Flu Shot

Hello. I am 20 days out from my surgery. Recovery is slow but going ok. I am very concerned w/all the flu's going around. When would be a good time for me to get a Flu shot? I normally do not get them, due to fear of getting the Flu from it. I got one years ago and felt sick after. Also, is anyone else getting the H1N1 vaccine? I am so unsure. I do not like putting thing in my body that are foreign but do not wish to get sick w/just having my TAH. Coughing would not be good right now. Thank you.

Wow! Im so glad you asked that because I've wondered tha same thing. I've been very reluctant to get the flu shot this year because of my TAH. Yah....and I agree.....it's slow getting better....but we are!

I have never had a flu shot. I am a sahm and I am very healthy. Have not been sick with a cold or the flu in over 15 years, with the exception of strep throat one time.

So, when I was in pre-op, the nurse asked me if I wanted a flu shot (not H1N1, but for seasonal flu) before I left the hospital. My thinking was that there is SO much junk going around right now, and the surgery may compromise my system, so I told her YES, I would have the flu shot. (DH looked at me like I was insane because the last time he got a flu shot, he got the flu right after and then he ended up getting pneumonia).

Nevertheless, I DID get my flu shot the day after my surgery (that was two weeks ago today). I feel FINE!!! No side effects at all and I am glad I got it.

I got my flu shot (seasonal, not H1N1) about a week after my surgery. You cannot get the flu from taking a flu shot. The vaccine in the flu shot is made from dead virus. If you get sick after a flu shot it is entirely coincidence. It is possible to get the flu after getting the vaccine if you had already been exposed to the flu virus just prior to your shot. Like all vaccinations protection doesn't occur immediately. If you receive your vaccine through nasal mist rather than a shot then it is possible to get a light case of the flu. As far as the H1N1 vaccine, I'm getting the shot if at all possible because I had a healthy adult family member (not immediate family) die from it this summer. I'm also considering get a pneumonia vaccination because most of the doctors in my area are saying that with the H1N1 virus it's not the flu that is killing people, it's the secondary pneumonia that they contract. Because I have asthma I'm not taking any chances.

I'm a week post op of TAH and I too had the flu shot (seasonal) prior to leaving the hospital on Oct. 15th. I have had no side effects from it. It was my first one ever. I was very reluctant at first for the same fears you had....but I didn't want to take the chance of getting sick without it either. Other than the swelly belly and the pain of the staples...I'm doing fine. I get my staples out tomorrow (yeah) ...hopefully I will be moving a little better.

Kim
TAH 10-13-09
Moving closer to feeling great!

You may not get the "flu" but you get all the symptoms of having the flu if you are one of those people, so it is just like having the flu. I am & I never get the flu shot after the one I did get made me sicker than I had ever been. I would not get the H1N1 because of how fast they pushed it through. My parents were even told not to get it until they do more testing on it. Just my personal opinion but if you are not in a high risk category I skip it. Most of my family has already had the H1N1 flu now.

I get the seasonal flu shot every year. I got mine the day before my surgery. I figured I might as well,with everything going around. My kids also got thiers but have come down with a different virus. Not the flu, but something else. The
H1N1 vaccination is not even available in our area, unless you fit into the underlying health problem criteria, so if you have asthma/breathing problems. And newborns. But people need to understand that H1N1 is just another strand off of the actual Influenza, its not killing everyone, its the people who had an underlying severe heatlh problem to begin with. I would like to get the vaccination for myself and family. But it is not available, but when it is, we will get that one. Or we will probably have gotten the H1N1 virus by then. BLAH