What to Do to Avoid Reactions to Immunizations...

Please take the time, even if that means putting the appointment off for a few weeks and do some research. I am not saying vaccines are bad but, for me personally, I think doctors are administiring too many at one time. The last thing you want are serious life long side effects when it could've been prevented. Good luck to you!

I do not know what you can do, but not one of my 4 children have ever had a reaction to any of their immunizations, including a fever. Good Luck!

My heart goes out to you K.! You clearly made your decision about vaccines and have even explained that you are going to space them out---all you wanted was a little advice about preventing 'reactions'. But you have gotten some intense responses!
This is obviously a very emotionally charged subject and I honestly almost didn't try to get pregnant with my third because I didn't want to have to go through the worry ever again. It seems there are risks on both sides of the coin. I actually chose to vaccinate all three of my kids...but I really struggled with the decision each time. Once I had decided, however, it never helped when people scared me to death talking about how bad they are. I held my breath and prayed a lot (honest to God I actually went to church before each vaccination with my 16 month old!).

As far as preventing any minor reaction, etc. ...don't worry about the pain from the shot itself. She will cry of course, but they do get over it. I always massaged the areas of the shots BEFORE they were given so that the muscles were warmed up a bit. I also did give tylenol throughout the day depending on how the baby was acting (ie warm and feverish and miserable), but often didn't have to give anything because they would often do surprisingly well (wouldn't even know they had shots).
Good luck. Hope everything goes well.

Never ever ever give Tylenol before during or after vaccines!!! I really wish parents and doctors were more informed about this! Do your research and find out why! Some of the posts on here are wonderfully informative, others are ignorant and uninformed. I don't recommend vaccines at all, they make absolutely no sense, when given vaccines in a shot form, you are not mimicking the same effect as the disease since you are bypassing the immune system completely and just injecting it directly into the blood stream. Check out marytocco.com, she is a world renowned vaccine expert who has researching them for over 27 years, very very good information that makes perfect sense.
I realize that it can be scary not vaccinating after everything in the media and in the doctor office tells us it saves lives. But start digging deeper and looking into the INGREDIENTS in vaccines and what they do to the body and brain, then look into the different vaccines themselves and how bad the diseases actually are, and the bad ones are already eradicated from the country.
My son is part of the epidemic of Autism, think about the long term effects of having a severely disabled child with you for the rest of your life(you have better than a 1 in 150 chance! do you want to risk that?) vs. your child having the runs for a week or rash(oh my goodness, not a rash!) on their body for a week or two.
Please open your mind and rethink your position.

I would stay away from giving Tylenol. It can make it harder for the body to get rid of the toxins in the vaccines. I also reccomend spreading vaccines out especially since you are at home and your daughter isn't exposed to a daycare environment (she's at a very low risk for actually contracting any of these diseases while at home). Spreading them out can limit the reaction since there are fewer toxins that the baby's body has to fight off at once. And don't ever give vaccines when a baby is sick - even if she has a simple cold! If you think about it logically, even with a cold, the baby's tiny, still-developing immune system is already working to fight the cold so why add a vaccine on top of that. Most doctors will say it's fine to vaccinate unless there is a fever present and I disagree. That's another argument against giving Tylenol prior to a shot - Tylenol will mask any existing fever so you don't know if your child is truly healthy when you go in for the shot if you've given her Tylenol prior to the visit.

Dr. Sears has awesome info on vaccines that will help you to make more informed decisions (which will make you feel more confident about your decisions). The American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC really push this "one size fits all" vaccine schedule and it's mostly because they're afraid that kids won't ever get vaccinated if they don't do it early on (during well-baby visits). I'm not anti-vaccine (for the most part) but I am against this hyper-advanced schedule.

I think it's most important to do your own research and make your own decisions. Stand strong with your pediatrician. If he or she is a good doctor, they will listen to you.

I always give my daughters tylenol and ibprufen before the appointment. Usually what I do is give them the tylenol about two hours before the appointment and then bring the ibprufen with me and give that to them when we get to the doctor's office. Generally I get a comment about their low temperature, but it's more along the lines of "Oh, preparing for the shots aren't you?" I then continue the every two hour rotation for 24 hours after the shots, or as long as they are showing symptoms (still feverish or fretting). I've been doing that for five years now and it generally works. My oldest just had an update on her tetnus and I had to keep her on pain meds for a couple days because they put it in her arm instead of her leg. Legs are much better place!!

First relax. Shots are thankfully, part of life. If you don't give them the shots, google the alternatives and see what happens if you get polio at a young age. A little Tylenol is all that I gave my kids. Don't anticipate a reaction, but be aware of what they can be. Most children are playing and running around within a few minutes. The more relaxed and calm you are, your child will be less fearful.

Hello K.,

I have a 6 month old that I worried the same thing about. My doctor told me to BRING with me the tylenol with me and after they weighed him, we gave him the correct dose. My son had a slight reaction after his 2 and 4 month shots, but nothing major. We just kept up with the tylenol for a few days after his shots. I keep him close to home for a few days to limit any infection he may get. He got a nasty cold right after his 2 month shots (most likely from church)...

Good luck, it really hurts them more than us!

Hi K.!

We chose not to do immunizations until they are much older. The few we did, HIB and DTAP caused reactions around the injection site. Minor but still confirmed to me that their little bodies were not ready yet. Rates of autism are much higher than any of the diseases they "prevent".

I also believe that the chemicals in our foods combined with the immunizations have a big role. Keep everything as natural as possible especially around the time she will be getting the immunizations. So if you're nursing, stick to fruits/veggies/organic protein. Don't give more supplements/meds as you don't know how they will mix with the immunizations.

As a child, we were only immunized for a handful of things. Now there are about 20 things they inject into our babies. Some for STDs and common things like chicken pox. It all wreaks havoc on their immune systems. Get yourself educated from all sorts of places and make the best decision for your kids!

:o) G.
SAHM of 2 wonderful boys, 5 & 7.

The problem is that you don't know until they have a reaction if they will get one or not.

During my son's first immunization series, he had a fever and was lethargic for the rest of the day. During his second series, he didn't have any side effects at all.

I know that it is hard to see your child in pain from getting their shots, but I think that we experience more pain than our kids do because they will forget once the shots are done and we will remember how hard it was to hold them and hear them cry for that brief time.

My son always got a fever after his vaccinations. I gave him a dose of Tylenol 1 hour prior to his Dr. appointment. One thing I did do was delay his vaccinations by 4 or 6 mos. They are too tiny to get shots. Good luck

Hi K. -

I only read a couple entries and stopped because each of them addressed autism. DON'T LET THEM SCARE YOU! I am a single mom of three boys, two of which have autism and my third is on the autism border. Immunizations had NO affect on them getting autism. Bonafide research has shown this to be true. Go ahead and get your little one her immunizations. The majority of autism cases are in boys so you really have nothing to worry about. I believe autism is hereditary and it is also caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. Autism is not the end of the world, you just have to find a different way to teach them, that's all. I would give your little one a little bit of Motrin (Tylenol can have adverse effects on really little ones liver functions and Motrin lasts longer) then give her a warm bath a few hours after her shots and play it by ear as to if she needs anymore pain relief. All three of my boys did fine without anything for pain and had no reaction to the shots at all. It sounds like you're a little more worried about it than you need to be. Give yourself credit, mother's instinct will kick in and you'll do fine with her immunization aftercare.

I hope this helps - S.

all kids are different, my first cried a lot when getting her shots and to this day hates them, getting her kindergarten shots last year was a nightmare! but my second cried for a second and was fine. you might just be worring too much, which is understandable.

Such a great question! When my 8 wk old got his shots he was such a wreck that night (with a fever and the boob didn't even calm him!) I ended up giving him tylenol even though I didn't want to at all. So....I hope that someone gives you a great answer to waht to give your little girl besides tylenol. BTW...the tylenol worked great but I don't feel right giving that to my little guy. Not to mention, I went to whole foods to see if they had anything natural/homeopathic and they didn't have anything. Good luck...we have our 3 month shots in a month and I am not looking forward to it!

Hi K.,

It sounds like you have some unresolved concerns regarding vaccinations. In my opinion, I think you should do some extensive research BEFORE you have your daughter immunized.

You are a stay at home mom, and it seems you only have 1 child. Your daughter is at a VERY low risk for contracting anything. When my daughter was born we were living in Germany. I had her here, and then she and I went back to join her daddy. Our pediatrician there was GREAT. He was much more open to listening to our concerns with vaccinations. I had done my research and knew what I wanted to do, and he supported that.

I did want her to have the DPT, but I did NOT want her to have it at just 8 weeks old! I thought that is much much too young. Her system is still adjusting to being 'on the outside'! He said that there was NO reason we needed to give it at 8 weeks. We could wait until 5 months with NO issues.

One of my friends here in the states told me when her son was young, she really pressed her pediatrician regarding WHY they gave shots so early. Her pediatrician told her it was because when the babies are very young the parents are more likely to bring them in for well visits. There was no MEDICAL reason why they were given so young.

So, please, do your homework first. Your baby girl will be just fine if you wait. Many doctors don't look at the childs individual situation ... no day care, stay at home mom, etc... to determine their risk factor for getting sick. In addition, if you're breastfeeding she is protected quite a bit! My daughter literally was not sick at all for the entire time she was breastfeeding. As soon as she weaned herself... within a month she had her FIRST cold. She weaned herself at about 17.5 months.

As far as actually getting a disease like Polio as another mom suggested... unless you are going to travel outside the United States, the likely hood of getting Polio is extremely low. Almost non-existent.

Dr. Sears has a GREAT book ... The Vaccination Book. It is not meant to scare you, it is not written as an anti-vaccination book, it is just a well written book by a pediatrician about the FACTS regarding vaccinations. He has taken the time to research each vaccination, discuss the potential side affects (as described by the manufacturer), discuss how the vaccines are made, because for some, there are some issues regarding some of the igredients in the vaccinations... beyond the chemicals...but some have some animal components. So, for a vegan, that is an issue. In addition, he discusses the diseases they are designed to prevent. How serious they are, risk factors etc.... It is a excellent book to help you educate yourself.

Don't let doctors scare you into vaccinating your child. In addition, don't let the other side scare you into NOT vaccinating your child. As parents, we need to educate ourselves and then make decisions that make sense for OUR child and our family. A 'one size fits all' approach will only work for some...but for many it will not.

Doctors are limited by their education and their experience. Some doctors are going to be hard core western medicine doctors. Others, who understand that every child is different ... will be more open to discussing alternatives.

I will warn you...once you start researching vaccinations ... you can come across some pretty disturbing things. For example, Dr. Offit is a HUGE proponent of vaccinations. He is often considered the 'leading' authority on vaccinations and is quoted OFTEN. He is VERY hard core pro-vaccination. He really believes we all need to be shot up with everything in order to keep us all healthy. However, if you do a little digging, you find he actually holds a patent on one of the rotovirus vaccinations. This means he gets MONEY for every one of his vaccinations that is administered. He may be very smart...but it is hard for me to take someone serious when I know they have a monetary interest in the topic. Money is a huge motivator. For anyone.

In addition, there is something to be said for the bodies ability to protect us.

Yes, there are things you can do in order to help 'detox' the body from the harmful components of vaccinations. Dr. Sears talks about it a bit on his website...

www.askdrsears.com

Just relax, do your homework, ask questions. Make the decision that is right for you and your child.

Give tylenol an hour or so before the shots... Even if they get a fever it should be low grade...
None of my 3 have ever had anything more than a 100.- "fever"... No other types of reactions.

And to those that want to put up a "why are you giving them shots" posts... I personally do a delayed series of shots and my 2 yr old just recently got his one year shots finished... Same amount of pokes, just a different time period in between...

We had concerns about immunizations all together as my husbands second cousin was paralized after his 6 month immunizations. After talking to others (including a nurse that works with autistic kids in Oakland county) we decided to give one shot at a time and we space them one week apart. The key is to NOT go in public or have company over for about 2 or 3 days after the immunization because the immune system is already working hard from the shot - being exposed to others germs just increases your chances of catching something on top of it.

As far as the moment of the shot the only thing you can do is administer Tylenol at least 20 mins before the shot and give lots of love immediately after - this may come in the form of hugs, kisses, nursing, bottle, or favorite blanket or cuddly toy.

It is tough seeing your baby in pain even if it is for just a moment. Thank God that non of us remembers it later down the road. If we did we'd all be scarred. Be strong for her. She needs to see you not get worked up about it.

My Daughters Dr. Just told us to give her a little Tylenol before the shots. She did not have any reactions to her shots until 6 months, She didn't get a fever but you could just tell she felt crappy.

Good luck!!

everyone is different. my duaghter always ran a fever for each vaccine... my son never ran a fever. My daughter also gets a 103 fever with every cold that she gets.. so she is just a fever girl.

I did give tylenol if they needed it..

You can prevent a side effect becuase you dont know how she will react.. so you dont know what you are preventing.. some kids sleep more after a shot.. others sleep less..

You do not have to get any vaccines at this time. I didnt get any vaccines until 4 months for either child - but my kids were not in daycare so they did not have a lot of exposure to germs.

Ask the dr which shots are the most necessary at this time.. I think the hib is good at preventing ear infections. believe a shot is better than any ear infection...

I always used Tylenol (and Motrin once my daughter was over 6 months) for 24-48 hours after she got her shots. I have not heard about the vitamin C, but if you decide to use it and it works, let me know. I know my daughter really did not have much in the way of side effects from her shots until she got her MMR, and then she ran a fever for 2-3 days. Other than that it was just normal stuff like feeling a little blah.

You may want to consider spacing your immunizations. I did so with both of my children. For example, my kids would only get two at a time and we would go back in a couple of months to get two more. Our pediatrician was okay with this approach and it has worked for us.

Hi K.,
Every child and every situation is different and should be treated as such, but I just wanted to share my own personal experience. I gave both of my boys (who are now almost 4 and 2 1/2) tylenol before their very first shots and then not again after that - neither one of them had any sort of reaction to any of their shots at any time. They were both always in the high percentile for their height and weight (90-100) and I don't know this for a fact, but I believe that may have something to do with it. Hope this helps! Do what you feel in your gut!

K. :)