Flu Season Starts Early
If you haven't gotten your flu shot, now is the time.
If you’ve been feeling under the weather lately, you’re not alone. Flu season is hitting the Delaware Valley.
“Local hospitals, including Bryn Mawr and Paoli, are seeing a spike in respiratory illnesses,” Tweets Main Line Health.
Our area is not alone.
“The U.S. is experiencing an early flu season,” Tweets FluGov, the federal government’s main flu information website.
Symptoms
Flu symptoms, according to Flu.gov, include:
- A 100F or higher fever or feeling feverish (not everyone with the flu has a fever)
- A cough and/or sore throat
- A runny or stuffy nose
- Headaches and/or body aches
- Chills
- Fatigue
- Nausea, vomiting, and/or diarrhea (most common in children)
Prevention
Doctors say that the best way to prevent getting the flu is a flu shot. Check with your doctor’s office or local pharmacy. A number of Main Line area Rite Aid stores are currently out of the vaccine or low on it, but they expect to get more in later in the week, so call before you go.
Other prevention tips from Flu.gov include:
- Wash your wands
- Avoid touching eyes, nose or mouth
- Avoid close contact with sick people
- Stay healthy: Get plenty of sleep, exercise, manage stress, drink plenty of fluids and eat healty
- If you are sick with flu-like illness, stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone without the use of fever-reducing medicine.
Lynn Friedman
7:36 am on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
It is challenging to find a place where my 14yr old daughter can get a flu shot. The pharamacies are not permitted to give it to anyone under the age of 18. I have to pay co pay to Pediatrician( $50), other option is a two hour wait @ an urgent care facilitiy.
Kathleen Dolan
9:31 am on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
FREE up to age 18 at the Chester County Services Center in Westtown. Sign up here:
http://pa-chestercounty.civicplus.com/index.aspx?NID=843
Regina DiLabbio Klugh King
3:27 pm on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
So I got the flu shot (swear by them since 1976 & the swine flu outbreak way back then); wash my hands far more times than Lady Macbeth or Ben Casey or Dr. Kildare; have enough fluid in me to rival Lake Mead -- but haven't been able to rise up off my recliner post Z-pak and chicken soup for the past 3 weeks. Had WaWa hoagies for Christmas dinner (mental note to self: do it again next year -- the kids liked it better than a buffet at the Desmond!). Please, everybody, you cannot "catch" the flu from a flu shot. And avoid me like the plague!!!
Robina
6:30 pm on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Lynn, immunizations like the flu are preventative and therefore should be covered at 100%.
Regina, you may have another virus other than the flu. RSV is horrible right now and knocking people out for weeks. I have an entire family of patients that all tested positive for it and are as sick as the flu.