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Post by daylilydude on Jan 20, 2018 14:20:08 GMT -5
Are you worried about catching the flu... Do you do anything to try to prevent it?
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Jan 20, 2018 14:29:52 GMT -5
I have grape juice and wet wipes on hand
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Post by brownrexx on Jan 20, 2018 14:42:17 GMT -5
Hubby and I got our flu shots in November. I know that the shot is not as effective as it could be but anything that might help is OK with me because the flu can be BAD.
I use those wipes in the grocery stores first on my hands and then on the shopping cart handle.
If I hear or see someone sneeze or cough then I go the other way while holding my breath!
I stay out of the medication aisle in the grocery store because that is where the sick people are looking for medicines. I also noticed that the tissue shelf was empty in my store so there are probably lots of sick people buying those too.
I push doors open with my sleeve or my elbow.
I know that it seems nuts but I see lots of people blowing their noses and then reaching for door handles. Yuk.
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Post by paulf on Jan 20, 2018 14:43:40 GMT -5
The last time I got a flu shot was in 1972...and I got the flu so bad I was out of service for about a week. That has caused my aversion to the flu shots. I have not had the flu since. I take vitamins and stay away from people as much as I can. Even so I may break down and get the shot. I am a bit older now than I was in 1972. So why can't they come up with a shot that is more than 30% effective against the strain that is so devastating this year. Unless the media is seeing the sky falling again and this is more, well, maybe not fake news but overblown news.
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Post by brownrexx on Jan 20, 2018 14:49:59 GMT -5
So why can't they come up with a shot that is more than 30% effective against the strain that is so devastating this year Because it's a guessing game. They have to start producing the vaccine about 6 months ahead of the flu season and the flu virus is notorious for its ability to mutate so they may have a perfect vaccine to start with and then the virus changes before it gets here. My husband felt slightly lethargic for the evening after his flu shot and I didn't have any effects at all. Different people react differently to the vaccine but usually it is not as severe as what happened to you. Possibly you were allergic to one of the components in the vaccine like the preservative. That was a problem for some people at one time but they have made many changes since 1972.
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Post by mgulfcoastguy on Jan 20, 2018 14:50:36 GMT -5
I won’t drink out of a water fountain or visit people with school age kids before April.
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Post by september on Jan 20, 2018 15:21:49 GMT -5
I get flu shots every year, never have had a bad or flu like reaction from the shots. My husband has a couple of times gotten some mild cold-like symptoms, but how do you know you haven't coincidentally caught a different bug going around at the same time? Symptoms for all the respiratory bacteria and viruses are so similar.
I can't really remember when I last had what I thought was a real flu. I get colds and sore throats and sinus infections a couple times a year, but not the fever, extreme body aches or stomach problems that I'd associate with true flu. I'm not generally very germ conscious, except I do wash my hands right away when I get home from shopping or busy public places.
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Post by spike on Jan 20, 2018 15:27:42 GMT -5
Years ago when I was active duty, I was forced to take flu shots and got sick as a dog every time. So no more flu shots for me. I don't really do much honestly. I don't go visit and try to stay away from sick people but that is about it.
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Post by tomike on Jan 20, 2018 15:45:51 GMT -5
Never had a flu shot, not sure if I ever will. Stay away from sick people as much as you can. Wash hands frequently especially after going shopping.
That's my advice and if I may add, try to eat well including fruit and vegetables....... :-)
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Post by pepperhead212 on Jan 20, 2018 16:36:04 GMT -5
I get a shot every year, since I come in contact with so much that I can catch things from, as well as all those people out there that could be sick. Last time I caught the flu was sometime in my 30s, before I started getting the shots regularly.
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Post by ahntjudy on Jan 20, 2018 17:16:33 GMT -5
Good old fashioned common sense cleanliness... When in public touching anything, keep hands away from the face until they can be cleansed properly... I know some are opposed to hand sanitizer, but I was waiting in the car for my boyfriend to come out of a local store and watched someone sneeze into their hand and then immediately open the store door with that hand... I keep alcohol based hand sanitizer in the car and in my handbag at all times for reasons such as that... I just came back from the supermarket, they had not refilled their supply of hand wipes to use on the carts, so I whipped out my sanitizer and 'washed' the cart handle right there... A lady looked at me and said, 'That's a good idea."...I said "Yep...Don't want to get the flu or something from a contaminated cart handle." She said, " I never thought of that." An ounce of prevention... But then of course there's the 'typhoid Mary' types who have no consideration for the rest of us who cough and sneeze without covering their mouths...Like brownrexx, I hold my breath and hightail it away from them!
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veggiegal
Junior Member
Posts: 5
Joined: December 2017
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Post by veggiegal on Jan 20, 2018 17:57:03 GMT -5
I do the exact thing when around people who I think or sick or start coughing, go the other way and turn my head. I also use the wipes to clean off my hand and the shopping cart handle. I use wipes as soon as I get to my seat on a plane, wipe the seatbelt, headrest, armrests and the tray table, also the air vent knob. Can't be too careful on a plane or the airport.
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Post by aftermidnight on Jan 20, 2018 18:19:49 GMT -5
I've had those very bad flu's twice, the first time was back in the 70's took me 3 months to get over it. The second time the kids were grown and out on their own, it was just as bad although it didn't effect me the same way, this time it didn't effect my hearing, also took a couple of months to get over it. Do I get a flu shot every year, you bettcha. Never had a reaction to it and if I did it wouldn't be as bad as the types of flu I had, the second time I really thought I was a goner, having Lupus didn't help.
Along with shopping cart handles, in flu season car door handles and steering wheel get a wipe down also my hands when I've been handling money. when eating out I always wipe my hands with the hand sanitizer I keep in my purse before eating. Occasionally when I think of it even door knobs and everything else I think of gets a quick wipe.
When my kids were young I didn't worry to much if they got a little dirt in their mouths, and didn't run after them with a sanitizer, let them build up their immunity systems the good old fashioned way.
Annette
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Post by brownrexx on Jan 20, 2018 18:21:06 GMT -5
It was just on the news today that virus particles from a cough or sneeze can travel for 26 feet!
I have only had the flu once in my life and believe me it was memorable! I never want a repeat of that.
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Post by octave1 on Jan 20, 2018 21:02:50 GMT -5
Worried is not the word. I just hope I don't catch it.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Jan 20, 2018 21:10:29 GMT -5
It was just on the news today that virus particles from a cough or sneeze can travel for 26 feet! I have only had the flu once in my life and believe me it was memorable! I never want a repeat of that. I hear you. The wife and I had it one year and all we could do was lay there and moan. Stomach just churned and we couldn't keep anything down
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Post by Gianna on Jan 20, 2018 22:57:01 GMT -5
I'm not sure I've ever had real flu. I had a flu shot about 10 years ago, and maybe some when I was younger. I'm not convinced they are effective.
This thread is reminding me to be more careful. I used to do far more like wiping down cart handles, having wipes in the car for wiping my keys, the steering wheel, etc, when getting back into the car after the store or getting gas. I used to avoid shaking hands too. Or even touching much of anything when out and about. Must do all of this again, esp in a bad flu year.
If I encounter sick people in the store, I do go the other way. And I also avoid areas where meds are sold in any store.
I also have not been worried about getting it, but I'm thinking an ounce of prevention might be worth it right now.
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Post by bestofour on Jan 20, 2018 23:06:39 GMT -5
The flu vaccine used to be live so we were actually injected with a bit of the flu virus and that's why we got sick. The vaccine isn't live anymore so it shouldn't make any sick. That said I'm hoping a study is being done on Tamiflu. It was a year in March that my then 13 year old grandson was given one dose of Tamiflu and ended up in the hospital on a ventilator. It was horrible. Several other teens were admitted and had to be vented during his stay after taking a dose of Tamiflu; one of the group died, one has brain damage, not sure what happened to the others. Thankfully my grandson recovered and is ok. We are freaking out about all this going on with the flu this year.
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Post by brownrexx on Jan 21, 2018 8:52:27 GMT -5
I'm not sure I've ever had real flu If you are not sure that you have had the flu then you have not had it. I used to think that the flu was like a really bad cold. Not so. No stuffiness and trouble breathing. It is more like the worse virus you have ever had in your life. The highest fever and the worst chills and every joint in your body aches like you can't believe. I think that even my hair follicles ached. Even worse than that - it goes on for DAYS and you can't sleep making you feel worse and worse. You feel like you might actually die!
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Jan 21, 2018 15:23:24 GMT -5
^ What she said. When you have the flu, you know it.
The last time I had the flu, I hurt all over. In some places, even my skin hurt...it's a hard feeling to describe. High fever and alternating between feeling miserably hot and shivering uncontrollably. You're so weak that getting up and walking to the next room is a Herculean effort. The aches are the worst, but many people also have a fierce dry cough that magnifies the aches and pains, and a painful sore throat.
(The congested cough, nasal and sinus congestion, sneezing, and runny nose start several days later if you're unlucky enough to get a sinus infection, bronchitis, or pneumonia as a secondary infection due to your flu-weakened immune system.)
The acute stage of the flu should start to lessen after 3-5 days if you were healthy going in. If you're not feeling at least a little better, or if you're feeling worse after 5 days, you need to get checked out for secondary infections. Those secondary infections can kill you - thousands of people die from pneumonia secondary to flu every year.
Most of the cases of severe side effects from Tamiflu have been in children and adolescents, so I would be cautious with Tamiflu with kids. But older adults really need to consider the risks of the flu itself; the flu can kill older folks all by itself. Taking Tamiflu might be safer than letting the flu run its course without it. But you have to start Tamiflu within 48 hours of the onset of flu symptoms for it to be effective.
I sure hope that my household misses out on the flu this year!
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Post by meandtk on Jan 21, 2018 16:23:04 GMT -5
Being a pastor I'm around many people and many sick. I think I bad the flu two times in the last ten years. One time I don't know where I picked it up. The other was after a funeral for an elderly man who died from flu.
Now I try to religiously take elderberry syrup to try to ward off such.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Jan 21, 2018 22:47:38 GMT -5
I'm not sure I've ever had real flu If you are not sure that you have had the flu then you have not had it. I used to think that the flu was like a really bad cold. Not so. No stuffiness and trouble breathing. It is more like the worse virus you have ever had in your life. The highest fever and the worst chills and every joint in your body aches like you can't believe. I think that even my hair follicles ached. Even worse than that - it goes on for DAYS and you can't sleep making you feel worse and worse. You feel like you might actually die! You described the flu to a T! I had it bad one year and went to the Dr. He swab tests and tells me I don't have the flu. About that time I upchucked all over him and his shiny shoes. He then decided I was sick. I was in bed all week and about all I could do was moan. Wife took it too. I say it was the flu.
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Post by mgulfcoastguy on Jan 21, 2018 23:17:22 GMT -5
My older sister's husband has it right now. Since he caught it over the weekend I imagine that he couldn't get any Tamiflu in time.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Jan 21, 2018 23:29:37 GMT -5
My older sister's husband has it right now. Since he caught it over the weekend I imagine that he couldn't get any Tamiflu in time. My SIL has it right now. She looks like S###. We took her some soup and 7up, but didn't go inside.
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Post by meandtk on Jan 22, 2018 11:05:23 GMT -5
A now deceased uncle of mine told me that during the 1918 epidemic, people would bring food to sick families, put it on the porch, walk out to the road, and then yell, "HEY!!!! We brought you some food!!!" Then they would go home. They refused to have contact. Good idea.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Jan 22, 2018 11:21:25 GMT -5
These days we can do the same thing, except we can call them with our cell phones instead of yelling. More dignified that way.
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Post by ladymarmalade on Jan 22, 2018 12:20:32 GMT -5
It was just on the news today that virus particles from a cough or sneeze can travel for 26 feet! I have only had the flu once in my life and believe me it was memorable! I never want a repeat of that. The Mythbusters had episodes where they did sneeze tests and cough tests- using colored dye to show how far the spray travels. It was extremely disturbing on so many levels.
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Post by ladymarmalade on Jan 22, 2018 12:36:04 GMT -5
We don't get flu shots, and it's been years since I had the flu. DH had it two years ago- he's one of those guys who gets sick and is better in a day or two with pretty much anything. Not with the flu. He was in bed for a full week the last time! I hope he never gets that sick again. We're big hand washing crazies this time of year. We homeschool, so you would think that would help limit the germ exposure, except that my kids dance several days a week, and the studio is basically a convergence of twenty-some area schools in one building. A giant petri dish, where the sicknesses spread like wildfire. Then you amp it up sometimes- like this weekend at a dance convention- where we are stuck in one space with kids from dozens of schools from different parts of the country. So our biggest defense is washing. We wash our hands after going out, and if we've been around someone who is sick, we hit the showers pretty much right after we get home. Last week someone sat behind me in church, just coughing and coughing. Literally, right behind me! I totally could not concentrate because I kept seeing in my mind just where her germs were landing all over me. I made a beeline right for the shower when we got home. We up the vitamins in the winter, especially vitamin D since we're getting pretty much no sunshine exposure. I also keep elderberry gummies on hand, and I really think those help as well. If someone starts to feel like they may be coming down with something, I pull a chicken out of the freezer and make a vat of virus killing bone broth loaded with garlic and fresh herbs- especially thyme, rosemary and parsley. We also try to be mindful of not feeding viruses by reducing our sugar intake when we're feeling run down. Also, trying to keep the house generally clean, washing bedding more frequently and opening the windows to air out if we manage to find a day above 40ºF. Hopefully we'll avoid it. Last week our local news reported that just as it seems one of the flu strains may be peaking in our area, a second strain has rolled in and is spreading like crazy. Add to that that norovirus is also making the rounds... I'd really like to make it through this winter without a round of ick hitting the household.
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