I just got my flu shot this morning. I’ve had one every year for the last 10 years and have only had the flu twice during that time. That’s pretty good I think, considering I used to get the flu once (sometimes twice) a year when I was a kid. When I was 16 I started working in a nursing home and they paid for all of the employees to have a flu shot (to lessen the chance of us coming in to work sick and passing it on to the residents). Ever since then I’ve been getting them each year and am a firm believer in them.
I know a few people who flat out refuse to get a flu shot because they swear that it causes the flu… but that’s not true. The vaccine is made from inactivated viruses so it can’t cause the flu… but it may cause mild cold-like symptoms. My husband won’t get a flu shot because he says he doesn’t get sick very often and doesn’t need it but for as long as I’ve known him he’s been sick at least once a year… and I think I suffer more than he does when he’s sick because he’s such a big baby!! I’ve got to find a way to convince him to get one!!
I’m still debating whether to get one or not. I’ve never had one, and never seriously considered getting one.
This year, though, I’m on a college campus for the first time in seven years, and the thought of getting a bad flu worries me, since the last one I had was in my undergrad days. And since I could get one for free through the campus health clinic, I really should.
I don’t have any reasoning for not getting one - I don’t think it’s going to cause the flu or anything like that. But I’ve always been generally healthy and not one to get really sick. But the other aspect is that I am operating with no health insurance at the moment, so I’ll probably get one this year.
I’m in the Navy, and I’m usually in a command which sort of mandates that you get them. So I’ve been getting them for the last 8 or so years. And I rarely get sick.
I get poked by so many needles every year (everything from anthrax vaccine to ppd) that a little old flu shot’s a breeze.
IIRC, the flu shot is the maker’s “best guess” as to what’ll be running around this cold and flu season. Some years they guess better than others, but I think the worst outcome would be that it does no good rather than cause any actual harm.
Considering all the costs and likelihood of actually getting the flu (discomfort, lost work, wasted sick/personal day(s)) vs the costs of the shot ($10.00 and an hour wait?) it seems like a good idea.
Of course, among the really healthy types who’ve never had the flu nor the flu shot would consider it a waste of time and money.
The flu shot is a hot topic in my office every year. Most people get it, I am one of the few who declines. For me, personally, I just don’t think it’s that important. I haven’t had one in the 10 years that this office debate has been raging, and I think I’ve had the flu once during that same decade. Which is fewer times than several of the people who get the flu shot every year. So to me, it just seems like a crap shoot without particularly compelling odds.
Keep in mind that I’m NOT in an identified risk group (the elderly, or people with pre-existing health conditions that make the flu more dangerous), nor do I work in a nursing home or similar environment. I think there are plenty of good reasons for getting one, including the fact that some people feel more protected with one. But I’ll pass, thanks anyway.
My Employer agrees with this sentiment so much that they pay so that all of the employees can have free flu shots(voluntary of course). I’m getting mine tommorow.
As has been noted, you can’t get the flu from the shot, and the complaints of arm soreness are overblown. now the tetanus shot, that one hurts…
I’m not “sick” unless I’m incapacitated by whatever I have. Flus rarely do that, and when I do get one, it doesn’t bother me that much. My folks swear by the shots, I think they’re kind of unnecessary.
I get one free every year at work. Hell, I’ll take nearly anything that’s free.
Seriously…I think it really does help a lot, and the last few I’ve had haven’t caused anything more than a bit of heat in the injected area for a short time.
I know I really should get them (I’m asthmatic), but have never bothered, and haven’t had the flu in many, many years (and never any complications). If it were free and convenient, I’d consider it…it’s not like I’m afraid of them, it just doesn’t seem worth the bother in my case.
Usually my arm doesn’t get sore but this time… about 3 hours after I got my shot yesterday my arm was kind of sore. I made the mistake of wearing a sweater yesterday and instead of letting me take my arm out of my sleeve the nurse told me to just pull my sweater down over my shoulder. I did that and the neck of my sweater was really tight on my arm and my muscle was tensed up and everything so I’m sure that’s why my arm is so sore. If I could’ve taken my arm outta my sleeve I would’ve been more relaxed and it wouldn’t be sore right now. Next time I’m wearing a short sleeve shirt!
I’ve gotten them when they were freebies and convenient. Other years I didn’t get one at all. I can’t remember the last time I had flu, so I’m either relatively healthy or I have a bad memory. Either way, I don’t know if I’ll get one this year or not.
We have them at work, usually every April. They’re not mandatory, but you get gummi snake if you do! The last couple of years, my arm has had a reaction to it (large swelling where the injection went) but it goes down after about a week.
I don’t know how it works in the rest of the world, but in Australia, the flu shots vaccinate you against one strain of flu (where there’s numerous strains) only. So, while you may not get that particular kind of flu, you may pick up a different strain of flu. Which is often the case with most people. The chance that you’d get more than one strain of flu in a year, IMHO, are fairly low.
Most people get it because it’s free. Some people choose not to because they don’t believe in its effectiveness and that they’ve had instances where they’ve gotten the flu after being vaccinated. And other elect not to get vaccinated for the simple reason of needle-phobia!
I don’t get them because I rarely get sick. I think I’ve had the flu once in the last 10 years. And I don’t take vaccinations for anything that isn’t likely to maim or kill me if I get it. Tetanus and Hep B and meningitis shots, yes; flu, no.
They’re giving them out free at work. My buddy just got his the other day and keeps walking around rubbing his arm and asking if anyone else’s reaction to them was this bad. (Think he’s pretty sore.) Someone else says he gets flu shots every year, and gets the flu anyway, without fail. A third friend got extremely sick immediately after getting the shot three years in a row (she doesn’t take them anymore). Granted, this isn’t exactly scientific, but when all’s considered, I just choose to lump it.
I got it this year- only $7.50. They had them in the health services on my college campus. I’ve never had one before, but then I’ve never been living in a dorm and whatnot before. So, it makes sense. I had the flu last March- it was terrible. I’d do anything not to go through THAT hell again.
I think they’re great, and I encourage everyone to get them.
But I didn’t.
I work in a medical lab, and we could get them for free. I kind of was sorta planning on getting one if I remembered, but I forgot. I wasn’t too worked up about it, because, as a hermit, my odds of getting the flu are not good. Plus, I just got my latest Hep B vaccination two days ago, and my arm was still a little sore. So, eh.
Ok, I’ll be the first to weigh in with a wacky view: I like being sick every once in a while. I like having a legitimate reason for staying home from work for a day or two and do nothing but lie on the couch and watch TV. I usually get one rather mild cold per year. Mild enough so that my reason for taking off from work is more to avoid spreading the cold than that I can’t work. In the ten years that Kiki has been getting a flu shot every year and has had two cases of flu, I’ve gotten zero flu shots and zero flus.
I don’t get the shots, since I’m one of those uber-healthy people that gets sick extremely rarely (excluding allergies: I think that’s payback for not getting sick). I’m willing to take the risk that this year (or the next, or…) will be one where I acutally get sick. What doesn’t kill you, and all that.
Now, my Mom doesn’t get the shots because of her allergy to eggs: apparently the whites or something are used in their manufacture.
I’ve got to find a way to convince him to get one!!