Wednesday, October 21, 2009

I shouldn't have done it...

Fall has arrived.

The trees are turning their yearly gorgeous shades of golds, reds and browns.

Pumpkins and cornstalks are on display. The sound of children screaming with delight as they jump into the piles of leaves raked high in the lawn resonates throughout the neighborhood.

It's a happy time of year. I love the crisp air that comes as the temperatures drop. Bringing out all the cozy sweaters and cashmere peacoats.

And then, there's the down side of fall.
As the cool weather creeps in, so does the flu...

We've been eating Vitamin C and B12's in this house like they're candy. I've been making mugs of my mothers 'cure all' citrus tea. Trying desperately to stave off the inevitable.

Even with all these precautions, I got it.

No, not the H1N1. Although just the thought of that scares me, but just the flu.
Regular ol' beat you to a pulp...flu.

My daughter had a physical about a week ago. Our doctor asked whether we'd like to have a flu shot. This was the basic flu shot, not the H1N1. That hasn't become available as of yet. I had her vaccinated but declined one for myself. The last time I had a flu shot, I was the sickest I've ever been in my life. So I politely declined his offer. It was tempting though, the idea of staying in bed, sweating and puking for a week. to make me stay in bed and puke for week.

I was working downtown the other day and a security guard came into the store to chat as he usually does. He informed us that they were giving out flu shots downstairs. Free.

I really wish he hadn't said that.
That damn 'Free' word...

I can't pass up free stuff. Even though I know that I'll pay for it in the end. Many times over.

And guess what? I got it. The shot.

And then I got it. The flu.
And boy, have I been paying for it in the end. The rear end.

Because not only am I sick, but I had to go to the doctor to treat me. Since my resistance was down, I got a virus on top of it which required a shot. In the arse.

Perfect.

So now my days consist of this routine:

I'm tired.
I'm cold.
I hurt.
My head feels like it weighs 40 pounds.
And then I get hot.
Then cold again. Jealous, aren't you?
I should've known better.
So for the time being I've got to put off the glorious walks through the metroparks taking in the sites of the trees. The voices of the children. The exuberance of the dogs racing after blowing leaves. I've got to put that all on hold until this thing passes.

The upside is that I haven't felt nauseous. Yet.
And my Internet is working perfectly. I have 800 channels of nothing to watch.

But every time I turn on the television or the radio, someone is talking about H1N1. It makes me a little worried. 6 cases in the school surrounding our community. I know that's not what I have (thank God), but if I'm this sick now with this strain, what would that flu be like?

If by chance the vaccinations do become available, I won't be going.
I'm sick enough already.

Unless it's free.
Please don't make it free...
I've not enough toilet paper or tissue handy.
:-)



66 comments:

  1. I've been working with a scratchy throat for a week. Certainly not incapacitating, but annoying as hell.

    Hope you get better soon.

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  2. I love the fall in general, but sure enough, every time the seasons change, I get sick. Not sick enough to call in to work and curl up in bed, just sick enough to feel like crap all day and be unproductive so that my work piles up and waits till I feel better, which apparently won't be anytime soon.

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  3. I'm gonna have to try that citrus tea! Great blog.

    http://lightscameradanielle.blogspot.com

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  4. Well Nancy, I wasn't tested, but if what I had two weeks ago was H1N1....well then m'dear, I pray you don't get it because it's awful. HOwever, I didn't have any butt side effects...however I did THROW up from the extreme pain i was in. If it doesn't kill you....you will be glad you got it and got it out of the way. That's how I'm looking at it anyway. :)

    Got to build up some immunity in life...

    I've never had a flu shot, but now I'm thinking maybe i don't want one.

    ~hl~
    www.hoscorners.blogspot.com

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  5. Oh no! I hope you feel better soon.

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  6. I just got over the flu, too. It sucks. But I can GUARANTEE you that the flu shot didn't give you the flu - you were probably exposed at the doctor's office. The influenza vaccine is made from killed influenza virus, it can in no way, shape or form give you the flu. Well, unless you get the nasal vaccine, which is made of weakened virus.

    I hope you start feeling better quickly.

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  7. We never get the flu shot--and never get the flu. Except last year, when my daughter had one, and she ended up being sick all winter! Lots of kids here have had H1N1. My sister's kids also had it. As far as the flu goes, it really isn't as bad as the media says it is. Our pediatrician isn't even going to get in the vaccine, saying that it has been downgraded to a seasonal flu anyway, and the long term side effects from the vaccine are potentially worse than H1N1 itself! Go figure. Anyway, that doesn't negate that you're feeling awful right now, piggy flu or not, which stinks. Hope you feel better soon, and thanks for posting. That's dedication!

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  8. The media likes to scare people for ratings. H1N1 is no more deadly than the seasonal flu we know and don't love. The seasonal flu does kill people every year. Take care of yourself and get well soon!

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  9. Sounds like you had an awful dose,I hope your feeling better soon.Fall has many lovely attributes but my absolute fav is snuggling up in front of a roaring fire,theres nothing like it! Thanks for making the effort to blog even though you were feeling completely under the weather.

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  10. Oh Geez. While I am sorry that you are feeling ill, I'd like to thank you for physically confirming my fear. For years my wife has tried to get me to go get the flu shot. I don't get sick, and on the rare occasion that I do, it really kicks my butt. So, I have resisted every year, and this year has been no exception. I will use your blog as physical evidence to strengthen my case. Truth be told, it's all smoke and mirrors to mask the fact that I am a 35 year old man, strong like an ox, tough as nails, scared to death of needles. Hope you get to feeling better.

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  11. Sorry you're under the weather. I can't believe you went to the trouble to blog this with a 40 lb head. That's true dedication. Feel better!

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  12. Ahh, the old winter flu. I always, always get a massive chest infection two weeks before Christmas. Have done for the last four years. Does my head in.

    Rest up, loads of oranges; get everyone to wait on you hand and foot.

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  13. I am so sorry to hear you're sick and during this beautiful fall weather.

    I must agree with "GunDiva". You did not get the flu from the shot. Either it was during contact with a sick patient in the office or you already had it and the symptoms had not yet surfaced. In any event, the flu and the chances of getting it are worse than the shot. You did the right thing. Just think of it this way. Had you not gotten a shot, you'd feel a whole lot worse today.

    And now you have an excuse to call Patrick and have him bring over some tea and chicken soup.
    Feel Better Soon!

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  14. what a bummer! but i guess you get what you pay for right? free shot and you get the flu... I wouldn't get a flu shot if someone paid me! (well, ok, maybe if they paid me enough to make misery and strange side effects worth it!) I hope you heal up quickly!

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  15. Hope you feel better soon...

    I know so many people that get the flu shot and then get the flu. I've never gotten the shot and don't intend to.

    "Free" is not about to lure me in either - in Canada we get all of our shots for free, unless of course you count yellow fever - you have to pay for that.

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  16. Thank you Bonnie! Just to re-iterate...you can NOT get the flu from the injectable influenza vaccine. Getting the flu from a flu shot is a myth perpetuated yearly, and those of us who work in medicine spend the entire flu season with red marks on our foreheads from bangin our heads against the walls.

    My reason for not getting it is that I know how much it costs for the provider to buy it and I'm not paying more than double to get it at a clinic. It's strictly a financial decision on my part. When the clinic I worked at offered it to family members at cost, everyone got it. Now that I'd have to go to a flu clinic - no way.

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  17. I used to get the "Free" flu shot at the University Hospital. It was all the med students out in the parking lot on a Saturday and for a donation to the food bank, you got to get a "drive thru" vaccination. Worked out just fine until the year I got a student that obviously needed a little more aim practice. She gave me the shot too high and ruptured the bursa sack in my damn shoulder joint! Now I'm a 40 year old that can FEEL the weather change like some backwoods hag. I still love Fall, but damn my bones is achein'! So sha! No flu shots for me, free or not!

    Feel better soon and I hope you get a small chuckle of pleasure knowing I "feel" ya sister!

    :) Dinie B.
    http://lifemagnet.blogspot.com

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  18. As they say, "laughter is the best medicine" and you are maintaining your sense of humour, 40 lb head notwithstanding!

    My flu tea (not for the faint of heart - but I actually like it): fresh lemon juice, honey, and hot water to taste. Grate a couple of TBSPs of ginger and sqeeze the juice into the cup. Mince or press as many cloves of garlic as you can stand and add (I use 3-4). Stir as you drink, so you don't have to deal with tons of garlic at the bottom all at once. This is anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and I haven't needed to go on antibiotics for years.

    I'm still not sure how I'm going to deal with the free H1N1 shot. I hear so many conflicting reports! I wish we could all just hibernate for the flu season. Cheers!

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  19. I usually make my kids get the flu shot and decline for myself. I was always sure I would be the one to end up with the flu from it. Now you've convinced me!! Feel better Nancy!

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  20. One time I had the flu so badly when I threw up the poop ran out of my ass.
    No joke.
    Get better soon my friend!

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  21. Sorry to hear you are feeling like crap. Yeah, I've got the same problem with the word "free." Enjoy your 800 channels of nothingness and the internets until you are up and about again- hopefully soon.

    Look on the bright side, you haven't experienced what JenJen is speaking about above - yikes!

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  22. Sorry to hear you are not feeling well! Hopefully you'll be up and around again and will get to enjoy the beauty that is all around this time of year. My son and I just played out in the leaves this afternoon. Running through them, jumping in them, throwing them up (ooh, sorry, shouldn't have said that). :) Throwing the LEAVES up ... in the air.

    Anyway, hope you feel better soon!
    ~Kimberly

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  23. You know I've always thought that the whole flu shot thing is a conspiracy but like you I do it when it's free and without fail I get sick. Damn them and their free shots!

    Hope you feel better soon :)

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  24. Oh, poor you! I'm so sorry, sweetie. I hope whatever version of this lovely "preventive" variety you've got is gone very, very soon.

    As for the H1N1...I'm keeping my fingers crossed for all of us. My recently washed and constantly sanitized fingers...

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  25. Poor you, I hope you feel better soon.

    I used to have the flu jab each year because I am asthmatic and I never got ill afterwards. Now I live in Spain I don't have asthmatic problems anymore, so no more flu jabs!

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  26. oh no!

    i totally had to get the tushy shot a couple of years ago. I PASSED OUT.

    no fun. feel better.

    p.s. have you tried the miracle tomato soup recipe? if you get desperate, email me!

    kelly
    http://tearinguphouses.blogspot.com

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  27. I got a flu shot this year and last year too. I still get sick, just not the actual flu.

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  28. My 92 year old Mawmaw says that flu shots are for the "elderly and the infirm", and she's is neither, so she believes "she will pass on the flu shot". Nancy, you've actually helped me decide to also pass on the "free flu shot" offered by my employer. Thanks and feel better soon!

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  29. I got the swine flu. In fact, I got on the very first day of fall break. Peachy, right? AND my grandparents just got here, the ones who live in Illinois that was only see once a year. So I have to stay away from them so they don't get sick.
    Anyway, it's not as bad as people make it out to be. I'd say seasonal flu is worse.

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  30. I was in the military for years and they made us get the flu shot every year. And every year I got the ful the week after getting the shot. No more flu shots for me.

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  31. No fun! I hope you are feeling better soon. Sick or not, you still write an amusing blog.

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  32. i been lucky so far was avoiding the flu well normaly when it turns cold i get the flu quickly but i was doing so well till 3 people at work had it then i caught the flu grrr but feeling lots better now

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  33. Ah ~ this does not sound like you are having a good time at all. I hope you are feeling better soon ~ good to see it has not tampered with your sense of humor ~ love your writing... I am so glad I found you!

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  34. Fall is truly an amazing time- don't worry about getting ill, make sure you get out and get some wonderful fresh air (when its not raining), am convinced that helps keep me well. Although.... I normally inhale fruit like sweeties, and for some reason last two weeks I didn't, and lo and behold, the sniffles have arrived! Damn. Never mind, I've started munching on fruit like no one's business again. Well, they do say, an apple a day... Hope you get better soon, great blog! :)

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  35. I didn't realize adults still get shots in the rear. Nancy, I think you were taken advantage of.

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  36. OMG, Nancy...this same thing happened to a woman I work with and she said that she felt just awful.

    Sorry, my friend.

    But please know I send much "good energy" and a big "cyberhug" with this comment!

    {{{{{{{ Nancy }}}}}}}

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  37. I have heard that while H1N1 is different than your average flu virus, it is STILL a flu virus and shows pretty much the same symptoms as the existing flu. People die from the flu, just as much as H1N1; it looks like more people have died from it from the media hype that goes with it. I am sure people die from the cold virus, but death from these is not nearly as common.

    The cold virus is similar to the flu virus except you don't get nausea in most cold sickness. EACH time you get sick with the cold/flu you essentially get a new strain, if there was only ONE strain then you would never get it again because your immune system has had exposure to it unless your immune system breaks down via medication or by another virus affecting it (AIDS).

    Great blog, I started checking out your blog when I was nosying around for random blogs to look at :)

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  38. Darn, now that GunDiva and Blogging to a Better Bonnie have taken away my certainty that the flu shot was what gave me the flu the few times I got one, I will now have to admit that once I got a flu shot I probably thought myself invincible and was less careful about not catching the flu!

    No shot for me though! I'll take my chances. Feel better soon!

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  39. thenk god that it is not H1N1... thats deadly man. And dont worry about the routine flu. Take it positively. It will take its own sweet time to go away. Till then relax, write as much as u can and enjoy the weather. I love fall. The weather is at its best. Even here in India. I love it. And you too start loving it to the core. :)

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  40. I hope you feel better soon. The last time I got the flu was just after getting a flu shot. No more, not even free .... well maybe, no, not even free.

    Judy

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  41. Oh man, I'm so sorry you're feeling sick.

    I resist getting the flu shot for the same reason. I'm gonna take my chance. Oh yeah, and that picture of the tea is seriously pretty. I bet it smells like heaven.

    Anyway, GET WELL SOON!

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  42. My mom also got incredibly sick after she got the flu shot once and declined it ever since. Hope you feel better soon; it's a great opportunity to catch up on some reading and blogs, yes? :)

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  43. I know the feeling. I had always declined the flu shot because the one time I did get it I got sick as a dog. However, this year, I had something worse than the flu....Viral Meningitis. Talk about scary!

    Hope you feel better soon.

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  44. Here's some FREE advice. Don't listen to any of it!

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  45. The tea looks great! My daughter and I get a flu shot every year, have never had a problem. For what it's worth, my doctor says if you come down with the flu after getting the vaccine, it's probably because you were already infected.

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  46. How sad. Everyone seems to be talking about the flu. Why is this flu affecting you all. From what I understand, swallowing vitamin C tabs and B12 do not necessarily work. What you need to take is something to wake your poor immune system. Try transfer factors. It will increase the efficiency of your immune system by almost 500% No cold germs will dare thrive inside you. Look for it in the Net.

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  47. It's very unfortunate that you fell victim to the flu, but so goes life I guess! You had the right idea though. Plenty of B12 and C will do a lot better in the long run than a vaccine, because it will (along with catching the flu) make your immune system much stronger so that you will be less likely to get (or be as hurt) by future flu strains. Vaccines will simply address the problem of here and now and allow future strains to run-a-muc so to speak. While this is good for people that are at risk of dying from the flu (eldery, infants, compromised immune systems) us normal people shouldn't be getting ANY VACCINE- not H1N1 or any other flu shot. H1N1 is not any more deadly than the normal flu, it is simply more contagious. If you don't believe me, WIKI it :)

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  48. Someone's probably already said this, but while you have gotten the flu immediately after getting a flu shot, you absolutely cannot get the flu from the vaccine.

    Really.

    There have been some pretty hardcore sick people on my FB lately. Seems like influenza has really upped its game this year!

    Pearl

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  49. So sorry you're under the weather! :(

    That shot is supposed to prevent you from getting AS sick when the flu goes around. Or so I heard. We were going to get the flu shot, but I was sick at the time. I'm STILL sick, as a matter of fact. But we're still thinking of getting it once we get to AZ. Am I crazy?

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  50. I work for Public Health in Canada. We just received the H1N1 vaccine today. Our phone has been ringing off the hook with clients wanting their shot. This is what I know...the H1N1 is very serious. Not to be messed with. The vaccine can be given even if you are exibiting symptoms of the flu. Unlike the seasonal flu the H1N1 attacks children, pregnant women and young adults. Symptoms can be quite severe, including death. If you can get the vaccine it is recommended. The choice is simple: get the flu or get the shot. Take care, I hope you feel better soon.

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  51. Hope you feeling better soon, take care, n stay positive okay.

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  52. Rest much and drink plenty of water. Hope you feel better now. Take care yourself!

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  53. I'm with everyone else here who wishes you all better.

    Big doses of healthy love and well wishes your way

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  54. Hope you feel better! I am enjoying your blog.

    www.cyndi124.blogspot.com

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  55. Sorry you arent feeling well. Hope you are back to your sassy self soon.

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  56. Believe it or not. I went to a seminar where there were a lot of high fives and handshaking. Needless to say I walked in there a picture of health. This was three days ago as I type to you from my bed which I have been attached to for the last two days. I had the runny nose, coughing, sneezing (funny how fast that works). My daughter tells me to swallow two cloves of garlic. I did and I feel great. Don't know if I caught whatever I have in the beginning but it worked for me. Try it. Don't chew it - chop it up in chunks and just swallow. I wish you well.

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  57. Ugh...me too. I was told by my Dr that it is too early for the seasonal flu so therefore what I have is the H1N1. Rest, fluids and more rest have been my days. I am ready to turn off the cable after my days of resting and watching lifetime movies. It has taken 2 weeks to start feeling healthy again. Be careful not to jump back into life full force because it relapses. Well, that is my 2 cents on the subject. Hope you feel better soon:)

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  58. I refuse to get the shot myself...I don't think it needed. Vaccines scare me with all they contain. My son got swine flu and got better after a week. The media hypes it up.

    Take in loads of Vit C with Zinc, drink water, and eat garlic...get plenty of rest and feel better lady!!! There is still time to enjoy fall :)

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  59. Very good article! If you have time, just have a look at http://goodwatches.blog.com!

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  60. Aww. I'm sorry you have to deal with that. I don't have time to be sick, as I'm sure you don't either. I hope it passes soon!

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Do it. Do it NOW!
:-)