I got a rather strongly worded comment from someone on my last post (though they appeared to have erased it), and I wanted to clarify some points. Our decision to not vaccinate was not an easy one – that’s something I said in that post. There are positives and negatives on both sides. It’s all about deciding which sides pos/neg are a bigger pull for you. Since this is my blog, I obviously wrote about my bigger draw, being that I chose not to vaccinate.
When I say “blindly” and “irresponsible” I mean the parents who vaccinate without really giving it any deep thought. A lot of parents do what they assume is the only choice, without knowing all of the risks. I am very much in favor of parents having the choice, and making an educated choice by looking into the ins and outs of any given topic – in this case, vaccines.
It’s kind of like public school – a some parents just assume it’s the only option out there, even if they live in a poor district. Clearly, I am in favor of school choice – my children have done a little of everything by this point. Each time we made a switch, it was based on research and what the needs were at that time. I am not one who simply “goes with the flow,” to make things easier. I think that big decisions like that need careful research.
My oldest did receive some vaccines – and was harmed by them. I didn’t know I had a choice at the time – I was 19 and very “green,” so I just assumed the doctors knew best - it was irresponsible of me to not understand my choices better. As I gained confidence in my own ability as a parent, I realized that I needed to be more careful in what happens to my children – and so I started researching everything from school options to medical options. There are no right and wrong decisions - as long as a parent is making an educated decision. Clearly, I stand on the side of not vaccinating my children, but I have some friends who use “selective” vaccines (doing some by not all vaccines), and some who vaccinate completely. It’s all about understanding the risks, knowing what you believe,why you believe that.
First I didn't delete my early comment.. as I stated I thought you deleted it. That's fine, I never mind being deleted. You are right, this is your blog. I am a strong believer in vaccines and there is still no evidence that links autism and vaccines together. Lots of research has been done on the subject and they still come up with nothing. Once again here is that link.
ReplyDeletehttp://briandeer.com/mmr/lancet-summary.htm
It's not the autism issues that causes me not to vaccinate - though, the vaccine Deuce received at birth was recalled 2 months later, due to too much mercury being in the vaccine. Actually, I never believed that there could be a correlation between Deuce's autism and vaccines, because he was "different" from the time we brought him home. I didn't find out about that recall until years after his Dx, while doing some research on the net.
ReplyDeleteMy biggest issue is the combination of chemicals in the vaccines (the ingredients list for vaccines are crazy), and the high number of vaccines given in such a short span of time to very tiny babies. I know a lot of parents who decided to only do one vaccine at a time, over a longer period of time, because of that risk. It seems to work well for many to do that. Some babies/children are permanently injured or even die from vaccines (Gardisil seems to be one of the worst), and so it is a tough call as a parent.
I know you are concerned about the possible germs being passed to your son - can I recommend you check out Juice Plus? It has nothing to do with vaccines, LOL, it is just a wonderful supplement that I credit with keeping my children from having even the slightest cold all winter long. :-) No one, not even Ella (who is usually the one who will catch a cold) had any signs of illness since we started taking it in October. My mom has just started taking it (she has cancer) and I am hoping that we see a major improvement in her immune system as well. :-)
Thanks Sisterchicksteph, but there is no scientific proof that Juice Plus offers significant health benefits, and deceptive claims are used in the product's marketing information. Studies of Juice Plus' effects have generated conflicting and controversial results. Plus my son is unable to swallow pills. With the mercury, I am not saying that's a good thing to take, lol, but the first emperor of China took mercury pills all the time. He accomplished a lot, but eventually went crazy. Not a good argument for me, but lots of kids had the same vac and didn't die or end up w/Autism. That vac had been around a long time too.. I am curious to see what the results of the people who had it will be in their elderly years.. if any effects. ?
ReplyDeleteDear KT ~ maybe this is rude of me, but if you're going to knock EVERY LITTLE THING that Steph says, then just go away & don't read it. Sheesh ~ why torture yourself & the rest of us, too.
ReplyDeleteAnd just so YOU know, I DID lose a beautiful, precious little girl from her very 1st round of shots!!!!! We waited 'til she was 3 mos old & SHE DIED of SIDS ("officially") the day after her 1st shots. I also have a friend who babysits her now 14 yr old niece who was perfectly fine until her 9 mo. round of shots & is permanently brain damaged & in a vegetative state...4ever. As for Gardisil ~ I personally have a friend whose lovely 20 yr old daughter, who had a sports scholarship of Ohio State who, after almost 2 yrs, is just now able to walk w/o a walker from Gradisil. Her life is ruined - along w/several thousand others young women...do some research for yourself. He Dr told them to go ahead a let him give her the shot b4 she goes to college, b/c "everyone has premarital sex", there was the 1st lie b/c, um, no they don't, but they were persuaded & now will live the rest of their lives w/the guilt & regret b/c their decision ruined their daughter's life. Just like myself & countless others who chose to vaccinate - against our better judgment - & now have 1 less person at our dinner table, one less laughing voice ringing through out household, one less kiss good-night, one less "I love you" everyday, one less daughter for my husband to walk down the isle...my little auburn-haired, green-eyed girl is GONE; who knows how many grandchildren we have lost...all b/c we were TOLD that this is what everyone HAS to do. We listened to an ill-informed LIE & have to live w/that regret for the rest of our lives. I hope you never have to live w/something like that hanging over your head, even in your ignorance.
Our other 2 daughters, by the way, are perfectly normal & healthy, thank you very much.
So, KT, please don't argue w/EVERY post Steph puts up. Find someone else to haunt.
K~
Hmmm. I think that almost anything debatable will have conflicting and controversial studies/opinions on either side. My family (and several others who I am in direct contact with) have seen great results with it. But to each their own on supplements. :-)
ReplyDeleteAs far as “lots of kids have had the vaccine and not died or come down with autism,” yes, that’s true, but there are still others who have died, developed a seizure disorder, developed autism, etc. With all of the crazy chemicals in vaccines (and 24 injections – some of which have multiple vaccines in the same injection- before age 2), we would be naïve to say that there are absolutely no side effects for our children.
Lots of kids used to ride around without carseats or without seatbelts and didn’t die, but we now know it’s safer to have them buckled in. It just depends on what each parent views as the bigger risk – and I think that the personal issues in the lives of each family will determine which risks seem greater, you know? Where I have a vaccine-injured child, I won’t take the risk of vaccinating, you have a completely different scenario and feel that NOT vaccinating would be way too risky. Each are valid options, and each have been chosen carefully by the parent – that is responsible parenting.
Dear Marmee Pantry,
ReplyDeleteHello! No, I am not going to knock down everything Stephanie says and then not read it. I simply disagree. I expressed to Stephanie why I felt the way I do. I do not perceive you as rude in the begging of your statement, I am not a judgment person. Rude for calling me ignorant without knowing anything about me and being judgmental, yes. I knocked down the Juice Plus pills for legitimate reasons. Its funny you brought up Gardasil, I am actually against the shot. That is for the HPV virus and I agree that it is not a safe shot to take. I have felt that way for a LONG time. I am talking about the immunizations that are for polio whooping cough and several other dangerous diseases that are not eliminated from our society. I stated early in the comment I left to her that doesn't show up that I am not a fan of PBS but I think Frontline's Vaccine Wars makes very interesting and true points that I 100% agree with.
I am sorry for your loss of a child. You yourself stated that she died of SIDs officially. I stand firmly on the side of vaccinating kids because of my children. My son has down syndrome and is hearing impaired. He is at a much higher risk for leukemia. I am fortunate that his tests have always come back negative. Kids with Leukemia have a lower/weaker immune system and so does my son. When a person is under treatment for cancer, because of the radiation they are susceptible to so many illnesses and disease and doctors are unable to treat it. When people don't vaccinate it puts the entire community at risk, it puts these kids at risk, it puts infants that are unable to be immunized for certain shots AT RISK. I am not ignorant. Simply because I disagree with you for good reasons does not make me ignorant. Thanks anyway.
I have pointed out over and over again that there are no links between Autism and immunizations. The link above is to Nailed: Dr Andrew Wakefield and the MMR -autism fraud Summary of Brian Deer's investigation. I have said what I have to say on the subject. I disagree with you, you disagree with me.
Sorry to respond this way Steph. I will be surprised if this comment shows up... This is my response to Marmee. http://craftykta.blogspot.com/2011/03/making-exception.html
ReplyDeletePlease understand that I am not in the least a spamy person. I do not want attention to my blog from this conversation, but I would like the chance to respond.
“Legitimate reasons” for knocking Juice Plus is in the eye of the beholder. It’s something that works for many people I know personally, and (unlike vaccines) is not a risk for children. What I mean is, having my children take JP may or may not work (for us, it works wonders), but it certainly causes no harm. The same cannot be said for vaccines, and I think you are ignoring that legitimate risk when you say that all children should (without question) vaccinate their children. How do you weigh the risk of one child dying from vaccines against the risk of one child dying from not vaccinating? It’s not something with a clear-cut answer, and so a universal-across-the-board-sweeping-movement of mandating vaccines for all cannot work (which is why schools still have to allow unvaccinated children in). It attempts to remove the rights of parents to choose which is the best choice for their family.
ReplyDeleteYou keep mentioning autism – but autism is not the only risk out there. Even if a person believes that there is no connection between autism and vaccines, you can’t deny that there are other, very real risks associated with vaccinations. I know of a great many parents who don’t vaccinate because of very bad reactions after the very first set of shots. One friend almost lost her son as he started having massive seizures right after his shots at 2 months. Her pediatrician would not report it as a side-effect to the vaccine, stating that they have no way of knowing if the vaccine caused it. Others who I have talked to say the same thing – it is very difficult to get pediatricians to honestly report issues that come up with vaccines. Instead, they list other reasons for the injury or death of a child (including saying that it was SIDS when it very well could have been the vaccines).
I think the key is being informed. I did my research and chose to vaccinate my kids. I have since done research that has led me to stop vaccinating. Maybe I've made mistakes, but at least they were informed mistakes and not a mistake just because I did something someone (on either side) told me to do.
ReplyDeleteI am trying, now, to figure out if some of Oliver's issues with dyes and some other issues are partially related to vaccinations. I am suspecting he may have some heavy metal toxicity, which vaccinations would have greatly contributed to.
And in my research that led me to stop vaccinating I felt very comfortable that my children are not going to contract most of the diseases we vaccinate for. Unless they choose to go to a foreign country where there is a polio outbreak and he drinks contaminated water, he isn't going to get polio. The really scary diseases don't scare me at all because most of those are hygiene issues that our sanitation system and water treatment in this country have taken care of.
KT - If you are at all interested in the Brian Deer/Dr. Andrew Wakefield thing, there are some VERY good interviews with Dr. Wakefield on the Natural News site. He defends the untruths in Deer's "reporting" and explains exactly what the studies he was involved with were about. It's VERY enlightening.
Tracie - you're right, information is the key. Statistics and studies are always changing, and you never know what you might learn at a later time that will cause you to change you mind in either direction. :-)
ReplyDelete