This post is purely my personal opinion as a layman regarding the Influenza Vaccine specifically and is no way a shot against Vaccines or vaccinations in general.
I’m wondering if my body’s immune system even responds effectively to the annual influenza vaccine at all? Been Steamrolled by influenza like symptoms again (Starting Friday Morning). Unlike the COVID-19 vaccine where I do get a noticeable reaction after each shot, I do not get any appreciable reaction at all after receiving the influenza vaccine.
Yeah, it could be something else other than influenza that has rolled me, but the hit rate on any given year where I come down with flu-like symptoms such as high fever, body aches, itchy lungs (dry cough) which come on rather suddenly and swiftly versus the years where I don’t get this affliction appears to be rather poor for me. 7 out of the last 12 years, I’ve come down with “influenza-like” symptoms above that have bed stricken me at least over a few days and sometimes in those years, ended up with flu-like symptoms twice.
My GP (at least in the past) will base diagnosis of “The flu” based on the IFI (“Influenza-Like Illnesses”) symptoms I’ve given above alone. I guess that question should be asked… Is there anywhere we can get an influenza test to definitively confirm or deny this? And how much does it cost?
Yes, I’ve taken a few COVID Rapid Antigen Tests (RAT), and they have come back negative. I still have my smell and taste, so further indicates that it’s less likely to be COVID. It’s possible I picked up this Influenza-like affliction at my work’s “All in day” last Wednesday as that was the only time that week I ventured out of the house.
With that out of the way, I hear that from the CDC over in America suggests that the Flu Vaccine wasn’t a good match for 2021 and 2022. I feel I’ve been hearing that assessment more often in recent years. I wonder if the Influenza vaccine on average is losing it’s effectiveness as years go by? Do we need to reconsider how we produce this vaccine and the messaging that the public is given in terms of it’s actual effficacy?
As mentioned previously, there appears to be suggestion that getting your annual flu vaccine each year may blunt effectiveness. Yeah, may be a I should try giving the flu shot a rest for a year or two. But who knows? We just don’t know enough and it may take a few years before we all learn more. All I know is that I’m quickly losing my faith in the Flu shot as providing me any real effective protection against Influenza-Like Illnesses (ILI) and feel the Industry may be overstating the Influenza Vaccine’s efficacy.
I believe at best, the Flu Vaccine may reduce the overall disease burden on society (as in, reduce hospital admissions, etc) and right now, that is perhaps the largest argument in favour of getting this vaccine. In terms of individual protection against Influenza-Like Illnesses (ILI), the Flu shot has at least for me personally (and quite a few others) been infuriatingly ineffective and I call upon the industry to at least look into and perhaps acknowledge the Influenza Vaccine could be falling short in it’s delivery of expected outcomes for the public.