In fact, I told Brian if he didn't get his flu shot, there would be no sympathy from me if he got the flu. This is a topic I feel so strongly about..and people who don't get these vaccines are just plain idiots, and they better not complain when they actually get the flu. And furthermore, some people will get the flu prior to getting the vaccine, thus the "still get the flu," or they contract another strain. As for the H1N1-people are worried about getting Guillian Barre (or however you spell it), as people did back in 1975. But we have advanced in medicine since 1975. As you can tell I can go on and on. As for ouur pediatricians, they are encouraging the H1N1 vaccine, as is the CDC. Would you like me to continue???
There's just something about 'professional' and 'Karen' that don't go together.
Thank you Karen!! I completely agree! I really wish certain people I know (some fam) would understand the importance of vaccinations. It seems like there is a trend of more and more people against them and it scares me. Especially scary not giving your baby the scheduled vaccines.
I LOVE VACCINES!!!! I think people who choose not to have themselves or their children vaccinated are crazy. I am ALWAYS the first in line to get me and the rest of our little fam when the flu shots become available each year.
We all got the flu shot here!
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