5 Vaccines?

YOu could have spread them out over a couple or three visits if you wanted to. Some vaccines can be combined but I do not know which ones. All doctors should give you these options, but for some reason they dont. THey just wanna stick it to you and get it over and done w/ for some reason. You could aslo opt out of some vaccines like the flu and chicken pox. I dont get those either.

Hello MM,

No they can not combine the shots my five year old went through the same thing, but he should be completely done with all shots. They have to be completely vaccinated before they start school but since he is five now he should not need anymore shots unless for some reason he missed a dose.
Good Luck
K.

Hi MM,

My concern about vacs is a little differnet than yours. I do NOT want them combined...any of them. They have linked so many problems with the combo vacs more so than the individual vacs. Further more, what about all of the sound documentation that shows vacs are not really as good at prevention as they once were thought to be. So many of us have been what I term 'brainwashed' into believing that our children MUST have them ALL to live when that's not the truth.

With our last child, we decided to wait for vacs until he was at least 2 yrs old. At first, the doctors were okay but thought we were off our rockers. Now, many are saying it's not a big deal and they can understand and one even agreed with us.

Don't get me wrong, I believe that medicine has it's place in our lives. And I am so very thankful that we have the medical care that we do here in the USA. However regarding vacs, I have to ask, "when is enough, enough?"

Take Care,
N. :) SAHM homeschooling 3 boys 13, 8 & 2yrs old and married to my Mr. Wonderful for 15yrs. I love to help other moms, who want to become SAHMs, reach that goal!

Two of these were already combination vaccines, one was elective, and as previously noted, other schedules could be used for the other two. It is probably the sheer number of sticks which is so troubling to a parent and child. It is also important to realize that vaccines can not be simply "combined". They are separately designed, tested and regulated products. In fact, most people would be surprised to know the differences in immunogenicity (the immune response to a vaccine which you are hoping will result in a high and lasting titer for longer protection) is different for some of the components of the combo vaccines administered together vs administering their parts, separately. On average this difference is of no clinical concern. Hope your little guy (and you) recovered; adminstrations are hard to watch for sure! If your doctor has not suggested it, try to pre-load your child with an age-appropriate dose of Tylenol about an hour prior to future vaccination and contine through the next day every 8 hrs. It will vastly relieve initial discomfort, low grade fever and reduce pain at the injection sites (reactogenicity, as it is called).

Neither of my girls have ever had to have that many needlesticks at one time. So I am guessing some of ours were combined. I agree with another poster, it was probably just how they were able to get the vaccinations this year.
K.

They are already combined in the DTAP and MMR. I am spreading the immunizations out so that my daughter does not need to deal with so many sticks at one time and so her system does not need to deal with so many substances at one time. By doing this it is easier to tell if she has a poor reaction to one of the immunizations. Dr. Sears has a great book on immunizations and Dr. Gordon has a good chapter on them as well in Listening to Your Baby. These are not anti-immunization books. I like them because they acknowledge that there are risks to immunizations and that there are benefits as well.

Wow- that is a lot! I don't know if any of these particular ones can be combined, but if it comes up in the future you might want to ask the doctor if you can do some that visit and bring him back for the rest in a few months. I think vaccines are important too, but at that age a short delay in getting a booster shouldn't hurt. Just something to consider.

My daughter just turned five. When she was four they gave her five shots too and said that except for flu shots, she doesn't have to have more than on e all at once again until she's 11.

My understanding is that these are all boosters of stuff they've had before and they would know by now if your kid was going to have a negative reaction, so don't worry about that.

I'd rather get it all done at once instead of every time they go to the doctors they have to have a shot over a period of a few months. But maybe that's just me!

My kid had a wicked ear infection lately and she had to get two shots in either thigh at the same time. The nurse said it's so nasty they put lidocaine in with it. Yike. But it didi the job and she did not have to be admitted and go on IV antibiotics the next day.

What was the blood draw for? Routine they said? Hmmm. My kid hasn't had that done since she was one.

-S

That does seem like a lot. It has been a while since my kids were 5 but I don't ever recall them getting so many. What are Varivax and IPV? I have to tell you, my kids are 10 and 15 and neither of them have ever had their blood drawn but....I think that it is a good idea to have it done so that everything can be checked and if your son recovered quickly, no harm done.

Hi, wow 5 vaccines at once seems like a lot, and 6 needlesticks?? that seems really quite excessive. My dd has had at the most 3 vaccines at once, and never more than two needlesticks at one appt- so they must be able to combine them. I would ask your pediatrician at once what your other options are, because that just doesn't sound like the best they can do. you might have to be a little forceful about it unfortunately, but as the mom you have the right to do what will be more comfortable for your son!

Luckily for my 5 year old son, my friend warned me about the 5 year old check up and all the shots that her son had to endure. With that information in mind, I asked our ped. if some of them could be givin at his 4 year old appointment (which was a few months late), and it was OK. I guess you can use this info to help other moms you know with soon-to-be 5 year olds, as it's too late for your little guy. Now I ask, at every check up, what will happen at the NEXT appointment. And if there are many shots coming, I know to space them out.
As for the blood draw, some Maryland counties require a lead test (via blood taken) even if you don't live in a high risk area or home. We moved from Montgomery County, where no test was needed, to Worcester County where it's mandatory. My son was not too pleased :)

Kids these days get a lot of vaccinations, many of them in combination. I was amazed at how many they reccomend for our baby vs the ones her brother and sister got.

We are choosing to spread out our daughter's shots so she gets just a few at a time. I'd talk to your pediatrician about spacing the shots. If it's just shots, it can be a nurse visit. It might be easier on him/you to get just a few and then wait a month or so and get a few more.

You might want to read The Vaccine Book by Dr. Sears.

Our first pediatrician did not combine any shots. Our new one (for the past 4 years) combines as many as possible. I don't think my kids have ever had anymore than 3. When my daughter turned 5 in June she only had one shot though. Was your son past due for some maybe?

You might check out the vaccine center for more info, the can be found at www.nvic.org

Good luck, S.

Hi,

They do have combo vaccines and I'm not sure why they didn't give your son those, but one possible explanation is that sometimes the supply chain for vaccines can get disrupted and certain vaccines can get backlogged. One of my peds took the time to explain this to me, but most don't. When this happens, the doctors have to make do or the patients have to wait. If making do means giving separate vaccines and they are available, then that is what they'll do.

I know it really stinks to have to get so many shots in one day (believe me though, first day of boot camp is worse, I think I got something like 9 on that day), but it is necessary for his health and it's important that they are administered on a schedule so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Just ask next time if they have combo vaccines instead. Although if they are short on those they will usually reserve them for infants and toddlers. I would gladly accept separate vaccines for my oldest if it meant that my youngest or someone else's baby would only have to undergo two or three. They are too little to understand how necessary the shots are.

Hope this helped.

they already are combined i think he got like 9 different vaccines. was he behind in getting them though i dont think my daughter got but 2 when she was 5. also you couldhave made two trips out of it and split them up but sometimes just getting it over with is best. i would have refused the blood work though. we've never had that done.

I understand your concern, and would echo the voices of a lot of moms who already wrote in - spacing out the vaccines by a matter of months/years could be a better way to introduce them into the body. There are a lot of substances used in vaccines that are foreign to your child's body, and so giving them a bit at a time helps you to see if he has a reaction to any particular one, and will help you make informed decisions in future.

If your intuition says it is a lot for your 5-year-old, it probably is. Effects of vaccines sometimes are not known for years, which is a scary thought, but I know we all do what is best for our children and best under the circumstances. My baby's daddy and I are not together, and don't agree on everything, but we do agree on a gradual schedule for vaccines, and also prioritizing. The most important ones first, and then the others. Studies are varied and controversial in results, but I know I don't want to "play the lottery" with my child's health. Getting them done gradually helps me to feel better about being conscious of what we are choosing to do.

I know it depends on what he has already had, but my daughter didn't get any shots on her 5 year visit. I always look at the schedule so she can know what to expect, but I don't think any of mine have ever gotten 5 shots at one time. I also don't do the blood work. I did it once to get lead levels checked, but I don't do the others.

You may want to spread it out a bit. We are finding out that too many shots might be the cause of Autism. My son has been diagnos with Autism, and I believe it is because of too many shots given at the same time. Don't just take my word for it, do your own researh, then make your decision.