Swine Flu vacc during pregnancy?

[lmk1]

Who's getting it? I'm wondering if I should or not...I can't decide!!! Are there any studies on the safety in pregnant women? Which trimester would be better?

[Avocado]

I chose not to get it.

[lmk1]

My OB said they prescribe Tamiflu if I come down with flu like symptoms. I'm pretty worried about Tamiflu...
What's worse, the vacc or the Tamiflu?

[october]

I got it as soon as it became available back in October. I have asthma and a flu like H1N1 would have probably sent me to ICU (or worse) like many other pregnant women.

It has been made very clear that this vaccine is identical to all other flu vaccines, but like each vaccine every year, the virus is different. Although many women decide not to get the regular flu vaccine, it is encouraged by most OBs and some midwives. That is why there doesn't need to be a tremendous amount of anxiety around making this decision. If you are the kind of person to get a flu vaccine, why not get the H1N1 vax?

Another benefit to choosing to get the vaccine is that your baby will be protected up to 6 months after birth. H1N1 is going to come back in another wave next fall, so this is obviously a huge relief.

I respect any woman's decision to get or not get the vaccine, but I don't think it's more admirable to refrain. It's just a personal choice.

[Juvysen]

there's a big thread about the vax and pregnancy somewhere around here. Try the vaccines forum.

I didn't get it, I wouldn't get it.

Lemme find that pregnancy and swine flu thread...
http://mothering.com/discussions/sho....php?t=1117215

Some links...
http://mothering.com/jennifermarguli...ay-not-be-safe

[lmk1]

Which trimester were you in when you got it? I'm wondering if there's a time that's better to get it...like after the 1st trimester? Also I'm wondering if my 2 yr old should get it because he just started wheezing for the first time after a cold, and doesn't that place him in a higher risk group for complications from H1N1?

Originally Posted by october

I got it as soon as it became available back in October. I have asthma and a flu like H1N1 would have probably sent me to ICU (or worse) like many other pregnant women.

It has been made very clear that this vaccine is identical to all other flu vaccines, but like each vaccine every year, the virus is different. Although many women decide not to get the regular flu vaccine, it is encouraged by most OBs and some midwives. That is why there doesn't need to be a tremendous amount of anxiety around making this decision. If you are the kind of person to get a flu vaccine, why not get the H1N1 vax?

Another benefit to choosing to get the vaccine is that your baby will be protected up to 6 months after birth. H1N1 is going to come back in another wave next fall, so this is obviously a huge relief.

I respect any woman's decision to get or not get the vaccine, but I don't think it's more admirable to refrain. It's just a personal choice.

[earthymato2]

i chose not to get it after hearing quite a few stories of miscarriage in women who had gotten it early in pregnancy. honestly, i don't think there have been any studies on safety in pregnant women which was another reason for me to decline. my family did end up with the flu (never tested so i don't know if it was h1n1). it was not pleasant at all, but we used herbal/homeopathic remedies and did just fine. dh had it the worst and ended up with pneumonia. i was pretty sick for about a week (only about 2 days really down in bed), and ds1 and ds2 had a few days of high fevers and recovered the fastest of all of us! even after experiencing the flu running rampant through our house for a month, i would not even consider the vax. but everyone's experience and health issues are different, so in the end it's a very personal decision.

[lmk1]

Which herbal remedies did you use? What is safe for pregnant women, apart from extra vit C? Did you get a high fever? I'm concerned about the fever during pg as isn't an elevated temp associated w/mc or birth defects?

Originally Posted by earthymato2

i chose not to get it after hearing quite a few stories of miscarriage in women who had gotten it early in pregnancy. honestly, i don't think there have been any studies on safety in pregnant women which was another reason for me to decline. my family did end up with the flu (never tested so i don't know if it was h1n1). it was not pleasant at all, but we used herbal/homeopathic remedies and did just fine. dh had it the worst and ended up with pneumonia. i was pretty sick for about a week (only about 2 days really down in bed), and ds1 and ds2 had a few days of high fevers and recovered the fastest of all of us! even after experiencing the flu running rampant through our house for a month, i would not even consider the vax. but everyone's experience and health issues are different, so in the end it's a very personal decision.

[~Demeter~]

I will not be getting it. It's a category C risk for pregnant women and has never been tested on pregnant women. The manufacturers even say, that it's not indicated for pregnant women. I'd rather take my risks with the flu and letting my immune system fight it off naturally. I also would refuse to take Tamiflu.

[BarnMomma]

Originally Posted by october

I got it as soon as it became available back in October. I have asthma and a flu like H1N1 would have probably sent me to ICU (or worse) like many other pregnant women.

It has been made very clear that this vaccine is identical to all other flu vaccines, but like each vaccine every year, the virus is different. Although many women decide not to get the regular flu vaccine, it is encouraged by most OBs and some midwives. That is why there doesn't need to be a tremendous amount of anxiety around making this decision. If you are the kind of person to get a flu vaccine, why not get the H1N1 vax?

Another benefit to choosing to get the vaccine is that your baby will be protected up to 6 months after birth. H1N1 is going to come back in another wave next fall, so this is obviously a huge relief.

I respect any woman's decision to get or not get the vaccine, but I don't think it's more admirable to refrain. It's just a personal choice.

I must disagree.

This vaccine has not been tested, practically at all! Especially on the unborn and not on pregnant women.

There have been A LOT of women reporting miscarriage 12-72 hours after vaccination.

There IS mercury in this vaccine, a dangerous neurotoxin that has no business being anywhere near a developing baby, or anyone for that mater.

There is a huge contradiction in the recs for this vaccine, they stress 2nd and 3rd trimester innoculation but say it is NOT reccomended for infants under 6 months? Ummm, what do they think is in there in the 3rd trimester?

I agree with what another poster said, I would look at the vaccination forum where other posters can back up the things I mentioned here with the sources. In a rush right now so I'm not able to cite.

As for me I WILL NOT be getting this or any other vaccine now or after pregnancy.

Aslo, look at the swine flu It's reported to be a milder virus than seasonal flu.

If you're concerned I would take other precautions like eating well, avoided junk and processed foods, taking vitamin c and kefir and fish oil, hand washing whenever you touch a "community" surface like doorknobs, shopping cart handles. Jsut boost your immune sysytem the best you can. That will offer you better protection.

[chai]

I got it about a month ago, when I was about 27 weeks. I had no problems and there don't seem to be any problems with the baby either.

I did lots of research and concluded that H1N1 vaccine is no worse than the seasonal flu vaccine. Of course, there is always a slim chance there will be side effects, but I felt like the chances of coming down with H1N1 were far greater, and I just didn't feel like I could deal with the flu right now.

[limette]

Originally Posted by october

I got it as soon as it became available back in October. I have asthma and a flu like H1N1 would have probably sent me to ICU (or worse) like many other pregnant women.

It has been made very clear that this vaccine is identical to all other flu vaccines, but like each vaccine every year, the virus is different. Although many women decide not to get the regular flu vaccine, it is encouraged by most OBs and some midwives. That is why there doesn't need to be a tremendous amount of anxiety around making this decision. If you are the kind of person to get a flu vaccine, why not get the H1N1 vax?

Another benefit to choosing to get the vaccine is that your baby will be protected up to 6 months after birth. H1N1 is going to come back in another wave next fall, so this is obviously a huge relief.

I respect any woman's decision to get or not get the vaccine, but I don't think it's more admirable to refrain. It's just a personal choice.

In Canada, it's not exactly like the reg flu shot. It has either squalene or 10x the amount of mercury, neither of which are good things.

I'm surprised people are still getting vaccinated despite reports that the "pandemic" is over. We had a news article (canada.com) where some medical guy said that only 30% of the population needed to be vaccinated/catch it to slow the spread to zero and that he thought all flu clinics should be over.

Where did you hear there is evidence of a third wave next fall? Everything I've read/researched says it's overblown, the mildest flu ever and no third wave.

None of the shots are tested pregnant women, well unless you consider the women that have received the vax this fall. I guess that's testing.

It's not worth it to me and I have asthma that gets bad when I'm sick.

[staceychev]

I chose not to get it, but I don't get the seasonal flu vaccine at all.

[october]

It is not logical to me to feel like there are such an incredible amount of unknowns about the swine flu vax when the only difference between IT and the regular flu vax is the virus itself. I just can't wrap my head around why that's difficult to conceptualize?

I also got the vaccine without Thimerisol (mercury) but would have gotten it anyway considering the amount of Thimerisol in the vaccine is equivalent how much is in a can of tuna fish. I haven't eaten tuna fish since I got pregnant, but my naturopath says eating tuna irregularly is safe.

The reason the vaccine is a category C is because it has never been tested. Period.

I got the vaccine back in October, and haven't researched the swine flu since, so I was completely unaware that any women were experiencing miscarriage within 72 hours after inocculation. If this is true, I would definitely be researching theories about why that could be! How many of those women would have gotten miscarriages anyway? Is there a positive correlation between women getting the regular flu vaccine and experiencing miscarriage?

For me, the benefits of vaccinations outweighed the risks, and that is probably why my midwife encouraged me to get it.

[Juvysen]

I would eat tuna, but I wouldnt inject myself with it...

Beyond just the mercury, there is also formaldehyde and other things (a kind of antifreeze, I believe?) that I wouldnt be comfortable injecting into my body, virus or no virus.

And I believe I heard from some news source, that yes, miscarriage is a side-effect of the regular flu shot, too, but I could be mistaken.

[BeeBliss]

Not I

I didn't get the H1N1 vaccine or seasonal vaccine. I am in my 3rd trimester and I got the flu about 2 weeks ago. My OB was pretty mad I didn't get the vaccine and didn't use the Tamiflu they prescribed me two months before that (for another flu scare).

She said I was lucky to come out with just an upper respiratory infection which was treated with a z-pack. I felt pretty confident in my self medicating with Oscillococcinum and elderberry extract. It kept my fever to 101.5. Had it 3 days, as did my older daughter the month before I got it.

But I can see how it can get bad really quickly. It was the worst flu I had experienced in a decade. The aches, pains, fatigue and sore throat were the worst. If my fever did spike to 103 for longer than 24 hour and wouldn't go down with Tylenol, I was planning on taking the Tamiflu within the 48 hour window.

[dinahx]

They just recalled ALL the truly mercury free vaxes in the US (sanofi injectable). All the others at least have a trace.

[chai]

Originally Posted by limette

In Canada, it's not exactly like the reg flu shot. It has either squalene or 10x the amount of mercury, neither of which are good things.

I'm surprised people are still getting vaccinated despite reports that the "pandemic" is over.

They don't have sqalene or mercury in the U.S., as long as you get the single dose shot (and none have squalene).

When I got vaccinated at the beginning of Nov, H1N1 was at its peak in my city - they had three tents set up outside the children's hospital here to deal with all the H1N1 cases.

[lmk1]

I've never heard of Oscillococcinum ... where do you get that?
Is a zpack an antibiotic? so you ended up with a bacterial infection?

Originally Posted by BeeBliss

I didn't get the H1N1 vaccine or seasonal vaccine. I am in my 3rd trimester and I got the flu about 2 weeks ago. My OB was pretty mad I didn't get the vaccine and didn't use the Tamiflu they prescribed me two months before that (for another flu scare).

She said I was lucky to come out with just an upper respiratory infection which was treated with a z-pack. I felt pretty confident in my self medicating with Oscillococcinum and elderberry extract. It kept my fever to 101.5. Had it 3 days, as did my older daughter the month before I got it.

But I can see how it can get bad really quickly. It was the worst flu I had experienced in a decade. The aches, pains, fatigue and sore throat were the worst. If my fever did spike to 103 for longer than 24 hour and wouldn't go down with Tylenol, I was planning on taking the Tamiflu within the 48 hour window.

[chai]

Originally Posted by dinahx

They just recalled ALL the truly mercury free vaxes in the US (sanofi injectable). All the others at least have a trace.

What I heard was they recalled the injectable for 0-3 years... and only because it was slightly too weak, which didn't matter for that age group since they need a booster anyway.