This article and others I've read have noted that with the H1N1 (swine) flu virus "many critically ill patients...were obese" which makes me think about us.

I'm not usually one to get flu shots, but I think this is one I might get. What are your plans?

Yikes that is scary!

I wouldn't worry just because of obesity. It only said that during the initial outbreak, "many" were obese but that their rate of mortality wasn't any higher than anyone else's.

Both of my kids' had it last week. DS14 brought it home from school. He was very sick and had me worried. He has mild asthma and had a temp of 103 with vomiting. DD22 had a temp of 102 with diarrhea. DH,51, had a very mild case with only a sore throat, body aches and low grad temp.

I am hoping that maybe we have built up some immunity to it now and won't get it again? I never got it at all, which is weird because I work with students at a university and get exposed to all kinds of stuff. All I can say is that since I've started this journey and really been taking care of myself I don't really get sick all that often. And when I do, it's over pretty quickly.

Did you have that confirmed?

You are a lucky family to have had a mild case. Let's hope you have built up all the immunity you need!

I found out AFTER I had been sick and was on the mend that I had it, from a nurse friend. It wasn't terrible at all for me - body aches, nausea, razor throat, stuffy sinuses, exhaustion, headache.... No walk in the park but nothing worth vaccinating over. I never get normal flu shots, and every medical professional I have talked to says this is actually milder than a normal seasonal flu thus far.

Everyone has to assess risk for themselves, but it's already passed through our house and we're fine for it. So just like every other flu - no vaccine for us.

No, I figure I'm extremely low risk. Live alone, work from home. Most of my people interactions are at the Y and I figure the sick folks are likely skipping their workouts. So I don't get the flu vaccinations and haven't gotten the flu in 15 years.

My whole family has already had our regular flu shots as we do every year. And Alana, no we did not confirm it. The clinics in our area made it very clear that those suffering with the flu were not welcome there. The schools are the same. We just tried to make everyone comfortable and watched closely for the symptoms that would have warranted an emergency visit to the hospital/clinic. What's bugging me about all of this is that our cases and many others will go "unreported". DS does have a dr appointment in a couple of weeks and I will mention it to him at that time.

I was at my doctor's office last week. I asked her about getting the h1n1 flu shot. She said that I wasn't at a high risk - it's mostly for very young children, pregnant woman & those at high risk because of other health circumstances.

I got my regular flu shot as always - I have ever since I was a preschool teacher 25 years ago. That and washing my hands alot kept me from getting the flu in my room I always referred to as the petri dish (germs a growin'). Many children equals many germs.

BTW - I now keep hand sanitizer in the front seat of my car to use after pumping gas, atm machine, shopping cart, etc. Clean hands are the first line of defense.

Probably - folks should discuss getting the h1n1 with their doctor and find out about their risk.

Now that the H1N1 flu is considered pandemic, they are no longer testing for it except in the hospital setting.

If you have a fever and flu symptoms just assume you have it and take precautions not to spread it to others.

No flu shots for me!

Jay

I had it already this past week. Honestly, I was more concerned with my asthma than I was with my weight. Luckily, I had a pretty mild case. In retrospect, I doubt I would have done anything differently.

my mother had it, and wasnt particularly in a bad way. she said it didnt feel as bad as regular flu, but worse than a cold. she still has a bad cough from it, but apart from that she was up and back to work within 10 days. myself and my son were exposed to her before it was confirmed H1N1, and we didnt get it.

here in ireland the vaccine is being offered to the elderly, pregnant women and obese people first. i'm not going to have it.