H1N1 (Swine Flu) Questions

I definately too0k her to the doctor and honey we were quarantined for ten days. It was awful. We all got it and it is as bad as the news says it is!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!The fever is the worst, it gets very high.

I understand your concerns but my 14 yr old had the swine flu over the summer and really it was much lighter than any flu we have experienced. He had been to a youth conference in Dallas on Mon. Tues and Weds and by Friday he had a stuffy nose and a slight fever (99). I figured it was a sinus infection and didn't rush him to the doctor. Next day it was still 99. Sunday morning he woke up with 102 and a cough to go with the stuffiness. Monday I took him to the doc thinking it had turned into bronchitis. When I explained the symptoms the first thing our doc did was ask if he had been anywhere with lots of kids..yes..did he have any sinus symptoms before Friday..no..Then we need to do a flu test. I was shocked! Honestly, I didn't think it was that bad! By that time it was too late for the Tamiflu. He had another couple days of fever (100ish) and the cough lingered longer. He was pretty energetic through it all but 2 days when the fever was highest. By the way none of us caught it from him. We even had stay over company (I had not seen them in 11 years!) and they didn't get it. I am scrupulous over clorox wipes on the remote, the light switches and door knobs, stair rails and bathroom fixtures. Everybody reacts differently to viruses but he didn't have anyother issues except he usually has some wheezing when he has colds but he didn't even have that with the flu.
Apparently the incubation time is pretty quick to onset. If you didn't have other issues in the family I might let anyone ride it out without the $50 Tamiflu. My doc told us he couldn't go out for 5 days after the fever to prevent the spread, now they are saying 1 day.
Get ready, its on its way now that school has started!

My son developed the cold symptoms, congestion, and sore throat. 2 days later came the fever. Took him to the Dr.he tested positive for the flu.I asked if he would be tested for the swine flu. The nurse said they are treating every case as if it was the swine flu.He was prescribed Tamiflu and the symptoms were gone in 2 Days.Now he is back to school. So far no-one else in our home has caught it. I have a 7 year old also.

Great question! I'm also curious peoples opinion on the vaccine. To give or not to give?!

Our Pediatric Nurse Practitioner said this flu is no worse than others and the only thing the media had accomplished, that is positive, is more people are actually washing their hands and covering their sneezes/coughs now.

my teenager felt ill last week (wed.), she came home and went to bed. it came on with a headache, fever and generally not feeling well, after day two it was followed by a cough.

since h1ni was going around i took here to the dr. 1st thing in the am. they did 2 swap up the nose test (we waited for results 15 mins.), both were negative. dr. mentioned that in the 1st. 24 hrs. the test may turn up negative. the dr. felt she had h1n1 and put her on tamiflu and requested we come back for another swab test in the am. it was positive. the h1n1 has been going around our schools. she felt bad for only 1 day, in which she took a nap. after day two, she was much better. by day three she only had the cough which she was doing albuterol on a nebulizer for breathing treatments.

hope this helps.

My husband was recently un-employed for about 3 1/2 weeks and was nowhere in public(except the store)& the school and got this flu. I always require my kids to wash their hands when they come home from anywhere, but he didn't when he came home from the store. He had head aches, fever, congestion,and sore throat and cough, and just felt awful, but generally the same as the normal flu. My children and I somehow have not come down with it, but I prayed over all of us! The only thing required is fever reducer, plenty of fluids, saline nose drops, and perhaps some kind of cold medicine to help them sleep at night, or humidifier. The cold medicine doesn't seem to do much good though!It was about a week before he felt 100%. Unless you want to spend the money, I wouldn't bother with the doctor, unless he becomes lethargic, But then again, I've had 5 kids, unless they've lost body parts, except for yearly exams, I don't take them.L.O.L.

Hey I talked to my pediatrician just the other day about this. He says it is just another strain of the flu virus and it is treated the same way and has the same symptoms. There havn't been as many die with the H1N1 as the regular flu. I'm starting to think the media is using scare tactics to makes us all freak out. Maybe they think they can scare us into accepting their new healthcare plan! My dr. said the symptoms were still fever, body aches, sometimes vomiting or diarrhea. He said the main thing is just to keep them hydrated. And if your child is over 6 months of age they can take Tamiflu. He said the vaccine for it has not been tested long enough and he would not use it. Good luck this flu season1

I'm home now with my 15 year old daughter who started showing symptoms Saturday Evening. I took her to the Dr. on Monday who just confirmed with a nose swab and sent a note home. She had really high fever Sunday night and all day Monday. On Tues she had no fever until the normal 5:00 hour so I had to keep her home another day. Today (5 days later) she has had no fever and is ready to go back to school tomorrow. The Dr. was not recommending Tamiflu because she did not want it to become resistant to the H1N1 virus so that it will be effective on those who really need it. She said that it made the Children feel worse and that it only (if taken timely) shortened the symptoms by maybe one day. This virus is not as bad as the normal seasonal flu but is HIGHLY contagious. The only prevention is to keep the hands away from the eyes and mouth and to wash them frequently. My pediatrician was out all of last week with the flu because one of her patients sneezed on her while she was swabbing his nose to test for the flu. My son keeps a bottle of hand sanizier with him in his back pack and reports that he uses it often.

The only meds that I gave my daughter was ibuprophen for the fever and sore throat and something for the cough. The sore throat was only bad while she had high fever.

Good Luck!