Vaccines - Worcester, MA

I had also struggled with the decision to vaccinate after my 5th child was born. It seemed that the doses were more frequent and when I asked why... the dr. said because one or two wasn't enough. That is when I started doing my research. I no longer do vaccinations. I now have 10 children and my last 5 have had no vaccinations at all. My children are all healthier. They don't get sick as often. In fact since I stopped vaccinating my children haven't been to the dr.s for any illnesses. There are homeopathic options that you can look into for vaccinating. It is much safer!!

Research into vaccines after my first had some questionable reactions led me to stop vaccinating as well. I still regret vaccinating my oldest whose sensory issues I think are directly related to her vaccines. I'm also relieved that we didn't give my son any vaccines: just before he turned 2 we discovered that he has celiac disease and his gut had been damaged as a result. I believe that he would have been a prime candidate for vaccine damage as a result of this unknown condition.

With early vaccination you really don't have time to know whether a child has any underlying health issues before assaulting their immune system. At the very least, I would recommend waiting until age 2 to start so that they have a chance to develop their immune system first. Needless to say, my son and the baby won't be receiving any vaccinations!

Good luck! It's a tough decision for everyone!

this is a really personal decision as so many other moms have said. i just believe everyone should make an educated decision. i am posting my list of resources below - feel free to ask me any questions or add to my 'collection'!!! as for us - we have chosen to wait. it's a daily consideration - and one we have been happy with so far. my 3 1/2 year old has never had antibiotics, tylenol, or tradtional medicines - and we were 'full term' nursing and eating healthy. most kids i know who are not vaxed - are very healthy but they also have parents who make sure they are eating healthy which definitely makes a difference to one's immune system. we treat all of our illnesses with homeopathic remedies, traditional osteopathy, accupuncture and chinese herbs and supplements. we are not anti western med at all - see a time and place for it - but view medicine as preventitive rather than reactive. if you do decide to vaccinate - just make sure your child is not sick and hasn't been for a few days before. if you can - make sure they are as calm as can be for the actual shot. and if you notice any reaction - report it and keep note of it for future reference.
hope this helps!
J.

Vaccination Information

Books:
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations By Stephanie Cave, M.D., F.A.A.F.P. (pro vaccine)

Vaccines: Are They Really Safe And Effective? By Neil Miller.
The Vaccine Guide By Randall Neustaedter (non vaxer).

Natural Family Living By Peggy O'Mara, the publisher of Mothering Magazine.

I village has some great message boards – for vax debate, non-vax support and many other boards (breastfeeding, etc)

http://messageboards.ivillage.com/n/main.asp?webtag=iv-pp...

Article:
Deadly Immunity by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. – EXCELLENT article!!! I have a copy I can email to you.

Video:
Dr. Jay Gordon’s seminar at the Skirball Cultural Center – the first event in the “Well Loved Baby” series called “Vaccinations?” - www.childcaremedia.com/dvdproducts.php

Websites:
www.mothering.com
www.drfeder.com
www.drjaygordon.com

http://www.whale.to/a/hoax.html

www.909shot.com

http://www.909shot.com/state-site/state-exemptions.htm - state exemption laws

www.tetrahedron.org

www.vaclib.org

www.thinktwice.com.

http://www.mmrfacts.nhs.uk/library/timeline.php?t=showall or search NHS

http://www.cispimmunize.org/fam/thimrosal.html

http://www.cispimmunize.org/fam/mmr/a_faq.html

http://www.cispimmunize.org/fam/mmr/a_report.html

http;//www.aap.org/advocacy/archives/julvacc.htm

http://www.medalerts.org/ (where also is found an online, searchable version of the VAERS database. Just have a look at what that thing is saying about the Hepatitis B vaccine! )

http://www.nmaseminars.com/

http://www.whale.to/vaccines.html

http://www.mercola.com/

http://www.mercola.com/article/vaccines/immune_suppressio...
http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles/list01.htm

http://www.proliberty.com/observer/

And, the following article on the Hep B vaccine is excellent:
http://www.insightmag.com/news/438502.html
"The EPA limit is 0.1 micrograms of mercury per kilogram body weight per day. It doesn't take a genius to do the calculations when on their day of birth children are given the hepatitis B vaccine, which is 12.5 micrograms of mercury. The average newborn weighs between 6 and 7 pounds, so they would be allowed 0.3 micrograms of mercury - but in this one shot they are getting 12.5 micrograms. That's 39 times more than allowed by law. And it gets worse when you consider that children are getting multiple vaccinations at 2 months. And this limit is for *oral ingestion* and not injection, which is much worse."

http://www.vaccinesafety.edu/thi-table.htm (the vaccines shaded in grey are no longer produced)

Hi L.,
This is one of those hard questions that I'm struggling with as well. One of the biggest problems I have with the whole thing is that we are not told what is in the vaccines, or sometimes even that they are optional -- we're just pretty much given the impression that they're mandatory, and that this is the schedule. I just went along with this for my first 3 kids, and then someone told me that the new chickenpox vaccine, which my state had already mandated, was made using aborted fetal tissue, as was the MMR, and one of the brands of polio vaccine. That's when I started researching, and my next 2 kids didn't receive the MMR or chickenpox vaccines. There are alternatives for the measles and the mumps ones, but they are hard to get unless you buy an entire lot of them, or if your pediatrician has enough demand for them and orders a lot. There is no alt. yet for Rubella. I heard so much conflicting info., that I decided to wait on vaccinating my 6th child, and he has been the healthiest of all my kids. My younger threee have all had the chickenpox, which they got from my older daughter, who got shingles, even though she had had the vaccine, which was supposed to prevent that! I'm really thinking that assaulting their little bodies with all these vaccinations doesn't give them time to naturally develop antibodies to fight disease, so I am determined that I will not vaccinate until they are at least two, and maybe not even then. It's a tough call, and you will probably get a lot of flak if you decide not to vaccinate, but ultimately, it's your call. All I know is that my youngest, who has never been vaccinated, has only been to the doctor a couple times, and never for anything serious, besides the chickenpox, and he is almost two. That speaks volumes to me. Good luck, and remember, whatever you decide, you're doing the best you can to make the right decision for your baby, and that's all anyone can ask of you.

I know the MMR is the one which some people feel is linked to autism. I called the board of health in my town when my child needed it. Apparently, they have taken out the thimerasol (spelling?) which was the low level mercury ingredient...although pharm. companies still claim that the allegations were never true (but I wonder). Another idea may be to contact WHO (World Health Organization) to see if they have any info. I remember there was a Mom I knew who wouldn't give her children vaccines since everyone else was getting them. She felt that would keep her kids out of harms way. I was a bit upset by that, because if we all had that attitiude, certainly a lot of these illnesses would re-appear! It's a tough call, and only you can make the final decision. If you use any alternative care physicians, you may want to pick their brain as well. Good luck!

Hi L.- thanks for asking the question, I have been struggling with the same thing with my now 9 mo. old daughter. She got her first rounds of vaccines- much to my chagrin. The night before each of her Dr. appts I spent HOURS online reading about vaccines and not really liking what I was finding! She is not due for any at 9 mo. and I've decided I'm going to hold off on the rest of them until she is a little bit older...I'm not completely opposed to all of them and understand they serve some good in some instances, but her little body seems so tiny to be having to deal w/ all of that stuff.

I think by putting them off in my mind until she is 2ish allows me some peace in thinking about it and allows her to develp a bit more on her own. Every day she seems stronger and healthier, so by the time she is two maybe it won't bother me so much...

Hi L.,

Doing your research is the key to this issue. If you are breastfeeding and your child is in a low risk population (no day care) then you may choose to delay vaccinations until your son is older and his immune system is stronger. My family practice doc was cool with my decision not to vaccinate my children until they were 4 years old and then only to do limited vaccines. Although, with the pertussis outbreak this past winter we did choose to err on the side of caution and give that vaccine, originally we only chose to give the polio and MMR vaccines starting at 4 years old.

Again, the key is making informed choices.

Be well,

A.

Talk to your pediatrician about your concerns, and ask them to give you the information that they have about the vaccination schedule as it is. The AMA didn't just decide to give vaccines on a whim. Vaccinations are scary, but remember, tons of babies used to die from measles, chickenpox, influenza, etc. Many, many children's lives have been saved by vaccinations. I'm not a "believe everything your dr tells you" person, but I don't reject the medical establishment out of hand either. Assuming that you have found a pediatrican that you trust and respect, try to get their honest assessment of the situation. On a practical level, your son will have to be vaccinated according to schedule for daycare or school, assuming that you will someday be going that route.

I too worried about if/when to vaccinate my child. I highly recommend you include the CDC's website in your research. I found through them that the MMR has never been manufactured with thimerisol (a type of mercury) - although I still chose to have the shot broken up into three separate shots, each a month apart. I personally feel vaccination is worthwhile. Today's world is global not local. This means that people from countries that don't vaccinate the way we do will expose our population to diseases we think are eradicated or on their way to being eradicated. If your child is not in daycare, you may think your child is safe from disease, but that's not really true. Everyone that comes to your home is potential carrier of disease - why not prevent what you can rather than have to deal with a horrible disease? Even if you choose not to vaccinate, you're child will fare reasonably well because most other children are vaccinated. Do your research and make the best informed decision you can for you and your child.
All the best,
H.

We do not vaccinate either-- now. My first two had some, spaced and my daughter who is 23yrs suffers from arthritis type symptoms because of vaccinations. They started shortly after her first set, as an infant. I was young, impressionable and did what the army doctors said to do. Then, I began to read and devour information from both sides and decided not to do anymore shots. So......with my grand daughter(son's daughter-mother left), I do not have her vaccinated. Actually, she has never been to the doctor(even born at home) and has never even had a runny nose. She is 2yrs 8ms old now.

Vaccinations have not saved lives, living conditions have changed, sanitation situations have changed and people are more aware of what to avoid, even washing one's hands prevent disease. My mother who survived whooping cough when she was 60 yrs old, barely, had been vaccinated and the doctors from CDC said that most vaccinations do not last but several years now and they are finding out that some people would need them every two years to do anything. So....you see, even the CDC knows the truth and doesn't tell the public at large about it.

When you cut yourself badly and get treated at the ER, they always give a "booster" tetnus shot regardless when the last one was...if over a year old. WHY? Because they know the truth about how long these shots last in reality!

If there is ever an outbreak of something, the vaccinations will be available at that time, if you are concerned.

I always wondered about these vaccines myself, however, I have done some research on this as well and have found that I would much rather deal with a fever for 24 hours than the long term affects of one of the diseases these shots are designed for.
Each child is different but what would you do if you had the option to vaccinate and didnt? I'm not trying to make you feel guilty, so if I do I apologize.
The fact that you consider it makes you a great mom, spacing them out might be better for you and your child rather than not vaccinating at all. They give you guidelines for when your child should have the shots by so they dont necessarily need to be completed all in one visit.

Can I recommend Dr. Robert Sears' "The Vaccine Book"? He is a pediatrician who is the son of the famous Dr. William Sears, author of "Attachment Parenting" and a dozen other books.

He explores the vaccination schedule and agrees that the way vaccinations are way too much, way too early, and some are unnecessary. He offers several alternative vaccine schedules in his book, that I am applying to my third child.

Hi L., I have not researched extensively but I did specifically ask my doctor about the possible connection between Autism and vaccinations. She said that there was only one study done on that issue and that the study was not very authentic. So she really down played that theory. It's just one woman/doctor's opinion though - for what that's worth.