My Changing Feelings about The Flu

Can I admit that I struggled with this week’s column?

Actually, that's only half true. My idea for this week's column was my family's experience with the flu. It seemed like a timely issue. What with Autumn upon us and the cold and flu season in full swing several weeks early, I wanted to make the point that while the flu should be taken seriously, we shouldn't panic unnecessarily about it.
You see, so far everyone in my household has had the flu (except for me.) Each year we all get flu shots. My reasoning is that my husband and 11-year old son are both asthmatic so a dose of flu could be potentially lethal. If my older son gets the vaccine, I can't deny my younger son, can I? And I personally get a shot for myself, my rationale being that if I were to get sick, who would take care of everyone else?

So, last year we all got the flu shot. And then in June, just weeks after thousands returned from Mexico bringing back more than just cheap jewelry and souvenir t-shirts, it hit our house. My asthmatic son got on the bus to middle school one morning, seemingly healthy, and came home with a cough. After spiking a fever during the night, we headed to the doctor who swabbed my son and confirmed a diagnosis of Influenza A (she later asserted that though he had not been tested for H1N1, she was certain that he had had it.) Within a day, my husband came down with it. My fears had been realized. My "high risk" husband and son had the flu. Both spent several days in bed, chugging liquids and taking Tylenol around the clock. Though his breathing wasn't compromised, my son had to spend a day in the ER being re-hydrated. But within a week, both recovered.

Last week, my younger son woke with a fever. When he complained of a headache and a sniffy nose, I booked an appointment with our physician. Sure enough, the diagnosis was "flu-like virus". Here we go again. My son took to my bed (yes, my bed), chugged Gatorade, popped Tylenol and watched enough Cartoon Network to memorize entire episodes of "Chowder" by heart. And then he recovered. As I type this, he is getting dressed for school.

As I wrote this weekend, my words came easily. I was able to blend my usual humor with just a touch of snarkiness: Do we really need to be so panicked about the flu? For goodness sake, it's not Ebola or the Plague! Yes, we should take precautions, like hand washing and flu vaccines, but let's not give in to national panic and start buying plastic and duct tape (remember that?) Looking back on my original column, I marvel at the smugness and superiority that permeated my words. I went to bed confident that my column was ready to submit.

And then, this morning I noticed a story in the paper about a healthy Hingham teenager who contracted H1N1 while at college in Ohio. Both his roommates had it as well, along with 300 other students. His roommates recovered. Tragically, he did not. How could I, in good conscience, run my original column? Out of respect for that mother in Hingham, I cannot.

So, it's okay to be apprehensive about the flu, but be sensible. Don't panic. Despite your best efforts, your child may get it. You may get it. But God willing, you will recover, just as my family did.

And now I realize how truly blessed we are.