"I don't want to be in big crowds. Definitely don't want to catch anything from anybody else," said Wells of Delran, New Jersey.
Pharmacist Sharon Maher gives out hundreds of flu shots each season here at Paramount Drug in Riverside, though over the last few years, she's seen fewer and fewer patients coming in for the shot.
"When they are coming in, their concerns seem to have been COVID more than the flu. Sometimes we got them back for the flu and sometimes we didn't," said Maher.
Right now, CDC data shows flu cases are low here at the beginning of the season. But last year was a high-severity flu season, with the highest hospitalization rates since 2010 into 2011.
This year, there's a new subvariant -- subclade k -- that's causing spikes in other countries.
"The United Kingdom and Japan have seen an earlier start to their flu seasons than is typical or normal for them," said Dr. Judith O'Donnell, the chief of infectious diseases at Penn-Presbyterian Medical Center.
Infectious disease specialist Dr. Judith O'Donnell says while this new variant isn't included in this year's flu shot, she says it's a mutation of influenza A, and the shot will still be helpful.
"Even if it's not a perfect match to the vaccine strain, the vaccines we know provide protective immunity, in particular immunity from severe infection that would require hospitalization or ICU stays," said O'Donnell.
With Thanksgiving coming up next week, O'Donnell advises getting your flu shot now if you haven't already.
While it won't provide full immunity in one week, it will still provide some protection during family gatherings.