Vaccinations

ETA: I wrote this post fast and didn't read through. I'm sure my thoughts come out as a jumbled mess, but here they are nonetheless.

Many people have asked about the vaccination schedule I do for my children since I mentioned that I choose to delay and selectively vaccinate them. This post only contains my feelings on this subject and what I feel is right for me and my children. I certainly don't think poorly on anyone who chooses to do something different for their child/ren. For me, I feel much more comfortable doing research and learning as much as I possibly can about a particular subject, than blindly doing what is the "norm".

So, after much reading, thought, and discussions with our two doctors (we have a regular family practice MD, and a naturopathic physician) I chose to not follow the regular vaccination schedule recommended by the AAP. There are a lot of reasons for it, but it basically came down to my feeling uncomfortable at the sheer amount of vaccinations that are given before a child is even 6 months old. I feel like that is such a crucial time of development, and injecting my child with a shot that contains known toxins, as well as many other elements I am not aware of, did not sit well with me. A baby's body is growing at an alarmingly fast rate in the first year. It is the greatest amount of change your body will ever do within one year. I wanted to keep that year as "natural" as I could for my children. To allow their bodies to develop as it was intended to do. Vaccines are not a risk-free event and I wanted my children's bodies to be bigger, healthier, and stronger when and if I introduced them to vaccines. At the time Gambit was born, I had decided to start his vaccinations at one year. Ninja was vaccinated on schedule until 2 years old because I had not looked into the issue before then.

A big part of what made me okay with that initial decision was I educated myself on the diseases in which we vaccinate against. For instance, a child's first vaccination is generally for Hep B and is given within a few hours of birth. I found it a little strange though, that Hep B is transmitted as an STD or through the use of shared needles (most commonly found among drug users). I don't know what newborn is out doing the diddy, or shooting up, and I knew I didn't have Hep B so that was an easy choice to make. I know why it is given first and so quickly. It's to help the children born to Hep B mothers (it can also be tranferred during childbirth) who may not know they are infected, or were not truthful about it. That is a vaccination I may consider giving when the boys are pre-teens, but for now, it just doesn't seem neccessary.

I opted out of the Chicken Pox vaccine completely because I think it's a little silly to create a vaccine for it. Chicken Pox is a relatively minor virus that passes through most children without complications. It is extremely rare for chicken pox to be fatal, or to even cause long term, negative effects in children. It can be much more severe if caught as an adult. The benefit is that when naturally caught and exposed to, the body creates its own immunity that is more often than not a life long immunity. Any time a person is again exposed to the chicken pox, their own natural defenses are bolstered and given a little "boost". Because the current chicken pox vaccine is not life long (only about 5-10 years, and there is no real life-long vaccine for any disease), we are causing the next generation to me much more likely to get chicken pox as an adult. In addition, adults now are not given the opportunity to be exposed to the virus to boost their natural defenses. As a result, the medical community as seen a sharp rise in the number of shingles outbreaks.

As far as the schedule that I do, I don't really have a laid out plan. I only do one series or disease at a time if I choose to vaccinate for it. Gambit has finished his Hib and MMR series and I am reevaluating what or if I will do anything next.

I think the most important factor in all of this is that we need to be educated in the decisions we are making for our children, and do what is right for our family. The way I do vaccinations may not be right for everyone, but I am comfortable and feel good about it. I know I'm considered outside of "normal" in some ways that I parent (or even birth) my children. But I do what I think is best for me and my family, and try not to make blind decisions that directly affect my family. This post isn't meant to be a bash on vaccines or the vaccination industry. I do not deny the effectiveness at reducing and in some cases eliminating diseases that were once rampant and deadly. But I also think our nation has gotten a little "vaccine-happy" and we've decided that our kids will be healthier if they never get sick. When I feel the risk of the disease is less than the risk of the vaccination, I take a little more time to think about the neccessity and how it will impact my children's health.