i am on the fence as to whether it is good to have the H1N1 shot or not. BTW my background is a BS in biology w/ a specialization in both plant sciences and medical microbiology (taught at IU med school). i have a special interest in unusual viruses. i do not even read information about medical things until i look at credentials and personal opinions mean nothing to my scientifically trained mind. i am interested only in verifiable info thru proven scientific routes (CDC, AMSRID, WHO, some universities w/ elite medical schools only etc..) there is soooooo much incorrect non-scientific info out there it's sad what people think and know on issues like this. it truly doesn't matter for most people since they are only making a limited # of doses (enough for 10% of the population i believe) and the ranking for getting it starts w/ pregnant women, then children, adults under 40 then anyone over 40 w/ pre-existing lung/heart conditions making them susceptible to it. that is the order of risk for death also. it will also be interesting to see how much this shot costs, i'm gonna guess more than most would pay out of pocket, i understand it will not be covered by most insurances. would i get it given i have asthma and am 40? i will wait and see...DH & i have had several flu's this yr (more than any previous yr infact) and believe we may have already had it, so i'm willing to wait it out. i have had flu shots in the past after getting a B version of Hong Kong flu and getting extremely sick in my 20's but i don't get it every yr. this is too new of a vacccine for me, now next yr after i see how things go this fall/winter i might. ~ liz

People don't know that there are many different types of flu-shot made by different companies, and some are safe, some aren't. I got the FLUVIRIN brand, but YOU MAY GET SOME OTHER BRAND MADE BY A DIFFERENT COMPANY. DIDN'T KNOW THAT UNTIL I REPORT MY ADVERSE REACTION TO VAERS, AND HAD TO CHOOSE A LONG LIST OF FLU-SHOTS, WITH DIFFERENT NAMES & DIFFERENT COMPANIES. I got most of the side-effects listed on Sam's club pharmacy receipt: burning numbness, very bad dizziness, very bad headache, muscle pain, upset stomach, throwing up, loose stools. Reading through all the threads in Houzz, I found one 58 year old previously active & healthy Dad died of flu-shot, lots of people complain of catching a cold right after the flu shot ... so bad that they never get a flu shot again. Just avoiding sugar is cheaper than getting a flu-shot, since sugar is known to suppress the immune system. "In the book "Get The Sugar Out" by Ann Louise Gittleman M.S. C.N.S says, "No matter what form it takes, sugar paralyzes the immune system in a variety of ways: Sugar has been proven to destroy the germ-killing ability of white blood cells for up to five hours after ingestion. People don't realize that Google News, which constantly remind people to get flu-shot, is funded by vaccine maker, same with CDC, and same with doctors (wine & dined by pharma companies). Excerpt on flu-shot from below link: http://www.ithinkwecouldbefriends.com/2013/11/01/little-known-facts-flu-shot/ "Plus ALL vaccines depress your immune system functioning for up to several weeks, which means you are FAR more susceptible to flu varieties for which you have not been vaccinated. So you might be looking at bronchitis, upper respiratory infection or a stomach bug…which you might NOT have contracted if you DIDN’Tget a flu shot." Plus vaccinations inject proteins directly into your bloodstream and this is not good ... shooting full-blown proteins into your blood vessels with a vaccine (and bypassing the GI tract) puts your immune system on high alert and can eventually elicit inappropriate immune responses. That’s why many people find themselves developing asthma or allergies when they never had a problem with them in the past!" *** From Straw: My doc-sister also warned me of suppressed immune system. My doc-sister who got flu-shot yearly is the only one in the family with asthma. I developed an allergic reaction to peanuts after my flu-shot a decade ago, along with 1 week of dizziness. Same with my kid when she was given flu-shot when she was between 1 and 2 year-old, she developed 2 colds within a month of each other, plus vertigo. We have to rock her to sleep, the minute we put her down (change in position cause vertigo), she would screamed in pain. She could no longer do roll-over after the flu-shot, and dropped out of gymnastic the 1st day. She also developed a peanut-butter allergy. Both I and my husband got the same flu-shot, but he's OK, while I came down with suppressed immune system, and caught 2 flu in a row, making it month-long suffering. Also he's 6 feet, while I'm only 4'10", perhaps the dose was too strong for my size. So my 2 flu-in-a row is A DIRECT CONSEQUENCE OF FLU-SHOT, my M.D. sister already warned me about flu-shot suppress immune system, but she believed in the LIE posted by CDC website and recommended me to get the shot. I haven't seen the doc in 9 years (we have good insurance), since I'm healthy & active. I'm seeing the doc this Wednesday. Never been that sick in my life, thanks to that shot on Dec. 19. http://www.intoxicatedonlife.com/2014/10/15/truth-about-flu-vaccine/ In Are US Flu Death Figures More Public Relations than Science?, an aptly named article in the British Journal of Medicine, the author reports: “[According to CDC statistics], ‘influenza and pneumonia’ took 62,034 lives in 2001—61,777 of which were attributable to pneumonia and 257 to flu, and in only 18 cases was the flu virus positively identified.”1 Do you see what the CDC did? They combined both Influenza and Pneumonia deaths so as to inflate the numbers and make it look like more of a problem than it was. They estimated what the flu related deaths are and did not report on the actual number, which was 18. Fact #2: The statistics that the CDC throws around regarding death from influenza are grossly exaggerated. Furthermore, much of the research out there has been funded by the vaccine makers. Not only this, but the Journal of Virology found the immune systems of children who have been vaccinated against seasonal flu strains are weakened, making them more susceptible to becoming infected with flu strains not included in the vaccine. T cells are essential for immunity. This study found that the T cell response was absent in the vaccinated children. Fact #5: The flu shot may help you avoid some strains of the flu virus, but it will also likely decrease your ability to fight off other strains of the flu virus. They reported an 8.5% flu risk for those who had been vaccinated and an 8.9% risk for those who have been unvaccinated along with other infections. Vaccine inserts, they range from mild to severe. Some of the fairly common side effects include: pain (64%), fever (29%), fatigue (20%), headaches (26%), nausea/vomiting (12%), runny nose/nasal congestion, (58%), decreased appetite, (21%). Fact #8: Millions more people are getting the flu vaccine, but there is no evidence that there has been a decrease in flu related mortality. In fact, it appears the more people get the vaccine, the higher the death rates become in the elderly. http://www.intoxicatedonlife.com/2014/10/15/truth-about-flu-vaccine/

Flu vaccines (except the nasal spray one) are all killed virus vaccines. This means one CANNOT get the flu from a flu shot. If one is allergic to eggs, one may have an allergic reaction. What some people experience is soreness or redness at the site of the vaccination. If there are hives, shortness of breath etc, then this is a serious reaction and potentially life-threatening. It rarely happens. Vomiting is not a side effect I've seen mentioned anywhere. The 1976 swine flu vaccine debacle was unlike anything that had ever happened before. The risk of GB syndrome from today's flu vaccines is about 1 in a million. I'll take that risk rather than getting the flu. I used to get it every single year. With my health today, I know if might very well kill me.

Marylmi, I had trouble finding one for my mother earlier this week too. I checked at two Kaiser facilities near her residence and neither had the senior dose. We had taken her for a doctors appointment and DH said, I'll just pay for the shot for her at the Walgreens clinic back at her residence then (Walgreens doesn't process Kaiser ins). Walgreens was holding a clinic at a senior living facility with no senior dose shots - they were giving everyone the shot for the 'normal' population. I chose not to have her vaccinated (92 and frail). Will have to keep working on it, Kaiser said they thought they should have some in a few days. We hadn't been vaccinated either and we get the senior dose. The first place I called Wednesday when we were home again was out and they couldn't guarantee they would have more. They suggested Safeway as still having some. They did. We got our shots at the Safeway pharmacy. Which still doesn't help Mom at 120 miles away but I'm in touch with Kaiser and fingers are crossed. And FYI, the Safeway pharmacist said when his was gone, there would be no more there. He estimated he had enough to cover the next two or so days.