Flu is a respiratory illness & is very, very ……CONTAGIOUS!
I have had 2 positive flus come through my exam room this week. To top it off, they were influenza A; commonly referred to as the swine flu.
But, let’s be clear there are multiple strains of influenza A&B.
A little history on the aforementioned flu strain A. The swine (pig) influenza, has never been an issue to humans before 2009. Yet, in 2009, we had a pandemic of swine flu that left healthcare providers quite puzzled. The fevers were atrocious, the hospitalizations were higher than ever, and we lost 12,000 Americans that year!! Then, in 2015 we were faced with one of the worst flu seasons on record; we lost 56,000 Americans to the flu that year!
Hey! Did y’all hear me in the back? 56,000!!!! That is 1,120 deaths per state, (if it could actually be divided this way!)
Influenza actually has a season. It runs approximately from October-May. It peaks around February. What that means for you is…. around December, we start seeing a rise in positive flu swabs. And guess what everyone is doing in December? Sharing! Meals, love, and time!
The 2018-2019, flu season has been projected to be WORSE than 2009 & 2015. See the graph below from the CDC…..
What that means for providers are increased visits by really sick patients, increased hospitalizations, and the worst case scenario for every provider or family is the possibility of having to say goodbye to some of our favorite people. Influenza isn’t just a missed week of work/school, or simply about an annoying cough and some fever. We have lost 13 pediatric patients this year already.
It. Can. Be. Deadly.
Let’s talk about how to differentiate the flu from the symptoms of the common cold!
Flu: first and foremost, happens ABRUPTLY! You wake up feeling good, and by lunch… BAM! You feel like you just got slammed by a semi! You simply cannot decide, are you hot or are you cold? You have a fever of 101, and often much higher! You are suffering with some major body aches, and you have a pounding headache! You are so very, very tired, and your nose is running with clear nasal drainage in excess. The cough you most definitely are experiencing is very severe, painful, and very dry. Your throat likely hurts from the dryness as well.
In a little one, they are going to have the same fever and be extremely fussy! They may have no appetite and all they will want to do is sleep or cry. The cough will be there as well.
What we don’t usually see even though everyone expects this is diarrhea, nausea and vomiting. Remember this is a respiratory (lung) illness.
What you can take to survive the next 7 days!
- Use over the counter decongestants
- Buy acetaminophen and ibuprofen to fight the fever (acetaminophen can be given every 4 hours, and ibuprofen every 6…make sure you rotate the 2 meds)
- throat lozenges (my favorite is cepacol)
- Get some Elderberry syrup, vitamin c, and probiotics (use with caution)
- Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate
- Rest
- if you have been Sick for less than 48 hours from the onset of your first symptoms, you can be seen to get prescribed tamiflu (Sidenote on tamiflu-it’s very expensive, it has side effects, and is often low in quantity, it’s best for little ones, healthcare workers, the elderly and immunocompromised to get this rx.
Go to the EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT if your fever will not break after taking your medicines, you become extremely dehydrated, or you are getting worse after a week and not better.
Remember, Influenza is spread by droplets from your saliva, think sneezing, coughing, shaking hands, pushing buggies around, (grocery carts for y’all up in the North ). It can be spread within 5 feet of contact with an infected person and lives on surfaces for a little while. You are contagious to others within 1 day of catching it yourself (symptoms haven’t even started). And you remain contagious, through the duration of the flu symptoms through day 8 of infection.
Ways to prevent infection:
- Get your flu shot early
- Wash your hands with soap and water
- Cover your cough and sneezes.
- Stay away from others if your sick
But, I’m so scared of the flu shot! Won’t it make me sick?
I spend a large majority of my office visits explaining the flu shot. So here are some quick flu shot facts.
- Yes, your arm will be sore tomorrow
- Yes, you may have a runny nose and very low grade fever tomorrow. But this is not the flu. It’s your body responding to the flu shot.
- No, you will not get the flu from the shot. Never. Ever. Nope. It didn’t happen. No.
- It Actually takes 2 weeks for your immunity against the flu to actually take affect from the shot.
- What that ☝ means is if you were exposed to the flu 1 week before you were given the shot, you can get the flu FROM EXPOSURE. If you are exposed to the flu within 2 weeks of the shot, you can get the flu FROM EXPOSURE. But the shot did not give you the flu. It just doesn’t work that way. Accept it!
- I got the flu shot and months later, I caught the flu…….the flu shot only covers the deadly strains for the year prior. if you are lucky enough to still catch the flu after receiving your shot, here’s the guarantee……………………it will not be as bad as the ones the shot protected you from… it will be downright mild.
Just in case anyone out there needs reminders of when it’s appropriate to return to work or school!
It’s up to us to protect small children, the elderly, and the immunocompromised. The flu virus is most deadly to these people.
Stay home if your unsure whether you have the flu or not.
Always seek the advice of your personal provider if you have concerns with your health.
Life is good today!
XoXo-Allison
Interesting that this year is projected to be horrible and we are at the 100 year anniversary of the 1918 pandemic. Eek!
