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Family Matters:  Immunizations  |
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Montrose Girl
Farmgirl Legend/Schoolmarm
1360 Posts
Laurie
Montrose
CO
1360 Posts |
 Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 06:26:11 AM
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SO how do you ladies feel about them? To a point I get it, why we need them, but looking at the list for a baby just throws me into a spin. I definitely have issues with the latest one for young girls. That's a lot of shots for an infant. Not to mention my practitioner wants to give me a tetnus/whooping cough shot after the baby is born. I'm thinking, why? We are sterilizing everything to death. I haven't been sick in over a year, since I changed my eating habits. I used to get a cold at least once, if not twice a year. I'm celebrating. So how much of our sickness is related to what we are eating in the first place and are all these crazy shots more for symptoms than causes?
Would love everyone's input.
Laurie
http://www.inntheorchardbnb.com/ |
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Lessie Louise
True Blue Farmgirl
1406 Posts
Carol
PECULIAR
MO
USA
1406 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 06:41:00 AM
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Get as much info as you can about immunizations before you decide. I choose to spread out the kids shots over a longer period of time and made to feel like a I was committing a crime. But these days, they combine a lot of shots. I am a nurse, and have even seen first hand what happens to kids who don't get immunizations but I would still be careful about giving all this mass produced shots to my kids with out being better informed. Read read read! Find a care provider who will listen to your concerns, and then do what feels right for your family. Good luck, Caroll
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting them in a fruit salad!
Farmgirl #680!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/lessielouise22 |
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embchicken
True Blue Farmgirl
1487 Posts
Elaine
Ocean
NJ
USA
1487 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 06:56:42 AM
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I'm all for immunizations. I got them all for my daughter when the doctor said to and she is 20 now - no problems. There is quite a bit of misinformation out there regarding the effects of immunizations. I think you need to read , read, read , like Carol suggested , talk to your doctor and do what you feel is right.
"Be the change you wish to see in the world" ~Gandhi
farmgirl sister #2822
embchicken.blogspot.com |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 07:58:17 AM
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i am very opinionated on this. i agree you need to be very informed before you decide. please watch the documentary on immunizations before you make your decision. one of the concerns on the movie is the giving of so many at once. it is also the carrier fluids that the immunization is in that is a concern. they are very strong chemicals. just a thought sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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MagnoliaWhisper
True Blue Farmgirl
2817 Posts
Heather
Haysville
Kansas
USA
2817 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 12:03:44 PM
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The thing is Elaine, 20 years ago and today is much different in immunizations. They didn't give NEARLY as many 20 years ago as they do today, nor did they do them all in one day, to a new born baby, nor did they combine so many into one. I am also doing the delayed method, spread out between years, and not 20 in a day every week for a year! (yeah that's how they did with my first daughter trying to scare me into believing she would go deaf and blind, and this and that and die if we didn't). She was sick all the time! DD2 has only had a few and is never sick! She can still see and hear too! lol haha
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
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craftingram
True Blue Farmgirl
526 Posts
Karin
Nashville
In
USA
526 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 12:36:23 PM
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I spent 10 of my 20 years in nursing as a pedi RN directing a well child clinic. Kids today are getting a lot more shots than they were when mine (36 and 32) were babies. I don't think there is any problem with spacing the shots out. Most good doctors and clinics don't have a problem with that either. That said, I think it is vitally important that children get immunizations. The diseases the immunizations help prevent are not totally eradicated in this country. Immigrants and travelers continue to bring in measles and wild strains of polio. I saw first hand the devastating effects of a 6 week old getting pertussis because she was exposed to the illness by an older child before she was old enough to get shots. She nearly died and will have respiratory issues for the rest of her life.
Karin
Farmgirl #2708
Romans 8: 38,39 |
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alterationsbyemily
True Blue Farmgirl
686 Posts
Emily
Thomasville
PA
USA
686 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 4:38:55 PM
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My little girl, I was unprepared to be a parent and didn't space mine out. I wouldn't say it was a mistake just a I wish I did that. She is fine so no worries. With the new one due in July we will be spacing the immunizations out.
Immunizations is a touchy topic in this world, do your own research and then make your own choices.
My daughter and I did not get the flu shot this year because it was laced with the H1N1 vaccination. Because of this additive they can charge my insurance $450 for this one shot! I tried to find shots that didn't have the additive and there were none out there, they only made it this year with H1N1. Well, both my daughter and I ended up with the flu and she had a very serious case. She was in the hospital for three days, everthing is fine now. I don't wish we got the flu shot but I was really miffed that they wouldn't make it with out the H1N1.
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Currently renting-farmgirl wannabe |
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Sitnalta
True Blue Farmgirl
4208 Posts
Jessica
NJ
USA
4208 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 4:46:42 PM
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Well, this is one of those subjects that can always be seen well from both sides. I have three toddlers, and apart from their hospital shots, I do not immunize. I don't feel like the risk of the "new" medicines are worth their benefits. My mother immunized us, but as it was said in a previous post, it wasn't near as many or as concentrated. I think that if you really get down to the nitty gritty in your study and awareness, that you will make the best decision for you and your family. After all, we are supposed to do our best and parents and leave the rest to watchcare. :)
hugs
Jessie
"Wonder Woman hasn't got a cape, she just turned her apron around"
Farmgirl Sister #235 |
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rksmith
True Blue Farmgirl
858 Posts
Rachel
Clayton
GA
USA
858 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2011 : 5:41:36 PM
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I think that vaccines are helpful in preventing and lessening the impact of diseases. I am also very holistically minded, so I am somewhat on the fence. I've seen the results of people who were not vaccinated and got diseases, and it certainly isn't pretty. (I'm a peds nurse too, lol) I do feel that too many vaccines are given at one time these days, and we have quite a few parents who space their vaccines out in the office where I work. Some of the newer vaccines, I am not sure about (and am ever so glad I don't have a girl) but now drug companies are also pushing the gardasil vaccine for boys. I find it interesting that when insurance companies won't cover the cost of the vaccine for boys, now it is supposed to also prevent prostate cancer and help with anal cancer. To me that is a little suspicious...but I digress. If you are concerned about the ingredients in the vaccines there are homeopathic detox remedies that you can use to help pull the toxins out but still have the part of the vaccine you want. Definitely do as much research as possible and talk with your pediatrician at length to get answers to all of your questions. http://www.nvic.org/ is a good website for vaccine information, also check out Dr. Sherry Tenpenny. The CDC also has all vaccine information sheets available on their website (these are the sheets we give out at the office that go over the specific vaccine, any side effects, etc.).
Rachel
Farmgirl Sister #2753
Do not ask the Lord to guide your footsteps, if you are not willing to move your feet--Dr. Kioni
http://www.mynsp.com/rksmith
http://madame1313.wordpress.com/ |
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FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Mar 23 2011 : 05:54:30 AM
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Violet is 2 and while I believe in immunizations, I do believe our children are getting "too many" at one time. I trust my pediatrician VERY much and she didn't seem to think spacing them out was a bad idea. She even offered this option when I discussed my misgivings with her because, though I am pro vaccine, it seems Violet's system is more sensitive because each time she's been given a vaccine, she has the "more severe" reactions listed on the CDC paper they give you. At 18 months, Violet had a terrible reaction to the MMR vaccine that landed us at the ER at Children's hospital with a high fever and rash, and again a week later with a burst eardrum because of the viral infection she couldn't rebound from because her immune system had been so compounded.
As much as it pained me to be so helpless during these times, I had to think: how I would feel if I could have prevented something far more serious with a simple vaccination?
Musings from our family in the Bluegrass http://sweetvioletmae.blogspot.com/ |
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Montrose Girl
Farmgirl Legend/Schoolmarm
1360 Posts
Laurie
Montrose
CO
1360 Posts |
Posted - Mar 23 2011 : 06:27:24 AM
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Wow, yeah I guess I'm just shocked at all the new shots. Hep B and Hep A, things I can't even pronounce. Fortunately I still have time. Not due until Oct. Thanks for some of the suggested web sites too. I'll be doing a lot of research over the next months.
Laurie
http://www.inntheorchardbnb.com/ |
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4forMe
True Blue Farmgirl
166 Posts
Dawn
Easton
MD
166 Posts |
Posted - Mar 23 2011 : 06:59:32 AM
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I am a registered nurse. I space my kids immunizations. I agree with PPs who say that the amount of immunizations they are giving to newborns today are a lot more than 20 years ago. My oldest child is 13 almost 14. He received a lot less vaccines as a newborn than the protocol is now for my 13 month old. When I took my baby in at 2 months old for a well baby check and he was slated to get EIGHT vaccines within 3 shots and and oral med, I said "no thanks". He has since gotten some of those vaccines, but it has been at a much slower pace.
Some of the vaccines are not NECESSARY (ie. Rotovirus) and some that are offered are not even REQUIRED, drug companies are out to make money. Do your research and decide for yourself.
I also do not get the flu vaccine for myself, my children or my husband. We are all healthy (no underlying health conditions) and I prefer that we get our immunities naturally. I do think the flu vaccine is beneficial for the elderly, chronically ill or children with underlying health issues (such as prematurity).
Sewing, knitting, gardening mom of 5. |
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MagnoliaWhisper
True Blue Farmgirl
2817 Posts
Heather
Haysville
Kansas
USA
2817 Posts |
Posted - Mar 23 2011 : 07:48:15 AM
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I agree with a lot of the PP.
However, I forgot to mention what Dawn did. I think it's very important at each appointment to ask exactly what each vaccine is they want to give and then weigh out which ones you want and which ones you may not want and which ones you want to wait for.
For instance as Dawn said, we do not get the flu shot. I am a type 1 diabetic, I got it for years, each of those years I got the flu shot I had the worst flu in my life (lasting up to 9 months! Usually resulting in pneumonia, and hospital stays, the last time it ended in me having a lung fungus they weren't sure if they would be able to stop!). I stopped getting the flu shot and as a result stopped getting the flu! I have been so much healthier ever since.
As for the Rotovirus I did get it for one of my preemies, but none of the others.
I also chose not to have some of the other vaccines that I just don't see the point of. For instance the chicken pox vaccine. We all got it, we're all still alive and well. Yeah it was miserable for a little while but it sure didn't kill any of us. I just don't see a reason to compromise a still developing immune system with something for just in case, when if in case they did get it, it wouldn't kill them, and in case they didn't get it and didn't get the shot their developing immune system wouldn't be under so much stress. But, it's all a personal choice. Not trying to push people one way or another. As for the MMR we are waiting for that. I will get it, but at 5 instead of 1. I seen far too many of my nieces and nephews be overly effected by the MMR. At 5 their immune system is built up much better to handle it.
When we were kids the MMR wasn't all in one shot. Now they will not give it seperately. I think if they would give them individually spaced out, even at 1 maybe kids could handle it better. But, in NYC they want to give you the MMR and about 10 other shots as well all on the same day! It's insane. And just so overwhelming I think. But, again personal choice.
My point was. You personally may not want all the shots, and then there may be some you don't mind having them take. So I think the best advice is to ask about the individual shots, and think about them individually and age wise for each of your children individually instead of a overall blanket choice on all of them.
On the other hand, if you do decide not to accept some. I would be very resolved in that, and also take a supporting person. Perferably a man. I am a woman hear me roar. lol I am not a mild woman etc. At the same time, the cold hard fact is most people won't question a man's decision like they do a woman's! So I discussed every thing with my husband first, and told him he had to come with me on days I knew they would want to immunize (which in NYC is pretty much every appointment the first 2 years!) and told him if he really believed the same as me, then he needed to stand behind me on it at the office and not seem like he would waiver. He did and it helped a lot. Not only that but they made us both sign papers on law ones, like the MMR saying we were taking full responsibility etc. And that the dr fully informed us she could become deaf, or blind because we didn't accept and this and that and the other. Again though I did tell them we would get the MMR at some point, but not at 1 when at the time my DD was only 12 lbs! (I have small babies!). My dr didn't understand the spacing and kept saying well that was when her booster would be due, didn't understand I was saying I wanted to start with it then, and then we would get her "booster" in 4 years after that.
But, any way, again research and then make choices on individual vaccines, and I think that helps a bit, depending on your office. I hear some offices are better then others. I didn't have many choices for peds (with my insurance) in NYC. But...oh well. It has been working ouy so far.
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
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knittingmom
True Blue Farmgirl
665 Posts
AnneMarie
Edmonton
Alberta
Canada
665 Posts |
Posted - Mar 25 2011 : 4:20:08 PM
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We chose not to vaccinate our children after much research (including reading the material that comes with the vaccines). While I am not completely against vaccination per se, it is a medical treatment and we felt at this time that we didn't want our children to have this.
The bottom line is really inform yourself and trust your gut instinct.
"There is no foot so small that it cannot leave an imprint on this world" |
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Melina
True Blue Farmgirl
435 Posts
Melina
USA
435 Posts |
Posted - Mar 25 2011 : 8:04:10 PM
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My vet won't even over-vaccinate a puppy! He spaces them out, with the rabies separate from the last distemper/parvo. I'm all for immunization of infants and children (I remember the tail-end of the polio scare when I was a little kid), but I do think the number given at one time is a real burden on their systems.
The morning breeze has secrets to tell you. Do not go back to sleep.
Rumi |
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walkinwalkoutcattle
True Blue Farmgirl
1675 Posts
Megan
Paint Lick
KY
USA
1675 Posts |
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CurlysQuilts
True Blue Farmgirl
569 Posts
Sarah
Northeast Kingdom
VT
USA
569 Posts |
Posted - Mar 26 2011 : 08:57:48 AM
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Read The Vaccine Book. I was totally against vaccines, but he has a great dialogue about what's safe and what's not. He also offers a more spaced out reduced amount of shots that are really necessary for infants (like the diseases that are fatal when they are under two). It made me change my approach, and I have vaccinated in a limited way.
Curly's Quilts
www.curlysquilts.etsy.com
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” - Micah 6:8
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Tall Holly
True Blue Farmgirl
2305 Posts
Holly
Worcester
Vermont
USA
2305 Posts |
Posted - Mar 28 2011 : 5:31:27 PM
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We did not get the chicken pox vaccine. If the children had not contracted them by the time they were teens then I would have had it done. I have not had my children vacinated with the cervical cancer shot either. There is not enough evidence for me toconsider that one.
Our pediatrician will listen and discuss our opinions.
Our children had all of the other shots with no adverse side effects. Actually the only nap our daughter took after she was nine months old was the day she had a set of her shots. She stopped playing snuggled up next to me and went to sleep. she woke up for supper and was fine. Naps were not for her. lol
Holly
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1143 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1143 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2011 : 6:44:27 PM
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My kids have had most of the vaccines, though not rotovirus...and possibly not varicella; I can't remember. We did not get flu shots this year. I was not comfortable with the H1N1, and also, I mean, I NEVER have had a flu shot...even as a child. I realize that the flu CAN be deadly, but it is typically worse for people with immunity issues or pre-existing conditions. Just read the information out there.
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
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peebs
Farmgirl in Training
26 Posts
Yannira
Connecticut
26 Posts |
Posted - Mar 30 2011 : 5:38:42 PM
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| I have to say that although my children are immunized, there are some vaccines that I chose not to give my children. At the top of that list was the H1N1. I felt that there was not enough information on it when the craze came out, and they were urging everyone to get it. The second one was the HPV vaccine that they wanted to give my then 15 year old daughter. With much hesitation, I agreed to the first shot, but quickly told the doctor no to the second and third part of the vaccine, when she started getting pounding headaches on a daily basis and still had them three weeks later. It is a sensitive subject, and one I agree should be researched by us parents before immunizing our children (and of course our pets) with certain vaccines. |
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walkinwalkoutcattle
True Blue Farmgirl
1675 Posts
Megan
Paint Lick
KY
USA
1675 Posts |
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Dusky Beauty
True Blue Farmgirl
1108 Posts
Jen
Tonopah
AZ
USA
1108 Posts |
Posted - Apr 15 2011 : 2:39:49 PM
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Whooping cough is making a big comeback. I have an 8 month old at home and when I took my mother to the emergency room last month there was a baby on the other side of the curtain hacking away with that telltale cough struggling to breath. If my precious baby wasn't immunized, I could have brought that infection home on my clothes and passed it when I hugged her.
Please keep in mind, your doctors DO see children die from Whooping cough, even if you don't.
In the end, you really are accountable to your own conscience. But I dont think I could live with myself if I lost one of my children to a preventable disease because some people had a low opinion of vaccines. It's your pediatrician's job to know the risks associated with everything in your community, and if you don't believe your pediatrician, why are you paying them to treat your child??
The last shots I had done at the 6 month mark were 2 actual shots, and one solution she had to drink and honestly, she wasn't all that traumatized. The shot list may look daunting, but remember that most of them are multiple protections in one actual shot.
I will continue to vaccinate on schedule as recommended, the same way i vaccinate my dogs to protect them from rabies, and my horses to protect them from mosquitos.
My husband and I really debated over the HPV shot, on the one hand, it's designed to protect them from the consequences of stds, and you worry that if you take that step, you're inviting promiscuity (like getting a teenage girl birth control "just in case"--GAH!)
In the end though, we decided that it was our job as loving parents to take measures to soften the blows of mistakes we know they probably will make regardless, as opposed to leaving them to their own devices and saying "sucks to you." They say with the statistics now, there's a 50/50 chance a sexually active young adult will be exposed. Your reach may extend to the morals you teach YOUR child, but what about the person they marry?
After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot him. The moral: When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut.” ~Will Rogers |
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MagnoliaWhisper
True Blue Farmgirl
2817 Posts
Heather
Haysville
Kansas
USA
2817 Posts |
Posted - Apr 15 2011 : 3:35:55 PM
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Not to cause a argument but actually a drs job and what they go to school for is not for medication, but to diagnose illnesses. Medication school is for Pharmacist. My own mother is a dr, and while I have no doubt her motives are pure, her schooling was not in medication. Most drs get medication education from drug reps, hired by the pharmaceutical companies pawning their drugs. So of course they will be biased. It's not a question of trusting our drs, as much as trusting the pharmaceutical companies who have been known to lie over and over. If you don't believe that turn on the TV, there's not a commercial segment on tv that doesn't have at least one commercial to call X lawyers to get in on X lawsuit for damage that X drug did that was approved and given to you. In fact, I myself have been damaged by a drug I was given 20 years ago and just now is on the commercials about the damage it does, mean while 20 years ago I didn't know why at 14 years old I had colon cancer! Now we know it was a side effect of the drug that the drs trusted to prescribe. Do I blame my dr? No way that wasn't his job to know. Do I blame the drug company YES. Do I think my dr 20 years ago had impure motives in prescribing it to me, or was inept in his education not at all......but this is just truth of how drugs and medicine work in this country.
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
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Dusky Beauty
True Blue Farmgirl
1108 Posts
Jen
Tonopah
AZ
USA
1108 Posts |
Posted - Apr 15 2011 : 5:32:52 PM
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I wasn't referring to medications being a doctor's job, but I do mean that you (should) expect your pediatrician to know how dangerous it is to be going around your town without vaccines, I haven't pressed mine for the gritty details, but she works with a lot of low income and immigrants too, and I'm sure she's had to treat babies with these ailments she has my children on a vaccination schedule to prevent.
Different medications do come and go, but the majority of vaccines have been around for a long time, and i chose a pediatrician to be an expert on what's best for my child. I'm fortunate to live in an area with a lot of medical schools and competition for practices is stiff as so many people come to school here and want to stay for the nice weather. On average, we have a higher standard of care. The city I grew up in though, was a small mining town with awful doctors. I would have been better off with a vet than in my obgyn's hands.
After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot him. The moral: When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut.” ~Will Rogers |
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4forMe
True Blue Farmgirl
166 Posts
Dawn
Easton
MD
166 Posts |
Posted - Apr 20 2011 : 04:13:12 AM
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I had a discussion with my pediatrician about two of my friends who both have sons diagnosed with Autism. Both of my friends say their babies were normal toddlers (interacting with others, walking, talking, etc)until the 18 month mark when they received their scheduled vaccines. Their Dr.s and the drug companies claim it is a coincidence that their boys ended up with Autism after the vaccines. I asked my pediatrician as we were noticing my then 9 month old son chatting (in baby talk), making eye contact and laughing with us, I said "what do you say to a mother of a baby like this who gets their vaccines and then the child becomes withdrawn and no longer interacts with others?" Do you say "oh darn, sorry". My pediatrician then just shrugged his shoulders and said "it is up to you, I will support your decision to wait".
Sewing, knitting, gardening mom of 5. |
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walkinwalkoutcattle
True Blue Farmgirl
1675 Posts
Megan
Paint Lick
KY
USA
1675 Posts |
Posted - Apr 20 2011 : 05:48:06 AM
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http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-31727_162-20015982-10391695.html
I'm sure this won't be the last award either-theyre have been billions, and BILLIONS of dollars awarded to families over the years from adverse reactions to vaccines.
I'm choosing to space my vaccines out for my child, and I believe that is the best choice for MY FAMILY and OUR RISK LEVEL. We are not putting our child in daycare, and we are not in an urban area. She will also have all her required vaccinations (Except for Chicken pox, we will be opting out of that one through the legal system in place) before school. I believe it is my responsibility to look BEYOND the person giving the advice, and see who is telling them/paying them to give that advice.
My doctor has discussed with me, at length, about the difference in amount of shots between my generation and todays children. I recieved 8 as a child. Todays children receive 32. 4 TIMES the amount of chemicals! If we're so worried about being organic, overloading our systems with vaccines seems backwards. To me, slowly vaccinating so the body doesn't get overloaded seems like a fair compromise, and my doctor fully backs it.
Farmgirl #2879 :)
Starbucks and sushi to green fried tomatoes and corn pudding-I wouldn't change it for the world.
www.cattleandcupcakes.blogspot.com
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Family Matters: Immunizations |
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Immunizations
