Seeking Advice on Non-standard Vaccination Schedule

My girls are 13 months and we also have decided to hold off on vaccinating. We are waiting to start until they are 18 months old. I am a SAHM and so I don't have the concerns of them being exposed at daycare. We also have had to keep them out of our Church's nursery as a precaution...which stinks, but is a small price to pay. If I had it my way, I would keep them from being vaccinated completely - there are just so many factors and research out there these days. Just because Drs recommend something doesn't mean that it is the best option...in fact the Drs have to recommend the vaccinations - the companies that produce them help keep food on their tables and Hummers in their driveways...haha. Anyway, stick to your guns...don't let anyone talk you out of your choice as a parent. My Dr gave me a paper describing each vaccinine and what it was for and the risks and all that...maybe your Dr has something like this? Always ask for mercury free vaccines and check labels, and we plan on spreading them out big time...like no more than 1-2 vaccines at a time. If it takes until they are 5 to get them all in...so be it. And, by the way, your child cannot be refused education just because they do not have all (or any) of their shots...that is a myth! You have the right to choose as a parent - and they can't do anything about it! :) Good luck!

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Hi A.! Read "The Vaccine Book" by Robert Sears. Great resource for vaccine's and alternate schedules. I have a 1 year old as well and we have been only doing 2 vaccines at a time since she was born. I made my own schedule based off the book's. There are too many unknowns about this "overdosing" of vaccines that the CDC is recommending. Hope that helps. I have definitely seen a better vaccine tolerance from this daughter than I did with my first daughter. Good Luck!
N. S.

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The Vaccine Book by Dr. Sears has an alternate schedule in it. You can get some information from the web site www.thevaccinebook.com but I do not think he gives all the info from the book on the site.

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A.,

I'm SO glad you posted this question, because I hadn't heard of Dr. Sears' Vaccine Book, (so now I have to go buy that!) and it sounds like what I need.

I had my son (now 9) vaccinated up until the MMR, which I had my doubts about, but listened to the doctor. He had a severe reaction to it, and developed some personality quirks that had not been present before. After that, I quit the vaccines. My second child (now 5) only received the polio and hepatitis vaccines. They may get more as they get older, and I decide they are ready. Now that I know about Dr. Sears' book, I may follow that.

As far as their health is concerned........everyone that knows my children are always amazed at how healthy they are - rarely catch a cold, haven't had a stomach bug (vomiting) since 2003, and between the two of them have only had one case of pink eye, and one ear infection. It's my personal belief that it's because they did not get all those nasty things put into them from the vaccines.

Now, I have to say, I do want my son to get the mumps vaccine, as it can cause sterility problems if he gets them as an adult....but my pediatrician will give him the mumps vaccine, without the measles and rubella. They CAN split them up, so don't let anyone tell you they can't.

Congratulations on your decision for an alternate schedule!

I am so glad to see more and more parents questioning these things nowadays, rather than blindly following a "one size fits all" schedule!

Blessings, J.

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Dear A.,
The problem with vaccinations is that is one size fits all. But our kids are different inside and out. After reading, "How to Raise a Healthy Child in Spite of Your Doctor" I stopped immunizing my children. It is about a doctor who practiced medicine for 30 years and saw the needless and even harmful advice of his colleagues. It gives you the harmful side of vaccinating your child. I highly recommend you read this book before immunizing your child.
It is up to you, ultimately whether or not you vaccinate your child. You must do your homework and search on the inernet, read books, and educate yourself.

L. M.

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A.,

I know the concern you have about vaccinations - we had the same 3 years ago when our little one came along. I read the book 'What Your Doctor May Not tell you About Children's Vaccinations'. I got it on Amazon. After reading that and some other resources, we realized that we have a choice and learned that children should not be vaccinated until after they are two because their immune system is not fully developed until then. Consequently the chance of asthma, allergies, diabetes, Autism, and many other childhood challenges are lessened. To date, she still has not had the vaccinations and we will decide as we go. We have several doctor friends who's children have never had vaccinations, some are now in high school and college and interestingly enough, have never been sick. Our little girl is extremely healthy!(We also use only non toxic cleaning products from Shaklee. (www.getcleangogreen.us)
Hope this helps and ultimately, we all do what we feel is best for our children.

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With all the diseases out there these days I wouldn't NOT get any vaccination that is required. Probably the ONLY one I wouldn't get is the chickenpox and the flu... those two things are things that we all had when we were growing up, just a "let it run it's course" type thing. But with everything else that's out there, I surely would want my kids vaccinated. Not to mention, she won't be able to go to school without having ALL her shots anyway. They give out the shots for a reason. Best to be safe than sorry :)
Have fun, and DON'T BLINK!! They grow up way too fast. My girls are 17 yrs. and 13 yrs. TOO FAST!!!

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Personally, I would get as many done at one time as possible- they are going to cry anyway, so why spread out the pain? They put shots together that can be put together, so I would much rather get them all done at the same time than have to cart them back to the doctor more than needed to get more shots. Spreading them out will just prolong the pain.

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I don't have any real advice on a schedule. But, more and more people are opting out of vaccines now. Do the research on the specfic disease and see if that is one that you want or not. But, check with your school before you make the decision to vaccinate just for that reason. Not all schools are like that. Since more people are choosing not to vaccinate, there are schools that don't require all.

I would check with your doctor before doing this. Many of the vaccines come combined now so they are getting less shots. My son has never recieved more than 4 at once and that was at his one year visit. You can also ask that they tag team her. When ever there has been more than 2 shots they always had another person come in and they counted down 3,2,1 and stuck at the same time. At this young of an age they pain is very short lived. Just be sure to give her plenty of tylenol before she goes.

We are following the alternate schedule in The Vaccine Book.

http://www.askdrsears.com/thevaccinebook/

I like the book because it seems balanced and helpful. We have had to go to the health dept. vs. pediatrician because we want low/no aluminum, but we called around and have been able to find good info... So far, so good... Good luck!

I have wanted to send you a response but have gotten busy over this past month. I have my son on a non-standard vaccination schedule. He was getting his shots regularly up until before his 15 month schedule and I just so happened to read an article about vaccinations and Autism. So I started researching and decided to delay his shots. I got this book called What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations by Stephanie Cave. It is not against vaccinations but it gives you an alternative schedule that would be better for your child. It also helps your learn about each vaccination and possible side effects. I have recently started up my son's shots again, but am getting them done one at a time and several months apart. I am also splitting up the MMR into three single shots and again several months apart. Get the book if you can and see if it would work for your family.

The way I handled it with my boys was I never let the doc give them more than two single vaccinations or one combined vacc at a time. I did this from the day they were born. We went to the doc every month for the first year or so, but I didn't care... made me feel better knowing they weren't getting so much injected at once into their little bodies. Once they got bigger, I didn't worry as much but I still never let them get more than two shots total per visit. My boys are now 3-1/2 and 6 years old and doing great.

dr sears vaccine book is AWESOME when seeking advice on vaccinations. he offers a non-biased in detail explaination of each vaccine and the pros and cons. lots of interesting information about vaccine ingredients. he suggests an alternate vaccine schedule for parents who want to be selective.

At this age your child doesn't need a whole lot of vaccinations anymore. The easiest thing to do is to get whatever ones your daughter needs all at once as opposed to getting them at different times. It is best for your child to have all vaccinations because when she goes to start school she will need to have all of her vaccinations or else they will not let her start until she is caught up. The only way that you can get by that is if you can prove it is a religious reason that she doesn't have them at all or just a certain few. Also, all doctors will reccommend that she has them all for her health and safety. I would reccommend that you get all of her shots and do them when they need to be done.
D.

I am 31 and have been married for almost 12 yrs. My husband and I have 3 boys ages 10,7 and 4.

I read an amazing book called "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccines" by Stephanie Cave with Deborah Mitchell. It goes into great detail about all of the vaccines offered to our children and it provides a great schedule which focuses more on seperating the vaccines a bit. This book does not suggest to not vaccinating your child, it just educates you about what you are putting into your child's body and an alternate way to do so. It even suggests some simple things you can do at with vitamins to help ensure your child won't have a negative reaction to her vaccines.

I split them in 1/2. Example, at 1 year you get prevnar, mmr, chicken pox (varicella) and hepatitis A. There is a hep A shortage, so she probalby won't get that one. I gave her MMR and 1 month later went back for prevnar/chickenpox. My dr. said there is no benefit to breaking them up. I'm not comfortable with giving them to her all together. Each new series my daughter receives, I talk with her pediatrician and I try to split up the ones that are more painful to recive (MMR) and have higher chances of fever/other side effects.

It's more trips to the doctor, but it gives me greater peace of mind. Good Luck!

I wish I had read the vaccine book by Dr. Sears before I had my son. I would have definitely done the delayed vaccination schedule. He explains vaccinations in great detail and gives recommendation about each one whether it is really necessary or not. I would recommend you get his book.

Hopefully this helps. My baby is now 8 mos & still have not received her 6 mos shot yet. A friend of mine daughter is 22 mos, still have not received her 12 mos shot yet & another friend of mine scheduled 1 vaccination per mth, which is what I intend to do from now on. You can schedule the shots in the order in which you want. I don't think the Dr mind. I am very terrified too b/c I heard too many stories about children w/ autism following that 12 mos shot. It is quite ok.

Dr. Sears has a non traditional Vac Schedule- you can go to his web site and I think it shows you there. I elected to do a split schedual. I go every month for vacs with my daughter and have them split them up- she's getting all of them, just not all at once. And I would encourage all the vaccines- It protects other children too besides your own. I would make sure you have your child gets DTAP and Prevnar absolutely no questions asked for their protection. Hope this helps!

What "I" would do is not get any more vaccines until she turns 2 - at that time I would start with (1) SINGLE DOSE vaccine and wait at least 6 months inbetween to get another. It is especially important to make sure they separate the MMR into three (3) shots given at separate visits. Trust me, as a mother who had no idea and got the shots on time, now dealing with a vaccine injured - speech delayed child - the risk outweighs the benefit. There are several sites that you can find info on the recommended delayed schedules. I would try either Generationrescue.org or TACA for more information.

Sadly, the government is approving new vaccines that have up to 6 shots combined into 1 needle now - in spite of everything that is going on.

our ped's talked to us about this and apparently some of them are quite madatory. why don't you want your child vaccinated? let me tell you, my sister is the same, against a lot of vaccines b/c 1 or 2 children out of millions ended up with autism. i think you need to talk to your peds about this. my sister has until her daughter is two (just like our peds office) for the mandatory vaccines otherwise she's getting kicked out of their practice. sorry to be so blunt. i know it's hard not knowing but some of these vaccines have been out since we were babies and we all turned out ok.
i just read through some of these responces you received and i have a dr sears book, and frankly believe that the dr's are against him. he teaches everything opposite of what dr's tell you. i know that the dr's are in best interest of our kids, not the money.
good luck with whatever you choose. i would sit down and talk w/ your dr before deciding anything.

I'm glad you could find advice on a non-standard schedule, but I am surprised to only see ONE author on the subject. I worked for a family practice for over 5 years and there is a reason that there are required vaccines: these childhood illnesses can be eliminated by getting the child vaccinated. Getting the shots done in groups eliminates the need for more trips to the doctor and causes more needle sticks for a child to feel and to be afraid of in the future. Maybe you can adjust the time-frame, so yoru child does not get them as early, but still gets them all? Just be advise that unless you are planning to home school (and maybe even then), your child will need to be caught up on all of the required ones by the time they start kindergarten. If that is what you really want to do for your child, good luck! (but having my children vaccinated on a set schedule was one less issue I needed to worry about in raising my children).
FYI: If you rely on everything that is written on the Internet, you will get conflicting advise. Go to www.webmd.com or other verified/reputable medical sites to get valid information.

I'm doing this right now with my son and quite frankly the doctor is ticked about this . How dare we parents pretend to know more than him. yes it costs more this way but our child is worth it. Keep up the good work.

Here is my kids adjusted schedule: DTap, Hib and Prevnar around 6 months old, plus boosters every two months (or however frequent the dr suggested, not really sure). Then Hepatitis A and MMR around two. I would get them the polio vaccine if we were going to leave the country, but here in America it hasn't been around in years.
I recommend "Vaccinations, A Thoughtful Parents Guide" by Romm...it really is very impartial.
I think vaccines are a money making scheme from pharmaceutical companies who are fantastic at marketing their products with scare tactics. And I'm buying it a little, I guess.
S.