Sick of or sick with H1N1?

My friend’s one-year-old was recently diagnosed with H1N1. Sort of.

She had a fever and all the symptoms, and the doctors basically said that it COULD be H1N1. Instead of testing for it, they prescribed the H1N1 treatment with the advice that if it is, she’ll get better. If it’s not, she’ll get better but much more slowly. That tells me that we don’t have enough knowledge about the flu.

It’s interesting to look at all the potential pandemics we’ve had to contend with in the past few years. Avian flu, SARS, boy bands… they always cause a panic and result in substantial measures to contain them (with the exception of boy bands that have mercifully died off on their own).

I wonder if we overreact as a culture. It’s hard to say if SARS would have killed us all if we didn’t wear the masks. Were our measures sufficient to quell the outbreak, or was there really no cause to panic in the first place?

There have been deaths due to H1N1, yes. But there are deaths associated with chewing bubble gum, too.

So, go get your vaccine if that’s what makes you feel better. I haven’t gotten one and I’m okay, so far. Some people are scared about the side-effects. I know of one person who got it, and all they reported was arm pain lasting for a few days. No mercury poisoning, no seizures, no death.

I think we should relax a bit. What do you think?