Touchy Subjest - Anti Flu Shot Ppl?

My children and I used to go without the shot. Since we were low risk, I din't want to go through the bother of receiving vaccine.

Now I understand that receiving the vaccine isn't just a way to protect my own family. It also increases herd immunity which helps protect the most vulnerable members of my community. Even if we are lucky enough to not get the flu, we can be carriers and pass off the virus to others whose immune system isn't as strong.

So we get the flu shot (quadrivalent inactivated influenza vaccine). I feel it's my duty to protect my kids AND other people's kids from preventable disease.

There was an article in today's paper about a healthy 23 year old who just died from the flu. So sad.

i'm not anti-vaccine. i AM anti (for myself and my kids) vaccines that have a low efficacy rate and only target a fraction of the causal bugs.
once a vaccine has been out for long enough to have a proven track record of both efficacy and incidents of drastic side effects low enough to suit me, i'll consider 'em.
the flu vaccine and gardasil are not happening here. but continue adding to the body of research, everyone who gets 'em!
khairete
S.

I was an ant-flu shot mama. Until this week after watching my 16 year DD laying in bed gasping for breath. It's be 9 days now we've been to the Dr's and last night the ER. The poor child is miserable she's on Tamiflu, two pain medications, nausea meds. She has literally been sleeping now for the past 14 hrs straight. She was diagnosed with Influenza A and B. Her Dr and the Er Dr both were surprised she had both. Here in MO we had 12 people die last week from the flu. Today I went and got the flu shot even though I've been exposed. And from now on we as a family will get the shot every year. After watching my child suffer I will never go through that again. I spent the past three days in fear. It's just not worth it.

I guess I don't quite understand why 30 or so comments (or how ever many you're going to get here) is going to matter to you. What usually helps people decide this is how absolutely awful they feel when they get the flu, or watching a family member suffer with it. Then the next flu season comes around and they make an active decision whether or not to get the shot, knowing the gamble they'll take.

Quite frankly, you can get the flu even after having had the shot, but at least you aren't as sick as you would be without having gotten the shot. That has happened to me 3 times out of all the years I've had the flu shot. My husband was one of those who didn't get the flu shot until he was SO sick with it that he was incoherent. Scared me to death.

For those who actually think that you can mistake the flu for a stomach bug, you really are misinformed. FLU (A, B or H1N1) is a week to 10 days of misery. Vomiting isn't usually associated with influenza. You are so sick that you drag yourself to the doctor, and the doc will put a swab in your nose and test you for the flu. There is a flu epidemic going on in many parts of the US right now. Flu is NOT uncommon. And it is very contagious.

If you see your children get sick with the flu, you will wish you had gotten your family vaccinated. It's really up to you to figure this out. The help is out there. Will you accept the help or not, is the question.

I don't think it is wise to search for people to validate your beliefs on matters of public health. If you cherry pick the info you are receiving, you're sure going to find plenty of people who will support your position. If, however, you want to find out what the evidence bears out, you will be open to ALL views of the flu shot, not just those that support your current position. Academic honesty.

If I wanted someone to make me feel better about thinking that aliens built the pyramids, I could find plenty of people to do that for me. But that doesn't make my opinion any more valid than if it was actually subjected to rigorous academic interrogation.

Please don't look for a pat on the head--look for the evidence.

JMO--I hope you can find the RIGHT information, not just what you'd like to hear.

ETA: FYI - this year the predominant strain of the flu showing up in the ER is H1N1, and it is affecting the LOW RISK patients disproportionately - the younger adults who are otherwise healthy, and most of them did NOT get the vaccine (this year's vaccine DOES cover H1N1), or they got the shot too late so that they were already exposed before the vaccine had enough time to ramp up in their bodies (it needs 14 days to reach maximum effectiveness). Seriously, I get my flu shot because my husband sees people FIRST HAND suffering from complications related to the flu, and because I have an infant in my home who isn't old enough to be vaccinated himself. I have never had the flu in my adult life, and I get the vaccine every year.

ETA2: This year's flu vaccine protects against 3 strains, and looks like this year they DID guess right about which would be the most prevalent--H1N1. http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/season/flu-season-2013-2014....

I had no choice for many years : friends who work in the Middle East would bring the Flu back with them every summer (before our flu shots would come out... The Flu typically starts in Asia -bird or swine-, and then travels West... With immunologists racing to get a vaccine made ahead of the wave).

- 103-105 fevers
- Sick for TEN days (flat out, NOT sniffles & achy cold, but laying on the floor in joint screaming agony, too tired to stand up to pee, occasionally wishing for death. No lie.)
- Often complicated by pneumonia... Meaning months of recovery

As of a few years ago, though, my son's doctor has flu vaccine flown in for us every June.

Dear.
God.

Thank you.

People say the flu, when they actually MEAN a nasty cold, the flux (pronounced the same, but not what you're being vaccinated for), or an upper respiratory infection (like bronchitis).

The flu is a shut your doors for 10 days (or 30 if you manage to go round robin with 3 people), order in your groceries, live on Tylenol & Gatorade, and pray you don't have to shell out 10k-50k inpatient hospitalization (go for IVs sooner, $1000 ER visit WAY preferable to waiting for arrhythmias, uncontrollable fevers, etc,), turn your life off, and pray MISERABLE.

Every summer.

For YEARS.

Dear God, thank you for the flu shot!

I was anti-flu shot, too, until my son got H1N1 while in 1st grade. He was a super healthy kid, good hygiene for a little guy and no risk factors to speak of for our family (at the time) so none of us got the shot. We figured if we got the flu we would just deal with it. When he got sick, it was really no big deal. He just had a fever that dragged on and was a bit lathargic. I kept him home for a buffer day as he was getting better and the next day he was so sick he could hardly wake up or move on his own. I rushed him to the doctor. He x-rayed his lungs and found pneumonia. He could hardly stand up for the x-ray because he was so weak. He could not hold down any medicine, his fevers kept spiking, I had to use tylenol suppositories, he was so thin I just cried. I understand now, how people can die from this.

I vowed to myself that I would get him a shot every year from then on. I wouldn't be able to live with myself for not doing all I could.

His dr. had always said that it was not the flu itself that was dangerous but the secondary infections that come along with it. NOW I understand.

For the past few years Mom, Dad and little guy all get the shot because dad is at high risk after a brain hemorrhage/stroke.

As requested, I won't get into a debate about the safety/efficacy/necessity of the flu shot. I do want to mention, though, that if you're "OCD and deal with 'germ attacks' =)" -- which I assume means keeping things super-clean and hygienic -- and then you send your daughter to school, that actually increases the likelihood of her getting the flu (as well as [potentially serious] allergies, and minor things for which there are no vaccines, like colds and stomach bugs). That's because kids who grow up in squeaky-clean households (aka microbial monocultures) have "naive" immune systems. They haven't developed the immunological defenses that kids get from regular exposure to grime and mild pathogens.

More info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hygiene_hypothesis

I'm honestly *not* telling you to change your mind. But you sound like a nice, thoughtful, intelligent person, and the science is reasonably solid on this stuff.

To some of the respondents,

Stomach "flu" is NOT the FLU!!!!!! Let's repeat. "Throwing up" is not a typical symptom of the flu. One more time. Gastrointestinal distress is not due to the flu. Totally different.

Rant over. Please continue your discussion.

So you just want people to tell you that your decision is a good one without regard to the facts?

Sorry. Can't help you.

I think the best way to put your fears to rest is to do your own research.

Over the past several years, we've heard a LOT about vaccines, supposed links to developmental delays, etc. And we've also seen a lot of that information recanted or expunged from the medical journals which previously published those articles.

My concern is that you are asking people to validate a view which you are admittedly wanting reassurance on. To me, that suggests that you might do well to review your own information, look on the CDC websites, etc.

Just for the record, we do all get the flu vax in our house. My husband can't miss (up to ) two weeks of work; I can't be down for two weeks because my job is to support him in his work. My son got the mist vax (had the sniffles for a couple days, which is common) -- last year in Kindergarten, two of his classmates ended up in the hospital with the 'flu. I didn't need him missing up to two weeks of school, and frankly, I'll say this-- washing hands IS an intervention. If we are using anti-bacterial soap (which we don't) we repeatedly expose our kids to triclosan, which has dangers in its own right as it bio-accumulates. Differing interventions, and with varying risk factors.

We expose ourselves and our children to so many harmful chemicals on a daily basis (esp. if they ingest aspartame or foods which contain coloring, for starters) -- even the rays of the sun, or in sunblocks-- there are few of us who can honestly say we have raised our children 100% toxin free. It's a delusion.

Handwashing is a great help. I am not going to debate you on your opinion-- we practiced delayed vax with our son. I will just say that I did my own research, looked at CDC websites on different vaccines, and have kept my ear to the ground, so I know that things like pertussis (whooping cough), measles and other supposedly-eradicated diseases sometimes make a comeback. Sometimes, the best way to go is to really do your own discovery of what seems like a reasonable risk, and what doesn't.... and go from there. I do write, though, because I think it is unreasonable to ask for only opinions similar to ones own. It is in hearing differing opinions-- and being willing to accept them as valid in their own right-- that we grow to make better, more well informed choices, even if we are sticking with our original choice but with new information. Good luck to you.

I can tell you why we do get it. My trusted pediatrician tells us it is a good idea, with a child who has really bad asthma flares when dealing with any upper respiratory infection. The only year my husband and I didn't get one, we both got the flu and spent over a week in bed wanting very much to die (I am not exaggerating).

And this year living in Texas where we have had and are having a major outbreak of H1N1. My husband and I both caught it and were in bed for about 24 hours and done with it. Others not vaxed have been sick 7 to 10 days, some hospitalized, and so far 8 dead (Including several otherwise healthy adults with no underlying health conditions).

So, that is why we do flu shot...I am curious to as to why some don't...I am glad we do have the choice to do it or not as we see fit!!

Never gotten a flu shot, neither have my (now older) kids,
BUT,
I would think your kids are the perfect candidates for one because 1) they are young, and because 2) they spend so much time at home and therefore lack a healthy exposure to germs.
Even if you choose not to get one for yourself you should think about their vulnerability.
My kids never had flu shots but I took them out in public from the day they were born and pretty much exposed them to everything. I imagine building up their immune systems from a very young age is one of the reasons they stayed so healthy all these years.
Also flu shots weren't widely available when they were little.
Oh, and most people vaccinated their kids then, so I didn't have to worry about exposing them to whooping cough and everything else that's coming back now due to parental ignorance.

For me, there's way too much money involved in this for it to be a good thing. The shot is a new cocktail every year, a best guess at what may or may not be out there, so there is no guarantee that it will be effective. I am not immuno-compromised, my children aren't, nor are any of our family members or close friends. The herd immunity argument for the flu shot is false - with the efficacy rate at only a certain % because the cocktail of the year is a best guess plus that fact that the % of people who immunize is not at a critical mass needed for her immunity means that that argument holds no sway for me.

Influenza isn't that common and many people who think they have had the flu really just have a cold (or a stomach virus, which is totally unrelated to influenza). At the end of the day, I trust my body and my immune system - and that of my children - before I trust this vaccine that is hastily produced and mass marketed to literally everyone. No thanks.

I am opposed to all vaccines but I won't get into that either. Specifically, The flu vaccine is never manufactured from the current strain of flu but the previous one. Even if a vaccine was effective, it would be only be effective on the strain of flu it was created for. Most people, if they are honest will tell you that if they get the flu shot they usually end up getting some form of the flu....

I haven't ever had a flu shot and I have had the flu once in the last ten years. I contracted that when I was exposed to a swine flu outbreak at a local hospital when I was sitting with one of my daughters sick friends (college kid and Mom was traveling to get to her). Eleven sick elderly patients were at the emergency room while I was there. It lasted three days and no one in my home contracted it. I personally believe the best protection against any kind of illness is a super strong immune system.

Best regards,
M.

we do not get it because there are so many awful chemicals in it. We also do not get it because we are pretty healthy overall. We wash our hands, take vitamins, and eat healthy. We also do not get it because it does not work most of the time. I know many people even this year who did get a flu shot and ended up with the flu confirmed by their dr about a month or two later. I am 33 years old and have never ever had a flu shot and I work in a preschool, and I have only had the flu once.

We don't get any kind of shot, flu, vaccination, whatever. I have not been sick in over 20 years, neither has my husband. My kids are 17, 14,11 and have not thrown up since they were babies and have close to perfect attendance in all their school years. My belief is that I don't believe one shot will protect you from the "flu" since there are so many versions of it each year. I know people in my circle who get the shot and then are sick after it. I just don't see the point. I'm also not psycho about hand sanitizer and crazy cleaning. Our bodies need to naturally fight off cooties and if you are killing everything, it simply can't happen. JMO. Good luck.

I have vaccinated the kids every time it was time to get that shot. I feel strongly that science and medicine has advanced and these vaccines save kids hardship and suffering every day. I feel like if the scientific community announced tomorrow they'd found a 100% cure for cancer and we just needed to come take this shot that there would be millions of people who would never take it. No matter how much of a chance they had of developing it.

I grew up with a girl that had polio so I know how hard it was for someone who didn't vaccinate their kids to watch their kids suffer for that choice.

BUT BUT BUT I have never had the flu or pneumonia vaccine. I don't know why I don't go do them but I just can't really afford them I guess.

I have had the flu twice in my life, each time I felt like I was going to die if I laid down and fell asleep. I was so sick, over 105 temperature, chills, shakes, dizziness, and more. I think back and wonder why I don't line up at the doc's door the day they start offering them and get the first one.

I guess I need to think about them and decide next time if I want to risk it.

I don't get my children ages 10 & 7 the flu shot. The only time they had it was w/o my consent in the hospital at birth due to the time of year they were born or some nonsense. My children have NEVER had the flu. My husband and I do not get the vaccine either nor do we ever get the flu.

I don't see a point in purposely poisoning your body to maybe have less of a chance of getting sick. Also, everyone that I know that ever gets the flu shot winds up getting the flu. It makes no sense to me to possibly put my family though that. Getting the flu shot helps to build your immune system against whatever strain 'they' feel is going to be more prevalent.....what if you get a different strain how is that flu shot going to help you then?

I think this is a decision you have to make on your own, not by hearing horror stories on either side, that can come with anything. You have to do your own research, and don't bank on validation from others to agree with you.

There are plenty of people who agree AND disagree with many of my parenting decisions. My take is that it's really not any of their business.

We do NOT get the flu shot in our home. The one year we did get it for our kids, the oldest was 2.5 and the middle one was 9 months. My oldest had two seizures cause from the fevers she got after getting the shot and my 9 month old ended up with pneumonia shortly after getting the shot. They have never been so sick for so long in their entire lives. They have not gotten the shot since then. My husband respects my decision (though he works in the medical field and supports the shot) and so do our doctors.

I think the flu shot is not the devil, it's just not for us. For what it's worth, we vaccinate every other medicine on time.

I get the flu shot...... I got the shot 2 years ago, and didn't get around to getting it last year, though. I also got the flu shot several years ago...

I try to get it every year or so.....

I work in a middle school with special needs kids... I don't want to get sick, and can't afford to be out for a week or more if I DO get sick!

And no... I've not gotten the flu for many years......

I anchor my choice in hard experience, having had the flu twice in the past decade, days of misery that deteriorated into months' long bouts of bronchitis bad enough to break ribs from the coughing, and very expensive visits to the doctor. So I will not miss the vaccine, which seems to have protected me in every year I've had it.

However, recent studies show that there are people with a very strong resistance to flu viruses, and these folks are much less likely to ever come down with the illness. Unfortunately, there's no test available yet to identify who those people are. Maybe someday we'll be able to learn who's naturally-protected and who's not.

I don't get the flu shot, as a rule. I did last year, as we had an infant in my extended family & I expected to be caring for him regularly last winter. I haven't had the shot this year. THough I'm in a risk group (asthmatic), I've never, ever had the flu (knock on wood!) so I don't feel a huge need to prevent something my body doesn't seem inclined to get.

On the other hand, I strongly, strongly encourage my husband to get the flu shot every year. If he doesn't get the shot, he's almost guaranteed to get the flu -- usually followed by at least bronchitis and more often pneumonia.

I think we all need to listen to our own doctors and our own bodies.

We opt out of the flu shot.

I did make sure my daughter had all the required vaccines for school which I feel are important but we do not do flu, pneumonia, guardisil.

I did take the flu vaccine once and it was the ONLY time I got sick in over 20 yrs.

I'm not especially against it, but I know several doctors and surgeons in my town who found a way around the rule that health care workers have to get the flu shot, by claiming an egg allergy. That made me worry more than anything else, if these smart, experienced people don't want to get it, why would I?

Did I read it right? I'm tired, you have a bit of germ phobia and are concerned about dd catching something but also for reasons you haven't shared yet you do not wish for to give her the flu shot. I'm just clarifying.

I don't read med journals I haven't interviewed a number of doctors and weighed their credentials. So My opinions might be all fluff. but I choose not to vaccinate because I am not in a high risk group. I don't think it covers enough strains of flu to make any possible side effects worth it, I'm really really not ok with the side effects. The hassell and cost come into play as well.

I'm not anti flu shot, but I don't believe that everyone needs or should run out and get one.

In our family, three of us get the flu shot and one does not. My husband gets it faithfully - he seems susceptible to influenza, the couple of times he has not gotten the vaccine, he gets the flu, so he always gets one.

I started getting flu shots when I started working in public school, in my late 30's. When I worked in the corporate setting, I never got a flu shot.

My son is 14 and gets a flu shot, because he is asthmatic so influenza would be riskier for him.

My oldest is 18 and has never had a flu shot. Other than poison ivy, and one case of pinkeye, this is the kiddult who has not been to the doctor for a sick visit since before kindergarten. Yes, really. No ear infections, never a case of strep in her life, no bronchitis, nothing. So with an immune system like that, why would I have chosen to put something like a flu vaccine into her body?

Good luck with your decison.

None of our family members get the vaccine.
Nor do our extended family.
We don't like to get any more vaccines than we have to.

I'm not anti-flu shot, I've just never had one. Never had the flu either. My wife gets one every year without fail as do her kids.
I don't think you can really be anti-flu shot and still get vaccines as you state?!?!?

I am not anti flu shot though I have never had one in my life. Until I get into an actual risk group it isn't happening. I have never had the flu either.

Everyone in my office that gets the flu shot gets the flu. Makes me wonder if it is a good idea when it doesn't seem to cover the strain of flu running around the office anyway.

I want to add my choice is also based on I have never sheltered myself or my kids from germs. If I were one of those antibiotic freaks that sterilize everything they come into contact with I would be all over that flu shot. If I do get the flu I would be home, not infecting the world like most of my coworkers do. I would not allow my kids to go to school, I would also rethink my stance on this.

If it is something your doctor recommends you should consider it. They are the only ones who know your health. I have had it offered by my doctors but at no time did they suggest I need it. If my doctor said take it, I would take it.

I have never gotten it for me or my kids either, just because it seems to me the flu (unlike measles, rubella and all the dangerous illnesses) is not that bad, builds up natural immunity, and we don't get it all that often. Also in some years the flu shot is, despite the best efforts of researchers, not all that well tuned to the actual flues that go around.
If my kids had complicating factors like bad asthma or immune issues, I would rethink my position though. My husband does get it because he works in food service and does not want to take a chance of passing the flu to customers in that stage before you feel really sick but are still contagious.

I'm 50. I've never had a flu shot.
I *think* I've had the flu once or twice.
Maybe on my 20's-30's.
My husband had never had a flu shot.
I remember him having the flu once since I've known him. That was over 10 years ago.
We're not in high risk groups. (Work with public, breathing issues, compromised immune systems)
When my son was small (1-4) he got flu shots.
He has no risk factors and hasn't had O. since then.
Seems like they predict the strain for that year, so it assures nothing, except less intense symptoms IF you get the predicted strain.

I am 41 and had the flu shot just one time. I have NEVER had the flu (hopefully I did not just jinx myself). The one year I got it, it was because my company arranged it for everyone and I just decided to do it. My daughter had the flu shot I think twice because hubby took her to her well visit and agreed to it. I never get it for her (she's 7 now)...the H1N1 vaccine is included and I don't trust that one.

A for why I am not pro-flu vaccine...it only protects you against the strain that they expect to be prevelant for the season. It does not cover across the board. It also does not insure that you will not get the flu...even that strain...it should mean that IF you get the flu it is less severe. Additionally, my family doesn't typically get the flu. We tend to get bronchitis and the flu shot does nothing to protect against that.

I researched the effectiveness/pros/cons of the flu shot almost every year when a "big" outbreak occurs (which I would hope most people would do, and then make their own decision) - especially with the H1N1 outbreak and opted out of it for myself and my LO.

I've never had the flu shot and have only had the flu once in the last 20 years - granted I'm pretty healthy, but I attribute my great immune system on me eating right, exercise and good clean living and not on a bunch of vaccines. Last year the big thing was the west nile virus and you saw headlines of people dying from it. Not only did I get the west nile, I also had the start of a kidney infection and allergies and I was still going to work and exercising (more moderately of course). I was a confirmed case of west nile and my family/friends could not believe what a non-issue it was. Not that I wasn’t feeling bad – I definitely felt bad a few days, especially with the kidney issue (not related to the west nile), however it was no worse than the flu I had several years ago. My LO (little one who was two at the time) also got the west nile and recovered within a few days as well. My DH and oldest didn’t have the same symptoms as we did but suspected they also had it for a few days.

I feel that by getting the flu naturally (live virus) in conjunction with clean, healthy living, our immune system is better than those who are injected full of dead viruses that big pharma deems popular for that year. Now if myself or my LO had other underlying health issues, I would probably reevaluate, but for now I would rather continue to build up our immune systems naturally than take a chance that the pharma companies/government come up with the right formula from year to year. We do get vaccines so we are not completely anti-vaxxers. Our pediatrician is always amazed at how healthy our LOs are when they come in for check-ups.

As a parent it’s a tough job to balance the risks of whether to vaccinate or not as with many other decisions regarding the health of our LOs. There is no right answer except the answer the families decide for themselves.

I don't get it for my family because I don't find it necessary at this time as our risk is low. My husband works from home, I'm a stay at home mom, my boys are going to turn 2 and my daughter who is 4, is in preschool, but I still think our risk is low as it is a small school and the majority of the kids are vaccinated. When my daughter starts Kindergarten and is surrounded by more people, I will probably get her vaccinated. I just have a hard time giving my children a shot that may or may not work. And this year in the case of my neighbor and a another family I know, they did receive the flu shot and at least one of them got the flu. And not in the way people think they get the flu when they get the shot. I'm talking about getting the flu weeks, even months, after getting the shot.

I took it for years and got sick every year. I quit taking it twelve years ago, and just this year had the first real case of the flu since I quit taking it. I was flat on my back, miserable as all hell for a week. Will I start taking it again? Nope. I figure once every twelve years, I've got the odds on my side.

It's a hard decision and each year I weigh the options. My daughter has had the flu shot once, when they were giving it at school, but that is the only time. Our kids are very healthy with a strong immune system, so I prefer to limit their exposure to the chemicals in the flu shot. My husband has had the shot once and had the worst sickness in his life, immediately after, so he will never get one again. We also have a history of Guillain-Barre syndrome in the family and our doctor said that is definitely a reason to stay away from the flu shot. It's a very small risk according to new studies, but with our naturally strong immune systems, we choose to opt out. It's all about looking at the pros and cons and what feels right to you.

I am not opposed to it for other people, just me and my son. I am a total wuss when it comes to needles, and I don't get sick, so I don't see the need for the stress or extra "stuff" in my body. Regarding my toddler, unless there is a reason for me to do it, then I will not subject him to needles.

I'm on the fence about the flu shot. We do get it most years; however, I feel like I usually have one really bad illness in the years that I get it and stay relatively healthy in the years that I don't. So, I'm not convinced that it's worth it. I guess I'm not ever getting the actual flu though, just some other virus.

My son has egg allergies and only started getting the flu shot last year, at age five. He never had any problems in the four years that he was not vaccinated. My daughter's bday is in October, so we typically just get her a flu shot at her well check since we are there anyway.

I wouldn't call myself anti flu shot, since we do get it most years. But I'm not convinced that it's worth it, either. I have major difficulty understanding and agreeing with people's reasons for skipping other vaccines, especially the MMR, but I don't think it's a big deal to skip the flu shot.

Updated

I'm on the fence about the flu shot. We do get it most years; however, I feel like I usually have one really bad illness in the years that I get it and stay relatively healthy in the years that I don't. So, I'm not convinced that it's worth it. I guess I'm not ever getting the actual flu though, just some other virus.

My son has egg allergies and only started getting the flu shot last year, at age five. He never had any problems in the four years that he was not vaccinated. My daughter's bday is in October, so we typically just get her a flu shot at her well check since we are there anyway.

I wouldn't call myself anti flu shot, since we do get it most years. But I'm not convinced that it's worth it, either. I have major difficulty understanding and agreeing with people's reasons for skipping other vaccines, especially the MMR, but I don't think it's a big deal to skip the flu shot.

I get the shot every year (and so do my kids) because I almost died from complications of the flu in 2007 and again in 2010. 19 people in just my area of Texas have died so far from complications of the flu, and that's just documented cases, so

Also, anybody who says the flu is "not that bad" (referring to one of the responses), obviously has NEVER had the actual flu. I have been so sick with the flu that I literally prayed for death.