Home > Health > On Women > Swine Flu Frustrations: Too Little Vaccine, Too Many Scare Tactics

Swine Flu Frustrations: Too Little Vaccine, Too Many Scare Tactics

Reader Comments
Back to blog

My daughter was sent home friday with a low fever 100.8, and she had vomited at school. When we got home I laid her dwn and gave her fluids and crackers, her main complaint was headache and nausea. The next morning her fever had gone up too 102.8, so I took her in they done a flu test & it came out positive for swine flu, so the Dr. gave her Tamaflu and told her to drink plenty of fluids, to watch for weezing or higher fever too bring her to ER. I sure hope this helps soon I have a 22mth old and 6 yr old I hope they dnt get it.

Crystal Mai of TN 3:03PM October 24, 2009

Like the preceding comments, I think this well-written and objective article articulates many of the concerns my family has been having. Four out of Five of are sick with what doctors think is H1N1 this past week (fortunately mild symptoms so far). We had not obtained the vaccine or used antivirals due to supply limitations and incomplete and inconsistent information from government agencies, doctors, medical orgs and the media. As a parent, I find this frustrating. Hopefully in the future these organizations will help us make more educated decisions by doing a better job tracking and disseminating all relevant and credible information they have in a more timely fashion. Thanks again!

Jon Tuma of VA 6:54AM October 24, 2009

This thing got me fast. It started with what I thought was a severe asthma attack out of nowhere. A few hours after seeing my doc as an emergency visit, all the flu symptoms hit me full on. I've got the cough, chills, fever, aches, headache. I've never been so cold in my life.
I'm one of these people who never gets the flu in like fourteen years or more and I rarely ever cough unless a real allergen is around. I was kind of hoping I wouldn't get this one.
The cough is the worst. And my head hurts every time I cough.
When I went in to the doc, I only had a slightly elevated temp of 99. And I didn't feel fluish. Within only two to three hours, all the symptoms hit me.
Just praying it goes away fast with no complications.
As far as the vaccine goes, to me, it's nearly useless. The virus is already rampant. And it's russian roulette on if it will help anyone. Too little, far too late.
I agree about the scare tactics. The amount of people who have died has actually been small worldwide. If you look at it from perspective. And it's really up to God what happens to us at this point.
But I wouldn't want an experimental vaccine right now. Who knows what horrors that will bring on its own.

Carri of PA 1:25AM October 24, 2009

Here's a video link that might be useful:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNKMuxEjxss
The H1N1 by itself is not the problem, but it can open the door to viral pneumonia, which is a BIG problem. The virus also has the ability to survive even after the symptoms have cleared up, which could lead to reassortment with another virus. Just google the words "natural anti-virals" for a few ideas on what works. Tamiflu is highly toxic, and from what I've read it doesn't work very well, so why make the drug companies richer? There are other options, and vaccines are unproven anyway.

Chuck Churchman of CO 12:15AM October 24, 2009

Personally, I have come into contact with the flu extremely badly.
My brother was diagnosed with the seasonal flu and the diveloped insepholitis, a sireous desiease that attacks the nervus system, and it is rarely dianosed, because it is so rare.
He almost died, but he recovered, and after 8 months of therapy, he can walk, he can run a tiny bit, and can barly see, having tunnel vision.
So if you get the flu, consider yourself lucky that you didn't get what my poor brother had.
P.S.
(Insephlitis on has a 30% chance of suvival, and he did, and that is a huge deal!)
If you would like to know more on the subject please do not hesitate to E-mail me!

Mr.Wizard of IN 8:24PM October 23, 2009

How can I protect my self from getting the flu while taking care of my child that has the flu

Jessie of CT 4:08PM October 23, 2009

THANK YOU for this article!
I've spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to get my 22-month-old daughter vaccinated for H1N1. With all of the horrible, scary "news" coverage right now about H1N1 and everyone hollering to GET VACCINATED, of course I wanted to do this right away. According to the Flu.gov site, the state in which we live has received doses of the vaccine. I called my pediatricians' offices (we have two of them) and both said that they didn't have any doses of the vaccine. Upon calling my state's Department of Health and Human Services, however, I learned that BOTH offices requested and were sent 150 doses each of the vaccine. Both offices deny ever having received any. Why would either of these organizations lie about such a thing? Or, more troubling, are their records THAT mixed-up?
When I asked the DHHS for a list of pediatricians who have received the H1N1 vaccine so that I could understand who has it and maybe try to get on a waiting list for my daughter to get it, I was told that they don't have this information. Wait, what? You don't know WHERE you sent the doses that you were given? Who decided where they went? Isn't there a list somewhere? Why is this not public information? I tried and tried to get a direct answer to any of these questions, yet I was just told the same thing over and over - nothing.
How do we know who to believe and, more importantly, why am I having to second-guess the DHHS and my pediatrician's office?
Where is the clear information for the public? Why scare us when most of us can't GET the vaccine? I'm tired of receiving emails and tweets about "tips on H1N1" and "why you should get your toddler vaccinated" when I can't do anything about it. WHY tell me this if I can't get access to the vaccine? All that the government has done is scare a lot of people about an illness without providing access to a vaccine or remedy.
Thanks for this article!

Erica of NH 3:01PM October 23, 2009

Sad to say but true! We are all at the mercy of every lie that is being thrown at us regarding this outbreak. What would be different from all the other lies we are being told these days regarding everything from the economy to health care reform? Lying to the American people has become so "pervasive" that you want to throw something at your television any time another "knowledgeable" individual stands before you and starts to spew his rhetoric your way. Whatever happened to ethics and morals? Whatever happened to truth? Do they all think we all just rode in on the last turnip truck?

Joan Eberstein of NY 2:20PM October 23, 2009

This is a great article. Public Health should be sending out a clear message. There is too much confusing information that keeps changing. I agree that without testing there is no way to know that it is H1N1. In LA County, we have been told there is only one lab that can actually confirm a case and that only results for people hospitalized are going to that lab. We can only hope that Public Health learns some good lessons from this so next time they are more prepared.

kathleen miller of CA 2:06PM October 23, 2009