Pregnant ladies...are you having the swine flu jab?

I'm not pregnant, but, I would advise anyone who is not sure about having the jab to discuss it with their GP, midwife and/or obstetrician. Second, have a read of these articles. Hopefully this will help you  come to a decision. Third, try not to be swayed by scaremongering parenting boards!! I'm not saying anyone here is doing that but I know what it can be like when you look at some of the big parenting forums like mumsnet, netmums etc. There is a lot of rubbish that gets circulated that's based on nothing but speculation and conjecture.

http://www.acog.org/departments/resourceCenter/2009H1N1FactSheet.pdf

http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/11/20091102a.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/health/03flu.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/12/swine-flu-vaccine-safe-pregnancy

http://www.rcog.org.uk/files/rcog-corp/Evidence%20file%20on%20the%20safety%20of%20flu%20vaccine%20use%20during%20pregnancy_0.pdf

I'm not denying that there's an element of risk involved with not getting the vaccine, but arguably not much more than getting hit by a bus or other tragic event.  However, I don't feel comfortable subjecting both my body and my unborn child's to a thing that has not only not even been tested for pregnant women but not been proven safe either.

Just my opinion.

My thoughts exactly.  Again, this being just my opinion, but along the same lines as what Aless said it hasn't been proven to be safe.

Not to get grim or controversial, but at one point in time Europe thought Thalidomide was also a good idea and safe for pregnant women.  And we all know how that came out.

my two coppers on the matter anyways.

I am really unsure 

A friend of mine in the US has a niece that had swine flu and she told her GP and even though she didn't have any symptoms they put her on tamiflu.  The odds of me being exposed to swine flu this winter are probably relatively high and I don't want to have to take tamiflu if i am.... because who knows what that will do to the baby as well.

I'm trying to stay away from ALL meds at the moment but my husband is really insistant that i get the swine flu jab, so its a bit of a battle with him at the moment.

I got mine a little over three weeks ago when I was in hospital. A few days before the batch was due to come in the doctors there met with all of the women on the ward to try to persaude us to get it. The next day two women on the ward (two of MY roommates) tested positive for it. Luckily, they had quite a mild case but I DID get the vaccine. Unfortunately, I didn't need it because I had the baby three days later and it takes over a week for the vaccine to become effective.

My thoughts exactly.  Again, this being just my opinion, but along the same lines as what Aless said it hasn't been proven to be safe.

Not to get grim or controversial, but at one point in time Europe thought Thalidomide was also a good idea and safe for pregnant women.  And we all know how that came out.

my two coppers on the matter anyways.

I don't think it's helpful to compare this to Thalidomide. We've moved on and science learned a lot from that mistake. No other flu vaccine has been harmful to unborn babies and there's no reason to think this one would be either. Again, it's personal choice but from reading the links I posted before, it seems to me the greater risk to the unborn child comes from the virus than the vaccine.

I don't think it's helpful to compare this to Thalidomide. We've moved on and science learned a lot from that mistake. No other flu vaccine has been harmful to unborn babies and there's no reason to think this one would be either. Again, it's personal choice but from reading the links I posted before, it seems to me the greater risk to the unborn child comes from the virus than the vaccine.

I agree. When Thalidomide came out, women were still smoking and drinking their way through their pregnancies too! Clearly we have moved far beyond those days.

Today it's been reported that the first European cases of Tamiflu-resistant swine flu have been found in Wales. If drug-resistant swine flu becomes a major problem in the UK over the winter, I wonder if that would make people more likely to get the jab?

Again, as I said I wasn't trying to be grim or controversial.  We can only have faith we've "come a long way" but imagine: at one point in time everyone thought the world was flat. Not to quote the movies but, "imagine what we'll know tomorrow."

Again, that's just where I am coming from.

Just an update on this...This morning I met with a girlfriend who is also pregnant and is a GP, she has gotten her swine flu jab and after talking to her, I decided to go and have the vaccination this afternoon. So I have now done it. I have already lost a baby this year and I can't bear it again, so better safe than sorry.

So there you go...

I had my first midwife appointment a few weeks ago. I'm almost 12 weeks pregnant, and at the appointment the midwife said I should call my GP to make an appointment for the swine flu jab.

I just traveled to Iceland and am headed to the US later this week, so I thought if I was going to get the jab, I might as well do it soon. My brother in law's girlfriend was just diagnosed with swine flu and we'll be seeing my brother in law at xmas, so it seemed like a good idea.

However, I called my GP and was told that I can only get the jab after I receive a letter inviting me to do so. She said that another batch of letters would probably go out in January. And I may get one then or later. She could see in my file that I was pregnant and eligible, but said there was nothing she could do until I get a letter.

This seems counterintuitive--they make a huge deal about how important it is for high risk patients to get the jab, and then make it massively complex for them to do so?

Did anyone else have problems getting it set up? I feel like waiting for a letter is going to result in me getting it sometime next summer...

Considering that I didn't get my invitation letter until I was almost at term (I'll be 38 weeks tomorrow), I wasn't even going to risk it.  The only time I get flu is if I let someone jab me full of vaccine, so...

Anyways, much like SARS, foot and mouth, avian flu, etc... it's just another sickness, and the flavor of the 'week'.  It's been shown repeatedly to be less severe than your average seasonal flu; only some 0.026% ((note - that's the figure I THINK I remember from BBC; I didn't go look it up again)) of people known to have had swine flu have died.  Pregnant women are at bigger risk, sure, but we're at bigger risk for everything with this compromised immune system thingie going on!

I'm not a doctor, though - I'm just a crankypants'd wench that despises media pressure to freak out over something that really worth freaking out over.  If you want the vaccine and can get it in time, more power to you, IF it's what you really want.  

And, of course - congrats on your expectant state!

Considering that I didn't get my invitation letter until I was almost at term (I'll be 38 weeks tomorrow), I wasn't even going to risk it. 

Classic!

I do have a raging debate in my head about whether to get it anyway. The rational thing is to say I'll be fine without it. But it's just frustrating that even if I 100% wanted to get it, I couldn't...unless I have a letter. It makes me feel less than confident that if I actually had swine flu while I was pregnant, I'd be treated in a timely matter and things would be just fine.

Deep breath, I guess...I will just have to cross all bridges as I come to them.

Congrats as well, Raeyn..you're almost at the finish line...or starting line...depending on how you look at it

Pregnant women are at bigger risk, sure, but we're at bigger risk for everything with this compromised immune system thingie going on!

Your baby is at risk from swine flu as well though, not to mention from the medication you would have if you caught it.  Have a look at Brandilynn's post further up this thread, if you didn't see it already.

I had my first midwife appointment a few weeks ago. I'm almost 12 weeks pregnant, and at the appointment the midwife said I should call my GP to make an appointment for the swine flu jab.

I just traveled to Iceland and am headed to the US later this week, so I thought if I was going to get the jab, I might as well do it soon. My brother in law's girlfriend was just diagnosed with swine flu and we'll be seeing my brother in law at xmas, so it seemed like a good idea.

However, I called my GP and was told that I can only get the jab after I receive a letter inviting me to do so. She said that another batch of letters would probably go out in January. And I may get one then or later. She could see in my file that I was pregnant and eligible, but said there was nothing she could do until I get a letter.

This seems counterintuitive--they make a huge deal about how important it is for high risk patients to get the jab, and then make it massively complex for them to do so?

Did anyone else have problems getting it set up? I feel like waiting for a letter is going to result in me getting it sometime next summer...

Given your circumstances I'd phone NHS Direct and speak to them about it.

If you really want it and you know that someone close to you has it then I'd demand to get it asap.  I'd also send a letter to your GP setting out your circumstances and requesting to have the jab immediately. Then you have documentary evidence that you've requested it if, god forbid, something should go wrong.

I've yet to recieve any letter. When did they come out? 2 months ago?

I'm not sure when the letters first appeared. My GP in particular said they sent them out in November. Which means, since I hadn't had my first midwife appointment yet, I definitely wouldn't have been in that batch.

I may try NHS Direct. My midwife did also give me a number for the early pregnancy unit thing at the hospital here, so perhaps they could pull some strings as well, if I give them a call. I really just feel like if I am going to be at risk for swine flu, it will likely be over the coming weeks with all the traveling I will be doing. I'd really like the option, at least.

If you can't get one through your GP, I wonder if you can get one at a travel clinic?