<p>I went and got it today at Walgreen’s. They were almost out but getting more in on Monday.</p>
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<p>I had that over Thanksgiving. No turkey, no stuffing, no pumpkin pie. I didn’t eat for 3 days. </p>
<p>Hope his is only the 24 hour variety.</p>
<p>D and I went to CVS today to get flu shots. They told us the entire chain in our town and surrounding ones was out of vaccine. We then tried Walgreens (where, we learned later, the manager had just driven 30 miles each way to pick up more vaccine). The place didn’t have a separate line for flu shots nor any indication of what the process entailed in time or paperwork, so we waited in line for twenty minutes while various people dropped off and picked up prescriptions, chatted about their ailments and quibbled over their insurance coverage. When we got to the front of the line we were told (only because we were at the end of our respective tethers and thought to ask) that it was the pharmacist who would be administering the shots, and since he was busy filling prescriptions, it would be at least another 25 minutes before he could see us. We left. I know we should have taken care of this months ago, but now that the media has sounded the alarm so loudly, you’d think the distribution system would be ready to fill the demand and pharmacies with huge signs pushing the vaccine would be equipped to actually administer it. If it’s that important that we all be vaccinated, the local health departments ought to be running clinics that can process people promptly. A healthcare system that relies on how well or poorly the local drugstore chain happens to be run is of little value.</p>
<p>fendergirl–already checked for her-premium of $100/month (probably a tad less because I thought she was older–26 vs 21) for a $1000/deductible, $3500 out of pocket max with BC/BS of MI…</p>
<p>You can do your “check” all you want, Steve. I have already explained the reality to you. Please stop telling me about MY situation. </p>
<p>I’d LOVE to have insurance for $100/month.</p>
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<p>Ah…no. You should have taken care of it months ago. Not complain now that it is late in the game and you didn’t take care of it earlier. There is always a big issue with how much vaccine should be manufactured and distributed. There is a significant lead time in producing enough vaccine. And when a very large portion of our population doesn’t get the vaccine every year, it is very wasteful to produce (then throw out) a lot of vaccine every year. And no one wants to pay extra taxes to produce and distribute a lot of vaccine every year. And certainly there has been a push to fund research into new methods of producing the vaccine more quickly, but again… government budget constraints have limited progress on this issue. Cuz we never want to pay for anything as a society until after we have a disaster.</p>
<p>So if you want to make sure you get it every year, go in October.</p>
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<p>Wow, what a dedicated store manager.</p>
<p>I was vaccinated and got it anyway - it was BAD and really knocked me on my a** for 4 days and coughing for another week and a half.</p>
<p>^^Oh saintfan I feel for you. I’m really hoping beyond hope that I developed enough antibodies but it does happen sometimes to people who were immunized. I just checked in with S1 and he’s back to work but still coughing. He says he feels fine but I know it’s a long haul to complete recovery.</p>
<p>I got the shot when it 1st arrived in HI this fall. S actually go t the flu but fortunately has fully recovered. He doesn’t tolerate the shot at all. I find the shot helpful and have Tamiflu for when things don’t work well for me. Historically, some people have always died from getting the flu, which is why they recommend people get the flu shot. Unfortunately, some folks (like my kids) don’t tolerate the flu shot well, but they get SOME protection if those who do OK with the shot get it and don’t pass the flu on to them.</p>
<p>There was a doctor on Today Show this morning that said you cannot getthe flu from the vaccine. So much conflicting info out there that it makes it hard to decide whether or not to get vaccinated.</p>
<p>I got mine last week and the pharmacist explained to me that it takes 10 days to 2 weeks to get full effect , but if I was to get the flu , it would be a milder case.</p>
<p>I rarely get sick anymore but I did fear getting it while my husband is out of the country
And speaking of being out of the country , he heard reports on the news in Sweden that we in the USA are experiencing an epidemic of swine flu !</p>
<p>You cannot “get the flu” from a flu shot. That is a myth. A little bit of a sore arm if you are typically sensitive to shots, maybe. The flu from the shot…no.</p>
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<p>Given the anti-vaccine beliefs going around, one should not count on herd immunity, particularly when the disease is not perceived to be “serious” (a lot of people throw the term “flu” around to describe anything more serious than a cold, even though it is far less serious than a genuine flu).</p>
<p>The people who have medical reasons for not being able to get the vaccine, or who do not seroconvert after receiving the vaccine, are the real losers from the anti-vaccine movement.</p>
<p>Momma J, when I read your post my first thought was of the saying:</p>
<p>“Your poor planning does not constitute my emergency.”</p>
<p>But, I had to reconsider my impatience with your post as DH has STILL not gotten his vaccine that he promised to get “tomorrow” weeks ago. It’s frustrating. I know it’s time consuming and inconvenient.</p>
<p>The thing about epidemics is that they are hard to predict. I think you are being really hard on the pharmacy for not having that proverbial crystal ball, though I do understand the frustration of having to wait in lines. I think 25 minutes extra would have been worth it to protect your family, but it wasn’t my 25 minutes. I got my vaccine right before Thanksgiving, hours after reading in the paper that there was some worry that this year might be a bad one for influenza. My experience back then pretty much mirrors what you described just now, only I did bite my tongue, waited my turn, and got the darned thing, only to learn at work the next day that they were offering it free to everyone on the spot (I work part time at a colonoscopy center as a RN).</p>
<p>I hope you will still get the vaccine-bring a book or surf the internet while you wait-as it will pay off later if you can avoid this illness. I once did as you did-blew off a long wait for a vaccine, thinking, “Ok, if the worst happens, I’m in a bed for a few days with Tylenol.” My bet did not pay off-that was the sickest I’ve ever been, the pain was EXCRUCIATING (absolutely agonizing bone pain, fever of 104, and worst sore throat I’ve ever experienced), and I ended up with a bad case of secondary bacterial pneumonia, which was also very painful and scary. I will never forget that illness-you really don’t want it, and you sure don’t want it for your kids. I hope you bite the bullet and just get it done.</p>
<p>Let’s all hope this epidemic wears itself out really quick. We don’t need any more people dying.</p>
<p>Just got home from the doctor with my vaccinated daughter. They didn’t actually test for the flu (they ruled out strep first) but the symptoms fit so they prescribed Tamiflu. She’s miserably sick.</p>
<p>“it would be at least another 25 minutes before he could see us. We left.”</p>
<p>You left because of a 25 minute wait?!?!? Oy.</p>
<p>“Hope his is only the 24 hour variety.”</p>
<p>Nrdsb, thx, I hope so, too. </p>
<p>RTR, so sorry to hear you D has the flu. Hope the Tamiflu lessens her suffering.</p>
<p>No, I don’t think I was hard on the pharmacy. I own a retail store, and when I know things will be busy, I plan accordingly and call in my part-timers to work extra hours. You would have to have been deaf, dumb and blind not to expect an influx of flu shot customers this week. We had already waited 25 minutes in line when we were told there would be an additional 25 minute wait. That was more time than we could devote to this endeavor on a busy day. If the store had had the common sense to have a separate line for flu shots and a dedicated person to administer them rather than expecting a busy pharmacist to do two jobs (my recollection is that CVS has a nurse on the premises for this purpose), it would have taken ten minutes altogether. But this is a store that routinely has a single clerk on duty and three empty registers at the busiest times of the day, so I shouldn’t be surprised. But my strongest feeling is that a drugstore chain whose goal (rightfully) is to make a profiit should not be a major mechanism in the vaccination of the population.
I don’t find this to be the case. The reliable sources–CDC, your local health department, WebMD, your own doc–are all in agreement about the benefits of flu and other vaccines. You just have to stay away from the tin foil hat crowd.</p>
<p>I agree about relying on the reliable sources out there. I work in healthcare and while I know that docs are only human, pharm companies are not rolling out needless vaccines. I think we are often living in a “blame” society- always looking to put the blame on someone for things not to our liking. </p>
<p>MOST people Will not react from the shot.
MOST people will not get influenza .
That’s pretty good odds for me.</p>
<p>“So much conflicting info out there that it makes it hard to decide whether or not to get vaccinated”</p>
<p>Huh? What is conflicting?<br>
The vaccine isn’t perfect, but protects most people from most strains this year.
You Will Not get influenza from the killed virus shot.
If you skip getting the vaccine and get a mild case, you might have passed the virus to someone who is vulnerable and it kills them.</p>
<p>I agree about the blame mentality. When I asked my pharmacist about the shot so late into the flu season , he clearly had to answer while simultaneously covering his a$$. I am not one to take the advice to the bank when I know the risks can stack against me. It’s a shame we have to think that way</p>