How are you going to react when you get the swine flu?

I hope everyone answers “stay home”!

How are you going to react when if you get the swine flu?

I don’t know how I’ll react; we’ll have to see what happens if I get it. :)

Think I’ll go to the mall!

im going to the headquarters of the FDP to infect as many of those lunatics as possible

Piggy Flu Party?

I’m going to lick my art professor.

Unless I can clearly feel that there is something majorly wrong with my body then I’ll treat it the same way as any other flu. Lots of liquids, rest, and staying away from people so they don’t become infected.

My husband and I both had it over a month (I think) ago. Neither of us panicked. I was too sick to do much of anything at all for several days, but he went to work every day. I told him he should be staying home, but if he doesn’t go in, his staff (of hourly employees) isn’t able to work either.

I’ll react the same way that I did when I had viral pneumonia, tetanus and strep throat: stay home, sleep, and whine!!!!

Lose a few pounds. Whine and complain. Mail a few choice people my germs.

Stay at home. And then get pissed cause I have to get up and go refill my water cup.

I’m not getting the swine flu.

Are you so certain I’ll get it? ._. Although the chances are high. The campus is in a freakin’ malaise.

No one thinks they’ll get it. That doesn’t mean you wont get it.
If you do, you’ll have some decisions to make.

Stay home and not stress it. My Aunt and 4 year old Cousin had it. No biggie

My husband was sick for over two weeks, we took him to a doctor who totally freaked us out about pneumonia..but we chose to remain calm and he slept for a couple days and finally got better. The lingering cough is JUST going away, and it’s been three weeks for him.
I was sick for two weeks, still recovering. I sort of panicked over the first weekend, when I was sweating out fever after fever and was convinced I’d be one of the statistics of pregnant women with it. But, I went to the doctor, and she said it was too late to even test me (it’d been 4 days of fever by that point) and I had picked up strep throat as well. I went on antibiotics for that, which helped the sore throat pain but it didn’t do anything for the flu symptoms of coughing, chest pain, and overall miserableness.
I mainly stayed home, I ventured out after being on the antibiotics for a couple days, when I felt I was not contagious. My son then developed a fever for a week, I feared it was strep but the doctor said it wasn’t. I kept him in for the entire weekend (and the week prior, while I was sick)
So, we decided to stay in…my husband had to keep working but he did take some time off of work because he would not have gotten better otherwise. I am not a handwashing freak. lol

I did consider going to the hospital, but my fear was the “what if it’s not the flu” then I would be exposing my pregnant self to all sorts of sickness in an ER. I remained thoroughly hydrated, which I felt would be the biggest concern, and watched for any sort of contractions which happen when you become dehydrated. I did think I was going to die though. That seems like a common theme when someone has the flu…it’s just an awful feeling.

I’ll go blame the bacon I ate…

My daughter has it right now. She’s pumping liquids, alternating tylonol and motrin and using her inhaler. Beyond that, lots of rest. She’s home for at least ten days.

We went to the hospital day two when her fever got up to 103.8F. After a three hour wait, they confirmed it was influenza a and just said to keep doing what we were doing.

I’m stocked up on medicines, vitamins, tissues, soup, OJ, and other sick person basics. I’ll tough it out at home.

I’d probably say “oink-choo” or something along those lines.

I’m going to be pissed.

I would stay home. But here’s an interesting thing I’ve noticed. Swine flu basically presents with the same symptoms as any flu, or even some colds and other viruses. The only way to know you have swine flu is for a throat or nose swab to be sent off to a lab for testing. The people I know who have been told they have “Swine Flu” have not been tested. One individual’s doctor said, it doesn’t really matter if you have it or not, you will be better by the time the test comes back, so I’m calling it Swine Flu so you can stay home.

This means one of two things is happening: all these cases are being reported to the CDC as swine flu and it is therefore greatly over-reported and we have no idea how many (or few) people actually have contracted it, OR none of these cases are reported to the CDC as swine flu, and it is at least somewhat under-reported and we have no idea how many (or few) people actually have contracted it. I wonder which it is?

The same as I react when I get the normal flu. Stay at home feeling sorry for myself! So many people I know have had swine flu now, it’s old news.

@gussnarp My guess is that it’s underreported, unless the person has a severe reaction to it…that’s why we all keep hearing about deaths or hospitalization, those are only confirmed cases it seems. My doctors office said they weren’t doing testing because of how rampant the flu was going around the area. Everyone on my Facebook either has it, or has a family member with it.

@casheroo Interesting, but I’m inclined toward over-reported. If no one is being tested, they really have no idea how many cases are actually swine flu and how many are regular flu or other viruses (although some people have been tested and told it was either regular or swine). I suppose one could make a statistical assumption based on how many more cases of flu there are compared to non-swine flu years, but even then more people are going to their doctor because they think it might be swine flu, so there will be more reported cases of flu.

I personally would want to be tested because if we have short supplies of vaccine, and
I know I’ve already had the swine flu, then I don’t need to get the vaccine.

I like @Facade ‘s answer!

I have a bad cough, trouble breathing (I have asthma), but no fever. I started feeling bad last week, now it’s worse. Still no fever. WTF? I am home today from work.

I have a strangely powerful immune system, so I’d be surprised. I haven’t been sick in years.

Unless you count migraines and other assorted headaches.

@gussnarp I don’t think they can report it unless it’s a confirmed case. As in, confirmed by testing. They tested me when I went to the clinic with a 102 fever and other flu symptoms, and (at least in my area) they’ve been testing people pretty religiously when they’ve come in with symptoms.

I am not getting the swine flu under any circumstances.
I refuse.

Well I got the dang shot so I won’t be getting it. However hubby isn’t eligible for the shot right now and doesn’t care to get it. If he gets the swine flu he’ll be staying at home.
I absolutely do not believe in infecting other people with a deadly virus for any reason. I think going to work with such a virus is a horrible decision when it concerns the welfare of others.

@tinyfaery All the research I did on the Swine Flu says not everyone gets a fever. In fact they have pretty big warnings on most of the general Flu sites that state that. They don’t want people assuming they are fine just because they don’t get the fever.

@emmalily I would hope you are correct when it comes to the CDC, but I expect that media reports and reports coming out of schools are likely to involve over-reporting.

@gussnarp Over-reporting of getting the flu vs. swine flu I understand. But deaths as a result of H1N1 can’t really be over-reported? Well not drastically. Even if it were the seasonal flu we are having a large amount of deaths due to this “common” illness. It is scary especially since many are children and pregnant women.

@RedPowerLady I would certainly like to believe that anyone being reported as a death due to swine flu has been tested to determine if they actually had swine flu, but it should be noted that the deaths attributed to regular flu on an annual basis are not all tested as having been flu.

@gussnarp I suppose what I’m suggesting is that the death rate has been higher now that the swine flu is out so even without testing we know that something a bit “scary” is going on.

@RedPowerLady There’s certainly something to be said for that, swine flu does not appear to be any more deadly than regular flu, but asking how many more people have the flu than in a “normal” year, or how many more have died than in a “normal” year can be an indicator of how prevalent swine flu is.

I guess I’m just concerned that there are clearly doctors out there not bothering to run the test, which I think is irresponsible in the face of a public health crisis that has prompted the declaration of a national emergency and also considering that the vaccine is in short supply.

@gussnarp
swine flu does not appear to be any more deadly than regular flu

It sure seems that it is. Or at least it is targeting a different crowd. The number of child deaths and deaths of pregnant women due to the flu is certainly irregular/atypical.

However I completely agree that it is irresponsible to not run the test and thus only adds to media hype rather than helping in any way.

@RedPowerLady As I understand it, swine flu is dangerous or deadly to the same people that regular flu is, most of the deaths have been people with underlying conditions or weakened immune systems, no different from the pattern with regular flu. Perhaps I am wrong or some new evidence has come to light, but that is my understanding from all the coverage I have seen on swine flu.

@RedPowerLady No. We’re just hearing about it a lot, because of how “sensational” of news it makes. The flu kills thousands of people each year…mainly the complications of the flu, such as pneumonia. This is a new strain to the young healthy people, so it seems like it’s hitting us hard. We’ll get over this hump of the introduction, just as out elders have in the past, and it’ll become like the seasonal flu.

@gussnarp
@casheroo

All I know is that I am part of parenting/pregnancy boards and the amount of people on their (well the legitimate, ie non-trolls, ones are the only ones I’m counting) who say their kid/cousin etc.. has either died or been severely hospitalized is very scary. This has not happened in previous years in regards to the “regular” flu. See what I’m saying? Perhaps what is scary is who it is hitting not how many. And how hard it is hitting. Not that I want anyone to die over the swine flu, it is just scary to hear your friends talk about hospitalizing their children.

@RedPowerLady I see what you’re saying, but that’s entirely anecdotal, and not only that, it’s anonymous online anecdotal. The statistics show a disease that is more contagious (mainly due to most middle-aged and younger people having never been exposed) but no more deadly or dangerous.

@gussnarp Well I have friends with children as well who have had serious issues with the swine flu but that doesn’t suggest “numbers”. You are right it is purely anecdotal. Perhaps I’m just a sap who hates to hear of sick children.

@RedPowerLady A lot of my friends have it, and online on pregnancy boards it seems everyone is on Tamiflu. It’s the flu. The flu has always been a scary thing, in my opinion. My son did quite well with it. I do know of only one friend who had to rush her son, because of his asthma and having a confirmed case of swine flu (in vegas) her son got meds and is doing fine. There’s always going to be the extreme scary cases, and the “I had the flu and lived” cases.

@RedPowerLady There’s nothing wrong with hating to hear of sick children. Unfortunately things like this tend to get blown out of proportion and get people more worked up than they need to be. That’s certainly no reason why people shouldn’t take the proper precautions. Stay home if you are sick. Wash your hands frequently. Get the vaccine when it is available to you. But to that I would add, doctors, take the swab and send it to the lab so people aren’t running around telling everyone they had swine flu without a credible diagnosis and so vaccine can be properly administered.

@gussnarp I agree that the docs should be doing that, i wonder the same myself about how many people actually have the swine flu because doctors didn’t check.

@casheroo Perhaps it is because I’ve never thought of the flu as scary that I am only now realizing it can be.

Become progressively sicker, and then expire.

My floormate just dumped his girlfriend and now she has come down with what we think to be swine flu. Ouch.

She is the first person I have known here to have it while here, though I did run into a guy who had mono and swine flu at the same time and is doing fine now.

Just gotta love those little coincidences life throws at one!!!
Not three days after I posted my answer did I learn that someone that had been in my home the same day as my post had been diagnosed with swine flu. And now I’m sick with some kind of bug but I do not know what it is. Go figure.

Awesome… now I can answer this question with first hand knowledge. yay…~

I reacted by resigning myself to staying at home and riding it out. I’ve missed 2 days of work so far. I’m doing everything I can to not spread this to anyone else.

@The_Compassionate_Heretic Way to look on the bright side.

@RedPowerLady Thanks. Feeling great today again. Woo!