This week I got a flu jab.
I haven’t always taken up the opportunity to get vaccinated against the flu in the past. This and conversations I’ve had with various people over the years leads me to believe a lot of people don’t get vaccinated who really should.
Of course your choices are your choices but here’s why I’ve made mine.
Why you should get a yearly flu jab
It’s free (for lots of people) – Lots of workplaces (including mine) will provide flu vaccination free of charge. I personally love free stuff even if it’s not useful. You know when you come home from a conference with a bunch of branded crap? Did you actually use any of it? Me neither. Flu jabs are also free for pregnant women (who have suppressed immunity) and kids with breathing-related health issues. Woohoo! Everyone knows antibodies you didn’t pay for are the best kind. Or was that wine? Who cares? I’ll take both!
It’s an act of bravery – Nobody likes getting stuck with a needle and some people are actually really scared of it. I always come away from a vaccination feeling like I am a bloody super-tough legend. Because basically I’m still a little kid who thinks she’ll earn the admiration of her peers for not crying. The fact is I almost always get a sore arm for a few days after a vaccination but I go and get the jab anyway because I am not going to be the sook who let slight discomfort dissuade her from doing the right thing.
The flu is THE WORST – It’s not a cold. It is so much worse than that. It’s a full-body assault. It’s like being hit by a truck AND drained by a vampire, whilst having the worst hangover ever. The Silver Fox was incapacitated with suspected swine flu last year. It’s the sickest I’ve ever seen him. I sanitised everything he touched, which wasn’t too hard because he was barely out of bed for several days.
In 1918 influenza killed New Zealanders at a faster rate than we lost soldiers in the battlefields of Europe. There are still around 400 influenza-related deaths in New Zealand each year.
It isn’t 100 per cent but what is? – People sometimes argue that because the flu vaccine doesn’t provide protection against every possible strain that you might come into contact with that there’s no point getting it. Which is a bit like saying airbags will only save you from serious injury in some kinds of accidents and not others so why bother having them? I’m more of the “This protects me against some things? Please and thank you!” school of thought on this one.
Protecting others – Babies under 6 months of age cannot have the flu vaccine and they’re naturally very vulnerable to any kind of serious illness. The elderly and people with respiratory illnesses can also be really badly affected. So even though I’m a fairly healthy robust individual, I like to think of my flu vaccination as a shield, not just for me, but for the people I live and work, and socialise with. I won’t spread the flu from one sick person I come into contact with to anyone in my circle. If enough other people do this too then that shield becomes a barricade, so even the people who aren’t vaccinated are protected. You’re welcome.
Will you get a flu jab this year? If not, why not?
Originally published on Stuff, 23/04/2015
(Featured image, H1N1 influenza virus, public domain image via Wikipedia)
I missed this when it was first published. I just wanted to say THANK YOU! As the parent of a child with a respiratory condition and a four month old I am grateful to everyone who gets the flu jab! <3 <3 <3
I was partly inspired by you to write this so perhaps I should thank you?