Tiny, seemingly invisible water droplets soar through the air, projected by the reflexive action of a coworker. The inconspicuous flu virus enters your mouth or nose, it’s version of nirvana. Your warm, moist body provides the luscious environment for the evil-doers to multiply and make your week miserable.
This internal image along with cooling weather and sickly school mates and coworkers drives me to seek out a yearly flu vaccine. A stint with flu symptoms throws my routine into a domino of disruption. Not just with taking charge of diabetes needs, but by missing work, falling behind in school work and education, losing weight from appetite loss, and that endlessly obnoxious thumping in the back of my head.
One of the benefits on the short list of having diabetes is free flu shots. Last year there was an open event for "at risk" people in the community at a local school. So that meant, senior citizens, children, and people with chronic conditions were free to get in line and cross their fingers. Unfortunately for others, the supply ran out shortly after I had my turn with the clinician.
This year, I learned that my university has its own program for free flu shots. It is scheduled a week prior to purchasable flu shots, ensuring that everyone with need gets vaccinated. It actually took longer to walk to the school clinic than fill out the paper work and receive the injection. A simple “I have type 1 diabetes" to the needle man asking if I possibly had asthma and what qualified me to be there, and the plunger was being depressed into my non-dominant arm.
I knew the flu vaccine only had about an eighty percent efficacy of preventing the flu, due to varying types of flu strain that are not vaccinated against. So when the clinic employee told me to forget all about the vaccine and think happy thoughts, I knew what he meant. So I have got two fingers crossed behind my back, but am trying not to remember why.