I just want to add that there are two companys that make the thimersol-free flu shot. I don't know the names but my pedi ordered some and my son had a flu shot without mercury.
I would not personally even give the MMR together but would request the individual vaccinations be given seperately.
Ask them to order the individual shots and follow your instinct - too much at once is too much at once and increases the risks exponentially. :-)
I've said it time and time again - parents get these little nagging voices to protect their children. If you feel like it's too much at once than go with that. Tell them you aren't comfortable with that many shots at this time and you'll continue to reschedule as needed.
The clinics are often overworked and prefer to give as many shots as possible all at once becuase they are afraid parents won't bring their kids back.
Blessings, Angela <><
P.S. Personally I would avoid the chicken pox as well unless there is a psecific medical condition that would make it truly dangerous (ie leukemia, HIV or other severe autoimmune disorder). A natural immunity is usually much longer lasting.
P.P.S. I wanted to add after reading some of the other posts - it is not chicken pox that "goes down on a man". That would be mumps. Just to clarify. Chicken pox is the itchy disease that is nearly harmless though irritating in children but very painful and serious in adults. Better to let them get it naturally now.
I am so against vaccines, so my opinion will differ from others. The MMR is the one that has the big movement against it ou in Washington. This vaccine will cause autism in some children. Do not let them talk you into this one. The doctors do not know, they are just doing what they are told. Your baby also does not need the chicken pox vaccine. Who cares if she gets it, it is a childhood illness. Besides, the vaccine does not prevent chicken pox. It will actually give it to her, because she will be injected with it. Does that make sense? The flu is another bad vaccine, because it is laced with aluminum and mercury. This has been linked to Alzhiemers. Every flu shot increases your risk of Alzhiemers by 5 times later in life. Don't EVER get the flu shot for any reason ever! Besides it doesn't work. There are too many diferent strands of the flu to try and vaccinate against it. The choice is yours on vaccinations. Don't let the doctors office tell you what you have to do. A co-worker of my husband's lost his 9 month baby girl, because they told him she HAS to have so many vaccinations. She died 5 days later. They were on the news and everything. Another big lie is they say that they have "mercury free" vaccinations. That is not possible, because these vaccinations have to have shelf life. Good luck! Stick to your guns!
Hi, Patricia. My experience is this: my daughter got a sore arm and ran a low grade fever for a day or so. Tylenol helps, right before her check-up and then when she needs it. The main reason for the chicken pox vaccine is a lot of little ones get secondary infections when they have the chicken pox and can become deathly ill in a short amount of time. The flu vaccine is a must. You are in the work force and could bring the virus home with you and pass it on to your baby. Babies don't handle a respiratory illness as well as older children and adults. And, also, as an added bonus to the chicken pox vaccine, you DON'T want shingles, which is what you get as an adult. They can stick around for months. Hope this helps.
My daughter didn't do so well after her MMR at 4 years old. We saw a drastic decrease in her speech, more spacing out, and in general alot of withdrawl from who she was. This continued until they gave her the diagnoses of PDD-NOS (a mild form of autism) She was just mildly delayed before the shots. She's 7 now, and doing much better, but not thanks to any pediatric intervention. When our pedi saw how much better she did after our treatment (basically a change in diet) she said she didn't want her to have the flu shot that year or the next and same for this year as well. She said the THERMERISOL (an additive in the MMR) was still in alot of the flu shots. Without the doc admitting what was done, that pretty much confirmed my suspictions that for certain kids MMR (due to thermerisol) is just bad stuff.
I'd follow the advice on the other posters about how to go about getting it spaced out, or if you're freaked, and don't want it, call our state capital to have the form to not do it.
Sherry
http://www.vran.org/vaccines/doctors/s-tenpenny.htm
I am in favor of informed choice in health care. Our physicians often only give one side of the information, so I don't feel fully informed unless I am proactive enough to "hear" the opposing view.
The above link is one place to go for more info. Dr. Sherry Tenpenny is a voice about the problems with vaccinations. You can certainly find more on other sites if you look, but she is well known as an expert in this area.
Multiple vaccines at one time are definitely implicated in our current autism epidemic, due to their overload of immature immune systems. This is one thing to consider. Another is the toxic ingredients in the vaccines. Another is the long-term effects which are basically unknown.
The statistics on the flu vaccine specifically and it's benefits seem to be skewed. Go to www.mercola.com and do a search for flu vaccine to read more about this and the toxic ingredients in the flu vaccine.
In general, "follow the money", and do a "cost to benefit" analysis. Who is most benefiting from the large amounts of vaccines being recommended for our children? Are the risks of the vaccine (and yes there are risks though it sounds like your doctor will minimalize them, and the long-term risks are not well understood at this time, so these are overlooked altogether by most health care providers)...anyway are the risks worth the potential benefit?
Congrats to you for remembering that you have choices, and for looking for more information before making this choice.
Patricia, I would opt out of the chicken pox vaccine until age 2. Don't give it with the MMR. There is some chance of a reaction of the 2 types. It is a slight chance, but one that is bad. My oldest son (now 8) received the MMR and chicken pox vaccine at 1 year. 5 days later, we were in the ER. He had a 105 fever and had to have tests done for blood infection. Later, I realized that the 2 probably reacted. Good luck with your decision.
I just wanted to make a comment about the chicken pox. You can get immunity naturally but it is not with out risk also. You can wait until she is a teenage and if she hasn't gotten the chicken pox you can get her vaccinated then. She needs some kind of immunization natural or shot by adult hood. I had the chicken pox at 9 years old. I was very very sick and had to be hospitalized. My siblings and I were very healthy overall and rarely got sick. I had super high fevers and some many sores it was like just several large sores. I had to have dressings applied to them and it was miserable. My youngest sister was also very very sick. She managed to stay out of the hospital probably thanks to the knowledge my mom gained caring for me. It was really terrible. Then I got shingles on my face and in my mouth in college. This is why there is a vaccine. I personally would have taken it over what my family and I went thru. Just a different perspective. There is good and bad in any decision you decide to make. Just make the one that you can live with.
I personally believe the MMR is PLENTY in one day! Sounds like you're leaning towards skipping the flu and pox- good idea. These immunizations are so much on their little bodies, skip what you can. Good luck.
The flu vaccine is not required and you do not have to get it. My sister in law just turned it down recently also. However if I were you I would ask if they have any thimerisol mercury in their vaccines since it's thought to be linked to Autism by many,including me. It was supposed to be taken out of vaccines, but some have small amounts. The best amount in my opinion is no amout of thimerisol mercury. I'm telling you this because I wish someone would have told me. My daughter is on the Autism spectrum. It's very curious that just after getting the MMR vaccine she had a 106 temperature that would not come down easily even at the emergency room. Besides, the flu vaccines also are said to not even be effective. Just want to make you aware. Thanks!
Don't give her Tylenol before the appointment because they will need to check her temp before they give her the shots and the Tylenol can mask any fever that might be present. Once they check her temp then you can give her Tylenol, in fact, they might give you a sample in the office to give her.
We just took our daughter for her 6 month check up and we declined the flu shot. The doctor let us know that since she does not attend daycare and is not around any other children that she didn't think we HAD to have it. It is our choice. That said, we know that we need to be very careful when we take her to public places. We NEVER let her sit in the icky shopping carts without a cover over it, or in the icky high chairs at restaurants. If you choose to pass on the flu shot, you must be proactive on keeping your daughter healthy.
I know this is a tough choice but you have received a lot of advice. Do what you truly think is right for your child. If you have a bad feeling, go with it.
It's only easier for them to give them all at once.. You are her mother and you can spread them out. Yes, I gave my daughter Tylenol before going to get her shots and I spread them out since the dosages are based on adults immune systems. I don't think she got the flu vaccine.. I don't get it and I work with children- I did it once and was sick for 2 weeks..2x longer than if I hadn't gotten it.
Talk with the Pediatrician..and remember the final decision is up to YOU...
I would recommend going with the nurse's advice, especially if your child hasn't had any exposure to other children. Her immune system probably isn't very strong in that case, so she would be more susceptible to getting sick.
After reading the other posts, I would also like to add that you should do as much research as possible regarding the safety of vaccines so that you are comfortable with your choice. My daughter's pediatrician was very adamant that there is NOT a proven connection between vaccinations and autism, which I had heard of and was worried about. I understand there are cases of illness/death that were possibly caused by vaccinations, but after talking in depth with the doctor, I believe it's more of a risk to pass up the vaccination and risk your own child AND OTHER PEOPLE'S CHILDREN getting sick. I don't believe it's fair to put other children at risk, but if your daughter is not going to have contact with other children that isn't a concern. Just my opinion though! Good luck to you.
It is easier on everryone to get them all at once. As for the flu vaccine, they like to give those to babies simply because it is so dangerous for little ones and it just isn't worth the risk. The chicken pox issue is definitely a different one. I have vaccinated both of my kids from them and they have both gotten it. However, the people who I know who didn't vaccinate their kids were blown away about how minor the cases were. They only had to miss 3 days of school. I am sure you remember as a kid how bad it was for our friends and family, I don't know how many of you guys made it out with no scars but I have a couple!
I would only do the MMR vaccine. At the time I didn't know what the varcella vaccine was for the chicken pox.(I was very young) Knowing this now I wish I had never had it done because vaccines have to be redone even as adults and most adults don't do it. If you child doesn't do this when she is older and contracts chicken poxs as an adult then it is much worse and she can become infurtal (sp?) I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Knowing what I know now my son will not have the second round of it.
They do the flu vaccine in two parts at that age, and a nasal vaccine isn't available for that age yet (2 and up).
Hi Patricia,
I would definitely give her tylenol before the appt. I chose not to give my son the flu vaccine until he was 4 and in pre-k. My doctor and I decided that his risk factor wasn't as high as others. With our next child I am going to ask that those 12 mo. shots be spaced out between 12 mo and 15 mos. I'm the parent and I feel that vaccines are important as is my right to space them out. It is your decicion, go with your gut instict! Lots of luck.
Kellie
I read "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations." Written by a pedi. It was great. This book offers suggestions on how to reduce side effects to the vaccinations. She also recommends doing some shots separated, only getting one shot at a time, etc. Great stuff and I followed it loosely. We only gave our girls two shots at a time, and we did not do the new combos. The MMR, we gave to our oldest at 18 months, with about three months with out a shot before and six months after before her next one. She had not issues. Not sure about my lil' one yet. SHe reacts more to the shots so we are being more cautious. Follow your instincts. God gave them to you to protect that lil' one and no one, not even daddy, has them like you.