Whinewhinewhinnnnnnnnne

[rebness]

Oh, for... for... bloody hell.

So, I changed schools when I was fourteen, right? It meant that I effectively missed out from having the anti-tuberculosis vaccine, the BCG. Which made me happy. The BCG is scary and big and stupid and leaves a lifetime scar on your pretty little English rose arm.

So far, so avoidant. BUT OH NOES. TB is on the rise in the continent. The disease that killed poor Satine in Moulin Rouge and stole away one of Europe's greatest writers, George Orwell, is on the increase. It's nearly killing people in London. All NHS workers must be vaccinated against the disease. The nurse today told me that I need to have the vaccine before starting permanent!job. She also told me stuff about my generalised anxiety thing, which I already knew. Go, me.

So, farewell, unscarred white arm. I shall miss you. Never mind that I have a morbid fear of needles and will scream as the nurse administers the dose, there will be a centimetre-long scar on my arm forever OMG. And I bet it's right over the rather quite fetching freckle on my left arm. Bloody England. >:

[/waaah, emo]

I really dunt like needles.

Comments

[moon-chylde.livejournal.com]

TB shots are the norm around here. They are given every few years thru school and then it used to be any health care or food worker had to get them. But I think now they aren't given so much for the health/food people. They really are not that big a deal, just a little stick. The needle doesn't even go in your arm very far. I don't like needles at all but these do not bother me. I just don't look...

Besides, wouldn't you rather have a little stick than get TB?

[rebness.livejournal.com]

Besides, wouldn't you rather have a little stick than get TB?

You wouldn't believe how narrow the margin is. ;)

[ozfille]

It's better to have the vaccine because you don't want to see the humungous needle they use for the Mantoux test for TB. They thought a little girl in our street had TB when I was a child and so everyone had to be tested. The nurse brought out this huge needle and must have seen the look on my face and asked if I wanted to sit down.

Well how often, considering your weather do you get to expose that English rose skin to the elements, anyway, other than holidays abroad?

[rebness.livejournal.com]

Okay, am sold on the Mantoux thing. And now feel slightly faint.

[rebness.livejournal.com]

LMAO!

You know, I was willing the little dots to join up on my arm after the tester, but they just weren't having any of it.

I remember the measles one. Ergh-- though OMG you need the mumps vaccine! You'll be in painful-neck-lump trouble if you don't. >:)

[zhonghua2000.livejournal.com]

EEEEEEEEEEEEK! Needles. Helpful aren't I? So, there was this resident doctor I found out last week right before I left for my trip who worked at various hospitals including THE ONE I WORK AT and he has been diagnosed with TB. So, I stuffed that tidbit way in the back of my mind, but thank you Becky for reminding me that when I return to *my* hospital this coming Tuesday; I may be in for a TB test and whatever the heck you just said. :p

Funny though: In past years even though I swear by flu shots I always like have a panic attack whilst getting it and then leave the nurse's office with the flu for about 20 minutes - aha - then I am fine. Go figure. This year however I found myself begging.. BEGGING for a flu shot on my hands and knees and didn't even flinch. GO ME. I won't let my doctor give me a tetanus shot though.

Yeah, I'm back... and apparently rambling. :D!

[rebness.livejournal.com]

Hurrah! We can have mutual TB woes together! LMAO!

[gairid.livejournal.com]

Silly baby! You'll hardly feel it, trust me, and your beautiful lily-white flesh will be scar-free after only a few years. *pats you*

I'm not saying I like needles, but I never got the fear factor so many people have for them--and now the needles are so fine, you barely notice them. I think I have a pretty high threshold for pain, though...maybe that's it.

[rebness.livejournal.com]

I hate the cowardice I have towards needles and all hospital-related things. I had to go in for a minor operation last year, and they wanted to use local anaesthetic rather than general. Well. I couldn't stop crying and trembling. My pulse rate was being monitored on one of those er...things they put on your finger, and it leapt through the roof. And this from an NHS worker. *Pathetic*

[palelaura.livejournal.com]

It's not the actual jab it's the bloody skin test before that hurts. Have you had that? It only hurts because it lasts a bit longer.

I still maintain I shouldn't have had the actual thing since my skin test did actually react and they asked about 6 people before saying "you'd best have it anyway just to be safe". Pffft!

The day after I had the actual injection my skin test area went huge/i>. Very annoying.
Also mines is absurdly low down on my arm. It's just under where my T-shirts stop.

But the good news is it hurts not as much as you think, I actually literally didn't feel it and was all "wtf?" when she told me it was over. That's because I wasn't looking I guess. ^__^

I never look.
Just don't look and all will be well.

[rebness.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes. That dratted Occupational Health worker sprung the six prick thing on me. It went something like this.

Nurse: Right, we'll just do the tester...
Becky: Er...er... can't we do it some other time?
Nurse: No. *Takes out scary metal thing*
Becky: NOES NOT THE SIX PRICKS!!2
Nurse: Don't worry--
Becky: WHY do I need *six* pricks in my arm?
Nurse: Just--
Becky: OMFG!

Etc.

[saffronlie.livejournal.com]

OMG! I haven't had any of the vaccinations everyone's talking about. Well, okay, I *have* had the MMR and tetanus ones. But TB? You still need to vaccinate for that? What other crazy diseases exist in the land of the mad cow? :(

(Sorry, but I think your needle pain pales in comparison to the fact that I am UNGUARDED against the diseases of the world!)

[ozfille]

The only danger of contracting TB here is if you get coughed on by a homeless person. That is the major part of the population where the disease is prevalent, like most countries where it is recurring. Again it's due to abuse of antibiotics causing resistant strains of the disease to develop.

[peregrinuscanus.livejournal.com]

Honestly, the BCG isn't too bad (and I *hate* needles and nearly fainted every time they took blood for the four times I was pregnant). My oldest two kids had theirs recently and didn't complain. The biggest scar is about 3 or 4 mm diamter at most - mine is skin-coloured (like a dimple), daughter's is red but healed and smooth).

Better that than TB - I always remember that Richard III's wife died of TB aged 28 and he wasn't allowed to go near her in her final days (some of his terrible detractors would say that was a blessing...). The first I remember hearing of it was when I was eight or nine and we did a school assembly on Helen Keller and her teacher Annie Sullivan: Annie's little brother Jimmy died in the workhouse of TB in his hip. Never forgot it.

[rebness.livejournal.com]

I just know that my scar will go red, just to annoy me.

I didn't know Richard III's wife died of it, too. Wonder why he escaped it... but then, I don't know the incubation period for TB.

[ladydaydream.livejournal.com]

Hi there

I saw your name on tomoon_and_back. I hope you don't mind me commenting in your journal.

The TB jab actually isn't too bad. I had it done when I was at school and it was the blummin 5th formers/year 11 students ambushing us afterwards that was the problem!

[rebness.livejournal.com]

Hey--

Of course not! You're welcome to comment anytime. This journal is (well, for the most part) pretty much public. And I like getting to know the people at Moon. ;)

Students ambushing you all afterwards? Sounds painful...

[ladydaydream.livejournal.com]

Oh yes. Their favourite trick was to try and shove you into a wall to bang your newly jabbed arm. That might not have quite so bad except for the fact that when I was barged into the wall, there was a nail sticking out of it which nobody had seen. Now that was really painful!

[pigeongirl99.livejournal.com]

Eeek.

I was terrified of the BCG. Absolutely in horror of it.

Then I walked into the little room at school where they were dong the needle-evil-thingy, they looked at my arm, and said-

"Well, either you're immune, or you've got TB"

Six months later they bothered to give me a chest X-ray, where I was told-

"Well, there's nothing there now, but you never know what might develop!"

Fun times.

[rebness.livejournal.com]

Ha! You're the first person I know who hasn't needed the evil BCG. Well, unless you're a nefarious carrier... ;)

See, don't you think saying that I died of Consumption rather than a cancer or a heart attack would be so much more literary? I could strike a tragic pose and everything. Well, until the coughing of blood got too much and I died after my lungs drowned in my own lifeblood.

[verastar99.livejournal.com]

I make it a point of saying "consumption" whenever possible in place of the yucky TB...

[diana-molloy.livejournal.com]

I got mine at 3 yrs old cause I was born in Brazil. Luved it when everyone in my year was rubbing their arms in pain and I could just laugh (and 'accidentally' smack their arm, haha)

[verastar99.livejournal.com]

oh, butch the feck up! we get the things too!

come to think of it...i really didnt get a scar...hmmm