Legal Bill

I know this because I have a cold. I hate summer colds.

Lainey

I hate them too. Had one while on vacation in Canada. I had to see a doc in NY as the germs pi$$ed off the asthma. Hoping I'm spared this latest round of germs.

Almost flu shot time!

Morris

I came down with a cold a week ago today. I know exactly how you feel Bill. Took Cold MD every day, and by Saturday it was on its way out.
Hope yours is short-lived.

boltonblue

I picked up a cold sitting next to a booger eating spaz on the flight back from el paso.
he was complaining of his cold...

Kyras

^That just makes me laugh. A booger eating spaz. I never get colds in the summer.

Legal Bill

I'm on a bunch of over-the-counter stuff. I'm hoping to see it break in the next day or two. I started feeling this one Thursday of last week.

Kyras

Whenever I feel a scratchy throat, which is my indication of a cold trying to take hold, I use the Zicam melt-on-your-tongue zinc tablets. It usually works for me even though I hate the way they screw up my sense of taste. I might have to use them 3 days to knock the cold out before it gets me.

Lainey

I use a store brand Citrus/Zinc tablet. I'm about 50/50 at best at nipping a cold in the bud or minimizing the symptoms.

I used them the last time I had the scratchy throat/coughing thing going on, but no good. I still ended up with no voice, and nasty coughing. I was spared the head cold, but it went right to the chest, causing problems.

Jet sitter

Flu shot's soon. If you're over 60, they also recommend shingle shot. I'm receiving mine next week.

buckeyesue

Yeah, I'm well over 60 and I got the shingles shot a few years ago. I had debated for several years whether or not to get the shingles shot, but after Dennis got shingles, I decided to get the shot at my next yearly physical.

This year, my doctor also gave me the pneumonia shot since I was turning 65 in one month.

For quite a number of years, I have been getting the flu shot free of charge at work.

One of my co-workers is 61 years old, and at his recent physical exam, the doctor gave him a prescription for the shingles vaccine and told him to go to his local pharmacy (say Kroger, Giant Eagle, etc) and have them give him the shot there. I was surprised that the doctor just gave him a Rx rather than just giving him the shot at the doctor's office.

Several of the students who have worked for me in the lab are Doctor of Pharmacy majors and they tell me that in the future, pharmacists will sometimes be doing things that are usually done in doctors' office now. In their courses, they learned how to take medical histories, take blood pressures, give shots, etc.

I believe that the shingles shot can now be given if you are over 50 years old. I learned that when our daughter forwarded me an e-mail that she had received from Giant Eagle regarding the new eligibility rules. Nice to know that our daughter is thinking of us.

She didn't know that I had already gotten the shingles vaccine. I guess she forgot that I was over 60 anyway. Or, more than likely, I suppose it is just that she didn't know what the previous eligibility rules were.

Sorry that I rambled on for so long.

This is from the CDC site:

"Who Should Get the Vaccine

CDC recommends Zostavax for use in people 60 years old and older to prevent shingles. This is a one-time vaccination. There is no maximum age for getting the shingles vaccine.

Anyone 60 years of age or older should get the shingles vaccine, regardless of whether they recall having had chickenpox or not. Studies show that more than 99% of Americans ages 40 and older have had chickenpox, even if they don’t remember getting the disease.

At this time, CDC does not have a recommendation for routine use of shingles vaccine in persons 50 through 59 years old. However, the vaccine is approved by FDA for people 50 and older. It is available by prescription from a health care provider. Talk with your health care provider if you have questions about shingles vaccine.

Even if you have had shingles, you can still receive the shingles vaccine to help prevent future occurrences of the disease. There is no specific time that you must wait after having shingles before receiving the shingles vaccine. The decision on when to get vaccinated should be made with your health care provider. Generally, a person should make sure that the shingles rash has disappeared before getting vaccinated."