Are you getting a flu shot? If you don’t usually, but are now, what motivates you?

[Ginevra]

I just got my flu shot. This is only the second time I have gotten it, but I now expect to get them going forward from now on. 

Last Christmas, when everyone had Creeping Crud (that they swear must have been COVID - I’m skeptical, but the verdict is out), dh and ds got sick, sick as can be, while I got a day or two of feeling a bit off and fatigued and then bounced back. I theorize this was the flu and mine was mitigated by the flu shot; dh and ds did not get the flu shot and they were sick as dogs. It’s just sort of a strange coincidence that we now have COVID perhaps illuminating the benefits of getting a flu shot, though I know some will still refuse them. 

 

[Ottakee]

We get one every year and have already gotten one this year.

[Not_a_Number]

I just got mine on Tuesday! I got one last year, but only after having the flu, sigh. My kids and DH had already had their flu shots and hadn't gotten sick, and I had been planning to get the flu shot the day AFTER I got the flu, no joke (I got it early in November, so I wasn't even that late!) 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, Not_a_Number said:

I just got mine on Tuesday! I got one last year, but only after having the flu, sigh. My kids and DH had already had their flu shots and hadn't gotten sick, and I had been planning to get the flu shot the day AFTER I got the flu, no joke (I got it early in November, so I wasn't even that late!) 

Aw man. That’s bad luck! 

[Pam in CT]

I got mine at CVS a week or so ago.  I usually *try* to, but don't always get around to it. This year I've been harping on all family members to do it (4/5 have so far, as has my mother).

I'm more determined about it this year because I'm so acutely conscious of hospital overwhelm due to COVID. Though the odds of any of us being hospitalized for ordinary flu are slim... it's an easy enough thing to do, to bring those odds down even lower.

[Spy Car]

I did. I get it more often than not--but am usually the passive partner who yields to the highly urgent prodding of Kaiser Permanente (those people are very pushy! ).

Not this year. I actively sought one out. I do not want the flu. I do not want Covid. I don't one to confuse having the two. I don't want to get so sick I'm in the hospital (and helping overwhelm the system). None of it.

Feeling very risk intolerant this year. 

Lighting candles in hopes of a Covid vaccine next year. 

Bill

 

 

[Not_a_Number]

4 minutes ago, Quill said:

Aw man. That’s bad luck! 

I know, right?? 

[*Jessica*]

I have never had a flu shot and I will absolutely be getting one this year and every year from now on.  I feel pretty strongly about protecting vulnerable people and hate that I haven’t done that in the past.  

[Roadrunner]

I usually never do (laziness),  but I did this year.

I don’t want to come down with a flu and then try and guess what I have - flu or Covid. Plus I worry  hospitals will be overwhelmed this year, so I am doing my part to minimize potential illnesses. Also I have gotten older and my health isn’t what it used to be. 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Roadrunner

[Lady Marmalade]

I'm getting one and I haven't gotten a flu shot since college.  The reason is that I can't afford to take the flu to work in this time of covid.  If anyone gets any symptoms, they have to be off the schedule for at least three days- longer if they remain sick and have to get a covd test.  I've spent the last 7 months keeping myself as safe as possible so as not to bring covid to work and my team of 150.  I'm not going to let up on that vigilance now and if the flu shot is one way I can help keep everyone healthy, I would like to do it. 

[Shoeless]

I was inconsistent about getting them in the past.  Then I learned that influenza also can have asymptomatic spread.  I will be getting one every year from now on. 

[Ditto]

Yes, we always get them and have already gotten them this year.   Why?  Because I am all about preventing any illness I can. 

[Guest]

10 minutes ago, Roadrunner said:

I usually never do (laziness),  but I did this year.

I don’t want to come down with a flu and then try and guess what I have - flu or Covid. Plus I worry  hospitals will be overwhelmed this year, so I am doing my part to minimize potential illnesses. Also I have gotten older and my health isn’t what it used to be. 

Well, that still could happen. Not to be “that lady,” or anything, but if you get sick, you will still not know if it’s the flu or COVID...or something else. 

Not overwhelming hospitals is a good goal, for sure.

[Not_a_Number]

9 minutes ago, MissLemon said:

I was inconsistent about getting them in the past.  Then I learned that influenza also can have asymptomatic spread.  I will be getting one every year from now on. 

I feel like COVID has really taught me some unpleasant truths about the flu! 

[Shoeless]

1 minute ago, Not_a_Number said:

I feel like COVID has really taught me some unpleasant truths about the flu! 

Yep! I was pretty horrified when I found that out. I'm sure it happens quite often with other viruses, too, and we never know it. 

[City Mouse]

I am normally lazy about getting a flu shot. I get one if and when it happens to be convenient. Last winter I got one at a doctor appointment when I hurt my back. 

This year I made a point of getting a flu shot, and I am going to ask my adult kids who live at home to get shots as well. DH usually gets one every year as it is provided free by his employer. My reasoning this year is that everyone is going to be more suspicious of any type of cold-like symptoms, so if we can avoid the flu that is just one less thing to have to worry about. My current workplace is very serious that anyone experiencing any of the COVID symptoms must get tested and stay home 2 weeks or until negative test results. One lady missed a full week of work because she had a migraine. I am a contract worker, so if I don’t work, I don’t get paid. I lost a lot of income already due to COVID restrictions, and I don’t want to lose anymore. 

[Tanaqui]

Everybody in the household gets one every single year. We have at least one asthmatic here, probably three, one of the "probable asthmatics", my mother, is already on oxygen - we don't take chances.

Plus, I had the flu as a teen, and it was awful. The worst two weeks of my life, and then it took me months to really recover. I look back on it now and I marvel that I didn't end up in the hospital from dehydration, if nothing else.

[rebcoola]

Yeah I've been kind of lazy about it in the past. The kids have fall birthdays so they got them at their well child visits. DH got it at work. So they were easy but I would have to remember and seek it out.  It's such a small easy thing to do to help it's silly I haven't been good about it.  

[Lanny]

I haven't gotten a Flu   shot for about 20 years. The last time I had one I got really sick and my DW didn't think that was a good idea, although I suspect it is occasionally normal.  My DW thought it was because of the Flu Shot.  A year or so ago I read that those vaccines are "Killed" so one cannot actually get the Flu from the shot.

However, now, I'm elderly and like everyone in my age group much more vulnerable to COVID-19 than younger adults are.

A few months ago, I read about the COVID-19 vaccine being tested made by a company called MODERNA.  Early testing showed it to be as effective in elderly people as in younger adults. If that continues and if it is approved by the FDA  and if it is available here in Colombia, I would like to get the MODERNA vaccine.   (Here they were very strict with the quarantine of elderly people and so now I am very appreciative of that and very aware of the vulnerability of the elderly to COVID-19)

[Roadrunner]

1 hour ago, Quill said:

Well, that still could happen. Not to be “that lady,” or anything, but if you get sick, you will still not know if it’s the flu or COVID...or something else. 

Not overwhelming hospitals is a good goal, for sure.

True, but in all honesty I have only ever had fever with flu. So if it doesn’t eliminate all the possibilities, it really helps to narrow then down! 😉

Edited October 23, 2020 by Roadrunner

[gardenmom5]

I might this year.  I had pneumonia in January.  Even though it was only in one (of five) lobes, it was pretty resistant to the antibiotics.

Now - I have a kitten in my house, and I'm allergic to cats. That will tax my immune system.  (my dr suspects I may be dealing with a chronic infection.  she ordered the original lab back in July - and the lab ran the wrong test to determine if I'm fighting an active infection.  It did show an extremely high antibody count towards that virus, ,so could be.)

[SKL]

No, I will not, for the same reasons I have not in past years.

[regentrude]

I get one every year and have gotten mine. I am in contact with hundreds of students who live in dorms, so it's  a no brainer for me.

The one year vaccine was in short supply I got the flu and was very very sick. Don't care to repeat. 

[madteaparty]

We never get the flu shot and will not start this year. 

Edited October 23, 2020 by madteaparty

[Lecka]

This is a good reminder!  3/5 of my family have gotten it already, but then I forgot all about it for the other two.  
 

I thought they would get them at medical appointments we ended up needing to cancel.  

Edited October 23, 2020 by Lecka

[ScoutTN]

Yes, got mine earlier this week. Late, I usually do September. I never used to get it, but my kids got the flu a couple of times and it was crummy. Also, my mom is elderly and we like to reduce risk for her, so we get the vax. I don't think it's super effective many years, but I am happy to have whatever edge I can get. 

$10 gift card per shot at Publix! Deal! Get shots, then dinner from the deli or the sushi counter. 

Edited October 23, 2020 by ScoutTN

[Ellie]

Absolutely not.  Not gonna take C*vid, either.

[EmilyGF]

Yes, planning to get it with kids in the next week or two. We usually get lined up at the peds. I go first, then everyone else gets one after Mom's good example. 😉 

[Loowit]

I haven't decided.  I feel like I should, but I always end up feeling yucky for several days afterward.  I know you can't get the flu from the shot, but I get some mild flu like symptoms from it.  And this year that would make me worry that I have Covid or should get tested for it if I have symptoms.

DD is getting hers tomorrow at her doctor appointment, and I should get them for the boys too.  DH is refusing to get one.

[Bootsie]

Last year was only the second time I had a flu shot and had what to me was a reaction, but the doctor said it was nothing to be concerned about (red knot that was sore and warm to the touch for about 5 days).  After that, I was thinking I probably would not get one this year, and I wasn't wanting to go some place like a clinic to get one and wonder what else I was being exposed to.  But, my university had an outdoor flu shot clinic with free shots and a sign up where there was no wait, so I got one a couple of weeks ago.  No reaction at all this time!

[Terabith]

We pretty much get one every year.  It's possible we missed a year or two along the way, but my youngest has asthma; my husband works for a hospital, and I work with children and seem to have a weak immune system.  I usually try to get them in October, because I was told that way the coverage is more likely to remain throughout flu season, but I was worried about them running out this year.  So we got them a couple weeks early, at the end of September.  

[Laura Corin]

I've been getting the flu shot every year since I was in Hong Kong for SARS. The medicines they used to treat SARS could be damaging in themselves,  and my doctor recommended the flu jab to reduce the likelihood of being mistakenly diagnosed with SARS when it was flu. The tests for SARS were not quickly available.

Edited October 23, 2020 by Laura Corin

[Twolittleboys]

Probably not. I never have as it is only recommended for certain groups where I live. I have considered it this year due to COVID (potentially overloaded doctors/hospitals, less chance of getting both etc.) but don't think I will as they are low on flu shots and they are still supposed to be used mainly for at risk populations.

[Laura Corin]

3 minutes ago, Twolittleboys said:

Probably not. I never have as it is only recommended for certain groups where I live. I have considered it this year due to COVID (potentially overloaded doctors/hospitals, less chance of getting both etc.) but don't think I will as they are low on flu shots and they are still supposed to be used mainly for at risk populations.

I'm in the group of lower risk people. Husband is higher risk so he's having the vaccination today. I will be able to have mine in a few weeks.

[Carrie12345]

I don’t usually care much about the flu shot. We, as a family, have had the flu once (H1N1). I do get crazy about other prevention methods, but our contact with other people in the cold season is fairly low.

Youngest ds (who wasn’t born and has never had the flu) got his at the dr. office. I took two kids and myself to CVS yesterday because we were in the area, but they were packed.  We’ll try again today. I keep reminding my oldest dd to go, but she hasn’t yet.

I’m not as much worried about the flu as I am about having symptoms and needing the giant q-tip COVID testing, or needing extra medical visits during COVID. And even just the anxiety about those possibilities. I want to do what I can to keep resources available for the people who need it most.

[Guest]

7 hours ago, madteaparty said:

We never get the flu shot and will not start this year. 

What are your reasons, if you care to expand upon this? 

[Guest]

7 hours ago, Ellie said:

Absolutely not.  Not gonna take C*vid, either.

You’re quite definite. 🙂 What are your reasons, if you wish to share? (Share about the flu, or COVID, or vaccines in general.) 

[Guest]

23 minutes ago, Twolittleboys said:

Probably not. I never have as it is only recommended for certain groups where I live. I have considered it this year due to COVID (potentially overloaded doctors/hospitals, less chance of getting both etc.) but don't think I will as they are low on flu shots and they are still supposed to be used mainly for at risk populations.

That’s considerate of you. I was thinking of it almost the opposite way; I’m lower risk, so I’ll get it early in the season while there is no shortage (where I live, I am not aware of a shortage). That way, if they do run short later in the year, I am not competing with higher risk individuals. 

[DawnM]

No, we don't usually get them.  They are offered at my work and I just don't do it.  I have never gotten a flu shot.  I don't think my husband has either.   My older two sons have gotten them once or twice.

I just don't think they are that effective.

[Tenaj]

Everyone in my household has had one this year.  This was the first year ever for me.  Until last year,  my dh got the flu shot and it seemed that was enough to keep it out of the house.  Then two years ago, we had a flu season like no other.  It got into the school where my kids play sports and it seemed like that winter would never end!  Anyway, last year everyone but me got the flu shot and we made it through the winter so much healthier.  I understand that it may have been complete coincidence but there was never a question in my mind this year that everyone would get it and we have because there was no way I was going to risk both Covid and the flu in the same season.  

[Momto6inIN]

We got them faithfully for several years when my oldest 3 were small. Then we got influenza despite the shot several years and I decided it was random and not really related to the shot at all, so we stopped. We went several years without getting it at all. Then these past several years we've got influenza sporadically again without the shot.

This year we have appts next week to get the flu shot for the sole reason that I want to reduce the chances that we will get an illness that (for most people) acts like covid and have to go through the whole rigamarole of testing and quarantining if it's not the real thing.

All of us except DH. He won't get a shot voluntarily unless it's for a truly deadly or debilitating in most cases disease.

Edited October 23, 2020 by Momto6inIN
Because I made up a word

[historically accurate]

I have not always gotten flu shots in the past but usually. We did when youngest was a baby as she fought chronic infections due to a physical deformity and had RSV at a couple months old. Then, we got lazy after a few years. Then, I made everyone get flu shots as we got busier and busier, and I didn't want to stop our lives for flu. 

I and the kids at home got our flu shots last month. DH has not gotten his - his work is supposed to be providing them here in the next couple of weeks. I should nag college kid, as I don't think she has gotten one. Thanks for the reminder.

Edit: as others have said, I don't want to have to play Flu or Covid game. I've already had to play a lot of Pollen or Covid this fall (and one migraine or Covid episode as well). Keeping us out of the hospital would also be awesome as I had a child in the hospital for quite a while last month and it was awful visitor wise/stress wise. 

Edited October 23, 2020 by historically accurate

[Not_a_Number]

15 minutes ago, Momto6inIN said:

 

We got them faithfully for several years when my oldest 3 were small. Then we got influenza despite the shot several years and I decided it was random and not really related to the shot at all, so we stopped.

 

Last I checked, it decreased frequency and severity of the flu most years. But it certainly isn’t perfect.

[Sherry in OH]

We got ours in September.  We usually wait for dh's employer to offer a clinic but this year got them at the pharmacy as soon as availability was announced.   

My normally needle-phobic son didn't even whimper.  

 

 

[mom31257]

Dd gets the flu shot now that she is a nurse, but the rest of us have never taken a flu shot before.  My 83 year old dad does take it along with pneumonia and anything they offer.

I've never had flu as an adult, but dh and the kids had the flu in 2009. I took care of all of them and didn't get it. Dh is a high school teacher, so you would think he would get sick a lot but never even gets colds. Actually, we rarely get sick with anything. I'm home most of the time and go out to church every week (not a hugger or handshaker, though), co-op every other week, and the grocery store and a restaurant once a week.  I've always tried to keep my distance during flu season and be more cautious about handwashing then. I guess it has helped me not get it. 

We don't have plans to take it. 

 

[Lady Florida.]

I used to be hit and miss but have been getting it since the early 2000s when we all were miserable with flu. We missed one year when there was a shortage but otherwise we get it. I push dh and ds to get theirs because they tend to put it off for no real reason. I'm usually the first to get it and then I bug them until they get theirs. 

I got mine a few weeks ago. Dh has been sick and they wouldn't give it to him but now that he's recovered he's planning to get it. Ds23, the adult child with ADHD keeps meaning to but keeps forgetting. This thread reminded me to remind him. 😀

Edited October 23, 2020 by Lady Florida.

[MercyA]

No one in my immediate family has ever received a flu shot before. My daughter and I got ours about a week ago and my husband is planning on getting his soon.

I think it's important that we all be as healthy as possible right now, for ourselves, our family, and our community. 

[Tenaj]

47 minutes ago, MercyA said:

 

I think it's important that we all be as healthy as possible right now, for ourselves, our family, and our community. 

You phrased this so perfectly!  Thank you!  This was what I wanted to say but couldn't figure out how 🙂

[Ellie]

4 hours ago, Quill said:

You’re quite definite. 🙂 What are your reasons, if you wish to share? (Share about the flu, or COVID, or vaccines in general.) 

It's hit and miss each year, isn't it? TPTB make their best guess on which flu strain will be active, but they don't always guess correctly. I could get the vaccine, but it could be the one that has ingredients that I'm allergic to, like my friend Chris, who had the flu shot 10 years ago or so and who has had lasting effects from it, including allergies to foods that she hadn't previously been allergic to. Extreme case, I know, but there it is.

I had the flu last October; yes, I was tested, and it was Type A. I felt crummy for about a week, and then it was all over. The last time I had it before that was the year that Diana was killed in the car accident.

Maybe not great reasons, but they work for me.

[Guest]

12 minutes ago, Ellie said:

It's hit and miss each year, isn't it? TPTB make their best guess on which flu strain will be active, but they don't always guess correctly. I could get the vaccine, but it could be the one that has ingredients that I'm allergic to, like my friend Chris, who had the flu shot 10 years ago or so and who has had lasting effects from it, including allergies to foods that she hadn't previously been allergic to. Extreme case, I know, but there it is.

I had the flu last October; yes, I was tested, and it was Type A. I felt crummy for about a week, and then it was all over. The last time I had it before that was the year that Diana was killed in the car accident.

Maybe not great reasons, but they work for me.

Thank you for offering your explanation. You sounded so resolute, I expected a more passionate reason. 🙂

And yes, it is a best guess, which is a bummer...I do wish it could be a fool-proof, permanent immunity thing. I think, for me, it seems better than nothing, even in years it is only 45%-55% accurate. Kinda like keeping my umbrella in the car, even though it’s rare I’m truly in a fix without one. It’s better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.