by Leo Wiles
25 April 2018
I’m freelance and work from my home office. I do go to the odd client meeting and the gym but generally I’m not around people that much. But a few people have told me they’re getting the flu shot after last year’s shocker season and I wondered, is it worth getting? Marion
We put this question to the Facebook Gold group for you, and the majority who responded said they always get the flu shot – especially those with kids who may be bringing home winter bugs. And that’s not the only reason!
“I have the flu shot every year, ever since flu left me with tinnitus in my left ear back in 2000. I don’t understand why anyone wouldn’t have it,” says List member Nigel Bartlett, who still has tinnitus today. “It’s incurable and is fairly common after flu, according to my GP at the time.”
As a freelancer and a single parent, I can’t afford to spend two weeks in bed feeling like utter crap. And even though I’m needle phobic, I’m considering it after my kids all got sick on the heels of school holidays.
If you have compromised immunity or a chronic illness, convalescing could take even longer – or even land you in hospital. The flu is responsible for 18,000 hospitalisations a year, and 3000 deaths. Gulp.
But before you dial your doctor and make an appointment, timing is everything. Bastian Seidel, president of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners president recently told the SMH: “If you have your vaccine now it might not be effective when the flu season is at its peak. For every month it becomes between 6 to 11 per cent less effective.”
Mid-April to early May is a good time to get the shot, according to experts.
Don’t think it’s necessary? Make sure you stock up on Vitamin C, get a good night’s sleep and cross your fingers. Oh, and celebrate the break from germs if you don’t work in an office anymore. There’s always one colleague who turns up coughing and spluttering – and takes down half the office the following week! That’s something I definitely don’t miss.
What do you do to ward off winter lurgies?
