I had mine yesterday as I was visiting my doctor for something else, and he knows I go to Europe every year. The jab is valid for 1 year, and he gave me a stamped slip of paper to take with me when i travel, just in case !! He also pointed out people allergic to eggs can't have it .

We have all had swine flu several weeks ago. It was not milder than normal flu, it hit most of us really bad. Hubby actually collapsed and he has never been ill in his life and slim/fit. Ive also heard about someone who was very ill and had a miscarriage.

Im wondering if some people had the 'real' swine flu who got it so super mild. Or if its just different version of it.

Anyway we will not be getting the vaccination, not because Im against them. Just I believe this has been way too rushed through. I would prefer to wait and see if anyone gets problems from it.
Im not giving it to my kids without it being tested thorough.

Oh and 6 weeks after swine flu my teen has passed on Whooping cough to the whole family!

Id recently been bragging that 2 years of Australia and never been ill. Then wham swine flu and whooping cough within weeks.
* You can still catch whooping cough even if you have been vaccinated! Something I didnt know. Seams to be raging around WA.

Gems

Even if we were not going overseas i probably would have still got the vaccine. The European/North american winter is about to start, as soon as a few cases of swine flu hit the media (daily mail style anyone ) can you imagine the panic to get the vaccine.

Plus we were told it takes 2 weeks to produce sufficient antibodies, so getting it mid pandemic might be a bit late.

As for the testing people seem to worry about how much testing does the annual flu shot have. We are usually the guinea pigs down here in Australia as we are the first to get the flu shots each year and CSL makes them for us and overseas.

We are all booked in for Tuesday to get ours, me, hubby and our 10 year old. I'm a bit gutted our 2 under 10 year olds are missing out though.

You don't need the vaccine for swine flu if you have definitely had swine flu!


Good luck!

Have had mine as I work with some very high risk patients, I don't want it myself but I also don't want to be responsible for passing it on to a vulnerable person.

Thanks SC, I'm raring to go, I'll take everything available

tooo many jokes, too little time!

Em x

I suspect your systems were so wiped out from fighting the flu that you were bound to catch something! Were you all vaccinated for whooping cough? If not, then you now have no need for that vaccine either.

I normally have everything but with this one I'll wait till after Christmas to see if there are any problems with it. If it turns out not to have too many problems I will probably have it.

From a few weeks ago our travel insurance company started to treat pig flu the same as any other flu.

I have several autoimmune problems so I guess I am at high risk, but I won't be having the jab. I don't willingly put meds in my body.

I've been hospitalised with dengue fever and I suspect that's far worse than swine flu.

I'm also very intolerant to eggs.

edit: I have deja vu - I suspect I've answered a similar question on here in almost exactly those words.

They ask you if you are allergic to eggs.

My Mum told me today that my brother and his partner have both just had swine flu knew they had been very ill, evidently the doc tested them for it. They were both extremely ill not hospitalised but had to have repeat antibiotics because of the problems created by the flu. He said its not a walk in the park for everyone.

The first and only time I ever had a flu jab, was the worst flu I ever had because of it.

For me 'Cure is better than prevention' in this case.

I was offered the flu jab as my asthma is quite brittle but I refused it and the nurse said to me that she didnt blame me.

Ill stick to my annual flu jab.