Who is Getting the Flu Shot?

[PAYROLL PRINCESS]

I was going to wait and get them both together. As of today, I haven't gotten either! I'm still hoping though. I'm high risk as far as having asthma and PVC's (heart) so hopefully soon!

[RenDuran]

Where is everyone going that there are long lines? Can't you only get the flu shot from your doctor? I've heard of people getting them at places like Sam's Club but is that really safe? How clean could a Sam's Club be?

Places that have a pharmacy can give vaccines too. Does Sam's Club have a pharmacy? I got my seasonal flu vaccine at a Target pharmacy.

[Hull-onian]

We just got the seasonal flu shot on Tuesday and my arm still hurts. The line of people waiting didn't go down for a long time. It also got video taped so we could watch it on Yahoo!! We knew a lot of the folks. It was weird. Oh well, hope everyone will be safe this winter.

[SurferStitch]

We just got the seasonal flu shot on Tuesday and my arm still hurts.

A friend of mine got the H1N1 shot, and her arm hurt terribly the next day. Day two - her entire body was in pain. Day three - she was even more miserable. She went to the doctor, and he said she was having a severe reaction to the shot (which she said she never had before). Not sure what he gave her to help.

It took about a week until she felt good enough to go out into the world again. I felt so bad for her. She really suffered.

[MNNHFLTX]

I got my H1N1 shot yesterday. Quick trip over to Employee Health and it was done. I do have to say that it seemed to hurt worse than the regular flu shot, but since there's no technical reason why this would be so, I'm attributing it to the person who gave it to me.

[CanadianWDWFan]

We were shocked by the long lines at the clinics for the shot. So on Monday my DW called our doctor's office to see if they would be getting the shots. As luck would have it they just got a bunch of doses and we made our appointment for Tuesday. All of us got the shot.

We just got the seasonal flu shot on Tuesday and my arm still hurts.

My arm hurt for two days after. The first morning was the worst for sure.

[PAYROLL PRINCESS]

My sis called me first thing in the morning on Tuesday and told me they were having the seasonal flu clinic here in town. I went and waited about 45 minutes for my shot. They still don't know when they'll have the H1N1 for my group (asthma etc).

[jillluvsdisney]

They had a clinic in the county I work in for first responders so I got my H1N1 shot on Friday. My arm hurt after the seasonal shot but not this time. I'm going to Disney in less than 2 weeks so I'm glad I finally got that second shot.
I seem to get sick a lot when I fly.

[azdisneymom]

I got a seasonal flu shot in October. I get one every year since I work in special ed and several of the kids are medically fragile. I just got the H1N1 last week. No sore arm, no body aches, nothing.

The only think I insist on is the injection. I will not take the nasal spray.

[IloveDisney71]

I've had my regular flu shot but haven't been able to get the H1-N1 shot yet. I work in an elementary school and really want to get the H1-N1 shot due to all the little kiddies.

[RedSoxFan]

DS17 and DS13 are on the wait list at the pediatricians office for both types of the flu shot. However, on 12/9, they will be able to get the H1N1 shot at school; that is, providing they have enough to go around. They will start at the elementary school, then the middle school and finally the high school. DS17 may not be in luck as he's a senior. DS21 and DS19 are in college and still haven't been able to get the shot.

[stitchaholic]

my kids just got the H1N1 shot yesterday, they both have sore arms at the injection site, my daughter seems to have mild flu like symptoms that we are treating with advil

[HollyB]

Our public health district is being praised widely as a model of how to do these H1N1 vaccines. They did all the elementary schools in October. The twins got theirs at the high school the second week of November. When they finished the schools, they had public drive through clinics over the weekend and DH and I both got it. Everyone in the family got the flu mist because that is what they had the biggest stockpile of here. They were saving the shots for people who couldn't have the mist. No one in our family showed any side effects from the mist--other than the kids said they felt "loopy" for a little while after getting it.

That said, only about 50% of the school kids in the area got the vaccine (parents had to opt in). The school district sent letters to everyone's homes, so parents were opting not to vaccinate (rather than just missing the information in the backpack). The vaccine was given free of charge to everyone, so cost was not an issue either.

I know the public health district is planning to take community clinics to the school areas with the least participation to give people a second chance. That will happen after Thanksgiving.

[diz_girl]

DH and I just got our seasonal flu shots on Saturday. Our local K-Mart Pharmacy just got some doses. My arm was a little sore, but not much. The key to reducing the muscle soreness is to completely relax your arm while you are getting the shot. I know that it is an intramuscular shot, but I don't know why relaxing the muscle during the shot reduces soreness.

DS got his seasonal flu shot last month and his first H1N1 nasal dose a couple of weeks ago. Our pediatrician now has the H1N1 vaccine, so we hope that they still have it when DS can have the second dose next week. That would sure beat standing in line outside of the clinic in the cold for two hours like we did for the first dose.

Since only higher-risk people are allowed to get the H1N1 vaccine around here, neither DH nor I have gotten it.

[ElenitaB]

I got both of them Monday afternoon at the cancer institute... I felt very lucky that I was able to get both during the one week in the month when my immune system can handle them. My arm is still a bit sore, but it certainly beats getting sick. Now to get them for DS...

[DisneyDudet]

As a healthcare worker, I have gotten a seasonal flu shot every year since starting nursing school. I have never really had an issue with it. This year, I felt feverish the next day (as did most people who had it at work), but other than that, I was good. My arm was store for a while and that was it.

About a week or so ago, we got our shipment of H1N1 injectable vaccines and I got one the first day we had them. It hurt less than the seasonal flu and I just felt blah during the day. After that, my arm wasn't as sore as the seasonal shot and I felt great!

There is a lot of fear in the vaccine. The injectable vaccine is extremely similar to the seasonal flu shot, with just the H1N1 virus. The vaccines are the DEAD virus, so you cannot get the flu from them. If they had been able to predict that this season's flu would be the H1N1, the seasonal flu shot would cater to that virus. The development of the virus was too late for them to make the vaccines for the season, which is why they are separate. The risks for the H1N1 vaccine is extremely similar seasonal flu vaccine. The inhaled version, on the other hand, is a LIVE virus. This poses and increased risk of developing flu-like symptoms, but is still safe.

I encourage others to receive both vaccines. It may seem that the flu is becoming latent, but with the holiday travel, it is expected that we will see a recurrence of the bug. As always, practice good cough/sneeze and hand hygiene!!