Seeking Mom's Advice on Shots

I recommend the book, "What Your Doctor Might Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations," by Stephanie Cave. The AAP would have us believe that vaccinations are necessary and completely safe... but there is evidence that this is not the case! Another good book on working with/despite your pediatrician, and touches on vaccines is "Raising a Healthy Child in Spite of Your Doctor," by Robert Mendehlson, MD. An older book on the subject is "A Shot in the Dark," but I do'nt know the author... it's probably on amazon.com.

If you choose to continue with your son's vaccinations, you have the right to have them done on a schedule that will be easier on his body. You can delay them until he's a year or two old, or you can split them up, so that he's only getting one shot every few weeks or months. You can also opt not to vaccinate at all anymore, or choose to selectively vaccinate (only certain shots). You might have a hard time finding a pediatrician to go along with these wishes, but they do exist! I'm sure there are moms who can give you a recommendation for a good ped who does not require vax on schedule. I can give you a couple in Charlotte or Sarasota County, if that's where you live. If you have trouble finding one, you can pm me and I can probably get you the information you need. :)

If you choose not to vax, you can obtain a religious exemption prior to enrolling him in daycare or public school. If you choose to homeschool, you will not need the religious exemption.

I wish you well... the main thing is to be informed, so start reading! There are also websites with information, but of course it tends to biased one way or another.

We don't vaccinate our kids anymore. After I found out what is in them and how it is big business for the pharmaceutical industry and not necessarily protecting our kids. I would suggest finding a pediatrician that is open to selective or non-vaccination and also reading some books on Vaccinations. Do a search on Amazon for books. Also do searches on Google. You will be surprised at what you will learn.

With the growing number of cases of Autism - especially in boys - you are right to be concerned. I waited until my little one was 6 months old before I gave him his first shot. He is 4 years old now and JUST got the MMR which was the last one to catch him up. He has been just fine. The first one we gave was the Pertussus (SP?) because I felt that he was more at risk of getting that then Polio. I do think Vac. are important, but until we know more about what these drugs are doing to our children, I would proceed with Caution. I did quite a bit of reseach and after 6 months of age, babies brains have formed a "blood barrier" which protects them more. The tough part was find a Dr. who would work with me and give me a voice in my childs health care. But I found a couple who were really great about it. Good Luck!

all 4 of my children have gotten all the recommended shots at the times they are recommended for. none have had any side effects. none have ever had any medical problems (thank god) It's really what you feel comfortable with. I wouldn't do it if my children had any medical problems or were premies or if I saw a negative reaction after the first set of shots. I've got friends who don't give their kids shots.
But I think that having a disease that didn't get immunized against would be much worse than a negative reaction from the shot itself. It's a risk that is very real. Not a decision to take lightly. Good luck with your research. Be wary of anything that seems too far on either side of the discussion.

With my son, he got all of them on the regular schedule and nothing bad ever happened. However, I am now pregnant with our second and I think I am going to wait longer to start the shots and spread them out more (no more 5 at a time that is for sure). Vaccines are not money making things and they are not the "cause" of autism, but being careful with them is not a bad idea. I believe they can have bad side effects if your child's immune system just can't handle that many at once. I will definately vaccinate, just not on the current schedule reccommended. The only "virus" that is live is the MMR and chicken pox, so I will wait until 2+ to get those done. My son did react to MMR pretty badly.

It is absolutely toxic to receive 5 shots at once! It is safe to wait.

I highly recommend going to the talk presented by the Holistic Moms Network at Whole Foods in Sarasota on March 4th at 7pm. It's called How and Why to Raise a Vaccine-Free Child. With the ever increasing concern on the efficacy and safety of vaccinations, more and more parents are choosing to delay shots, vaccinate selectively, or not to vaccinate at all. This meeting will cover Florida law as it pertains to exemptions and patient rights, how to maintain an optimum immune system, what to do if your child does get a disease, and more. Guest speakers are Dr Stephen Lee and Erica McPhee, who will give us her account of her son's recovery from apparent vaccine-induced autism.

If you have any questions about this or other meetings of the Holistic Moms Network, please contact me at ____@____.com

My doc doesn't recommend anymore than 3 at a time... it is too h*** o* a little one's system. But I wouldn't wait a year. That's just me. Can you work with your doc to space them better?

Good luck,
K.

we also do not vaccinate our children anymore after researching it for months. i think your best bet would be to really look into it and then decide for yourself what option would work best for your family. good luck.

It totally your choice! there are many people who don't vaccinate at all, or who wait till they are two and their nurological systems are stronger. We've done some, and will wait on others. Some people try to tell you its dangerous, but really, I'm more afraid of the side effects that Ive seen in vaccine than the small risk of them getting sick. You can also do them one at a time. Which is what we do. or two at a time. But not all pediatricians will allow this, where do you live? I've got a great pediatrician in countryside that can talk to you about it and explain your options

In my hunble opinion...shots are fine..I took them and both of my boys had them and we're fine.
Now whenever they get shots...they may run a bit of a fever, get diarrhea, and the shot area can get red and swell a bit.
My oldest didn't ever have any trouble period. Just some red where they gave the shot. Youngest ran a fever for a day.
I feel its a good thing to do for your child.
Up to you of course!
God bless and good luck!

Hi, I have a 5 month little boy and I am having a really hard time deciding on whether to give him the 2 month vaccines. It seems like too much at once for his little body. I know that in Florida you can use religion as an excuse not to have them. I feel like I would prefer waiting until he is older and stronger. I worry about the side effects. I wish I had an answer for you, I can just say that you are not alone in this struggle. I feel like it is safe because the chances that your baby will be exposed to some of these diseases is so unlikely. I want to talk to my pediatrician about waiting until he is 2. I would feel better about it when he is more developed. Good Luck

I would consult a pediatrician. If you don't trust the one you have visit a couple more. Tell them what happened and ask what they recommend. I know some parents support no vaccinations, but my Mom worked at All Children's. She has seen the consequences of no vaccinations. I am not a doctor and only a pediatrician would have enough knowledge and education to know what would happen if you waited on shots.

My kids see Dr. Lynn Ellis in St. Pete. She has been a doctor for many years and she has seen everything. I have met Dr. Bhumi Upadhyay and she is wonderful. http://www.northeastkids.com/ She is young and seems really all about the kids. I would switch to her, but I really like Dr. Ellis. Those are some ideas, but I would call 3 or 4 other doctors. Meet with them and see what they say. If they treat you like you are crazy move on to the next. If they give you an answer you are comfortable with and the information you need it may help for the future.

Good luck and take care!

I do not believe you can wait for all the shots they need as an infant until they are one year. You could ask your pediatrician about it. Or maybe instead of 5 in one day, maybe one per week for a few weeks?

Against my pediatrician's advice,(and learning that my sister's friend's son was diagnosed with autism) I waited and spread out my the shots. I just felt that it was way too much for a little body to take all at once. He's perfectly healthy and had no side effects at all to the shots. My personal advice would be to definitely spread them out, I do think that our kids probably do need vaccines but remember it is viruses they are being injected with.

I have a 5 month old and they gave him 4 shots and a oral dose, I was very concerned but trusted my docter they wouldnt do it if they thought it could hurt. More importantly if your baby reacts, like some do, I would be worried about spreading the misery out. I would say just do it and get it over with that way they only have to go through it once (at a time)

Hi M.,

Look at this website. http://www.nvic.org/ Their mission is to prevent vaccine injuries and discusses children that have had previous reactions to vaccines.

Regards,

M.

Wow! I never knew all of these things about the shots! I am one those people who just naturally assumed that vaccines were necessary for a child. All my kids got them and thankfully nothing bad happened. Although I did notice that when my grand daughter recently got her four month shots, the area on her arm stayed red for a few days and developed a rather big hard lump that stayed for a week. I was going to put my two cents in on the side of getting the baby vaccinated anyway, but after reading these other posts, I myself will be doing some more research. The only problem I forsee is daycare and if you ever need to go on public assistance, they both require shot records. Any solutions for that?

as the mother of n autistic child i advocate spacing shots out over time. my now 3 yr old is a little behind on hers because of this. if it makes me a bad mom then im horrid. noone knows what causes autism however they removed the murcury but autism is still on the rise. there is also aluminun in them which also passes thru the braid/ blood barrier and affects the brains immune system. it has a different one then the body and can cause it to attack itself. that said i say its up to you the only issues arise when entering them in school as shots are nessessary then. i will be catching the 3 yr old up for pre-k next year. generally you will know by 2-3 if they are autistic.due to the regression you would notice. i would tell my dr that you don't want them all at once but want them spread out even if he is getting catch up shots when he is slightly older

My daughter is almost 3. She has not had any vacccines. She is perfectly healthy. I also know teenagers without vaccines. Many vaccinations have adverse side effects. Some people now believe autism is caused by the murcury in the vaccines. Now it almost seems safer to not have the vaccines.

I don't have much to add but I wholeheartedly agree with everyone who has said it is safe to wait, even forego shots alltogether. There are many wonderful books out there on vaccines. Yes, thimerasol (mercury) has been removed from many of the shots but there are other, toxic ingredients (such as antifreeze, formaldyhyde as someone else pointed out). These are used as preservatives in the vaccines so the pharmaceutical companies don't have to spend the money on more, safer batches. It's all about the money for them (in my opinion). I have two children, both are mostly vaccinated. With my second daughter, I stopped vaccines at one year and went back after she turned 2 to get the ones I picked and chose from. It is totally up to you....don't let anyone make you feel like a bad parent for choosing to delay or not vaccinate at all. They don't do it like this in any other country. Best of luck to you!

I guess I'm the odd-ball here worrying more about my child getting sick from mumps, meseals, etc. and possibly dying from those diseases. Shots have been given out for decades, many doctors back vaccinies, and it still hasn't been proven that vaccinies (even w/ mercury) cause autisim.

http://www.healthcentral.com/newsdetail/408/605639_2.html

Dear M.

We have a chart that will show what these shots have in them, things like formaldahyde {I know this is spelled wrong}. I would not give these shots all at once and would be VERY careful with taking them at all. It seems that it's the 18 month -2 is the one that has caused so much problems. I know at least 5 kids that have been diagnosed after these shots with autism. They were developing normally and had a sudden change in personality and ability.

I am not trying to scare, but inform. Go online and research. There's more I can tell you and of course, we have the chart that shows what is in these shots. Some of them, I object to, why does my infant have to take a shot for hepatitis c. I am in the medical profession and believe people should be well educated before they allow their children to be given these shots.
D.