Seen my doctor today and he was adamant that I didn't need the H1N1 vaccine due to my age

[NNN0LHI]

He said more than likely I had been exposed to swine flu already during my lifetime. I am 54. I trust this doctor a lot so I will take his advice.

Watch me catch swine flu and croak from it now.

Thats my luck.

Don

[etherealtruth]

1. I am assuming that I was exposed in the 70's ... I'm 47

I hope we're correct

[blaze]

3. "If you were born before '57"

is the stat I heard.

[Ms. Toad]

27. mmm....right. Tell it to my 103-104 degree fever last week.

Born in '56.

[timeforpeace]

31. It's tough to be a hypochondriac with a doctor like that.

[stray cat]

8. I came down with a bad case of H1N1 and I'm 45 - we're still in the high risk area

too young to likely be immune and old enough to have pre-existing conditions that could cause problems.

[etherealtruth]

10. Oh poop

Hopefully, you are feeling well now. I am sorry.

[stray cat]

20. Much better - thanks! Really strange flu though

[dixiegrrrrl]

23. When you said "strange"...how was it strange?

Specific but not gross details would help those of us who have not caught it.

[Ms. Toad]

29. Very rapid, easy, transmission

My daughter was without symptoms when I saw her briefly Thursday night and she used my computer to e-mail her professor. By Friday afternoon she had a fever. By Saturday morning I had my first symptoms (nagging cough), and by Saturday night my fever was 101 degrees.

Temp between 103 and 104 for 3 days (ibuprofen dropped it to 102, but no lower).

[doc03]

15. That's not correct I was talking to a guy in his early to mid

50's that had just gotten over the swine flu, it put him out of work six days and he said he had never felt so bad in his life.

[noiretextatique]

2. i had the vaccine three weeks ago

and i'm still here, and not sick yet (knock on wood).

[dana_b]

16. three weeks

you should be immune now (unless it mutates :-( )

[noiretextatique]

41. thanks...good news

sort of :(

[valerief]

4. I had the flu once when I was a teen in the sixties. Thought I was gonna die. Last time I had the

flu.

I'm counting on my immunity from hini. It's protected me so far.

[amandabeech]

19. That was probably the Hong Kong flu in '68.

I had that one too, and thought that I was going to die.

Unfortunately, the Hong Kong monster isn't related to the H1N1. I'm resigned to another bout with the flu monster.

[valerief]

38. Oh, no. I didn't want to hear that!!! nt

[stray cat]

5. Sounds like your doctor is having to ration the vaccine and you just are not high enough priority

pregnant women seem to be at very high risk and then those who take care of young kids as they want to protect children from H1N1.

[NNN0LHI]

7. That could be

I wouldn't rule it out.

Don

[Cirque du So-What]

6. I'm the same age

I haven't seen a doctor about getting vaccinated, but I'm relying on studies linked in the Scientific American article below which indicate that the 1976 swine flu outbreak - as well as the vaccination for that strain of H1N1 - may provide some protection.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=single-vaccine-dose-even

I have no qualms about getting vaccinated for H1N1, but I'm going to leave my dose for someone who may need it more than me.

[kestrel91316]

17. I was curious about cross-protection from the 1970's swine flu vaccine,

which I did get back then.........

[Le Taz Hot]

30. I didn't have the vaccine in '76

but I had one of the worst flues I've ever had in my life. I was 21 and VERY healthy and it kicked my ass for like 10 days, most of those I couldn't even get out of bed. I'm guessing that was probably the Swine Flu and that maybe I've still got the antibodies. I'm hoping anyway because there's such a shortage of the vaccine here the wait is 4-6 hours in line for the health department-sponsored shots and doctors even don't have it yet.

[corpseratemedia]

32. I had the worst flu I've ever had in early '77

I'm REALLY hoping that I have some protection, that it was a H1n1 strain.

I was sick for 3 weeks and then got strep. I still have problems resulting from that flu 32 years ago.

My parents should have taken me to the ER that first night but they were too busy with their divorce to notice that I couldn't move.

[Cirque du So-What]

36. My worst case of the flu was in 1975

I was 20, and it kicked my ass for 10 days. My birthday came toward the end of this bout, and the girl I had been dating wanted to prepare a special dinner, which turned out to be roast duck. I put on a brave face and tried to choke down that greasy bird, but I lost the battle halfway into the meal. I bolted for the kitchen sink, where I retched loudly for ten minutes. Not only was my birthday and that lovely dinner ruined, our relationship went downhill from that point onward. I feel like the cosmos owes me a 'mulligan' on catching that variety of flu ever again.

[Chemisse]

9. That is what I was hoping too.

But we would have been toddlers when that flu went around. I don't know about you, but I stayed at home with my mother and siblings. She did not work outside the home and my dad was out to sea for months at a time.

So I don't think we were routinely exposed to germs like kids are now. In those days, parents had to plan exposures to the regulars like chicken pox, measles and mumps, so we would not get them as adults.

So good luck with that!

[Hekate]

11. Mine too. "Born before 1957" -- I hope he's right. I got my other flu shot though...

... and I'm glad there was a free clinic where my pregnant daughter could get her H1N1 vaccine.

Hekate

[doc03]

12. I got my H1N1 shot last Friday from the county

Health Board. They were giving nasal vaccine to everyone age 2-24. They were also giving the vaccine to people 24-64 if you had a chronic medical condition. In my case I am 61 and the only medical condition I have is mitral valve prolapse, they said that qualified me. I think everyone under 49 was given the nasal vaccine. I was talking to a guy a couple days ago I would guess to be around 52 to 55 and he had just had the Swine flu, he said he had never felt so bad in his life. So you can definitely get it at 54. It's been 5 days and I have had no negative effects from the shot.

[amandabeech]

21. Mitral valve P qualifies?

I get the flu every year and since I'm working as a temp, I don't get sick days. I thought that I was out of luck.

Thanks for posting.

[doc03]

35. I asked them if I could get the shot and they said

not unless I had a chronic medical condition such as high blood pressure or diabetes. I told them I take blood thinners because of a clotting disorder and I have MVP. They wrote MVP on the form and said I could get the shot. They never asked me for any ID and I could have just lied and said I have diabetes or anything. I asked them if my 90 year old mother could get one and they said at this time they were only giving them to the people most a risk and they weren't permitted to give them to anyone over 64. Of course my Republican friends say that is because Obama wants the people on Medicare to die, according to them that's the death panel's work.

[necso]

13. That isn't what the CDC is apparently recommending:

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/vaccine_keyfacts.htm

Indeed, if you're among "people 25 years through 64 years of age who have certain medical conditions that put them at higher risk for influenza-related complications {see link}", then you're among the "Initial Target Groups", according to the link.

More:

"Once the demand for vaccine for the target groups has been met at the local level, ACIP recommends that programs and providers begin vaccinating everyone from the ages of 25 through 64 years. Current studies indicate that the risk for infection among persons 65 and older is less than the risk for younger age groups. However, once vaccine demand among younger age groups has been met, ACIP recommends that programs and providers should offer vaccination to people 65 or older."

[JuniperLea]

14. I caught just about every flu that came around in the 60's and 70's...

But it's been about 10 years since I've had so much as a cold, let alone flu. I'm fairly confident that my immune system is solid. I plan on asking my doctor about this, but I'm betting she says I don't need the vaccine.

[SoFlaJet]

18. LMAO...

another 54 year old guy here-I figured I wasn't getting it either...

[mucifer]

22. I'm 44 I would have waited to get the vaccine. But, I'm a nurse for kids with very

poor prognoses without getting any flu and I'd hate to pass it around so I got both flu shots.

[DRoseDARs]

24. Don't you mean "oink" from it? It isn't frog flu...

*ba-dump bump*

[nini]

25. I was born in '57

crap.


I'm not getting it because of higher risks than me, but I just missed that cutoff :-(

[Kingofalldems]

26. I had a nasty case of the flu at Ft. Bragg in '67

I wonder if it was swine flu?

[graywarrior]

28. Same here.

[DU GrovelBot]

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[DainBramaged]

34. Well, I got it and my doctor said the SAME thing in September

and I wish I HAD gotten the vaccine. Seven miserable days


Doctor's office Monday November 2nd, I am feeling like shit and I have a fever. Swabs throat, examines me.
"It's Monday, we should know by Thursday if you have it, for now go home and go to bed'

Thursday morning "The doctor wants to see you can you come in around 1:30?

Sure

"OK, it's H1N1. What can you do? "Nothing, it's too late for Tamiflu, go home and ride it out."


Why didn't you give it to me Monday? And you get another co-pay and office visit and I get the short end of the stick.

" call me if you aren't feeling better by Monday" (leaves examining room quickly).


:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

[PatSeg]

42. Well, that sucks

He made you come in to tell you to go home? Now he collects his fee and possibly exposes other patients to the flu. That was really unprofessional, not to mention you were probably better off at home, in bed.

[bridgit]

37. That was what the CDC mentioned the other day, that H1N1 contains...

recombinant elements found in several fairly recent and very nasty flus from these last 3-4 years. And that those who've survived those flus have built up immunities which should give them a head start on this one

[RebelOne]

39. I guess I have been exposed to swine flu a lot within my lifetime.

I am 70 years old and do not plan on getting a flu shot. I believe I am in the low-risk category. In fact, I have never had a flu shot.

[mrs_p]

40. doc needs to go back and read the literature

you have to be older to have predicted residual immunity

just one peer-reviewed source http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=19344

a virology meeting i went to this summer suggested residual immunity was in even older people...