It's been widely communicated, especially this extraordinary flu season, that getting a flu shot won't stop you from getting the flu, but will likely lessen the intensity and duration.

Get well soon. Got the flu shot & no flu yet.

You're right Suzieque,

Along with a flu shot, personal hygiene is the most important. Hand washing alone prevents millions of cases of flu.

So sorry you have been so ill. I hope you have a speedy recovery. Both of us have had horrible experiences with the flu shot and were told to avoid them which we have done. It's just not for some people. Others don't have a problem. This has been a killer flu season. I sure am happy you have made it through.

Seniorgal, I'm so sorry to read you've been ill. This has been just about the worst flu season I can remember. My mother had an appointment for a dental checkup at her HMO tomorrow and I cancelled it. She would have had to have gone in the main front door, signed in at the reception area (always crowded), mingling with those there to be seen for flu and it seemed like an unnecessary risk of exposure to me.

She can wait a bit to have her teeth cleaned, go at 7 or 8 months instead of 6.

The last year we skipped a flu shot, and both had flu back to back, DH's father was alive and he passed in 1986. We have faithfully had a shot every year since - no flu. My Sis and BIL however got their shots this Fall, shared a mild case of flu (confirmed) about 6 weeks later. He got it again about 2 weeks ago and was very sick. He has a couple of underlying health issues and we were extremely worried but he's on the mend now, just moving slowly, still needing rest.

I'll send positive energy your way. Please take care, and rest as needed. Again, I'm sorry to hear you had to experience this but I'm very glad you are home again.

I get a flu shot every year, got mine back in October. I was recently sick for about 2 weeks but didn't go to the doctor. I am better now. When I described my symptoms to my sister, who is an RN in an emergency room, she said she thinks I had the flu, milder since I had been immunized.

I got the shot, and about 6 weeks later got sick after being on a cruise ship. The missus never gets the shot (allergies, etc.). Never, ever have I ever felt as sick as I did. I lost about a pound a day. However, I gained it all back after the illness. Not a good feeling.

Seniorgal, I'm glad you are on the mend after this serious illness! Sometimes you just get unlucky. I'd take your doctor's advice about flu shots in the future ... most of us will benefit.

Seniorgal, I'm sorry you have been so sick. Now your home please take good care and continue resting.

As for your question. Amiee and both boys are just recovering from the flu. Tim my 10 year old has been very sick as has Amiee for I think 8 days now. My husband is very sick his doctor tried to admit him to hospital yesterday and today...he flatly refuses ( old goat). Mike (hubs) had the flu shot although a nasal swab yesterday was negative I still feel its the flu. I just got the flu shot Monday and today my glands in my neck hurt and I've chills off and on...I will not let myself get sick. Not happening.

Seniorgal the shot is supposed to help with severity of flu but not 100% protection from it.....Take care and feel bettrr soon girl.

The flu shot is only good for so many bugs. If the flu that's going around isn't in that shot, it won't work. And this year, like 3 or 4 years ago, the shot is almost useless. I refuse to get the shot. Can't remember the last time I got the flu.

I hope that you feel better soon Seniorgal and all others who have been unfortunate enough to get the flu this year. I didn't get a shot. Just let the time get by me.

Take care of yourself, senior gal.

Never had a flu shot, never had the flu. I'm 57. I probably just jinxed myself. Lol

So sorry to hear that you have been this ill,Seniorgal.

I have not had a flu needle for years,and I did get sick with the flu this year...terribly ill...I've been "better" now for about 10 days to 2 wks., however,I am not out of it yet.

Take it easy-really easy...this strain leads you to believe you are over it,and bammm,it hits again.

Sorry you've had a rough go. Did you get a secondary infection that required your hospitalization?

I've been getting flu shots now since the mid-1990's - no flu and I always got it every year. I am maniacal about hand washing, and I'm avoiding the grocery store - too many people there for the walk-in clinic who decide to do a little shopping while they are in the store. Kroger has ClicList - place order online, it is brought out to my car. I'm doing that.

I may have had a light case last week - hard to know with all my other pulmonary problems. If it was flu, it was very, very mild.

The CDC can only take an educated guess at the strains of flu that may hit in any given year and concoct the vaccine accordingly. Sometimes they get it fairly right and sometimes they totally miss the boat.

At my house, we've all had the shot but my husband was down with Type B for a solid 10 days mid-last-month. As of today, my youngest is coughing pretty steadily, so he's probably got it too. As for me, I make them wear anti-viral masks and I wash my hands about 30 times a day.

I hope you feel much better soon. We don't get the flu shots. My husband had the flu back in the '80's....as did our daughter....but at a different time. I don't think I have ever had the flu. I also don't catch colds. I had a sore throat last year but it only lasted a few days. I haven't had a cold since my daughter was in kindergarten, and I volunteered at her school.

I do go to the supermarket, feed store and out to eat, and I wash my hands, but I am not maniacal about it. I took Microbiology when I went to school to be a vet tech and learned that bacteria and viruses are not that easily "washed away". I spend most of my time in mud or manure and handle some very dirty animals...and I think my immune system stays tweaked from that. Maybe not, but those are my beliefs.

Hope you have a very speedy recovery!!!

I got the flu shot for the first time this year (severe egg allergy). DD just got the flu so we will see if it's effective. And yes, she gets annual flu vaccines.

I too had the flu, a few months after the shot. I must say, the duration was much shorter that a previous bout I had without the shot, many years ago.

Seniorgal, I'm soo glad you were well taken care of! At your age, you must be made of tough stuff to have made it through. Expect to be TIRED for some time to come, and for goodness' sake, take it easy. We're happy to hear you are on the mend and thanks for posting!

Oh wow Seniorgal, I can't imagine how scary that must have been. Yes, I had the shot and I got the flu, it was hell. I was sick in bed for two weeks and then another two weeks of exhaustion. That was in early Dec. and I'm still coughing but not like the original cough where you can't breathe it seems. I'm a fanatic for a clean house but there was no way to do a thing, couldn't lift a finger and, for once in my life, I didn't care.

I've only had one flu shot and developed the flu shortly after! Everyone says it's just a coincidence and that you can't get the flu from the shot, but I'm not willing to risk it again as it was awful. My husband got one last year and was violently sick for 24 hours afterwards with vomiting and fever where he couldn't get out of bed. Strange stuff.

We're both pretty young and healthy with no medical issues so we take our chances with hand washing. I hope you feel better soon!

I am sorry and hope you are soon well completely. I had the terrible flu several

years ago and almost prayed for death. ;) Have had the shot every year since...so far so good, but there are lots of strains and some of them aren't covered in any year's shot. I did read this morning, that people are getting

the flu more than once this year....different strains. That has to be the worst.

Please stay well everyone.

I hope you're feeling better soon.

As I understand it, a very small percentage of people have "reactions" to a flu shot (with "flu-like" symptoms) but the medicine has only killed virus in it and can't cause the actual sickness.

The contents of each year's vaccine includes several different types chosen with some science and some guesswork very early in the year of the coming fall-winter flu season. As mdln's chart shows, some years they choose better than others. But even when the wrong strain is chosen, the shot can lessen the severity if you do get flu. As long as the CDC recommends getting the shot (which it always does), I figure the people making the decisions know better than I do and so I'll get it.

I always get the shot and haven't had the flu in decades. As with those who say - "no shot, no flu" for their own experiences, individual experiences are meaningless. It's a public health issue, how to lessen the severity and prevalence of flu among a large population, not what happens to one individual or another.

Have never got the flu shot and probably never will. If it's my time, then oh well.

I get the flu shot every year with zero reaction. . In the years I didn't ,I had the two worse cases I ever had.

It's so interesting to see the different experiences. I'm glad it is an option for people and that there are so many that feel they benefit from it.

Frankly, I don't think it should be an "option"! It's a public health issues and those with chronic illnesses etc, who get the flu, can end up very, very ill and even possibly die. It was "optional" at my pulmonary rehab - of all places! - until I made a stink and threatened to call the local paper. One pulmonary therapist was the worst - kept saying that as a "medical professional", she "knew" things about the vaccines that the general public did not, and would not get the vaccine. Well, when the hospital decided to REQUIRE it of ALL employees and she was threatened with job loss, she got the vaccine. She has now retired - good riddance - a know-it-all with limited education and knowledge. Sweet woman, but not all that bright.

One must think of others where any vaccinations are concerned. It's one thing if the risk is ONLY to oneself, but it's quite another matter when one puts other people at risk.

I'm a big believer in vaccines but I don't believe in forcing flu shots, except in certain settings, like public health workers or teachers/daycare workers or anyone exposed regularly to at-risk populations.

If flu shots were a guaranteed immunity, then that would be different, but they are an educated guess each year. I think people can make their own decisions about it.

I was talking to my brother last weekend, and he's just getting over the flu. He's gotten the flu shot for the past few years, and apparently this year's flu strain isn't preventable with this shot.

I've never gotten a flu shot.

I've been interested to see in the local newspaper that most people who got the flu had only quite recently gotten their flu shot. They said it was a month ago, but I'm betting it was 2 weeks ago! My birthday is the end of Sept and it's very easy to remember to get it before my birthday each year.

I started insisting that my DD and her husband and the two boys get the vaccine long before they were recommending it for everyone. I just couldn't risk getting it with pulmonary problems, and at that time, I saw them multiple times each week.

Herd immunity does work.

Addendum by Seniorgal

Should have mentioned that I had flu, pneumonia, and bronchitis all at once. Came on quickly. I thought I might die, and wanted to!

You poor baby, that sounds horrific, my bro in law has been in the hospital for three weeks now with no improvement. Scary.

Seniorgal, I am sorry you were so sick. I meant to say so in my previous post. If you had to go into convalescence, it must have been bad. You had a triple whammy.

I started insisting that my DD and her husband and the two boys get the vaccine long before they were recommending it for everyone. I just couldn't risk getting it with pulmonary problems, and at that time, I saw them multiple times each week.

If you were my mother, I guess you wouldn't be seeing me, or the grandkids, anytime soon! If ever!

Angela, really? You'd skip seeing your mother over a 10 second vaccination?

Not me. If there is something I can do to make someone else safer, I'm happy to accommodate them. I can't infect someone else if I'm not sick. And that's why DH and I are up to date on our TDAPs. We're unlikely to contract whooping cough in a form that would slow us down, but there are babies in our life we feel a responsibility to protect.

I agree, morz8, to me it's almost a matter of common courtesy/civic duty. It takes a minor amount of time and it usually costs nothing at all. We do it to protect older and younger family members and friends. we're not yet in an at risk group.

For many who rarely get the flu, you owe a Thank You to your friends and neighbors who do because that's the reason. Why not return the favor?

When I was seven, I had the measles with devastating sequelae. At that time, there was no vaccine and it was the luck of the draw to contract it. However, as soon as my infant daughter was eligible to receive immunizations, I made sure she got them. Not only to protect her but to protect the health of the community-at-large. As a society, we are truly fortunate that we have the means to prevent such tragic outcomes.

Having had measles, mumps, chicken pox, and rubella as a child, and still remember the suffering from all of them, I would NEVER not vaccinate a child from these diseases that were once so terribly common. They are NOT FUN! With most mothers working outside the home today, it would be impossible if there were two or three children, and they just kept getting these things - one would be fired for taking off that much time. And no daycare center on earth would take them, and most baby sitters wouldn't want to take it on either. Younger people just don't understand how sick someone can be with these common childhood diseases. They are pure misery and potential lethal.

Off topic, but important.

TDAP. Got the booster at my December exam. It takes 30 seconds and it's free on Part D. I also agreed to the one time birth cohort HCV screening, included with blood work, free on Part D.

It doesn't make sense for me to refuse vaccines or screenings that may eventually extend my life. I have purposes that can only be accomplished if I'm well and alive.

Another off-topic vaccine question. What about HPV vaccinations? Anyone who has had more than one partner, or has a partner who ever had another partner, could be at risk. My doctor told me that even long-term married people can pass the infection back and forth, if one or both was ever exposed in their younger years. The virus never goes away once infected. The immune system usually makes it dormant but it can flare up decades later and infect a partner, even if you've been monogamous for a long time.

And if someone becomes divorced or widowed, and remarries, they are open to new exposure regardless of age. Hopefully everyone is doing their part to eradicate HPV as well, men included. Even if you've already been exposed, there are many different strains and the vaccine protects against multiple strains.

Young adolescents are supposed to get the HPV vaccine and also too adults who passed through their teens before the vaccine was available. This can be a lifesaver in later years.

It's beyond me why this has turned into another anti-vac and/or religious issue for some when it should be just a common sense health step. People who think they know more than experts do invoke a face palm moment and a head shake from me.

As with the flu shot, there's also a public health/public good issue. If you don't want to protect yourself or your children, why not instead think of it as something to do to protect the health of your community?

I'm all for questioning authority, but sometimes, authority is right. It's good to learn enough about the scientific method to have a clue when people such as science reporters, salesmen, or outright charlatans are off track.

Seniorgal, I'm very Sorry to learn that you have been so ill and im very glad you are discovering. Hope you are feeling 100% soon!

My last job was at a school and public health recommended an annual flu shot. The one year I didn't get the shot I came down with the flu and have never felt so bad. No vomiting or respiratory problems; it was mostly a fever that spiked at around 101 - 103 in the afternoon and unbelievable fatigue. I have never felt so tired. It was about three months before I felt like myself again. Hope to never experience that again.

Best wishes to you as you complete your recovery!

I guess there is no reasoning with people who want to take a chance with the flu despite all the evidence, but I just want you to know that my 3 year old grandson, and thousands of other children, are going through chemo therapy for cancer. If they catch the flu virus from you, it can kill them. The vaccine is free, takes 10 minutes, and can help save a life. Please, just do it.

Suzanne, my best wishes for your grandson's return to good health. I'm shocked at the number of people who not only don't get the shot, but think nothing of heading out to the store, etc. when they are sick.