Flu Shot Season!

[stephanie<3]

OK, so I got my flu shot today, and my arm HURTS! It's really sore and I can't lift it more than 45 degrees or so without immense pain. It's my first time getting it, so I'm wondering if I'll get used to it? I'm just wondering what some of you guys have happen to you when you get the flu shot.

[Xaidread]

I don't remember getting any shots except for a Tdap thingy this year. Requirement for starting 6th grade in my school, apparently. It was really quick and nearly painless.
I also don't remember having many shots.... But then again, my immune system is strong.

[ahoteinrun]

It hurts more or less depending on your size, how tense you are (do not tense when you get shots, it makes it much worse), what sort of needle they used, what sort of shot it was... etc etc.

Are you able to take a tylenol? Are you running a fever at all?

If you're Canadian you should be recieving quite a few shots in school. So unfortunately you may need to get used to it. But honestly in my humble opinion the flu shot is definately worth while.

[Siouxper]

I plan on getting a flu shot sometime this week or next week. I'd much rather have the shot than get the flu.

[May]

I have all kinds of issues with shots... Normally I bruise up quite a bit, have loads of difficulty moving whichever arm the shot was in, and sometimes I even pass out - Fear of needles can be a bad thing. That being said, with how sick I've been already this school year, I'm getting my flu shot two weeks from tomorrow, courtesy of the school

[Ange]

I've never had the flu...ever. Or the flu shot. Just lucky, I guess?

I had to get the meningitis vaccine before starting undergraduate studies in college, and that one definitely hurt that most. Felt like someone socked me in the arm! It was weird; I had the tetanus (supposed the most painful shot) in the other arm, and that was no pain at all.

[Twizzler0171]

Hmm, the only time I have gotten a flu shot was last year.

And then I had been banged up in a car wreck a few days before, so I honestly can't tell you if it hurt or not.

[Plastic Ninja]

oh fun.i get that AND my bosters.one of them burns like *beeper go's off*!
but the flu shots not so bad.i get it in the leg.not the arm.it wont hurt so much.beleve me,i know.

[Siniri]

OK, so I got my flu shot today, and my arm HURTS! It's really sore and I can't lift it more than 45 degrees or so without immense pain. It's my first time getting it, so I'm wondering if I'll get used to it? I'm just wondering what some of you guys have happen to you when you get the flu shot.

That seems like more than a normal reaction. You should report it to your doctor. It might be that you're allergic to a vaccine component or something... You're not allergic to eggs, are you?

[Katherine]

OK, so I got my flu shot today, and my arm HURTS! It's really sore and I can't lift it more than 45 degrees or so without immense pain. It's my first time getting it, so I'm wondering if I'll get used to it? I'm just wondering what some of you guys have happen to you when you get the flu shot.

That seems like more than a normal reaction. You should report it to your doctor. It might be that you're allergic to a vaccine component or something... You're not allergic to eggs, are you?

It might not be. When we got shots at school, almost half the people couldn't move their arms without it hurting.

I like shots, because I always get a treat after .

[stephanie<3]

This morning I actually had a really bad reaction to it. I had to stay home from school today. About 3:30 am yesterday morning, I woke up and I was freezing, and it was all I could do to get up and turn my fan off and get an extra blanket. I shuddered whenever I breathed until about 4:30 and then I got back to sleep. When I woke up at 6:30 to get ready for school, I was burning up. I wouldn't be surprised if I was running a fever. I actually went to school, but I had to come home fifteen minutes after it started because it was so bad. I slept most of the morning, until about noon, and then I woke up and felt able to eat some lunch. I've been pretty much taking it easy since then, so I don't know if it'll get better or worse. Hopefully it will get better, because at this point, I feel like I've had the flu. No, I'm not allergic to eggs and I have been taking Advil.

[ahoteinrun]

With most flu shots if you're going to have a bad reaction to it, the reaction will happen within 15 minutes if it's allergic.
This doesn't sound like a bad reaction to me. It sounds like a reaction in which someone tensed up or the nurse was an idiot and hit you in a spot where she shouldn't have. Not all parts of the muscle are created equal!

[May]

The flu shot will usually make you sick for a couple of days. That's part of how it works. It kind of gives you a mini-dose of the flu so you can build up the antibodies for it (at least, I think that's how I was told it works).

[Siniri]

The flu shot will usually make you sick for a couple of days. That's part of how it works. It kind of gives you a mini-dose of the flu so you can build up the antibodies for it (at least, I think that's how I was told it works).

You can not catch the flu from the flu shot. But it does give you flu antigens, which your body responds to by making antibodies, priming your system in case you get infected with a flu virus similar to the ones in the shot (and thus preventing you from getting sick when exposed). The symptoms from the immune response vary by individual, but they include slight fever, aches, etc. (True influenza is different from, and (usually) more severe than, what people commonly call "the flu." So these could be "flu"-like symptoms, but not as severe as true influenza symptoms.)

Your symptoms (especially the breathing and weakness) do sound severe, so I'd again encourage you to call and report it to your doctor... it's better safe than sorry, and it's important for public health that they keep track of severe reactions in case there's a bad vaccine lot or something.

[May]

Ooh, I was hoping that someone would explain it better than I did Thanks Siniri!