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Congrats on your pregnancy Tara. How are you and your little one doing? I'm 25 weeks pregnant and do not plan on getting the flu shot and especailly the swine flu shot. I don't think it has been studied enough.

i just attended a disaster preparedness symposium based on H1N1 yesterday and here is my 2 cents...they recommend the vaccine for pregnant women for obvious reasons, woman our age are especially suseptible to this virus and even moreso if you are pregnant HOWEVER, clinical trials are NOT complete which means when they roll out this vaccine at the end of September (if it is finished in time) or early-mid October, recipients are essentially guinea pigs.

next year, they are hoping to combine the H1N1 vaccine with the seasonal flu vaccine so that you are taking only one shot. the current H1N1 vaccine is 2 shots so if you also get the seasonal flu shot you're talking THREE vaccination shots this year.

CDC and NYSDOH recommend the same precautions as for the seasonal flu, wash your hands, cover your mouth when you sneeze and cough, avoid places where large groups of people congregate and keep washing those hands.

good luck with what you decide!

Hey Amanda... Thank you. I am only going into my 6th week, so haven't even told everyone yet. I miscarried in July. So, I am really nervous this time. I guess being busy with the other 2, time passes a little quicker and I don't worry as much!!!
The boys and I are great but I'm pooped. Very tired. I am definitely not getting the flu shot .. either one of them. I work in a school and am very cautious about keeping clean. Hopefully the kids don't pass it on to me! I hope you are feeling good!!! Keep me posted!

My sis is currently in med school and she is going to get the swine flu vaccine, she is 25 weeks now. She is telling me that I should get it, but I don't know, plus I HATE shots.

I'm 10 weeks and most likely will not be getting the swine flu shot. I do not feel there has been enough studies on it. I miscarried in June and do not want to cause any other risk for this pregnancy if I do not have to. I have two kids and they probably won't be getting it either. I did a lot of reading this morning on the flu shot and just dont have that warm and fuzzy feeling about it.

i live in Canada and a nurse told me the vaccine is no good to get. i personally wont get it

I am completely torn on what to do. I think that I am leaning towards not getting it. My main reason --there are vaccines that you are not supposed to get while you are pregnant. This could be one of those, they just don't know yet. I have had two miscarriages; I would be devestated if something were to happen.

I think that instead of the shot, I am just going to take extra precautions. My hands may fall off from being so dry from washing, but at least there won't be anything introduced into my and my baby's system.

i am in the healthcare field and am trying to get pregnant. i've only gotten the flu shot once in the last ten years i've been in direct patient care. and since i knew i would be trying to get pregnant this year, and will hopefully be pregnant by the time the swine flu vaccine is actually available i have decided to get both vaccines this year. the swine flu vaccine is no different that the seasonal flu vaccine. it just protects against a different strain of flu virus. so, since there has been years of research on the seasonal flu vaccine, it really shouldn't be of any more concern than the regular flu vaccine. but its your choice. i see patients every day at work with the flu, mostly the swine flu. but if you aren't going to be around a lot of sick people like me, then you can just try to stay away from large crowds and wash you hands often.

This thread seems to have calmed a bit, but I thought I'd add my thoughts.

I've researched the heck out of the vaccine and the effects of it (which are not really reported as such, but from what I've seen nothing drastic) vs. the effects of the actual flu on pregnant ladies.

In the end I've decided to get the shot for the following reasons:

1)I'm starting my third trimester...while the flu itself doesn't kill people, the sometimes resulting pneumonia can. My breathing (despite regular exercise throughout) is already much more shallow than it used to be and I am concerned that if I contract the flu I'd be at a higher risk for having complications for that reason. If I was earlier in my pregnancy, I might not get the shot. If I wasn't pregnant at all, I for sure wouldn't get the shot.

2)IF I get the H1N1, the available treatments are ones that I feel I'm much less likely to be inclined toward. I don't want to take anitbiotics, or Tamiflu or even Tylenol if I can help it. I personally believe the a course of treatment (lasting at least a week), no matter how mild (unless it's fluids and rest PERIOD) would expose my baby to more proven risk than this one-shot vaccine.

3) My due date is mid-Jan...height of flu season. The only protection my newborn will have against the virus is through self-imposed quarantine as well as the antibodies I share with him from the vaccine.

4)A version of the vaccine without preservatives (aka adjuvants aka thermisol) is out there as a single does syringe shot and should be available upon request. I'm far more concerned about the additives of the vaccine than the weakened/dead virus itself. Being able to get some protection without some of the added extras seems worth it.

5) Am I really protecting my baby by not getting the vaccine? Unless you're a parent who plans on not vaccinating their child AT ALL, then getting this vaccine at this time is not likely to do anything more than would otherwise eventually happen if your baby is going to have an issue with a vaccine. It sounds a little weird put that way, but it's something I've thought of.

Bottom line, this is SO a personal choice. I spoke with as many people as I could about it and read all I could.

I am not 100% comfy with being a public health guinea pig, but I do want to reduce my chances of getting an illness that I would normally never worry about because I normally am not pregnant.

Since isolating myself from the rest of the world for the next six months isn't an option and washing my hands can only do so much AND getting this or any flu in my current condition could lead to issues I never worried about for my non-pregnant self...I'm getting the shot.

I have actually changed my stance since I last wrote. I am now planning to get the shot. Why did I change my mind?? For a few of the same reasons that PinkAmerican mentioned...plus a few.

-- After a good amount of research and talking to officials, I am led to believe that the amount of mercury in the shots is less than what you would eat in fish. Receiving a mercury-free version is next to impossible at this point.

-- I do believe that H1N1 has been blown out of proportion, but I don't know that I am willing to take the gamble. I doubt that I would get the flu, but if I do, it could be really bad. In your third trimester, you are 5x more likely to be hospitalized (and that is from heart and lung complications -- data from the seasonal flu).

-- The H1N1 vaccine is going to be so limited! If I don't take it now, I may not have another opportunity. I won't have the option to change my mind. I'm in Ohio. My county has the vaccine for high risk groups, but the Cleveland Clinic and drug stores do not (or they are giving to their employees first). Plus, the county doesn't even need proof that I am pregnant (I'm sure some women are going lie and take additional doses).

I spend a lot of time in the schools, I just don't think that I can take the chance.