It all started when I came down with the flu this  December 2012. I did not know I had the flu, I just know that I felt like I was going to die. My symptoms were the following:

• high Fever & sweats
• chills for 2 days
• disorientation
• vomitting
• no appetite
• dizziness
• throbbing headache
• entire body in pain, no comfort
• slept for days

I had time to turn on the ‘boob tube’ during these  agonizing few days, and heard nothing on the news, even though my channel surfing scanned every major news network that I could find. I kept wondering how I came down with this “flu” because I haven’t even had so much as a cold in over 12 years. For the record, I haven’t taken an antibiotic since high school, I don’t do vaccines, flu shots or drugs of any kind. So what gives? I decided to get on Facebook and ask the question to see if anyone else was experiencing my symptoms, or at least similar. To my surprise , hundreds of people on Facebook responded with the same symptoms listed above. Yes! They too were feeling the same way, some had been experiencing there illnesses for a couple of weeks, some even  longer.  So I decided to dig a little deeper. Here is what I have found, and hold tight, because it gets interesting.

I started with the CDC (Center for Disease Control)  to see what they were reporting. Here is what they had to say:

2012-2013 Influenza Season Week 51 ending December 22, 2012 (Flue elevated in 11 regions the last week of December 2012)

All data are preliminary and may change as more reports are received.

Synopsis:

During week 51 (December 16-22), influenza activity increased in the U.S.

• Viral Surveillance: Of 6,234 specimens tested and reported by U.S. World Health Organization (WHO) and National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NREVSS) collaborating laboratories in week 51, 1,846 (29.6%) were positive for influenza.
• Pneumonia and Influenza Mortality: The proportion of deaths attributed to pneumonia and influenza (P&I) was below the epidemic threshold.
• Influenza-Associated Pediatric Deaths: Eight influenza-associated pediatric deaths were reported. Three were associated with influenza B viruses, 3 were associated with influenza A (H3) viruses, and 2 were associated with influenza A viruses for which the subtype was not determined.
• Outpatient Illness Surveillance: The proportion of outpatient visits for influenza-like illness (ILI) was 4.2%; above the national baseline of 2.2%. Nine of 10 regions reported ILI above region-specific baseline levels. New York City and 16 states experienced high ILI activity; 8 states experienced moderate ILI activity; 10 states experienced low ILI activity; 14 states experienced minimal ILI activity, and the District of Columbia and 2 states had insufficient data.
• Geographic Spread of Influenza: Thirty-one states reported widespread geographic influenza activity; 14 states reported regional activity; the District of Columbia and 3 states reported local activity; 2 states reported sporadic activity; Guam reported no influenza activity, and Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

*If you notice there is no warning or alarm whatsoever, all looks casual and good on the home front. (you can read the rest of the CDC’s page here: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/)

You can also check out this page and it’s graphs as well http://gis.cdc.gov/grasp/fluview/FluHospChars.html

CHECK here to see if you have the following symptoms:

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/disease/symptoms.htm

Influenza Symptoms

Influenza (also known as the flu) is a contagious respiratory illness caused by flu viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. The flu is different from a cold. The flu usually comes on suddenly. People who have the flu often feel some or all of these symptoms:

• Fever* or feeling feverish/chills
• Cough
• Sore throat
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Muscle or body aches
• Headaches
• Fatigue (tiredness)
• Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, though this is more common in children than adults.

* It’s important to note that not everyone with flu will have a fever.

Flu Complications

Most people who get influenza will recover in a few days to less than two weeks, but some people will develop complications (such as pneumonia) as a result of the flu, some of which can be life-threatening and result in death.

Pneumonia, bronchitis, and sinus and ear infections are three examples of complications from flu. The flu can make chronic health problems worse. For example, people with asthma may experience asthma attacks while they have the flu, and people with chronic congestive heart failure may have worsening of this condition that is triggered by the flu.