H1N1 Vaccine

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have any idea when/where it will be available? I just found out that my ob/gyn (rhj) isn't planning on administering any h1n1 vaccines and so I'm worried about how I'm going to get vaccinated. Is anyone's doctor administering it and do you know when? Does anyone know when it'll be available at pharmacies and if we'll need a prescription or something like that?

[Anonymous]

The nasal mist is out but pregnant women can't get that. The shot is due out within a few weeks. No one knows the exact date. You just have to stay tuned -- specifically, stay tuned to http://www.cdc.gov/H1N1FLU/

Check your county health board's website as well. They list any upcoming clinics.

[Anonymous]

There isn't much you can do right now except bookmark the webpage for your county's health dept and gather the phone numbers of clinics near you that plan to have it. Hopefully clinics will start giving the shots in the next week or so.

No prescription necessary and you should be able to get it for free from the health dept, or for a fee at a private clinic.

[Anonymous]

See http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/pregnancy/ for advice for pregnant women. Hopefully someone will post here once they start becoming available.

[Anonymous]

According to the DC Dept of Health website, vaccines for pregnant women are supposed to be available at OB's offices the week of Oct. 14th, but I just called my OB's office and they hadn't heard anything.

http://newsroom.dc.gov/show.aspx/agency/doh/section/2/release/18333/year/2009

[Anonymous]

For those in VA, here is a list of sites that will have it:

http://www.vdh.state.va.us/epidemiology/DiseasePrevention/H1N1/pdf/Virginia_H1N1PublicSites_7Oct09_PM%20(3).pdf

My OB is not stocking it but thinks it will be available end of the month.

[Anonymous]

PP here. The link does not work for some reason, so go here instead:

http://www.vdh.state.va.us/

and click on the list of public vaccination sites. Tons of pharmacies in northern VA are on the list.

[Anonymous]

my doctor said they think they should be getting it in one day this week.

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know if the vax for pregnant women is thimerisol-free?

[Anonymous]

Is anyone NOT planning on getting H1N1 or seasonal flu shots? I'm only 7 weeks now and I really don't want to get vaccinated. I had a bad experience with a seasonal flu shot several years ago and haven't gotten one since - and haven't gotten the flu since. I'm seeing my ob for the first time this week and I'm afraid she's going to push me into getting the shots. Thoughts?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone NOT planning on getting H1N1 or seasonal flu shots? I'm only 7 weeks now and I really don't want to get vaccinated. I had a bad experience with a seasonal flu shot several years ago and haven't gotten one since - and haven't gotten the flu since. I'm seeing my ob for the first time this week and I'm afraid she's going to push me into getting the shots. Thoughts?

If your OB is going to "push" you to get the vaccines but you do not want them, just nod, go home and forget about it. I think it is idiotic to not take the H1N1 this year though, but to each their own - after all it is your body and baby you are putting in risk.

[Anonymous]

it is your body and baby you are putting in risk.

Welcome to the guilt trip that is pregnancy.

The danger to pregnant women from H1N1 is diminished lung capacity--that's what makes it harder to fight off the infections. And that's why it's specifically women in the third trimester who are most at risk if they contract the disease. As far as I know, independent to the danger to the mother, there aren't specific dangers to the fetus.

Given that you are 7 weeks, and that when you are in the third trimester it will be summer (i.e. not flu season), AND you've had a bad experience with a flu shot in the past, I think it's not a horrible idea to consider not getting it, and I think you should talk this over with your OB. If you feel pushed, ask if you can get a second opinion. Or say that you'd like to think it over and can you come back for the shot in a week or so. Also, if you do feel that your OB is pushy, 7 weeks is not a bad time to find out!

[Anonymous]

i am not yet pregnant (2ww) but am going through the same thing... i agree that it is best to get the shot, but i also reacted to the flu shot. i got the seasonal flu shot (first time) a couple weeks ago and had a fever, chills and muscle aches that night. i know that you cannot get the flu from the shot, but my body reacted to the vaccine in a similar manner. i am scared that if i am pregnant while i get the vaccine and if i react the same way, then the fever could harm the fetus. again, i'm still ttc so this won't even be an issue if i get the shot before i am pregnant...

[Anonymous]

Hey OP here, Anon 15:09, who is your doctor? I called a lot of the local hospitals/urgent cares and no one was offering it any time soon. I just want to get vaccinated ASAP because it seems like everyone on the metro and at work is sick.

[Anonymous]

I think that the deliveries for the general public will start in a couple of weeks. I would wait and call then.

I am going to get both but, for the ones that do hesitate to take the vaccines, if I had to skip one it would be the regular flu shot:
* first many more people are immunized from previous flu shots or previous flu episodes, so it will transmit less fast. In contrast, the H1N1's transmission rate is enormous as none has built immunity against it.
* we don't know yet what the regular flu stream will be this year and whether the flu shots are well targeted or not. The H1N1 vaccine is targeted to the H1N1 that is circulating.