4 ms·

As someone who hates needles, I would gladly have the flu 10 times a year than get one shot! But I work from home so I rarely get it or have the chance to be co

by cm2012 9y ago

As someone who hates needles, I would gladly have the flu 10 times a year than get one shot! But I work from home so I rarely get it or have the chance to be contagious.

mcpherrinm 9y ago
You can get the vaccine as a nasal spray if you really hate needles.
- amaccuish 9y ago
  Doesn't work as well and is now actively discouraged by current guidelines. The immunity induced is so much lower that it's almost not worth it.
  - yeukhon 9y ago
    To back it up: https://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/vaccine/quadrivalent.htm https://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/vaccine/quadrivalent.htm
perl4ever 9y ago
I hadn't ever gotten anything resembling the flu in many years, but then I started spending every day in an open plan office. After being sick with a high fever a couple times, I started getting flu shots.
S_A_P 9y ago
I had the flu a few times as a kid. I didn’t ever think it was that bad. I had the flu 2 years ago and I wasn’t right for a month. As you get older you immune system weakens and 3-5 days of 102-103 fever is enough to make you think you’re dying.
- bitL 9y ago
  Maybe it was some stronger mutation? I had flu 2 years ago as well and it knocked me down for a month and then took another 5 months to recover fully, i.e. it kicked me back fitness-wise almost half a year. Still having some minor sleep issues since.
- refurb 9y ago
  Actually it's the opposite. Young adults often have a very strong (too strong?) immune response that can make them very sick.
pavel_lishin 9y ago
I hate needles as well, but I would rather take the injections than have the flu. (And recently I'm even more eager to take the vaccine, since I have a small child, and being knocked out of commission for several days is a very unappealing option.)
ryanianian 9y ago
I personally hate needles as well - BUT every time I get the flu shot I just tell the nurse/pharmacist that I really don't like needles...they know how to work around that.. It's basically a combination of "never see the needle, look the other way, and no I'm not going to tell you exactly when I'm going to do it." Granted my needle-anxiety isn't extreme enough to pass out or go into a panic-attack. Basically: your resistance to getting vaccinated due to hating needles may be easily overcome by telling the person vaccinating you that you hate needles.
billforsternz 9y ago
I suspect you've never had flu or else you'd not contemplate having it 10 times in a year. Many people confuse flu with the common cold. It's actually an order of magnitude or so more unpleasant and much less commonly experienced. Perhaps a once every 10 years or so thing for most people.
King-Aaron 9y ago
A cold 10 times, sure. A proper flu 10 times in a year would probably leave you in an extremely critical situation.
bfuller 9y ago
The flu can leave lasting damage to your heart. You wouldn't live very long having the flu 10 times a year.

by cm2012 9y ago

As someone who hates needles, I would gladly have the flu 10 times a year than get one shot! But I work from home so I rarely get it or have the chance to be contagious.

mcpherrinm 9y ago

You can get the vaccine as a nasal spray if you really hate needles.

amaccuish 9y ago
Doesn't work as well and is now actively discouraged by current guidelines. The immunity induced is so much lower that it's almost not worth it.
- yeukhon 9y ago
  To back it up: https://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/vaccine/quadrivalent.htm https://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/vaccine/quadrivalent.htm

perl4ever 9y ago

I hadn't ever gotten anything resembling the flu in many years, but then I started spending every day in an open plan office. After being sick with a high fever a couple times, I started getting flu shots.

S_A_P 9y ago

I had the flu a few times as a kid. I didn’t ever think it was that bad. I had the flu 2 years ago and I wasn’t right for a month. As you get older you immune system weakens and 3-5 days of 102-103 fever is enough to make you think you’re dying.

bitL 9y ago
Maybe it was some stronger mutation? I had flu 2 years ago as well and it knocked me down for a month and then took another 5 months to recover fully, i.e. it kicked me back fitness-wise almost half a year. Still having some minor sleep issues since.
refurb 9y ago
Actually it's the opposite. Young adults often have a very strong (too strong?) immune response that can make them very sick.

pavel_lishin 9y ago

I hate needles as well, but I would rather take the injections than have the flu. (And recently I'm even more eager to take the vaccine, since I have a small child, and being knocked out of commission for several days is a very unappealing option.)

ryanianian 9y ago

I personally hate needles as well - BUT every time I get the flu shot I just tell the nurse/pharmacist that I really don't like needles...they know how to work around that.. It's basically a combination of "never see the needle, look the other way, and no I'm not going to tell you exactly when I'm going to do it." Granted my needle-anxiety isn't extreme enough to pass out or go into a panic-attack. Basically: your resistance to getting vaccinated due to hating needles may be easily overcome by telling the person vaccinating you that you hate needles.

billforsternz 9y ago

I suspect you've never had flu or else you'd not contemplate having it 10 times in a year. Many people confuse flu with the common cold. It's actually an order of magnitude or so more unpleasant and much less commonly experienced. Perhaps a once every 10 years or so thing for most people.

King-Aaron 9y ago

A cold 10 times, sure. A proper flu 10 times in a year would probably leave you in an extremely critical situation.

bfuller 9y ago

The flu can leave lasting damage to your heart. You wouldn't live very long having the flu 10 times a year.