When I taught elementary school, we were asked to get it, and they even had a doctor come to the school to do them. I was often sick. In the last 15 years, I haven't gotten one, and haven't been sick. If I start to get a cold, I take Cold FX, and the symptoms usually only last a day or so. I've read too much about the dangers of getting the flu shot to ever take that risk again. I also never let my children get the shot, and even my elderly mother was advised against getting one the last few years of her life. She was also very healthy and rarely had a cold.