Any adverse reactions to the H1N1 vaccine

Hello,

I have had fibro for approx 20 years, which I have managed mostly by diet and excercise and Elavil/Ativan.
I had my H1N1 vacc in Dec and have had an auto immune reaction to it. In fact, I have been spending alot of time on the 'Vaccines & Immunizations' forum due to my very adverse reaction to the vacc. Was in hospital/numb tingling body/extreme fatigue and lots of pain and muscle twitching. It has been a nightmare. All test were fine.

I have a few questions for the community here:
1. Have you experienced flares from vaccines before?
2. Do many fibro folks experience neuro type symptoms?
3. What exactly is fibro? Is is an auto immune disorder? A neuro disorder? I had thought it was a connective tissue/muscle inflammation...it seems that over the years there have been many updates to this disorder.
4. Any recommendations on latest thoughts from the medical community on this disorder?

I became so ill after the vaccine that it has taken over a month to feel human again - it has been awful.

Would be please to hear from anyone about flu shot experiences or other immune things I should be aware of.

Much appreciated, and apologies if there have already been threads on this topic.

Cathy

[dustybrown]

Hello and welcome,
I am sorry to hear that you had a negative reaction to the H1N1 vaccine. I have decided against getting the H1N1 vaccine this year, but I did get the seasonal flu virus vaccine. I have heard of people experiencing flare ups due to vaccines, but I never have. I did however get a very small case of the flu one year when I got a flu shot years ago. I am considered in a "high risk group" because I have asthma, so I normally get them. I have had severe asthma attacks and have been near death due to them, so I don't really have a choice, but I have been very confused about this new swine flu vaccine and the fact that I have Fibromyalgia too.

I have neuro symptoms. I have nerve damage in my spine. Due to it I have lost feeling in my left foot. I also have something going on in my left eye- some kind of vision issues that up until this point have been unexplained. I have DDD in my back as well.

Technically speaking Fibromyalgia itself is not an autoimmune disease. If you were to take an ANA screening test and only have Fibromyalgia it would most likely come up negative. But FM tends to travel along with Autoimmune diseases. Meaning that many people who have Fibromyalgia also have other illnesses as well. It's not uncommon to have RA and FM together, or Lupus and FM, or Thyroid disease and FM, etc...

At this point in time the causes of Fibromyalgia aren't completely clear and there are a few different theories. I do think that in some way FM and CFS/ME are connected. I think that somehow there is a virus or infection involved at some point in time- either in the past or present, and I also believe there is damage to the nervous system and somehow the endocrine system as well. I don't really know how it's all tied together, but I am hoping that a brilliant scientist will come along soon and do that for us. We will just have to sit back and wait for that to happen, pay attention to the medical journals and research and be really good advocates for ourselves and each other in the mean time. Right now the big story is the news on the XMRV neuro-immune retrovirus. This is what I am reading about.

Anyhow, I am sorry to hear about your struggles since your shot. Hang in there. Things will get better.
-Dusty

[Cathy122169]

Hi Dusty -

Thank you very much for your informative response and time. I really appreciate it. Fibro is such a mystery and I am truly not sure if this is directly related to the vacc or if it's a combo of both - seems like this is more likely the case.

Thanks again and I am super impressed with the support and knowledge on this forum. Truly amazing!

Cathy

[patsy10]

I had a horrible reaction to the Hepatitis B vaccine similar to what you have described.  I did not get the H1N1 vaccine for this reason and will never get another vaccine again.

[Cathy122169]

Thanks for your response patsy10 - I have heard that a person can have this type of reaction to any vacc. It's so upsetting and scary. I understand these things can take months to clear up and am doing my best to deal with it. I also will never get another vacc again.

If I can ask you: How long did it take for you to feel better? Did fibro pose a problem or did you flare? Did your doctor perscribe any meds that helped you?

Thanks for your response and info.

Cathy

[pdmorris]

I received my seasonal flu, N1H1, whooping cough, and Tetanus shots this Oct 11th. I have been ill with fatigue, muscle cramps, foggy brain, and pain throughout my body. Today my Dr. informed me she thought I have Fibromyalgia. Right now I am in disbelief but am certain that this all began with my shots a month ago.

Paul