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| Entrance to the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
But seriously, I admit that there have been a couple of years when I forgot to get my flu shot. This is unwise since I work in a busy university setting where I can count on being exposed to nearly every contagious illness that seems to sweep through the students. I need to get my shot not just because I don't want to get sick (which I don't) but also because I don't want to spread it to others. Perhaps I do have a bit of humanism in me after all.
The older I get, the more likely I am to get an annual flu shot. That's because I've found that getting the flu seems to be a worse experience as I age. It used to be the sort of thing I'd recover from after a few days; now it is almost always a full week or more. I used to be able to function at least to some degree when I had the flu, but the last time it really knocked me on my ass.
Influenza vaccines are not always effective. In fact, I think last year's was supposed to be a particularly ineffective batch. Early reports suggest that this year's should be much more effective, but these things are tough to predict. I got my shot yesterday on the way home from work. I'll gladly put up with a couple days of mild pain in my shoulder and some minor fatigue in the hope that I can escape the flu this year and make it less likely that I'll spread it to others.
The Mississippi Department of Health recommends that everyone over the age of 6 months receive the flu vaccine. If you haven't gotten around to getting your shot yet, there is still time to do so.
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