On vaccines and moving beyond fear....

This article is a worth a read with all the hoopla in the news re:Wakefield and autism, etc.

On Vaccinations and Moving Beyond Fear

Two things I whole-heartedly resonate with... 

"To tell you the truth, I've grown weary of talking about vaccination choices.  It's an endless circle of discussion.  In the same way that I cannot talk about abortion to someone who has a different view than I do about when life begins, I also cannot talk about vaccinations with someone who has a different view than I do about which takes precedence: the health of the individual or the health of the public at large."

and

"I wish more people realized that my being discerning about what goes into my infant's body is not solely perpetrated by a fear of autism."

Follow The Money

As a parent looking for credible information on how to raise my child, I find it very irritating when most mainstream parenting media is a billboard for vaccine manufacturers and formula companies.

Look into Parenting magazine for example. Rip out every single page that advertises formula or vaccines. You won't have much magazine left.

WebMd.com Breastfeeding Guide is SPONSORED by Gerber- an infant formula manufacturer. Look at all those ads! Check out this article.

Babycenter.com   ... same deal. Got an email in my inbox talking about how they can give me unbiased info about vaccine safety. Went to said article. Littered with ads from their sponsor.. "Sanofi Pastuer" a vaccine manufacturer.

And SO many more examples.


If you want unbiased info about how to take care of your child, follow the money.
Find truly unbiased resources from which to get your information.

Vaccine Reactions.

Needing a place to write this, so obviously, my blog would be it. I haven't really let this out...its been in my head for a while now and I haven't talked to anyone but Bryan about it. No one else seems to understand.

Noah has had minor vaccine reactions and my doctor has always said it was normal. I'm not sure if it is or not. When he was very little, we started vaccinating normally but he was very fussy and Bryan and I felt he was "twitchy" and jerky afterwards... (which I know now probably was small seizures). So I started an alternative vaccination schedule to spread them out as much as possible.

After each dtap shot, he has screamed for hours on end that evening. After his vaccines around 9 mo, he stopped babbling. But then a couple of weeks later, he seemed to be back to normal, so I chalked it up to just coincidence. Bryan was worried but I kept thinking...no it can't have anything to do with that. Vaccines can't be that dangerous...

This most recent Dtap on March 3rd, he screamed for 3+ hours and was limp in my arms. Like, he wouldn't move. His fingers were blue. I called out of work (it was my first night) because I was so scared that we would have to take him to the hospital. The doctor said that he was probably just fussy and to wait. He just nursed non-stop...wouldn't move at all from me. After those hours, he all of a sudden seemed to get better and perk up. I gave him tylenol and he eventually settled to bed. Things seemed normal.

I can't help but be very scared by this. I've read about parents who ignored the "small" reactions and then continued vaccinations and their child had a very severe reaction.

He has the MMR, polio, Dtap, chickenpox, hep a and hep b's left...maybe a couple more. My vaccination schedule isn't in front of me.
I'm definitely not doing the MMR until past 3+ years and then it will be the separate components. 
I'm not sure about the others. He only has one polio left and the new reccomendation is that they don't recieve the last one till age 4 so we;re okay there. Hep A and Hep B don't really concern me right now because he's not having sex or using needles... hah. Chickenpox...I'd like for him to have natural immunity but with most kids being vaxed by now, that might not happen.


This whole issue has been weighing on my heart and mind so heavily lately. I'm listening to my momma instinct and delaying the rest of his vaccines until at least 2.5 yrs.

I really HATE this issue and HATE being forced to choose between potentially actively harming my child and passively possibily allowing them to become sick with a disease.

A friend of mine just mentioned that her boss's son was diagnosed with ADEM (Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) is a neurological disorder characterized by inflammation of the brain and spinal cord caused by damage to the myelin sheath.  ADEM may occur in association with a viral or bacterial infection, as a complication of inoculation or vaccination, or without a preceding cause) right after his 18 month vaccinations.
My prayers go out to them....

"Vaccine Wars" Review

 Vaccine Wars

The first two minutes of this Frontline documentary told me where this show was going...... it started with a surgical removal of a baby (as if it were a normal birth process) and continued with its first Hep B shot (highly controversialized and not even done anymore at some hospitals!)

I found it to be very biased against those who hesitate to vaccinate their children..... showing you tube clips as the opposing sides and referencing doctors and gvt agencies for the pro side. Also citing flawed studies ....not showing the whole truth about what is UNKNOWN about vaccinations.  More on the flawed Danish study denying the link between thimersol and autism.

I think we should vaccinate our children but I believe that the government should NEVER have the ability to FORCE anyone to do anything especially regarding the health of their children unless it is a DIRECT abuse case (and not vaccinating is not neglect).

We need to ensure people are taking precautions against disease by supporting breastfeeding, healthy eating and exercise, etc not by forcing vaccinations. This society is so backwards..... we want to do everything the easy, profitable way. Pop a pill, get a shot....

Every parent and every person should look at each "vaccine" as having unique capabilities and dangers and make decisions based on what is known. Unfortunately, not much is "known" 100% when it comes to vaccines and vaccine risks.

Either way, I felt PBS did a poor job balancing both sides of the debate and was very disappointed.

AND so did Dr. Jay Gordon...mirroring my thoughts exactly!! You must read his response to this poorly produced documentary. 

Vaccines

Vaccinations are scary.

Instead of being comforted by them, I am scared.
There are polar opposite opinions on which ones are necessary and safe versus which ones are unsafe and never necessary.

There is the NO-VAX camp that opposes vaccinations because of the additives, preservatives and in short, scary stuff they contain. Some agree that vaccines (if they were safe) would be smart to prevent disease but others believe in natural immunity.

There is the PRO-VAX camp which is made of up many doctors, vaccine companies, large organizations, etc. They push vaccines on parents (and the general public) because they do believe in their efficacy and safety and also because they frankly make a LOT of money on them.

Then there are concerned citizens such as myself stuck in between. Do I not vaccinate Noah because I'm scared of the risks the vaccines present? Or do I give him all his vaccines because I'm scared of the diseases the vaccines (supposedly) prevent?

The decision to vaccinate or not to vaccinate shouldn't be based on fear or pressure.

One book I found very helpful is The Vaccine Book by Dr. Robert Sears. (I know, I know..I really love those Sears men).

He lays out each vaccine in a clear and concise way. What is the disease it claims to protect from? What are the risks of the disease if caught? What does the vaccine contain? What are the risks of the vaccine contents? He also presents his take at the end of each chapter or vaccine presentation.

I appreciated this SO much. I have been unable to find much unbiased info about vaccinations online. The sites that are pro-vax are usually monetarily connected to vaccine companies and the sites that are anti-vax seem over the top extremist. He may not be *truly* unbiased because he does believe that vaccines prevent disease and ideally feels that all children should be vaccinated BUT he does feel that parents should have choices and options and that vaccinated by the CDC schedule is NOT always the smartest plan especially for families with histories of vaccine reactions, etc.


Before I read this book, I had started Noah's vaccines as normal but then switched to an alternative more spaced out schedule.
Now that I have read the book, I would probably delay all vaccines until 2 years of age and then begin from there avoiding live virus vaccines as well as any containing mercury spread apart by 6 months each.

Another good resource is mothering.com - they have a lot of research-based unbiased info that I wasn't able to find elsewhere such as the monthly VAERS reports (vaccine reactions database the government runs). Keep in mind that a small percentage of reactions are reported because parents aren't told to report reactions unless of course they are major and even then, many ER's and doctors will just treat them and not report them. :-/

I wish that doctors would not push parents so much. My pediatrician isn't even that pushy but I feel really intimated by her and saying no to certain vaccinations certainly makes her agitated even though she was willing to work with us.

I am considering switching to a Naturopathic doctor - simply because I know they are just as educated but more willing to consider alternative routes of doing things. They also treat the whole person. I'm a big believer in the "whole person"... we aren't just a blood pressure reading or weight or temperature. There are other things going on in how we take care of ourselves (eating, exercise, etc) that affect our health and too many doctors skip those steps.
The one I am considering is also a midwife so she would provide whole care for our family which would be great. www.drkatinamartin.com


One of things I've learned as a mom is to question everything. You have to advocate for your child's health from Day 1 of your pregnancy. I regret not being informed about different things before Noah was born but now I know more. I wish someone had told me that "What to Expect When You're Expecting" is a bunch of mainstream thoughtless crap.




*** If you have already started to vaccinate your baby and want to switch to an alternative schedule such as Dr. Sears, you can. Check out his blog for more info. 

Ultimately, we are responsible for the decisions we make on behalf of our children. I want to be as informed as possible so I don't have to say, "I didn't know".  Our health care system *should* look out for us and our children but unfortunately, its a corrupt system just like many others and there is a lot of monetary influence that occurs; not to say it is all bad but again, be cautious!