Flu Shots 2020

[Unpaintedhuffhines]

Well, to each his / her own on the whole flu shot thing. I'm kind of stunned that people don't get it. I didn't get one in my 30s, but that was just out of laziness and other things occupying my time. But now that I'm in my 50s, I can't imagine not protecting myself with such a simple and trivial event. Walked into CVS yesterday: "hey, when should I get my flu shot and shingles vaccine?" Rx: "well how about now? Name, DOB." No charge and I was out in about 4 minutes. Yes, my arm is sore.

Not getting a flu shot is like not wearing your seatbelt: "I'm a great driver. I always obey the speed limit. Never been in a wreck in my life. Always use my blinker." Wearing your seatbelt is unnecessary 99.9%-100% of the time, but that 0.1%, it sure comes in handy. If some random person is seriously injured or dies because they didn't want to wear a seat belt, then it's really them and their friends/family that have to deal with it. I just see it as senseless.

 

[Gumby]

Well, to each his / her own on the whole flu shot thing. I'm kind of stunned that people don't get it. I didn't get one in my 30s, but that was just out of laziness and other things occupying my time. But now that I'm in my 50s, I can't imagine not protecting myself with such a simple and trivial event. Walked into CVS yesterday: "hey, when should I get my flu shot and shingles vaccine?" Rx: "well how about now? Name, DOB." No charge and I was out in about 4 minutes. Yes, my arm is sore.

Not getting a flu shot is like not wearing your seatbelt: "I'm a great driver. I always obey the speed limit. Never been in a wreck in my life. Always use my blinker." Wearing your seatbelt is unnecessary 99.9%-100% of the time, but that 0.1%, it sure comes in handy. If some random person is seriously injured or dies because they didn't want to wear a seat belt, then it's really them and their friends/family that have to deal with it. I just see it as senseless.

I like this quote, which is occasionally posted by OldShooter:

“But in all my experience, I have never been in any accident … of any sort worth speaking about. I have seen but one vessel in distress in all my years at sea. I never saw a wreck and never have been wrecked nor was I ever in any predicament that threatened to end in disaster of any sort.”

Captain Edward Smith - RMS Titanic

 

[braumeister]

DW and I both got our annual flu shots last week, but we went on different days to the same local pharmacy clinic. Unfortunately, DW apparently got an incompetent person handling her checkin, because we got a bill in the mail. $70 for the shot plus a $25 administration fee.

We're both on Medicare, so obviously it should have been free like mine was. This will be interesting to see how much hassle it is to get that fixed.

----------------------

Well, it was no hassle at all. They admitted that they had simply typed her Medicare number incorrectly from her card.

 

[Koolau]

DW and I have been getting annual flu shots for decades - including the current 2020 edition (last week). Never had the flu which is obviously NOT data. So far, no issues, so looking forward to Covid19 shot whenever available. YMMV

 

[explanade]

Got mine the other day while was at the supermarket with the pharmacy inside.

No queues so went for it.

 

[Rocket Man]

Got my free flu shot at Walmart today. My first high dose since I hit the magic age last month. Did not go there for a vaccine, but no one was in line so it was a spur of the moment decision. No sore arm or any side effects. Barely felt the shot.

 

[bada bing]

Did my annual flu shot at Walmart last week - Fluzone Quadrivalent. No discomfort or soreness at all, which is a bit unusual. I usually have a tender spot for a couple days.

 

[Midpack]

We both get annual flu shots and haven’t had the flu for many years, and not in any year we got flu shots. But we usually wait until Oct-Dec, and we plan to this year too. As noted above, with Covid precautions it would seem we’re less likely to get flu this season but we’ll still get the shot.

 

[Chuckanut]

But we usually wait until Oct-Dec, and we plan to this year too. As noted above, with Covid precautions it would seem we’re less likely to get flu this season but we’ll still get the shot.

FWIW, I got my shot in late August. A few days later I read an article advising folks to not get the shot too early. Wait until mid September at the earliest since the vaccine protection does wear off after a while. OTOH, waiting to December may be a bit excessive as the flu will be out in full force by then. So, you pay your money and take your chances.

Like many I am hoping that we copy the Southern Hemisphere and end up with a very mild flu season.

 

[harllee]

I have an appointment next week to get my flu shot at my local independent pharmacy --they are doing them outside so that is good. I got an email from the pharmacist encouraging me to make an appt because he said they had already given out so many shots they were running low on stock and he was going to try to order more. I usually wait until October but I am going ahead and get it next week because I am afraid there will be shortages. I remember one year several years back when they ran out and I was never able to get my shot.

 

[TrvlBug]

I think I posted above that we will get 2 of them this year if the flu season is bad. I'm also hoping for a southern hemisphere-type flu season. DH is going into the hospital for a procedure (overnight stay) at the end of the month and we thought it best to do the flu shot early. I was originally going to wait until end Sept/mid Oct. Got ours first week of Sept and I had a severe reaction, but am over it.

 

[vince]

DW and I got ours last week, by appointment, at local CVS. In and out in 15 minutes.

 

[explanade]

You can get the flu shot twice?

Because it wears off or something or for differs strains?

Or for stronger dose/immune response?

 

[TrvlBug]

You can get the flu shot twice?

Because it wears off or something or for differs strains?

Or for stronger dose/immune response?

I didn't know that until recently. It only lasts 4-6 months. Our flu season lasts through April. We've always gotten it as soon as it was available in August as we travelled internationally early Sept. We actually pushed it into Oct this year until we learned about DH's hospital stay and decided it made sense to get it early.

If our flu season is light I don't see us getting a second shot (assuming availability) due to all the Covid precautions being taken. We've always been very good about hands off face during flu/cold season and very rarely get sick. If we do get a second shot, I'm getting the regular dose due to my reaction to the high dose shot.

 

[KB]

I have an appointment to get my flu shot at Kaiser's drive through flu shot clinic on Monday. First time for the drive through.

I've been getting the flu shot annually for decades. I had the Hong Kong flu in 1969 and was VERY sick for a week. Every day was different symptoms, all severe. Headache, vomiting, body aches, etc. I fainted a few times, my parents would hear a thud and find me on the floor passed out after trying to get to the bathroom or get a drink of water.

As soon as I was old enough to know about flu shots, I started getting them.

 

[cbo111]

Just got my flu shot at Publix Grocery. Covered by insurance, took about 6 minutes, and I was going shopping anyway. And to top it off, they gave me a $10 Publix gift card for getting the shot, which I promptly spent! Great limited-time deal for those living in the SE.

 

[donheff]

You can get the flu shot twice?

Because it wears off or something or for differs strains?

Or for stronger dose/immune response?

I got the high dose shot a couple of weeks ago. The pharmacist said to watch the effectiveness evaluations that will come out in January and, if they are excellent, get another shot if we want. If the shots are marginal don't bother.

 

[harllee]

I got the high dose shot a couple of weeks ago. The pharmacist said to watch the effectiveness evaluations that will come out in January and, if they are excellent, get another shot if we want. If the shots are marginal don't bother.

I have never heard of a second Flu shot but I might be interested since winter before last DH and I got the flu at the end of Feb (even though we had the vaccine in Oct) and I wondered whether the effectiveness of our vaccine had run out. I bet if you get a second shot your insurance will not pay for it but it might be worth it.

 

[Out-to-Lunch]

DW and I got ours today. It went very smoothly at a local Walgreens.

An interesting lagniappe was that there was a couple that was older than us that walked in to Walgreens about 5 seconds before us. Of course, they were ALSO seeking the flu shot, so we waited behind them.

Despite social distancing, I could hear their answer when asked for their dates of birth. They were nearly exactly 20 years older than we are. (Mid 70s vs. mid 50s.) I turned to my DW and said: "Can you see 20 years in to the future?" God willing, of course!

 

[RobLJ]

We got ours at CVC today, with prior appointments. It went smoothly, other than the nurse was supposed to call us from the parking lot and it turns out the T-Mobile signal wasn't good. DW went in to check on whether we needed to check in when it was 7 minutes or so before the time and we hadn't heard anything, so all was good.

I would advise getting an appointment at the pharmacy if you go that route and getting your shot in the next 4 weeks or so since it usually takes a week or two for the antibodies to build resistance. There is the risk of getting it too early, as someone upthread posted, so my 87 year old Mother was told by her doctor to get it next week. (On the theory the immunity would probably last through March or so).

 

[RobLJ]

Addendum: CVC was out of the high dose version and the nurse was trying to get more, so that's a possible wrinkle for those of you older and wiser than I (the latter is probably a lot).

 

[harllee]

DW and I got ours today. It went very smoothly at a local Walgreens.

An interesting lagniappe was that there was a couple that was older than us that walked in to Walgreens about 5 seconds before us. Of course, they were ALSO seeking the flu shot, so we waited behind them.

Despite social distancing, I could hear their answer when asked for their dates of birth. They were nearly exactly 20 years older than we are. (Mid 70s vs. mid 50s.) I turned to my DW and said: "Can you see 20 years in to the future?" God willing, of course!

Thanks for the new to me word "lagniappe"--I love learning new words even at age 69!

 

[donheff]

Addendum: CVC was out of the high dose version and the nurse was trying to get more, so that's a possible wrinkle for those of you older and wiser than I (the latter is probably a lot).

I forgot to mention, when I asked the pharmacist about waiting, she cautioned that the high dose might be out of stock when we returned. So she advised getting while the getting was good and evaluating the efficacy of a second shot in Jan/Feb.

 

[braumeister]

I have never heard of a second Flu shot but I might be interested since winter before last DH and I got the flu at the end of Feb (even though we had the vaccine in Oct) and I wondered whether the effectiveness of our vaccine had run out. I bet if you get a second shot your insurance will not pay for it but it might be worth it.

I know Medicare will only pay for one shot, and I would expect most other insurance to be the same.

 

[pacergal]

Our Kaiser just announced drive thru Flu clinics starting Oct 3-31.
Daily except Sunday, all month.
We will be heading over Monday Oct 5.