Mandatory Flu Shots in NJ

I know you can have a religious objection, even if you don't. The doula I worked with for my son's birth does this. Her children are in public school, and are not immunized. She said you can claim a religious objection, but that it is illegal for the state to question and ask what religion you are. So that may be a work-around. I asked my chiropractor--her kids are not vaccinated, but are not yet in school. She said there is a "religion" that was started by chiropractors exactly for this reason. Their only "belief" is not to put anything into the body or take anything out. She said you send in $25 and they send you the paperwork for the "church." I believe this link is what I'm talking about...of course to go that route, you'd probably have to be against all immunizations, not just the flu shot...

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E01E5DA15...

Some doctors will only guarantee mercury-free flu shots to kids under 2. If that's the case with your doctor, find another doc! My doctor is cool. She gives the flu shot 1/2 dose at a time the first year, just to make sure the baby doesn't respond poorly. If all goes well, the baby gets the rest of the dose a month later. It made me feel so much better about it! And I appreciated that she understood my concerns. Being heard makes all the difference.

Also, she told me that the nasal flu vaccine has a higher rate of poor responses in kids! How much does that stink???

Unfortunately, the law only allows for vaccines to be refused for religious purposes at any school in NJ- public or private. There is a specific form you fill out for that, but there isn't another option. (Like "philosophical" beliefs, etc.) NJ has the most conservative laws on vaccines in the whole nation. :(

A.,

Let me start off first by saying that I have a son who had a severe reaction to his 2 month round of shots, that left him permanently disabled, so I have a biased opinion. I do believe that boys have weaker immune systems, and there is a higher incidence of "reactions". I also think people with allergies are more prone to having reactions.

I have heard that some of the flu vaccines still contained traces of thimerosol. Also, the vaccines that have removed the "mercury", have been replaced with aluminum. I am not sure about sulfate and also the nasal mist shots.

That being said, I found a couple of websites that might help. NJ Alliance for Informed Choice http://www.njaicv.org/law.htm. There is also http://www.909shot.com/state-site/NewJersey.htm. that has a listing of different websites for NJ.

I hope this helps. Best of luck.

A.

http://www.gulfwarvets.com/waiver.htm

http://thinktwice.com/laws.htm#3

Hi A.:

We don't personally believe in immunizations. However, before making any decisions, try to educate yourself as best as possible. The 2 websites above contain immunization info and links to other sites. Some of it is very scary, be brave and try to keep an open mind.

We made the decision not to immunize after our oldest became very ill at 2 years old from that round of "shots".

Our girls are now 10 and 4 and are as healthy as oxen. Praise God!

Our 4 year old attends a day care center. The director shares our beliefs, however has to abide by the laws of the State of NJ for licensing reasons. This may be your facility's director is pushing it, if she does not, she may lose funding.

Our pediatrician has asked us about giving our 10 year old Gardasil. We refused. Not because she's not sexually active,(LOL!;)but because it really does not make any sense. The target group for this "study" is supposedly "women 10 to 30 years old." What about that very sexually active group of women 30 and over? Hummm? Makes one think.

Neither of our children have been immunized for anything. We do not believe in injecting our bodies with drugs of any kind, unless it is absolutely necessary for life. In this case they are not.

Our philosophy is we will battle any disease WHEN IT COMES since you cannot "immunize" yourself against everything. And our children (Praise God)have not had any chicken pox, measles etc. A cold here and there.

In a nutshell, educate yourself and stay informed.

Good luck to you and your family.

About me: Married 15 years, mother of 2 girls, work fulltime, evening student.

Dear A.,

I own a childcare center in NJ and the law states all students in private school or public from the age of six months to fifty nine months have to be immunized. I feel for you because children are expected to get so many shots today that it is scary. I do know some of my moms had the shots split up into smaller doses and went numerous times verses them having them all at once. If your son is already six he should be past the age requirement. If it was mandatory you would have been told already by the school nurse or administration. I was required to notify my parents in November of the new law. If you haven't been told to do so yet I wouldn't worry about it. As far as choosing which shots you can choose how many they get at one time and as I said split the dosage. I understand the concern for the flu shot, however if it makes you feel any better I have 57 students and they have all received the shot with no adverse reactions. I hope this helps. Good luck!!

A., my nutritionist is hooked up with the group that is fighting a lot of these vaccines in NJ. Her email address is ____@____.com name is Dian Freeman and she is very busy and I hope she has time to answer your email. Ask her any questions you may have about this. I know one of her articles was posted on Oprah's website. She writes monthly for a publication in NJ that is distributed in Health Shops. I am one of her students and she is very knowledgeable about vaccines. Hope this helps.