What Adult Vaccinations Do You Need?

Do you remember your childhood vaccinations - the smell of alcohol that warned of the impending pain of needles? I sure do. I've had patients tell me they still get nervous around doctors and nurses and needles, all because of those awful shots. I hate to break this to you - but some of those shots have worn off and there are other vaccinations you need as an adult that you may not have had yet. Don't get nervous, I can't give you a shot over the Internet. But please read this post, shore up your courage and go get the vaccinations you need!

While vaccinations may cause a few minutes of discomfort, they protect against serious, debilitating and sometimes deadly diseases. If you are a parent, I bet you were (hope you were) very conscientious about getting your children vaccinated. We adults, on the other hand, have been very lax about seeing to our own.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is encouraging all of us to get our shots brought up to date. They have provided some really cool online tools to make it easy to figure out which ones you need.

Here's a link with all the diseases that can be prevented with immunization and who is at risk for them: Vaccine-Preventable Adult Diseases

This link is to a questionnaire you answer online and then print out to take to your health provider: Vaccine Quiz http://www2.cdc.gov/nip/adultImmSched/

Finally, here is a pretty color PDF graphic of the whole recommended schedule: Recommended Adult Immunization Schedule

Once you know the vaccinations you need, go see a health professional - either at your primary care provider's office, your local health department, or one of the convenient and easy to access retail clinics such as Take Care and MinuteClinic. Make the effort and make the arrangements to bring your vaccinations current. Remember - prevention is the best cure (even if it does hurt just for a second).

Has anyone recently gotten their adult immunizations brought up to date? Where did you go to get them? How much did it cost? Did your insurance (if you have any) pay?