We opted out of shots today. Maddie will need 3 before kindergarten next year. Cheyenne was already had a bit of a cold and plus I have been concerned over immunizations lately. I have been doing research on these rumors of shots causing permanent problems and it has concerned me. So does disease of course. I have always kept my kids exactly up to date on shots, and never questioned it. When I was a kid there were 10 required immunizations- now there are 36. It makes me wonder if these are necessary or a means of creating more to make more money. Chicken pox for instance is now a vaccine but it isn't necessary. Who didn't have chicken pox as a kid? You itch and you get over it. Doctor said that even if you get them as an adult the case may be more sores but still, jsut an inconvenience. This shot in particular carries some pretty harmful chemicals that are debated. Back in the day we received immunizations with mercury until they discovered it was harmful and casuing permanent damage to people. How do we know that in 10 years we aren't going to say the same about the aluminum and other toxins in the ones today. I used to go into theings blindly and now I realize that doctors aren't perfect and no one really knows. It is up to us each as individuals to decide what works best for us. And I am jsut confused.
Some have seen the debate of Jenny Mcarthy saying immunizations caused her sons autism. I have read arguments from both sides and the consensus seems to be that immunizations are necessary but we need to pick and choose what ones our kids need and at what time they should be given. The one that causes the most problems seems to be the MMR given at 15 mths. Some people think these moms are crazy to think it caused this handicap. But I can't imagine watching my child slow down in development, regress in speech and withhold affection from me. I have worked as a nanny and a health care worker with autistic adults and children for nearly 10 years and I have fallen in love with them. But I have also seen the toll it takes on a parent who cares for them. I would love my child despite any handicaps but I wouldn't do something that would cause them to have one. Yet, also we are back again to the fact I don't want to have a child with the polio that the immunizations prevent. My kids have had all of these shots as well as all Cheyenne needed up to this point. I discussed each one with my doctor today, who is willing to do anything I choose, and he explained the disease and it's prevalancy. One is a bacteria that is not very common, and in fact is most common if we were to visit China. Measles, mumps and rubella is pretty much non existent now because of the vaccinations and only small cases can be found in polygamus groups because they do not vaccinate as a whole. Basically he said the chances of contracting any of these diseases are rare becasue everyone else is immunized against it and it no longer lives in our communities.
So my decision for today is to push off the vaccines until her next visit at 15 months. I will get the immunizations that are necessary for her in our community. Maybe I will stick with the 10 that I got as a kid(I am still alive and kicking:) instead of the 36 they now require. Then her next appointment at 2 I will get the dreaded MMR that has been the attack of the autism claims. Apparently, these children began all of these autistic symptoms shortly after this vaccine. Yet, autism is usually discovered in the first 2 years of life-around this same time. So is it correlation or causation? Some suggest that these children had a predisposition to the disease and it was triggered by chemicals in the vaccine. Who do you believe though. Try and google this subject and compare the arguments. 100's of mothers who have watched their children shut off from the world and their instincts tell them something is wrong, or the FDA who says they have our best interest at heart. I become more concerned as they bring our attention to cough and cold medicine that contains a harmful drug that is causing strokes and brain damage. Now they tell us not to give cold medicine to children under 6--it is not safe or effective. Bottome line is I want to do what is best for my kids and I am not getting any straight answers, so I am just going with my gut on this and hope that it all works out in the end.
8 comments:
Cheyenne and Brie are so close to each other! We are going to have some tall girls :) I am with you on the whole vaccine issue. Like the doctor said, most of the sicknesses aren't in our area, but my worry if I don't get their shots, is when they are around other children that have never been vaccinated. Doesn't that leave them open for sickness? It only takes one person for a "slim chance" to happen and spread. I am like you and just hope that I am doing right for my kids, I guess that is all we can hope for in this uncertain area. Happy Thanksgiving!!
I was really worried about getting my kids immunizations. I have read a lot of stuff about immunizing and the whole autism thing. It really freaks me out. I absolutly love my doctor and I asked him his oppinion about it and he told me about 2 patients of his that are brothers, one has had immunizations and one has not, yet both have autism. My doctor told me that he has had more patients with preventable diseases from not getting their immunizations, than patients with complications from immunizations. Also, with the chicken pox vaccine, I opted to do that one with Stella because if you are pregnant you might not get chicken pox, but the fetus can and it can cause birth defects. So am letting my kids get that one because chicken pox is harmful to babies and fetuses. Anyway, I am still a little wary of immunizations, but I just decided to spread the immunizations out so that my kids don't get 5 immunizations all in one day. They get one at a time, spread out over the year.
Well I don't know if you want to hear my full opinion because I am very opinionated on the subject...so I will try to keep it calm and share my experience with autism.
My nephew has autism, and I am very convinced it has nothing to do with his immunizations. I do not know (nor do the doctors...they say there is a correlation, which means, they do NOT have enough evidence to say there is a cause and effect) if immunizations might trigger autism, but I feel that autism is something a child is born with.
My nephew has two siblings who were both immunized as well, and they are perfectly normal children (in fact my neice Kai is above average in her schoolwork and has always had to be in an advanced program at school...she was reading when she was 3).
Jesse may have autism, but he is one of the most amazing wonderful children I have ever met.
My personal opinon is that the risk of autism (which I don't believe there is one anyway! So it wouldn't matter...but if for some reason the propoganda has convinced you otherwise) is not worth your child getting polio, or rhubella, or TB. These are killing diseases. We as a generation do not remember what it was like, but it is devostating.
Well then people say, well, they are gone right? NO! They are not prevalant in the US because of IMMUNIZATIONS. All it takes is one trip to another country, one encounter with the disease to devostate your child's health.
Okay, calming down now. As with anything it is a personal choice...but I feel strongly that immunizations have protected our children from far worse than autism, and that they have not created autism in our children.
I am grateful that we have had immunizations to wipe out all of these diseases. I wonder if we all stopped getting them---just a theory, not a suggestion---how long before these sicknesses came back. I guess it would take just one person from some other country to bring something over here. It also concerns me that by wiping out some diseases we are creating more.One source said that infectious diseases was the leading casue of death 100 years ago and today the leading casue of death in children is accidents, developmental disorders(sids), genetic abnormalities and cancer. Those all sound like things that could be casued by our environment.They said that there is growing evidence that vaccines are the reason.Another way of them saying they don't know. I wonder if the people who only give there kids organic foods and no vaccines have as high of risks as others.
I liked one site that had a "friendly immunization schedule" It suggested getting the shots one at a time, avoiding thermasol(mercury) like the flu shot, and after the age of 2 give them the 4 vital ones, pertusssis, diptheria, tetanus, and polio, one shot spaced every 6 months. And to avoid all ones that contain live viruses, like chicken pox and MMR--although I am concerned with the possible birth defect from chicken pox if pregnant(which I tend to always be:)
What upsets me is that we can't get straight answers. Apparently there is a special court just for cases like this. That the FDA and American Pediatric society rely on each other for funding, so of course they will back them . Like all of this political garbage, we don't know what is really going on. All of my kids are up to date on their immunizations and they are all developing the way they should--I think they are smarty pants:) One women I read on babycenter says she got her daughter immunized but not her other sons becasue the first two were vaccinated and both have autism. Since it is more prevalent in boys she has only done her daughter and not her other son, and they are both fine. I believe her genetics play a large part and the immunizations jumpstarted it. I admit I would be more worried if Cheyenne was a boy. Out of the 15 autistic group homes in the company I worked for, only 3 of the homes were of girls. I think for every story about some connection about the vaccines and autism, there is another about an unrelation. If vaccines casued autism then we would all have it right? In 1943 1 in 10,000 kids had autism, now it is 1 in 68. Is that because they are getting it more now becasue of environmental factors and vaccinations, OR because educators and parents are more aware of the disorder and are diagnosing it better? What used to be ADHD, and other learning disorders is now being diagnosed as Autism and bringing up the numbers. I can argue both sides of the story becauseI agree with bits and pieces of both sides. I believe that immunizations are important but that they should be spread out. I avoid the flu shot mainly becasue I gave it to the kids last year and the next day they were both puking and fevered---the exact thing I was trying to avoid. My doctor said it was probably a coincidence but the same thing happened to my sisters kids the year before. This is just one of these things that I could go on and on about because autism has been a big part of life and now my children are a big part of life. It will be one of those things I bring up as soon as(if)I make it to Heaven. I got a list of questions:)
Like Stacy I am very opinionated about this subject. (Though it seems that a lot of my opinions are different than hers) I have done a lot of research on it and here is what I came up with (Remember, this is totally MY opinion.) I know that autism is caused by things other than vaccinations. Ethan's isn't related at all. I do, however think that it can be one of the causes, as I believe with my whole heart that Kalista's was caused by them. I also really think that vaccinations are important. If we all start being afraid of them and stop getting them, then the things they protect us from will come back with a vengance. I do think it is important to ask questions and do research, it wasn't too long ago that they started taking mercury out, and the fact that they now do is in great part due to so many people demanding answers. (By the way, I know that most doctors won't admit that it is the problem, but if it didn't have at least some corillation why would they have taken it out?)Bottom line, here is what I do: I do vaccinate my kids, it matters to me, and I would never forgive myself if they got something that could have been prevented easily. But I stick to one at a time. It takes longer to get it done, but I feel better about it. I also educate myself about each vaccine before hand. I want to know exactly what it does, and if I don't think it's neccessary we don't get it. (I DON'T give them the chicken pox one, it doesn't even assure that they won't get chicken pox, and since it isn't life threatening anyway, I skip it.)I also ASK for no mercury. I know that they tell you that it is standard now, but they do still have a stock of the old ones, and so you do need to ask just to be sure.(I was told this by my pediatrician, so it's not just the rantings of a crazy lady:)I also have Troy give the kids a blessing before they get vaccinated. Think what you want, but it makes me feel better if nothing else. Mainly I think it's important to be educated, find a doctor who takes your questions seriously, and who you trust, and then trust your gut. I know that it isn't the answers you were looking for, but that's the best I have. Good luck!
I understand your thoughts. Jerica is now 7 and I did not do her vacinations on time because of the same reasons. In fact I held back and until we moved to the border of Mexico where many of the diseases were prevelant none of my kids had all 36 vaccinations. When we got to Texas we had to have them vaccinated for the different hepatitases and had to catch Jerica up. She was 4 at that point and my worries were a lot less. I have a cousin and 2 friends now who have autistic children who wonder if the vaccinations did not affect thier child. I wonder too. If there is one thing I have learned in 16 years of being a mother it is follow you instinct it is almost always right.
I of course, have a child with Autism. I immunized her and Kristina right on time. They are the two who struggle the most developmentally. Does it have anything to do with anything? I don't know. Jeremy and I decided to opt out of doing them on schedule for the last two kids. So far, they are fine. We don't believe that it's the actual immunizations, just the amount and the spacing. We will fully immunize our children over a LOT longer amount of time. We have signed waivers based on belief to not have them all before kindergarten. It's just our gut feeling too. There needs to be more research in this area to be sure!
You don't know me I found your blog through another blog. I just wanted to comment on this dilemma as well. And give my thoughts. You may take them as a grain of salt if you would like seeing as though I do not know you. My children were not immunized because I felt that it was not necessary at the time. I couldn't imagine putting a small infant through so much. I realize that they do not remember it but their bodies are so tiny and it seems like a lot for the body to deal with. Not to mention I too had read reports on the subject and their relations to disabilities and such. Not to mention other things I had heard. Things like "a child's immune system is not fully developed until the age of 7." Now I don't know how true that is. I'm no doctor, but it made a little sense to me since they are now going back and saying that adults and teens should be getting booster shots because all those shots you got when you were a child aren't helping anymore.
Anyway, you'll notice at the beginning of my comment I said my kids "were" not immunized. I believe that parents are the only ones who know what is best for their child. Doctors do not "KNOW" your children like you do and the decision is ultimately one that should be made between you and the lord.
I started immunizations with my children a month and a half ago when my youngest turned 3. And I made that decision because I logged on to the provident living website (www.providentliving.org) in search of something and was directed to a page which had a statement from our church leaders that basically said that the increasing number of children who are not vaccinated concerns them. After that I hadto put a lot of thought into whether or not I would follow my church leaders advice and vaccinate my children or whether I would wait until a later time. I decided (again a decision that should be made by parents and the lord) that since my children were older and that their little bodies would likely handle it better now than when they were still tiny so we took them in and got four each. More will come at the next appointment. They don't like me too much for it since they can remember it now that they are a little older but I would rather that than have some sort of side effect. And my husband and I don't know that we will get any future babies immunized when they are so little. That is a bridge we will cross when it comes.
Thanks for letting me share my thoughts. Good luck with your future decisions on the matter.
Post a Comment