Pneumonia Injections

[Kathyan]

Has anyone been offered a pneumonia injection by their Dr's surgery and have you taken them up on it? I was offered it last week and refused.

[Kathyan]

And woofgang, do you know what those ingredients actually are? Because I don't and that's why I won't have it.

[Apc2604]

Flu jabs have caused me problems and last November I had a dreadful reaction and was ill for a long time. I never reacted to the pneumonia Jab.

[Vagus]

I appreciate we’re all different in our approaches to these things, but personally I won’t feel safe until they develop a vaccine and I’ve had the jab.
I don’t care what the ingredients are just as long as one bit of it helps protect me from COVID.

[MartinMillar]

Offered it and had it 3 weeks ago

[pixie374]

Kathyan, if you think you might react badly to a vaccine... what do you think the actual disease would do to you?

[Theland]

Had the jab few years ago, all OK.
Got shingles last summer, still getting after effects and taking meds.
Wish I could have had a jab for that.

[Kathyan]

I can't answer that question, can I?

[pixie374]

Which question? If you mean mine... you already know any vaccine or immunisation will never be as severe as the illness.

[Kathyan]

You can't say that though can you? A lot of people have had very mild cases of Corona and some have even had it and not had symptoms (if that's even possible!). So how can you can you say that having the vaccine isn't as bad as the virus? People react differently.

[woofgang]

Kathyann. At its worst the vac will be an order of magnitude safer than the virus.

[pixie374]

They react differently, yes, between people. But for each individual, a vaccine or immunisation will Always be safer than the actual disease.
That would mean you have to fight it off by yourself... and if you can't even fight off the vaccine... a dead version... that would not be good.

[Apc2604]

My flu jab in November was worse than flu and I've had proper flu twice. I didnt have flu symptoms after the jab, just a dreadful allergic reaction with after effects for weeks afterwards which rendered me a nervous wreck!

[Bobbisox1]

My worst one was my shingles jab, my arm had a half an egg under the skin and was badly bruised

[pixie374]

It's lucky you got it, apc... the whole virus would have made you much worse.
Nowadays, we use vaccine and immunization in basically the same way. You get a very mild dose, or a dead dose of the disease, so your body produces some immunity and recognises it and tries to fight it.
You can imagine, that if you struggle with that much, the actual disease, would be so much harder to fight off.

[JimF]

Interesting. I was offered the pneumonia jab at my last annual check-up. Of course I took it - who in their right mind wouldn't? No side-effects thus far, and definitely no pneumonia!

I wasn't actually aware of a shingles jab. I'll definitely inquire about that next time I'm chez le toubib. I'm not sure that shingles is hereditary, but both my mother and her sister had it really badly.

[Bobbisox1]

It’s 70+ JimF

[Apc2604]

Pixie i have been having flu jabs for mny years within slight reactions. Last November's reaction had no flu symptoms at all. I could have coped with that. I had a dreadful allergic reaction to the solution. My immune system went into overdrive. I was backwards and forwards to GPs for weeks. It affected my whole nervous system. I was a wreck.

[pixie374]

Fair enough, apc, an allergic reaction is totally different and of course, the jabs are different every year.

[Vagus]

It used to only be offered to people on their 70th and 79th birthday because there was a shortage of vaccine.
I’m not sure this is still the case though.
After 80 the vaccine is less effective.

[woofgang]

its changed a bit. Who can have the shingles vaccination?

"You're eligible for the shingles vaccine if you are aged 70 or 78 years old.

In addition, anyone who was previously eligible (born on or after 2 September 1942) but missed out on their shingles vaccination remains eligible until their 80th birthday.

When you're eligible, you can have the shingles vaccination at any time of year.

The shingles vaccine is not available on the NHS to anyone aged 80 or over because it seems to be less effective in this age group."