Lived Experience Forum

[theaveragejoe]

Can the Flu Shot give some people depression for a while? Yes it can and it is best to be informed and know the facts http://kellybroganmd.com/could-the-flu-shot-make-you-depressed/

[Owlunar]

Hi @theaveragejoe

I don't usually get any reaction from the flu shot but this year I think I did

I had a flare on my arm which was unusual but I had a bunch of things that were hard to take happening all at once - different medication for BP, family members ill etc - and I was battling

I asked myself if I was depressed and decided I might be - but I had enough things happening it would have been weird if I had not felt out of the ordinary down-in-the-dumps

So yes - I wanted the flu shot - I am glad I have had it for this year - I always do - and this year I felt really bad

Dec

[utopia]

@theaveragejoe
I clicked on your link - but after reading the first paragraph, I shut it down.
This 'research' sounds a lot to me like that undertaken by the Anti Vaccination movement. Which I personally find extremely harmful.
I have never had a negative reaction from the flu injection.
But I have had severe reactions when I've had the flu.

[frog]

Well spotted @utopia. Dangerous pseudoscience.

[NikNik]

Hi everyone,

I just want to flag that everyone is different and it's important to seek out Australian medical advice before making decisions.

While it's good to be informed, any articles that make claims about your health or treatment must be viewed with a critical lens - for example, looking at the references (are they peer reviewed journal articles) and at some of the language the author has used (for example, this author talks about 'preliminary findings' - this often means the research isn't fully complete, or has been reviewed for publication).

So while it's important to respect each others view on this, ultimately it's critical that you seek out medical advice through your own GP.

[theaveragejoe]

Thank you Utopia,

I just got my flu shot a couple of days ago so I am not totally against it. But no the article is not from the anti flu movement is from a doctor MD who is also a psychiatrist. There is no doubt that there are serious reaction in some people, we cannot overlook that fact. I think that it is always good to be informed as opposed to uninformed and make up our mind by reading different things. For some people, probably not common, the flu injection can be harmful this is a fact. For others like us it is not.

[theaveragejoe]

I think that it is important to read an article completely. The article makes references to real research and it is written by a psychiatrist, a mental health professional. I think that for us sufferers with a mental disorder it is important, vital in fact, to learn to distinguish between real research and valid papers from those that are not. This is a sound paper written by an experienced psychiatrist. Absolutely no pseudoscience. Always read article completely if you are to criticise from top to bottom and only then make an informed conclusion. Just my perspective here a truthful one. Thanks.

[BlueBay]

Hi @averagejoe
I had my flu shot last week and no reaction. Hoping it stays that way.

[frog]

Flu shot today - no ill effects except an allergic reaction to the bandaid Wishing all forumites a flu-free winter one way or another! 

[theaveragejoe]

Thank you NikNik, yes I am aware of the research issues that you point out but the reality is that no one yet knows the real and full side effects of flu shots and that is something to also consider. Some side effects may not be immediately noticeable