Heart Defects

Just heard from Gabe's cardiologist, they are recommending all their patients get it. My sister lives in Hong Kong and they have had major outbreaks there, school was closed for a week. She said one day there were 25 out w/ it, the next it was over 100. The good news though is it does seem fairly mild, they are not even giving Tamiflu. But I know in the news it seems most of the deaths that have happened in the US from swine flu are people w/ health issues like lung or heart disease, so I think we will defer to the cardiologist on the swine flu one. I am on the fence whether to vaccinate the rest of us. We are all getting the regular flu shot, as usual. Owen (Heart healthy) got the flu on his 5th birthday. He had the shot but was the only one in the family to get it, and his was so much more mild than friends whose kids had NOT been vaccinated.

Becca

The kids are and I think DH and I will as well. We actually are just getting over what I think was H1N1 and it was NOT fun. Tuesday we both started w/ coughing, wednesday DH had a low fever, achy back, headache, awful cough. My cough started getting bad Wednesday and I got VERY breathless just from bringing Liam up the stairs at preschool. By that night my entire body became achy and the fever started. Every muscle hurt. Headache, sore throat from the unbelievably strong coughing, head stuffed up- pretty much every symptom in the book. Thursday I was worthless, in bed all day. Friday feeling a bit better but so wiped out, fever gone much of the day but returned at night as did the intense aches. Last night was awful. Today I've been able to do some housework and feel almost normal, but still coughing and I think that will last a while. So relatively short but VERY intense. Thankfully the boys are OK so far, esp. Gabe. Seeing how it wiped us out has made me realize I def. want them vaccinated adn probably us as well. I think the scariest thing is how it progressed. Owen had a low fever for a day, no other symptoms, then the next day DH and I started getting it, and it got more severe with each person. I am really scared for Gabe, I don't know that his body would fight it off well.

Becca