1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Anyone a "1968 pandemic" victim?

Discussion in 'Fred's House of Pancakes' started by Stevewoods, May 12, 2020.

  1. Stevewoods

    Stevewoods Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2014
    647
    983
    0
    Location:
    Seattle, WA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    II
    The '68 pandemic seems to have been one of the forgotten ones. Don't know why, but a lot of the middle-aged folks were apparently immune to that particular "Hong Kong Flu" virus, thanks to a 1957 viral invasion.

    A 10-year-old me awoke around 4 a.m. on Christmas morning 1968, feeling, like, well....not well.

    But well enough to rush to the living room to see what Santa had brought. He had brought a new bike, a bunch of books and I don't remember the rest. Our family was less than rich, but in those days even a low-paid factory worker could buy a decent house in a decent neighborhood and even buy ONE car. And, this was during the height of the Vietnam conflict, so the economy was booming -- as as side note, they think military returning from Vietnam brought it back to California.....

    Anyway .... me on Christmas morning -- in a few hours I was puking, shaking, freezing and burning.

    In those days, we did not go to the doc. No health insurance and could not afford it.

    I don't remember a lot about the illness, other than it took me out for a long time and according to family history (which was not talked about much....and I mean that....it was not talked about), at one point I received extreme unction or what is supposedly the last rites (my family was Roman Catholic -- I guess technically I am also, but have not been in a church since...oh probably 1968).

    Just wondering, 'cause once I recovered, meh, I recovered. Don't remember any pandemic, but I was just a kid.

    1968 Pandemic (H3N2 virus) | Pandemic Influenza (Flu) | CDC
     
    #1 Stevewoods, May 12, 2020
    Last edited: May 12, 2020
    John321 and Mendel Leisk like this.
  2. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,474
    38,106
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    I remember being sick-as-a-dog in the spring of my Grade 1 school year, 1957. I was off school for quite a few days, fever, puking. When I was finally on the mend, was feeling shaky a bit still, and not looking forward to going back to school. Then I get there, and half the class is missing, with the same thing I'd assume. And it was pretty slack, cutting out paper tulips and that sort of thing. :)

    Looked it up and whatayaknow:

    Influenza (Flu) in Canada | The Canadian Encyclopedia
     
    Stevewoods and John321 like this.
  3. John321

    John321 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 16, 2018
    1,105
    1,144
    0
    Location:
    Kentucky
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    I started 1st grade in 1957 so I had a mild case as a teen.

    You made me think of a fellow student who was on crutches with steel braces on his legs as he dragged them around the playground. He was one of the many children of that era with the scourge of polio.

    As you guys probably remember when you were young during that time (1950's) it was a given you would catch measles, chicken pox, mumps,scarlet fever and have a case of tonsillitis that required removal of your tonsils. I came from a large family where you passed diseases between each other until everyone had caught it and gained some immunity. I also caught rheumatic fever but had no long term consequences from it. This type of childhood illness history is typical for my area of the woods and not unusual for anyone my age.

    I had completely forgotten about that part of growing up - also no computers-no televisions- no phones and we as kids played outside from the time we got up till the time we went to bed. You got breakfast when you got up - went home at 12 pm when the fire siren was blown each day for lunch and then came home for supper when your mom yelled for you and returned home when it started to get dark. Oddly I would not trade my childhood experiences for anything.I had the time of my life growing up like that.
     
    #3 John321, May 12, 2020
    Last edited: May 12, 2020
    Merkey, Stevewoods and Mendel Leisk like this.
  4. Mark57

    Mark57 2021 Tesla Model 3 LR AWD

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2009
    2,945
    2,735
    0
    Location:
    OK
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    Model:
    N/A
    Some parents even created play dates with other family's infected kids so their's would get it over with quicker. ;) Yup, it used to happen on some of the milder diseases.
     
  5. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

    Joined:
    May 22, 2009
    9,083
    5,795
    0
    Location:
    Undisclosed Location
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    You can even site episodes of The Brady Bunch in the 70's where catching the measles was presented as nearly an inevitable action of childhood, and "comedy relief" to the plot of the episode.
    But it's a bad representation. Trying to purposely get the measles, was a never good idea. All those diseases that eventually were very preventable with vaccination. Measles can be life threatening, people died with measles.
    My parents were always Pro-Vaccination, and when I started kindergarten/grade school, you had to show proof of vaccination. My brother and I were vaccinated against these threats.
     
  6. John321

    John321 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 16, 2018
    1,105
    1,144
    0
    Location:
    Kentucky
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    We had all our children vaccinated. Kids here can not go to school without proof of vaccination.

    In the 1950's these weren't available at least in our area. Eventually in the 1960's our state had 'clinics' where these were give for free to everyone.
     
    Stevewoods and The Electric Me like this.
  7. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

    Joined:
    May 22, 2009
    9,083
    5,795
    0
    Location:
    Undisclosed Location
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Yes, I was a child of the 70's. By then the vaccines were available.
    Just saying there was a presentation that persisted, that diseases like the measles were nearly inevitable and harmless. The Brady Bunch episode I'm citing aired in 1969. And measles were presented as nearly, "fun" for the kids to catch, and of no real risk or consequence.
    That was never a good presentation. Even though it was quite common thinking.
     
    Mendel Leisk and John321 like this.
  8. Stevewoods

    Stevewoods Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2014
    647
    983
    0
    Location:
    Seattle, WA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Me dear old dad, born in 1906, had polio as a child, it left him with a limp, not too bad as he was a semi-pro ballplayer for awhile on one of the farm teams for the Chicago Cubs (he did tell me a bit -- very little bit -- about playing for the Cubs on Catalina Island).

    I have a vague memory of lining up in a very long queue as a young kid to get a small paper cup with a sugar cube (1963??), for polio, of course.

    Other than that, I had measles (red and German), mumps, chicken pox, whooping cough -- I know a couple of those in addition to the '68 Hong Kong flu, left me pretty ill -- to the point of having hallucinations -- I think the mumps and the red measles were the culprits?

    Again, we had no extra cash for things like going to a doctor. The polio thing I am sure was a "free clinic." I know it was at a local park.

    Yep, you played in the summer from dawn to dusk. The less you saw of mom during the day the better (at least for my mom -- I think five boys left her more than frazzled). I remember not getting into the house until 10 or even 11 at night.

    Of course, those days, moms did not run every aspect of life, did not set up play dates, were not afraid a child molester was around every tree (those things did happen, of course, but I am not convinced they are any more likely now, than then).

    As a side note, while my mom need not make an effort to have us catch any disease (we did quite fine on our own, thank you), when my kids were young, we did expose them to chicken pox purposedly. Yeah, shoot us. It did not work. But, they caught it on their own a couple of years later.
     
    John321 likes this.
  9. Stevewoods

    Stevewoods Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2014
    647
    983
    0
    Location:
    Seattle, WA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    II
    If getting a chance to "make-out" with Marsha meant catching the flu -- count me in!!! At age 14, I mean. :love::love:

    [​IMG]
     
    The Electric Me and John321 like this.
  10. John321

    John321 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 16, 2018
    1,105
    1,144
    0
    Location:
    Kentucky
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Stevewoods,
    your description reminds me of many homes back then. I had a lot of brothers like you and a couple of sisters. When one of us bought a sickness home from school everyone in the house who hadn't had it before was bound to get it, it was just the way it was. If a kid unknowingly infected with measles or mumps came to school it was a sure bet that anyone who hadn't 'caught' it yet was sure to become infected.
     
    Stevewoods likes this.
  11. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

    Joined:
    Oct 28, 2010
    7,669
    6,485
    0
    Location:
    Redneck Riviera (Gulf South)
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I was there....and I might have even gotten it, but that was in a long ago time when the "being a victim" bar was a little bit higher.

    In the 60s labor unions were still somewhat relevant and we actually had basic insurance, but 99-percenters didn't go to the docs office unless they needed sutures, a cast, were having a kid.....or were an oldie....because even with insurance doc visits resulted in envelopes arriving at your house with the little windows in them that showed your address.

    This meant that something ELSE (Clothes, shoes, toys, etc....) was going to get put off for a while.
     
  12. NewHybridOwner

    NewHybridOwner Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2018
    607
    278
    0
    Location:
    W. Michigan
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I'm sure I read years ago that parents should make every effort to ensure that their daughters caught "German measles" (Rubella) while they are young.
     
  13. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

    Joined:
    May 22, 2009
    9,083
    5,795
    0
    Location:
    Undisclosed Location
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I think I was child during a bit of a transitional time. That is, my parents had my brother and I vaccinated. It was required to attend schools. But I think my parents would of done it anyway.
    But I also remember the older vanguard of my family saying things like they just caught, measles, mumps, chicken pox,as children and advancing that as a viable way to approach gaining immunity to the diseases.
     
    hill likes this.