I remember the struggle to have my first child. The seven years of infertility, the seven years of being told it wouldn't happen, the mourning of a child lost that never was....then fast forward to the moment holding that child for the first time...determined to do the best by this obvious gift from God. I remember sitting in the public health office surrounded by other mothers waiting my turn to vaccinate my child. He was two months old...eight weeks or 60 days...a blip on the screen of life.
I remember for the first time feeling fear...wondering was i doing the right thing....I for one, had not done any research into vaccines...and from my difficult pregnancy, I discovered you couldn't always trust doctors as all knowing and all caring.
I submitted to those vaccines. But I went home determined to know more for the next time...I read, I researched, I bought books on the subject and tried to wade through the hysteria on both sides. I came out of it believing that vaccines were neccessary but not at the ages recommended. I learned about thimerisol, i learned about the debates raging...
All I really cared about was how might my decisions affect my children. With my first child I delayed his vaccines, with my second son I delayed them even later and only allowed one at a time with no thimerisol, if any vaccine listed it on the insert, we avoided it. With my third we did not even begin them until he was two and I have followed the same routine with my fourth child and only started at age three. But, I made this choice weighing the risk and benefits which only a parent can do.
With my second son I truly believe that with him, I dodged a bullet. I believe in my heart, had I submitted to the recommended schedule that my son may have developed autism or some of the related disorders. With my second son, he did not read until much later...and it is also why I believe I was meant to homeschool...not so much because my first child didn't like school...but because it allowed me to prepare myself to teach my second son who would have been labelled within the public system...probably to never recover from the labelling. Now, he is a prolific reader who loves learning!
So, I suggest to all parents...don't accept things outright...challenge the status quo and make sure you are doing what is right for your child. How the medical community can belive that one vaccine fits all is beyond me...question all things!
1 comment:
So true...I, too, struggled with the vaccine issue. With the boys, I vaccinated them on "schedule", but made sure I got the lot numbers from the doctors and we always sent up a silent prayer that our kids would remain unscathed from the vaccines and that we were doing the right thing.
I assume they suffered no ill effects, but you never truly know...nothing outright anyway.
With Sophie, I delayed the first until six months, and then did only the DPTP (thimerasol free). We waited till she was over two until we gave her the MMR, and then we were able to "special order" it without the thimerasol. We didn't treat her differently for any other reason than I just questioned it more. The whole thing is a huge decision and considering the stabilizers and preservatives like Formaldehyde, it is pretty scary stuff to administer to them without educating yourself on both sides. Still, being a nurse, I do lean towards the medical movement, but not blindly. I do feel that the reason the communicable diseases aren't being "caught " by the unvaccinated is because the rest of the kids are vaccinated. In essence, they are protecting the "unprotected".
I agree with you...the issue is age and parents need to probe the issue further. I adamantly believe blanket immunization of young (under ten) kids for Chicken Pox is a huge mistake. The immunity inferred by vaccinations is ten years at best, and I fear we will see a new wave of young, child-bearing women become infected...having thought they had life-long immunity from the vaccine...and the resulting birth defects.
Sticky topic, indeed.
Linda
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