So with all the swine flu talk will anyone be limiting there activities

[kjdkek]

I am just curious as to whether anyone will be limiting their activities? I wonder if I am being paranoid?? I am considering stopping our activities this fall. My 3 oldest do kickboxing and juijitsu a few times a week. There are a ton of kids and adults that go there so I am worried about it. The owners tell everyone that if they have a cut on their foot to not even come to class because there are so many germs. Everyone is wrestling and sweating on the mats. Just wanted to know what others are going to do. I am pregnant and I have 5 children that I am worried about. I tell you it is really stressing me out. Am I being to paranoid??

 

Erin

 

After rereading my post...duh... their and not there

[FlockOfSillies]

I won't be limiting my activities, but then I don't have cable, so I don't get caught up in the media-driven hysteria.

[Rebecca VA]

No, you're not being unreasonable. I'm weighing each activity I sign my child up for. I'm more likely to pay month-by-month now, since no one knows if activities will have to be cancelled indefinitely. I'm a little concerned about swine flu but not unduly so (we're pretty healthy here), but I am concerned about signing up for things and not being able to finish out the semester or year.

[lionfamily1999]

Lol, I thought it was a joke (their activities or there activities - being activities over there).

 

I'm in the same conundrum. I'm a den leader, I don't think I can drop out completely, but ....... Hornblower scared the patooties out of me :(

[fshinkevich]

I am having a wait and see attitude. I am not pulling them out of anything YET, but I am not signing them up for anything new either and am fully prepared to take them out if need be.

 

I will be avoiding enclosed public places as much as possible, like the library. Hard as a hs'er I know, but I plan to just reserve my books from my computer and run in and grab them when the kids can stay home with dad.

 

I will not be going to my kids physicals this year either, unless it becomes emergency. The last place I want to be is a Drs office :001_smile:

 

We'll still play outdoors and stress frequent hand washing, not touching faces etc, which will be hard for the toddlers!

[lllll]

We usually make more of an effort to stay home when the ps's start back up anyway. This year I think we'll be home from here 'til next summer. (Just kidding. Maybe.)

 

We have to come in once a month to fill up the cars and our 10 gas cans (dh ... the penny pincher ;)). And we have a dentist appointment for teeth cleaning. But I know we catch a whole lot less colds and other things when we just stay home.

 

Now if I can just get my dh to wash. his. hands ... we might never get sick. I've actually been sitting next to him at the computers in the library here and watched him biting his nails. :w00t::blink::eek: Yuk.

[melissel]

No, the swine flu won't even be a consideration for us in terms of activities. However, DD3 (almost 4) sucks her thumb, so we've instituted an antiseptic wipe policy after all activities (and if you knew me, you'd know how huge a step that is, since I'm generally against antibacterial anything, LOL). Even without the swine flu in play, I can't handle us all getting sick as much as we have in the past year, so something has to give. I won't change our lives over it, but I'm definitely going on high alert with regard to sanitary practices.

[Tammy]

n

[Plucky]

I don't know. One of our friends has just been diagnosed with swine flu. That means it is here in our circle.

[Tutor]

No, but we've already been exposed to swine flu (many times over, apparently), so there's really no point now. We just go about our lives as usual and practice good hygiene.

[PollyOR]

I considered it, but I don't believe it will make a difference. The members of our congregation don't seem to think that being sick means you should stay home :glare:. It's one of my pet peeves. Unfortunately homeschooling doesn't protect us from church members.

Edited August 26, 2009 by PollyOR

[Georgiana Daniels]

Not changing any plans here, just being hyper-sensitive to hand washing, etc. I'm a hypochondriac and I don't want to pass that on to my kids. Not that being cautious about swine flu is a hypo thing, because really it's common sense. But, I do have a tendency to overreact.

 

Besides, our home is so small that to be here all the time would drive us batty:D

[farmmom4him]

Yes, we will be limiting. We have a 21 mo old who has had RSV twice and a 7 mo old who has had RSV 1 and pneumonia 1. So, they are at high risk for complications. We limited activities last year for MONTHS, and again will be doing it this year. ;)

[Danestress]

there have been several flu seasons when we've had a couple of weeks of not going to libraries, museums, etc because of the flu. I'm not one to worry about fatality rates as much as to just NOT want the flu, lol.

 

If it becomes bad here and authorities recommend not making unnecessary outings, we might limit them. Realistically, DH is very much in the public almost everyday, and he's not going to quit work over the flu. So I don't really think limiting my boys' activities will make much difference. We will continue with most of our activities - sports, church, violin lessons - as planned.

[TraceyS/FL]

I'm worried - not as much about us, but about the impact on my Dad and his reduced immune system. We will be "out" more on a regular basis this fall and i'm going to have to get diligent on the handwashing when we leave places.

 

I thought the hand sanitizer wasn't strong enough to work? I can't remember what Perry said to buy either.

 

But i have been thinking about it and trying to limit exposure.

[Garga]

I was thinking about all this and then realized my dh works at a community college. Ugh. Just last night I asked him to start washing his hands more throughout the day.

 

And I was waffling over whether or not to send my son to a small local preschool, just for fun. (I staunchly homeschool for our "real" education. The preschool is just for playtime for that one year.)

 

Now I just don't know about the preschool.

[chiguirre]

We'll be in our normal activities. The flu is a possibility, but my kids' education is a current reality. Outside activities make up a large part of our educational programming and I won't suspend them unless there's an epidemic in our local area. And in that case, I'd assume the ps will close and most of our activities follow the ISD's closing schedule (even the hs group activities) so it won't be a problem for us. I will be more vigilant about hand washing or wipes.

[lilbean05]

Yes, we will be! We just started, actually, with all of the local kids going back to school. I am due Oct 15th with our 3rd and just last week we started being really extra careful about going out. We stopped gymnastics for my 4 year old, which was a hard decision because she was just asked to join the mini pre-team. My husband runs to the library now, and today will be my first time going out in 10 days (yikes!) so that I can go to my prenatal appointment. We are a bit nutty about it, but with my due date right around the corner, I feel like I can't take any chances.

[Elizabeth Conley]

Nope. Being hermits will not protect us.

 

My husband goes to work in a dynamic environment where people are always traveling around the U.S. and internationally. He travels too, often by air. Many of the families in our co-op are in the same boat.

 

Besides, we live in Hampton Roads VA, a major hub. Chances are high that we will be exposed.

 

When the vaccine is available, we'll get it. That being said, Nearly all those who died in Mexico were between 20 and 40 years old. Ironically, no one in our immediate family falls in that age range.

[MariannNOVA]

us.

 

My husband goes to work in a dynamic environment where people are always traveling around the U.S. and internationally. He travels too, often by air. Many of the families in our co-op are in the same boat.

 

 

 

Same with my dh -- he has dinners at least 3 nights a week with folks who have come in from overseas or are here in northern virginia from other parts of the US, Canada, Mexico or SA.

 

I imagine I will try to be pro-active as opposed to reactive.....probiotics, handwashing, common sense......instituting good sense measures right now prior to anything happening.

 

And, I don't watch TV news, so basically any news I get about this is from here or AOL -- unless, the sportscasters during a NY Yankee game suddenly start talking about this. :001_smile:

[Shelly in the Country]

I considered it, but I don't believe it will make a difference. The members of our congregation don't seem to think that being sick means you should stay home :glare:. It's one of my pet peeves. Unfortunately homeschooling doesn't protect us from church members.

 

:iagree: Oh my goodness this is a HUGE pet peeve for us too. It seems as though we only attend church every other Sunday because of this. We go to church one week, get sick over the course of the following week, then we stay home because I REFUSE to share our germs with everybody. I also don't want to force any family members to go to church when they are feeling poorly. Dh has considered home-churching during flu season. I realize this is an issue for us because we homeschool though. The other folks at church whose kids are in school probably attribute every illness brought home to school. Since we homeschool, we are able to pinpoint it to church.

[Mom-ninja.]

I'm in the same conundrum. I'm a den leader, I don't think I can drop out completely, but ....... Hornblower scared the patooties out of me :(

 

 

What did Hornblower say? What did I miss? Must go search now....

 

 

If I were pg I would limit for sure! I had my baby last year in November. My friend exposed me to her very sick 4 yr old three days before I went into labor. Right after I gave birth I became quite sick including a nasty cough. Ever have a bad cough when you have stitches in a certain area? Not fun! I was so angry with her. She literally didn't even think about what she did when she showed up in my house. Then when my baby was 5 weeks old it was Christmas, and we went to my in-laws. My SIL's two little kids were sick with sinus infection and bronchitis, and she brought them. Again, I was so angry. Angry I tell you. Who does that? She didn't even call me to tell me her kids were sick to give me the option of staying home. Nope, she just showed up. Then my MIL held the baby while I went to the bathroom. When I came out, she had the little girl (with green nasty snot coming out of her nose), holding my baby. I pitched a fit, and of course that just added to my bad rep with DH's family. :glare: Yes, my baby became sick. I ended up staying awake all night with him for a week because he struggled to breath from the congestion and coughing. :cursing:

 

So yeah. If you're pg I say confine yourself and kiddos during the flu/cold season.

 

 

My DH works in a hospital. :ack2: Not too thrilled about that.

[Perry]

We're going to take a "wait and see" approach. My kids are in ps this year, so trying to limit activities would really be a waste of time for us. If the flu were to be severe enough to result in school closings, we would probably limit unnecessary activities for a short time. I don't plan to go to any extremes though.

 

I am somewhat fatalistic about this. Social distancing for the most part works, but unless we are willing to have no contact with the outside world for several years, almost all of us are going to be exposed to this virus at some point. If the virus gets less virulent over time, maybe you can wait it out. But what if it gets more virulent?

[BigMamaBird]

No, we won't be limiting our activities. If I kept the kids inside during flu season and never left the house, my dh could still bring it home with him from work. He works in an office with over 1,000 people, so if anyone is going to pick it up, it will be him.

[lionfamily1999]

What did Hornblower say? What did I miss? .

It was on one of the other threads about swine flu, the one about half the population of the US...

 

She posted a link to an article that made an epidemic seem logically/mathematically likely. I don't watch television and I rarely check up on the news at all anymore. I ignore hype and media hysteria, but the article she linked......... it gave me pause.

[Dirtroad]

No... if I trusted the CDC & similar agencies, I would never leave my house, eat food, drink water, hug another human, pet a dog.... everything is going to kill you TODAY! I get tired of hysteria & mayhem... .they just want it to happen so bad to validate their existance & increase their power. It just gets old.

 

So, off to the OB/gyn tomorrow and to Walmart (gasp) on Friday for grocery shopping. Terrifying stuff!

Edited August 26, 2009 by Dirtroad

[lighthouseacademy]

Nope- we are eating healthy (no white flour, dairy, or white sugar to compromise the immune system), plenty of fresh fruits and veggies (organic if possible). Sleep. Red raspberry leaf tea... Quite frankly, I am not worried about it and think this is really much ado about not much. The likelihood of complications of the flu (let alone the swine flu) are far less than the risk of driving down the street but yet we all continue to drive our cars and think nothing of it.

[SquirrellyMama]

I think the only things I'll limit is trips to McD's playland and trips to the store with the kids. I'll take them to the library and their activities but make sure hands are washed.

[cathmom]

My dh has gotten more and more paranoid about any illnesses or germs as the years have gone by. A few months ago he was all worked up thinking he'd been exposed to TB at work and could have brought it home to us (he wasn't.) He even had the dr. at work telling him not to worry about it!

 

So of course yesterday he heard the news and came home saying maybe we should cancel ballet for the year for the girls, and the kids and I should just stay home for the year. I told that wouldn't help - whenever we get sick, he usually brings it home from work. He's not going to quit work because of the possibility of the flu.

[homeschooltoone]

Absolutely not!

[Moni]

whether anyone will be limiting their activities?

 

No, we won't be limiting.

 

Am I being to paranoid??

 

Eye of the beholder. ;)

 

:seeya:

[DawnM]

Goodness no! We will be out and about.

[hillfarm]

As long as the swine flu continues to be a fairly regular flu, with the current level of related mortality, we would only stay in if there were lots of cases in our immediate area. Otherwise, we will do business as usual. However, if it increases in virulence and causes significantly higher percentage of mortality than predicted, or seems to specifically target kids the age of my dd, then we would look at more restrictive measures.

 

I am proceding under the assumption that we will get it eventually. I have topped off my sick room and basic medical supplies with the assumption that I may well have to care for one or all of us with the flu. If it passes us by, great! Perhaps I will be able to be of help to others not so lucky.

[Laura Corin]

Having lived through Mad Cow Disease in the UK, SARS in Hong Kong and Bird Flu in China, I'll be taking sensible precautions (hand washing) and carrying on with my life.

 

Laura

[Lilymax]

This is hard for me. I tend to be a little germophobic anyway, but since being diagnosed with an autoimmune condition, I've had to be a little more proactive in reducing my exposure to germs.

 

Several years ago, a respiratory infection flared an odd autoimmune muscle inflammation that left me nearly immobile in my shoulder and hip joints. It took months of physical therapy to regain my full range of motion. I'll be having another baby in a few weeks, so between him and my condition, I might just be keeping the older kids home more...esp. if I hear that cases are rising in our area.

 

We've all been healthier since the kids stopped going to school, and as others have said, most of our illnesses since can be traced back to church. My husband works in a large office, but thankfully, he rarely gets sick. Still, I hope he'll up the handwashing. I also plan to get the vaccine for myself, even if I don't get it for the kids.

[chaik76]

Nope.

 

(I do stay home if I am sick, sick...but not for colds and the like. If we did that, no one would ever be able to go out). Right now swine flu is much like other flus...we're not changing anything.

[lamarley]

We've already had it in our household. Teenage dd just caught swine flu last month while on a mission's trip in Central America. We didn't know until after she got back. Her body handled it well, like any other flu. The rest of our family were given Tamiflu for ten days and none of us caught it.

 

No. We will not be limiting our outdoor activities, but I am trying to make sure we keep our immune systems healthy by eating right, taking vitamins, and good hygiene.

[MistyJ]

As long as the swine flu continues to be a fairly regular flu, with the current level of related mortality, we would only stay in if there were lots of cases in our immediate area. Otherwise, we will do business as usual. However, if it increases in virulence and causes significantly higher percentage of mortality than predicted, or seems to specifically target kids the age of my dd, then we would look at more restrictive measures.

 

I am proceding under the assumption that we will get it eventually. I have topped off my sick room and basic medical supplies with the assumption that I may well have to care for one or all of us with the flu. If it passes us by, great! Perhaps I will be able to be of help to others not so lucky.

 

From what I read on Yahoo news yesterday, there will be about 90,000 deaths this season, which is twice the normal rate. What scared me (forgive me for succumbing to hysteria) is that swine flu is predominately lethal in children, whereas the regular flu usually causes death in the elderly.

 

We have been talking about this in our home. I just signed up to volunteer in a co-op. Having second thoughts.

[Mommyof4ks]

No, not even with an immune compromised kiddo. His docs don't think it is necessary at this point, so we will go and continue to use our hand washing practices. This might be the year that he is the best protected from germs lol. We have not been to church in a long time (a couple of years basically except a few times here and here) because that is where my kids get sick the most.

 

Dh works with people who don't mind coming to work sick, so we get exposed anyway *sigh*.

[Devotional Soul]

I mix essential oils in a bottle with water and spray it whenever we go it. Theives oil saved lives during the black plague, we use those oils plus oregano oil and lavender. Also, lomatium root extract saved lives of the Native American tribes during the Spanish Flu pandemic. These plus eating healthy, homemade food, plenty of vitamin c, and we never get sick.

 

I think the most important way to keep the swine flu away is by NOT getting the flu vax and NOT taking Tamiflu. These profit the same company, Baxter, that most likely created and spread this flu, and suppress the immune system.

[Tree House Academy]

We are holding off on co-op this year. We are still doing tae-kwon-do and soccer until we get a good reason not to.

[fivetails]

These profit the same company, Baxter, that most likely created and spread this flu, and suppress the immune system.

 

:001_huh:

 

?

[Devotional Soul]

:001_huh:

 

?

 

Here's a good article by Dr. Mercola about it, I highly recommend reading the whole thing, but here's the parts about Baxter if you don't want to give your email to read it, I hope that's ok:

 

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/04/29/Swine-Flu.aspx

 

Where did This Mysterious New Animal-Human Flu Strain Come From?

 

Alongside the fear-mongering headlines, I've also seen increasing numbers of reports questioning the true nature of this virus. And rightfully so.

 

Could a mixed animal-human mutant like this occur naturally? And if not, who made it, and how was it released?

 

Not one to dabble too deep in conspiracy theories, I don't have to strain very hard to find actual facts to support the notion that this may not be a natural mutation, and that those who stand to gain have the wherewithal to pull off such a stunt.

 

Just last month I reported on the story that the American pharmaceutical company Baxter was under investigation for distributing the deadly avian flu virus to 18 different countries as part of a seasonal flu vaccine shipment. Czech reporters were probing to see if it may have been part of a deliberate attempt to start a pandemic; as such a "mistake" would be virtually impossible under the security protocols of that virus.

 

The H5N1 virus on its own is not very airborne. However, when combined with seasonal flu viruses, which are more easily spread, the effect could be a potent, airborne, deadly, biological weapon. If this batch of live bird flu and seasonal flu viruses had reached the public, it could have resulted in dire consequences.

 

There is a name for this mixing of viruses; it's called "reassortment," and it is one of two ways pandemic viruses are created in the lab. Some scientists say the most recent global outbreak -- the 1977 Russian flu -- was started by a virus created and leaked from a laboratory.

 

Another example of the less sterling integrity of Big Pharma is the case of Bayer, who sold millions of dollars worth of an injectable blood-clotting medicine to Asian, Latin American, and some European countries in the mid-1980s, even though they knew it was tainted with the AIDS virus.

 

So while it is morally unthinkable that a drug company would knowingly contaminate flu vaccines with a deadly flu virus such as the bird- or swine flu, it is certainly not impossible. It has already happened more than once.

 

But there seems to be no repercussions or hard feelings when industry oversteps the boundaries of morality and integrity and enters the arena of obscenity. Because, lo and behold, which company has been chosen to head up efforts, along with WHO, to produce a vaccine against the Mexican swine flu?

 

Baxter!11 Despite the fact that ink has barely dried on the investigative reports from their should-be-criminal "mistake" against humanity.

 

According to other sources,12 a top scientist for the United Nations, who has examined the outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in Africa, as well as HIV/AIDS victims, has concluded that the current swine flu virus possesses certain transmission "vectors" that suggest the new strain has been genetically-manufactured as a military biological warfare weapon.

 

The UN expert believes that Ebola, HIV/AIDS, and the current A-H1N1 swine flu virus are biological warfare agents.

 

In addition, Army criminal investigators are looking into the possibility that disease samples are missing from biolabs at Fort Detrick -- the same Army research lab from which the 2001 anthrax strain was released, according to a recent article in the Fredrick News Post.13 In February, the top biodefense lab halted all its research into Ebola, anthrax, plague, and other diseases known as "select agents," after they discovered virus samples that weren't listed in its inventory and might have been switched with something else.

 

 

Your Fear Will Make Some People VERY Rich in Today's Crumbling Economy

Tamiflu (oseltamivir phosphate) is approved for treatment of uncomplicated influenza A and B in children 1 year of age or older. It is also approved for prevention of influenza in people 13 years or older. It’s part of a group of anti-influenza drugs called neuraminidase inhibitors, which work by blocking a viral enzyme that helps the influenza virus to invade cells in your respiratory tract.

 

According to the Associated Press at least one financial analyst estimates up to $388 million worth of Tamiflu sales in the near future10 -- and that's without a pandemic outbreak.

 

More than half a dozen pharmaceutical companies, including Gilead Sciences Inc., Roche, GlaxoSmithKline and other companies with a stake in flu treatments and detection, have seen a rise in their shares in a matter of days, and will likely see revenue boosts if the swine flu outbreak continues to spread.

 

Swine flue is extremely convenient for governments that would have very soon have to dispose of billions of dollars of Tamiflu stock, which they bought to counter avian flu, or H5N1. The US government ordered 20 million doses, costing $2 billion, in October, 2005, and around that time the UK government ordered 14.6 million doses. Tamiflu’s manufacturer, Roche, has confirmed that the shelf life of its anti-viral is three years.

 

As soon as Homeland Security declared a health emergency, 25 percent -- about 12 million doses -- of Tamiflu and Relenza treatment courses were released from the nation's stockpile. However, beware that the declaration also allows unapproved tests and drugs to be administered to children. Many health- and government officials are more than willing to take that chance with your life, and the life of your child. But are you?

 

 

 

Tamiflu Loaded With Side Effects, Including Death and Can Only Reduce Symptoms by 36 Hours at BEST

Please realize that Tamiflu is NOT a safe drug Serious side effects include convulsions, delirium or delusions, and 14 deaths in children and teens as a result of neuropsychiatric problems and brain infections Japan actually banned Tamiflu for children in 2007.

 

Remember, Tamiflu went through some rough times not too long ago, as the dangers of this drug came to light when, in 2007, the FDA finally began investigating some 1,800 adverse event reports related to the drug.

 

Additionally common side effects of Tamiflu include:

 

Nausea

Vomiting

Diarrhea

Headache

Dizziness

Fatigue

Cough

All in all, the very symptoms you're trying to avoid.

 

Additionally, Tamiflu has been reported to be ineffective against seasonal flu outbreaks, and may not be sufficient to combat an epidemic or pandemic.

 

But making matters worse, some patients with influenza are at HIGHER risk for secondary bacterial infections when on Tamiflu. And secondary bacterial infections, as I mentioned earlier, was likely the REAL cause of the mass fatalities during the 1918 pandemic!

 

But here’s the real kicker.

 

When Tamiflu is used as directed (twice daily for 5 days) it can ONLY reduce the duration of your influenza symptoms by 1 to 1 ½ days, according to the official data.

 

Why on earth would anyone want to take a drug that has a chance of killing you, was banned in Japan, is loaded with side effects that mimic the flu itself, costs over $100, and AT BEST can only provide 36 hours of SYMPTOM relief. Just doesn't make any sense.

 

Please recognize that there is serious revenue in Tamiflu. The Financial Times reports that governments around the world have previously stockpiled 220 million doses in preparation for a pandemic that has yet to appear. The cost of this preparation is $7 billion dollars.