Getting the H1N1 Vaccine
Yesterday for the first time ever I got a flu shot. Normally getting the flu shot requires you to go to one of the clinics set up around the city and you would be lucky to see 20 people at a regular flu vaccination clinic. The H1N1 has of course changed that and I stood in a line up of some 300 or more people to receive my vaccination. There was only one vaccination clinic available in the city the stampede that ensued on the first day caused the doctors to shut down the clinic after only 2 hours.
On the second day, the day that I went, the security guard almost didn’t let me in. The fire department was threatening to shut the clinic down because they were too many people in the building. I was lucky, my sister in law showed up at 7:00 AM to get in the line up, armed with a chair and a book. I worried that people might be angry about me jumping in line with her. But when I got there but my daughter’s cute little pigtails won them over in a second. Despite how early my sister in law got there, there was still some 80 people in front of us and another 200 or more behind us. Over the course of a couple hours we were herded from one station to another, first to register, then to the waiting area, and the vaccination area and finely to the resting area.
I’m pleased to report that none of the people receiving the vaccinations got autism, gulf war syndrome, the H1N1 virus, Guillain-Barré syndrome nor did any one pass out, turn purple or go into convulsions. And yes I am mocking some of the incredibly ridiculous fears and myths that have erupted on the Internet this week regarding the H1N1 vaccine. Aside from a few screaming kids protesting the idea of getting a needle, the whole thing was extremely uneventful.
It was amazing to see so many people getting their H1N1 vaccination considering the growing fear surrounding vaccines. A co worker of my mother’s, who has a one year old son asked my mother if she felt that my son’s autism was caused by his immunizations. My mother explained that in no way did she feel that Jonathan had become autistic from receiving his childhood vaccinations. But fear has a way of spreading and it wasn’t long before my mother’s co worker have her convinced that the H1N1 was dangerous and filled with mercury. It also wasn’t long before my mother was calling me up worried that we have received mercury filled vaccinations either. I told her that if you have eaten a can of tuna you have consumed more mercury than you’ll find in a flu vaccination.
With the accusations that vaccines cause autism flying around on the Internet the fear that people have of vaccines has risen dramatically. Many people have started to doubt the safety of vaccines. And who can blame them? The Internet is filled with groups and forums preaching of dangers and conspiracy theories regarding vaccines.
But the truth is vaccines are among the safest tools of modern medicine and they have saved the lives of thousands and thousands from crippling disease and death. Of course it’s been such a long time since we’ve seen many of the diseases that vaccines protect us from, we don’t realize just how dangerous these diseases really are. My mother told me that when she was very young she contracted whooping cough. She remembers that it was very serious and that she was taken to the hospital in an ambulance. For the next two weeks the only way she was able to see my grandparents was through glass. She remarks that it was the only time she was ever really sick but she remembers what a serious thing it was. Had she been younger, she was 4 at the time, she may not been so lucky.
So if you’re worried about getting the H1N1 vaccine do yourself a favor and do some research. And no I don’t mean get information from that Facebook Group you just joined. Get information from your health practitioner or visit to a government health website for information about the H1N1 vaccination. Here’s a few you can visit -
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