With one year birthdays approaching, there is an email thread going around my mommy group that surprises me. There is a debate about whether or not we should give certain vaccinations to our babies. I'm a little surprised* because it NEVER occurred to me to NOT give Ellie whatever the doctor says she needs. I guess that goes to show that parenthood is different for everyone.
* Ok, I'll be honest... I am more than just a little surprised.
3 comments:
Mind if I hijack your blog? Will it make up for not commenting in a really long time? At least you can stick me right in the comments… =)
I think it really comes down to your particular Ped. Our Ped assumes you are following standard protocol and won't offer her opinion unless you specifically ask for it. It's actually one of the things I like about her best: she is so good at staying neutral and presenting both sides. You really have no idea where she stands until we ask what she'd do if it were her own child.
The other hot topic along the same lines is circumcision. If you choose to circumcise in the US Peds won't say anything, but if you ask their opinion the overwhelming majority say it's not necessary and would only do it to their own child for religious reasons. But they won’t tell you that unless you bring it up first.
The vaccine debate was huge a few years ago (especially if you had a boy) before some of the newer studies re the possible link between autism and MMR were released, but seems to be back in the media in the last few months. You also now have celebrities, like Jenny McCarthy, who come across more middle of the road with their beliefs that it wasn't the vaccine itself, but the fact that their child had a higher sensitivity to metals which then may have triggered autism in a child predisposed to it.
We are actually part of the "delay" group. Our children will be fully immunized. (The Cracker already is.) I have even gone out of my way to add flu shot(s) each year, but we won't be exactly following the standard. It's not that we're anti-vaccine, just doing things a little differently. With autoimmune diseases running rampant in my family and my Mom having Lupus, we prefer not to follow the standard 5-6 shots at once schedule. Instead, we break them up. Instead of 5 at the 2 month appointment, we do 2-3 at 2 months and then make an extra appointment at 3 months to do the remaining. Then again with the 4 month set we spread them out between two or more appointments. My Ped actually prefers this but doesn't offer it unless you ask because it's not for everyone. It does mean more trips in (which for us are 45 minutes each way...ugh) and more copays, and a lot of people just aren't interested. But as I mentioned, with Lupus and other autoimmune diseases in my family, loading a tiny baby up with that many vaccines to process all at once freaks me out.
Dr. Sears actually has a book on vaccines, and it's interesting reading even for those following the typical schedule.
These are some of the main reason we're doing it:
-giving only one live virus at a time for your child's immune system fight
-fewer chemicals/metals entering baby's system all at once means less for the body to have to process back out
-fewer vaccines given in one sitting may mean fewer side effects
-and my favorite...if there is a reaction, it's easier to figure it out from 2 or 3 possibilities than it is from 5 or 6
(And just a heads up from one mom to another: I’ve done a fair amount of reading on vaccines and it’s not mentioned much but while it is not uncommon for kids to have reaction to vaccine in the earlier years, the most common time for reactions comes after multiple doses. If I remember correctly, after the 4th or 5th. The Cracker’s first beyond mild reaction to a vaccine did not happen until he had a 5th dose at 4 years, and even though he‘d had no problems with that particular vaccine before, he had what they considered a severe reaction. I should have known better…the same thing happened to one of our cats. No reaction until her 3rd dose of the rabies vaccine, at which time she went into shock and had to be given the emergency antidote. Sheesh.)
Hehe…not trying to change what you do for your own family, just like getting it out in the world that there is what I like to think of as a middle ground. You would not believe how many people categorize delaying (even if only a month!) in the anti-vaccine group. Sigh.
Me again. I don't know if you read Motherhood Uncensored, but I really enjoyed this post.
http://motherhooduncensored.typepad.com/motherhood_uncensored/2008/02/rage-against-th.html
(DTap is the vaccine G had the severe reaction to.)
I think the "delayed" approach that you are speaking of makes a lot of sense. I just don't think I agree with the idea of not fully immunizing at all. I think I like the idea of spreading out the immunizations, though! Thanks!
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