Flu Jab

[teyris]

Has anyone with underactive thyroid and/or cardiomyopathy been advised to have a flu jab? I have never been offered this before so not sure if it’s more to do with the heart than thyroid. Any ideas… Also if you have had the flu jab how did it affect you?

[Mikiviki]

People likely to suffer complications from 'flu such as cardiopathics diabetics are advised to have vaccination. I personally had one once and felt peculiar all winter. My brother is diabetic and prefers not to. My husband is both cardiopatic and diabetic and has it annually and after a day of feeling strange he's ok. But he still gets all the other virus that are about

[helen0701]

I have the flu jab every year and the only reaction I get is little discomfort at the injection site x

[Tiggertighe]

Hi,

I have recently had my second annual flu jab - recommended because hypothyroidism has pushed my HbA1c into the Diabetic category. I have been fine, just a little discomfort at the injection site for a few days.

I have no symptoms of Diabetes, am not on medication and have not made any lifestyle changes. My BP and kidneys are fine. I have argued with my GPs (2) that it is my thyroid causing these changes but rather than focus on that they seem to want to label me 'Diabetic' and give me free jabs, retinal scanning, foot care, etc etc.

Call me cynical but I don't think there are targets for Thyroid Disease ....

Would think it's your Cardiomyopathy that indicates your suitability for a flu jab xx.

[tegz in reply to Tiggertighe]

Realistic -not cynical ,T.

Targets don't exist for something barely on the radar..

Diabetes rules the clinics! [Not that I would want that problem]

[nobodysdriving]

I would research the flu jab extensively before you made a decision if to go for it. I have personally decided that in 'my circumstances' (I have a very high incidence of early onset alzheimer's disease in my family with people getting it age 50) I will avoid anything with mercury and aluminium as much as possible and flu-jabs have these compounds in them. So 'for ME' no thank you, no more jabs.

(please note I did say 'me')

[helvella Administrator in reply to nobodysdriving]

NBD,

I don't think any of the current UK flu jabs have mercury in them. (I might have missed the only one that does!)

medicines.org.uk/emc/search...

(Not sure if that will work as a link.)

Rod

[nobodysdriving in reply to helvella]

thanks Rod, I am still not having them and will not go down the road of reading the ingredients etc, Dr M told me to stay a thousands miles away from any vaccine, as such I will

[jennybean in reply to nobodysdriving]

My consultant told me not to get the flu jab as 1. It isn't effective and 2. it contains mercury. So i'm with you and will not be having it.

[susanr]

i have had flu vac with minor systoms

[lucky10]

I had my first flu jab last November and 2 months later in January I had Lichen Planus and still got the rash. I read online that certain flu jabs can cause this rash. I can't be certain, but don't know if I will have the jab this year!

[Angel_of_the_North]

I've never had one and never would. The research shows that for every 100 people injected, it stops about 1.5 of them from getting flu. My neighbour, who has lupus, had a very bad reaction to it last year - he was off work for about a week with what sounded like flu - all the symptoms, anyway.

As a child, I always allergy tests when the compulsory jab season came round, and i was always allergic to the flu jab. It seems that they don't bother with that any more.

[glo42]

I have thyroid and heart problems and GP advised me to have the flu jab, which I have accepted for almost 10 years with no reaction apart from a little tenderness in needle site.

[Hidden]

Teyris, You will have been recommended the flu jab because of your heart problems. Flu can be very serious and the high temperature and other complications of the illness can seriously damage or affect heart, lungs and other organs in susceptible people. I am a practice nurse and have vaccinated thousands of people year in and year out, reactions to the jab are very rare indeed, a sore arm is about it and that doesn't even happen usually! Flu jabs saves lives. You don't get flu from flu jabs just like you don't get Tetanus from Tetanus jabs or polio from polio vaccinations. You may experience "cold" symptoms within the three weeks it takes your flu jab to work up to it's full immunity level because you already had caught the cold virus and it was an unfortunate coincidence. No vaccination is 100% effective either but almost.

[teyris in reply to Hidden]

Hiya the nurse that did my flu jab said exactly the same thing, like everything you always hear the bad side of everything but not the good. I did have an achy arm for a few days but no other effects. Thanks for your views

[gaynor12]

Hi I suffer with seriously under active thyroid. I have been recieving the flu vacine and never have had any side effects.Also my Dad is over five yrs diagnosed with Alzheimer's and he has just been given the flu jab today and seems fine. I think it is very important to protect them from the flu as it can be very harmful to an alzheimer's patient as they can develop pneumonia from bad bout of the flu. A lot of alzheimer's patients suffer with respiratory problems as my Dad does, a man that never smoked and has ongoing chest infection for months, certainly does not need to get the flu, it could be very detrimental to him. Hope this helps

[teyris]

Thank you everybody. I had the jab and only had an achy arm for a fews days. We have yet to see if I get flu during the winter and as I work in a College have a lot of germs around me but touch wood I dont seem to get many colds

[Hidden]

Don't forget to take Vit D3, vitally important to protect against colds, flu, chest infections and everything else! It really does work.