Pregnant ladies please help me...swine flu question

[akl_cdl]

Hey ladies. I really really need your help.  I know you are all probably tired of hearing about swine flu but where I live in Texas it is running rampant I have always been a worrier and always think the worst of everything.  I have had a pretty rough first pregnancy. They found a subchorionic hematoma that was huge and I bled until I was 6 months pregnant.
I thought I had swine flu this weekend after coming in contact with someone who had it.  My test results aren't back yet but I am almost positive it wasn't the flu. I think it was just a cold. They have closed schools near us due to all of the absences caused by the flu. My question is, especially to you ladies who are due close to me, are you really worried about the swine flu?  What have your OB's or midwives told you about it?  My OB told me if I get it he will not prescribe tamiflu.  Isn't tamiflu what they are saying to take if you  are pregnant? My family doctor told me he would take care of me if I happen to contract it but I feel torn between him and my OB. I just obsess about being one of the pregnant women who die and never get to see my child. Sorry for the long story, I just need some help and advice from you ladies.

[JoyRenee]

I want to add that people with compromised immune systems are the ones who get the worst symptoms and even die from flu (regardless of what strand it is). So if your immune system is healthy (you don't have cancer or an autoimmune issue, etc.) I wouldn't worry so much!

[KATE535]

Yes like Joy says the s.flu is only likely to cause serious complications in people who already have chronic health conditions. Healthy pregnant women will merely experience flu symptoms and a high temperature lasting over about 4-5 days, then will get better. The key is (as with all flu) to take a paracetemol, keep your fluid intake high, and if you wish, get better a little quicker with a course of anti-viral meds.
I also believe the media has made a huge deal of this. I'm not discounting the people who have died, but just saying that lots of illnesses can lead to death in people already suffering with poor health.
If you're generally healthy and pregnant you have no need to panic. I have also heard the vaccine is ''too new'' to be regarded as completely safe (we don't fully know of the side-effects yet, if any, because it's only just come out). I personally agree with Joy that the best precautions are hand-washing rather than the vaccine.
Yes I was one of the unlucky ones to get it but when you consider my job, it's not surprising. Working at a desk that is face to face with the public exchanging paperwork from their hands. Also this is not just a few people a day, we're talking 150+ people a day. Since having the s.flu, my employer has provided alcohol based hand gel to everyone. Too late for me by then though...

alc_cdl, my temperature in the hospital was recorded once at 38.7 degrees. This was recorded by a nurse. When the doc later read my notes she looked shocked, and told the nurse, if her temperature goes above 37.5 again, you're to call a doctor.
I do remember feeling unberably hot but it calmed down quickly after a paracetemol, a lot of water, and the fan on. The doc told me my temp would have had no effect on the baby.
The whole time I was there they were only interested in me, not the baby, as they said the baby would be fine in there. A scan a few weeks later showed baby was well and growing on track. It's the pregnant woman they are concerned about.

Please don't stress too much over this, and just be careful with hand-washing etc. If you get flu symptoms, you can look after yourself well enough drinking a few litres of water a day, throughout the night, taking paracetomol (safe in pregnancy) and keeping cool, and resting. It will pass after that.

Any complications? Seek medical help (as you would anyway)

[JoyRenee]

Well if you find pregnant women who have died from it you also have to take into account their lifestyle. Do they smoke? Do they drink? Are they underweight? Etc., etc. The media has hyped this up so badly. I am not getting the vaccine (I think it's more harmful to get this particular vaccine then to expose myself to the actual flu strand) and I'm just washing my hands and being mindful in public.

[Ladybugbc]

I am on my first trimester and i was also prettu sure I was not going to get the shots.
But my RE advised me strictly to get the H1N1 vaccination so I am moving towards getting it when it becomes available.

[akl_cdl]

Thanks ladies.  I just keep looking at the pregnant women in there third trimester who have died from it and it really worries me. I keep forgetting how many pregnant women have gotten it and actually survived.  I really appreciate all of your input.

Kate how scary that must have been.  I am glad you and baby are ok! Did you run a high temperature?  

[akl_cdl]

I am due December 2nd so I have 9 weeks left.  It would be a good idea to question your clients before you massaged them just in case.

[KATE535]

Well I had the H1N1 flu at 26 weeks. I was struck down with a cough at about 21 weeks, and at 26 weeks developed sickness, still coughing, temperature, runny nose, tiredness, aches, and general flu symptoms. I went to hospital with a ''suspected clot in the lungs'' but after 3 days they could not find what was wrong. I went home on anti-viral meds safe for pregnancy and I had a phone call a couple of days later to say I tested positive for the H1N1 swine flu. I was stunned as all I had experienced was flu sympotoms. Nothing stood out as life-threatening. As the doc on the phone told me - ''you're just like 98 % of the population who make a recovery after having what are flu symptoms.''

My baby was fine. I was ill for a few days but coughing over a few weeks. It was no big deal. I too probably would be worried about it... had I not had it and made a total recovery from it. I didn't have Tamiflu or a jab.

Baby is still fine, so am I, and I'm 38 weeks.

As Joy said, regular flu kills many people around the world. This is just another type of flu that has had too much media-hype. The chances of dying from it are still low.

[jdamico]

i  agree with  joy on this one  . I lab tech working in field an di deal with the Flu question  all the time. Good handwashing is thebest prevention, covering ur mouth when u cough or sneeze  use anti bacterial sanitatizing wipes ( Cloros )  sorry about  spelling lil early in the am for me.   Stuff like that is always going to be  a  best way to prevent  the flu .  and  early care if u begin to feel sick  go to the  dr.  I am not sure about  Tamiflu and  pregnancy  and  if it  affects the fetus or not.

     Good luck have ahealthy rest of ur pregnancy

[dnikki0928]

I'm a bit worried about it. I'm a massage therapist and I come into contact with many people throughout a given day. Tamiflu is what they are giving everyone who contracts it but I've read where they don't know if it affects the fetus or not. I'm actually having my SIL send me some good face masks (she's an ER doc) so I can wear them on the plane - we won a trip to puerto rico and leave Nov. 1st. But I'm going to start asking my clients if they've felt sick or had any type of symptoms the past 48hrs before I massage them. I'm really iffy on the H1N1 vaccine also. I keep going back and forth whether I'm going to get it or not. When are you due? I'm due in Feb.

[JoyRenee]

I am not worried about the H1N1 flu. More people die from seasonal flu than have died from this. It is a little more virulent, as your symptoms and sickness can last longer than the seasonal flu. But other than that it's just one strand of flu. Continue to wash your hands, cover your coughs/sneezes and use sanitation wipes on shopping carts.