Sorry for basically disappearing on you. Apparently I caught a “summer flu”, a viral infection that is similar in symptoms though less severe than a real flu. If anything it has reinforced my determination to get every single flu shot every single year. It completely knocked me out, I’ve been in bed since Saturday and today is the first day I’m up for more than half an hour apart from doctor’s visit and school run.
Here’s some cuteness to make up for it:
©Giliell, all rights reserved
©Giliell, all rights reserved
Cute? Right? That’s just to ease you into it because nothing says cute like a baby mongoose:
©Giliell, all rights reserved
©Giliell, all rights reserved
Kittens have serious competition here.
Those are fearfully cute. I hope you are feeling better.
I’m hoping the August Flu will lose its grip on you and that you’re feeling better.
I’ve been taking the flu shot yearly for a while now because I have asthma and while I’ve been sick every now and then, but I’ve had no influenza AFAIK, FWIV. No side effects have occurred for me, just the annoyance of queuing (apart from last year, when I got it from student health care) and the fact that it’s on the more painful side of regular injections, not Mantoux test painful, by far, but one can feel it.
The mongoose has some of the cutest ears ever.
Sorry you’ve been ill Giliell, I hope you are properly better jolly soon.
Awww baby mongoose <3
I’m sorry you’ve caught the flu, Giliell. I hope it passes quickly. Get heaps of rest, lots of fluids and take good care of yourself.
Thanks for the cute. That baby mongoose is about as sweet as they come.
I was just talking to a friend who came down with pneumonia three or four weeks ago and this is the middle of summer in Canada. She is back up and even working but hell.
I have no idea what “summer flu” is but take care and do not overdo things for the next few weeks. To be honest, a couple of months of relative non-activity and maybe a couple of weeks holiday in Greece sound like good ideas.
Take care.
@ 3 Ice Swimmer
Re the flu shot. In the part of Canada where I live, even some of the drugstores (Chemists in UK terms) offer walk in flu shots.
I go to my local health clinic and last year had to wait at least 10 minutes. The year before, I had no wait and the nurses said, “Wait a minute, you are over 60, do you want this other vaccination?”. Cannot remember what it was but is sounded good at the time.
I could almost swear that my health clinic has nurses patrolling the halls, hypodermics in hand, looking for anyone whose shots are not up-to-date.
They caught me a couple of years ago as I had not had a tetanus shot in years. This guy charges in to the room waving a needle and a yellow vaccination card. I still have the card.
jrkrideau
Summer flu is a viral infection with similar symptoms as the real flu caused by the enterovirus. Yeah, the only cure is “stay in bed”, which I’m doing, though at least this morning I had coffee and something similar to breakfast.
RE: flu shots
Since Germany can never do anything sensibly, health insurance will only cover flu shots if you are deemed at risk. that means that I can get mine free, because I’m a teacher, but Mr has to pay for his since he works in a lab and hardly meets many people. Because money. As a result, when we had a really bad flu season two years or so ago, 80% of the lab was sick…
Here in Finland it’s much like in Germany, in the respect that free flu shots are only for “at risk” people, otherwise, you have to either get one from for-profit health care providers or buy the vaccine from a pharmacy and reserve an appointment from the public Health Care Center to have it given to you. Some employers may provide the flu shot via the occupational health care system (that is from the clinics which they have a contract with to provide some health care services (mandated by law) for employees).
The UK is the same with free flu shots for at risk people and others like people working in hospitals, the rest of us pay or go without :-(
jrkrideau
There is a stronger version of the flu shot for older people as it was found either that they seroconvert less well than younger ones or that the protection doesn’t last as long -- can’t remember which.
Summer flu is a viral infection with similar symptoms as the real flu caused by the enterovirus. Yeah, the only cure is “stay in bed”, which I’m doing, though at least this morning I had coffee and something similar to breakfast.
Sounds horrible and I do not think we normally have it in Canada. Take care, get lots of rest and fluids. Oh and okay breakfast.
@ 10 Jazzlet
“The UK is the same with free flu shots for at risk people and others like people working in hospitals, the rest of us pay or go without :-(”
I assure you, in my Canadian clinic,any one in the clinic was in danger of that needle. If you were three years or ninety I do not think it made a difference.
Jazzlet
It might be the climate difference. A bit of flu in the UK might inconvenience a few businesses. In Canada, a real flu outbreak can paralyze a government department or shut down a university unit.
Like cold weather, we seem to have to take it seriously.
My experience in the US is that insurance pays for the flu shot. It may actually be required for them to do so as part of ACA (Obamacare). I don’t know what the cost would be for an uninsured person, but there may still be ways to get it at low or no cast.
Many pharmacies now actually pay you to take the flu shot — insurance pays for the injection, and the store gives a $5.00 store credit.