Selective Vaccinations

Hi V.: I commend you for reconsidering vaccines and for asking for advice. It is so overwhelming!! We have a 9 mos old and my husband and I also struggled with this/these decisions. We decided to selectively vaccinate. We found the Dr. Sears Vaccine Book very helpful (and he has a website where you can ask questions) and we also read What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations by Stephanie Cave (she is more hard core about it than Sears). It's such a hard choice and once many people don't even realize they have, so it's alienating. Dr. Sears offers a couple of suggestions about alternative vaccine schedules, one which will eventually fully vaccinate but on a delayed schedule and the other which does exclude some. We started late with our daughter (I think 3 or 4 motnhs) and did dtap (the only combo one we have done)/rotavirus first and then pc/hib (each requires three doses, so she did get more injections than if we had used the combo vaccines, but we didn't feel comfortable with the combo vaccines). We have decided not to do flu and are still deciding about polio. We didn't do Hep B (will consider when she is older). I am not anti-vaccine, and think the idea of vaccines is great, but I'm not convinced that we have all the info we need to know they are safe for everyone. Unfortunately, it seems that the pharmaceutical companies are so profit driven that it makes me pause about whether the safety of the public is a priority. It's true that most children are vaccinated and percentage-wise seem to fair well, but when it is your child, you don't want to feel like there is a risk and for me that was hard to get around. We were both nervous about our decision to vaccinate at all, but also weren't totally comfortable with not vaccinating. She seems to have done well. We had one tough afternoon (exhausted and fussier than usual) after one round, but otherwise she has seemed her usual self.
Anyway, this was a long winded answer, but I think it's great that you are thinking about it, no matter what you decide.
Oh, one last thing, this is a touch issue when it comes to pediatricians. They are obligated to offer vaccines and many are not comfortable with the idea of not vaccinating. Our pediatrician (in Cambridge) was initially resistant when I met with her during my pregnancy, but after the baby was born she was much more laid back and I actually think she may have read the Dr. Sears book in the gap between those two appts. He actually has a letter to pediatricians in his book that reminds them that the decision is ultimately the parent's and that parents deserve respect for whatever decision they make. If you live near Cambridge and want the name of our pedi, happy to give it to you (and I can tell you the names of others in the Arlington/Somerville area that others have told me about). It's not that these pedis are anti vaccine, but they do respect the parent's choice and allow for a dialogue, which makes all the difference. There is also a pediactric homeopath in Brookline who I don't know, but was given the name of. She is anti vaccine. So there are providers across the board. Let me know if you want any of these names.
Take care and enjoy you daughter!!
C.

Hi,
As schools encourage children with cancer and other treatments to keep their lives as normal as possible, they attend school regularly. Often they are not able to be immunized, as their immunosystems are suppressed. So when a disease is noted in a school, children who are not immunized by parent choice pose a huge danger to these children who do not have a choice.
Having said that, no one should immunize their child if they feel it would be dangerous. So now, you have to read information from sites without an agenda, sift the data, and make an adult choice. Interestingly, you will find that you make so many adult choices as you raise your child, and so much thought goes into them. I wish you the best, for parenthood is a journey for strong women and men!

Hi there. A lot of Pediatrician's will allow you to space out your vaccinations, but most will require that you get them eventually to be part of their practice.

My pedi. is letting me space them out, and I do plan on getting my child vaccinated, but just not all at once.

Most daycares and public schools these days will not accept your child without documented proof of vaccinations - and for good reason.

I certainly would not want an unvaccinated child around mine and here is why.
Vaccinations are 95% effective. So if your child were to get sick and pass it onto my child (assuming she was one of the 5% in this case) I would be beyond angry and frustrated. Words cannot describe how livid I would be.

Also, with more and more parents choosing not to vaccinate their children (in much larger numbers these days), the more and more diseases come back, mutate and then spread to other children, babies, and the elderly.

Most kids are around younger siblings, other kids, and grandparents and can still spread disease. So even a vaccinated child could now catch one of these mutated diseases, and so on, and so on.

Their are thousands of viruses (the common cold, pneumonia and the flu for instance) that we still have no cure for, and vaccinations help prevent these from spreading, mutating and becoming more contagious.

NOW - with that being said, (I've done SO much research) I do NOT think there is anything wrong with spreading them out. Especially if your child is not in daycare. If your pedi. is not flexible with that idea, many are, and I am sure you can find one that is.

We all want to do what is best for our child, and we also need to be responsible to the other children in our society that our own kids will be a part of.

I probably gave you enough to think about!

Good luck.

I haven't picked it up yet for myself, but there's a book by Dr. Sears called "The Vaccine Book" that I've heard hits all sides, and suggests a more spread-out/selective schedule of vaccinations. We should both check it out.

I don't want to start a debate by any means. I believe the bottom line is that we, as moms, have to decide for ourselves, through research, what is best for our families.

There are always ways around vaccinating - all you need is to file the proper exemptions. This is your legal right. Daycares and public schools have to accept this.

As for your pediatrician... many are given money for pushing vaccinations. Many are also only taught one side of the issue (lots of times by programs funded by vaccine manufacturers). I can't tell you how many times I have spoken with women who were told outright lies by their children's doctor's to pressure them into vaccinations. Fear is a powerful weapon. Knowledge is stronger though - so research is the key. Make sure to research ALL sides though because unless you do you may not be getting accurate information.

Personally, I would thoroughly research the diseases you are concerned with and weigh those concerns against the safety of that particular vaccine. I personally see the vaccines as carrying more risk. My daughter is not vaccinated and will not be.

I would suggest a website that could supply you with TONS of info. These ladies on here are SUPER knowledgable and can give you all kinds of links to great resources. I really urge you to check it out:

http://www.justmommies.com/boards/index.php?s=d9d3da4e5c9...

I wish you the best of luck!

ETA: From that same website they did a "disease of the week" archive. Here is TONS of great info and resources regarding Tetanus:

http://www.justmommies.com/boards/index.php?showtopic=709...=

And make sure you read past the first post! It continues to break down tons of info and give more. :)