AIBU To give the chicken pox Vaccine to daughter

[ChampooPapi]

Posting her for traffic as well as the fact I may be being very unreasonable!

Should I just wait for her to succumb naturally like myself (and other daughter) way back when.

Or if you can afford it should it be done? my daughter is coming up to 1 year and it seems its given between 1 year and 15 months

Is it worth it?

Thanks all!

I got it for my DS and I’m very glad I did as I got shingles recently and there was also an outbreak at the pre school he’d just started at. It can be very nasty so I’d get it done.

@Shantotto thanks for the response. It does seem to me like why not! but I'm not up to date with the science of it, though understand it is a live vaccine so will protect them from shingles too when they are older?

I'd give her the vaccine. I had chicken pox as a kid and still have scars on my face from the spots (I scratched them...) My brother didn't get chicken pox so has to be a bit careful as an adult as it can be v nasty.

Both of those options could have been prevented with a quick injection.

www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/childrens-health/why-are-children-in-the-uk-not-vaccinated-against-chickenpox/

This is what the NHS has to say, although it seems a bit bizarre to me - most of the diseases that are vaccinated against are USUALLY mild (I'm thinking mumps, rubella...) but we vaccinate out children against them to protect them if they turn out to be one of the unlucky few who have complications, and also to limit exposure to more vulnerable people...

It's given whenever you pay for it. I just had it done for my 2 year old DS. I'm very glad that I did and it's worth the £150.

I had chickenpox vaccination as a child so I thought I was immune. Of course I was wrong. The vaccination wore off after a number of years (10-20?). So when my DDs got it I got it myself as an adult, which was the most horrendous illness I've ever had. We couldn't put kids in nursery for obvious reasons and I couldn't get out of bed for days. We had no other childcare so I can't even remember how we coped.

I would say if you decide to vaccinate your child, just make sure you are aware of the period for which it would be effective and top up later, and make sure that your child is aware that s/he will need to top it up every decade or so. It's much much worse getting it as an adult than as a child.

My eldest got it as part of state vaccination schedule where we lived, my second dd born in UK so I paid for her to have it.
I also paid for boosters for both of them as older teens
Why wouldnt you if you can afford it

I wouldn't, I have had chicken pox three times as a child so your child might not even be covered even with immunity, and it is mild... It's not like it is life-threatening... Unless there are underlying health issues?

I'd do it. My DS1 age 10 never caught chicken pox so he's not immune now. The jab is less risky than getting the illness, even though the illness is usually fairly mild.

If they have two doses of the vaccine in childhood the immunity should last.

The NHS hasn't added it as standard because of the cost.

MY DS (4) had it as part of an NHS trial (they were working on a variation of the current vaccine). I had Chickenpox as a child and was really really poorly,

My daughter had the vaccine. So far she's swerved 3 outbreaks at nursery/school.

the reason the nhs don't offer it as standard is to protect the elderly from shingles. the more you're subjected to chicken pox the stronger your body is at fighting/preventing shingles. if everyone had the CP virus shingles cases would be worse.

that, and a concern including cp vaccine on the infant schedule would discourage parents from giving their children more important vaccines.

in summary, do it if you want to. it's given as standard in the US.

my dd1 didn't get it til she was 4 then dd2 got it at 14mo. both remarkably mildly. happy in the end I saved £200 but for some, having to take time off work is a real issue.

I've had both sons done and will get daughter done at 1. To me it makes sense. They both had the two jabs so I think that immunity should last but I'll check again when they are in their teens in case guidance has changed. Really glad I did it. Personal choice though OP. Do what's right for you and your family. Good luck.

No vaccine can be 100% so occasionally people still get it. You would dramatically reduce the chances. There are incidences of immunity wearing off so consider being tested or boosted in later years.
When you have had chickenpox, the virus lies dormant in your system and can reappear as shingles so a slightly different modus. Although chickenpox is usually not a serious problem it can be. It is worse in adults so think about boosters

Our first DC has had it. Our second DC will have it too. Our practice nurse told me the other day that she thought it ought be on the schedule of vaccines - the side effects can be as bad as those associated with other illnesses that are on the vaccination schedule.

I’ve vaccinated by DCs

My DD had cp at 11 months old and coped fine. However my DS was 4 and was very poorly. He was covered in spots which became infected because he also had eczema. He was throwing up, had really high temp etc. I wish I had had him vaccinated. My friend’s DD ended up in hospital with her cp - no underlying health issues. Another friend had to cancel their summer holiday because of it. I would say go for it.

I want this for ds2. He is 7. Cannot find where to get it! Gp couldn't find out either. I also asked at the travel clinic and they don't offer it. I would get the additional meningitis one that my older children missed out on too.

For those who have accessed it, please could I ask where and how?

It's standard in almost every developed country except the UK. My DCs all had it, it was fine - and potentially needing a booster as an adult is hardly a hardship Vs having to endure the total agony of shingles!

For those who have accessed it, please could I ask where and how?

Google your local Superdrug and CityDoc clinics as they both provide the vaccine for around £60/65 per shot (two are required).

As confused says, the virus lies dormant and when you are an adult can be reactivated by a poorly DC, as I found out.

I was hospitalised.

DD now has quite bad scarring on her face. 3 years on it's fading a bit more. Thank goodness.

I regret bitterly not paying the 60 euro or so (Spain) for the vaccine. Everyone else here does.

So, yes GET THE VACCINE.

But you do need to get boosters, it does wear off.

If you have had CP you are not immune to further CP, it honestly is a myth. I am proof of this.

I paid privately for dd to have it done last summer- she’s 14 and has never had it! Both her brothers caught it just as week before she was born. I couldn’t stand the worry before every summer holiday that she would catch it! I had it when I was 16 and o was so so poorly and I know it’s worse the older dho iare when you catch it. It’s a miserable illness , if yo uar eable to vaccinate I would recommend it

I recently had my DC vaccinated. Some Superdrug and Boots health clinics within their stores offer it, so check on their website. I paid £65 per dose per child, and they have 2 doses, 4 weeks apart.
It doesn’t protect against shingles though, they can catch that just like a person who has had actual chicken pox, as it’s caused by the varicella virus being dormant in your body, then being reactivated.

You can’t catch shingles from someone with shingles, but if you’ve never had chicken pox, you can catch chicken pox from someone with shingles.

@nldnmum so it does need a booster in adulthood then.it is at least less expensive then the meningitis I got for my 8 year old, that was a no brainer for me but my credit card definitely wasn't happy about that amount

My 3 year old dd will be going for her second half of the chickenpox vaccine in the next few weeks.

My reasoning.
She was born in Germany and would have been vaccinated against it at 1 years old.
She gets really bad croup (hospital level) every time she gets a bad cold or illness. I do not want to make the choice of hospital with an infected child or not go and risk her getting worse if she got croup while infected.
With the above the NHS do vaccine but won't in DDs case as it's not all the time.
It saves me and her a few weeks of pain and not being able to go anywhere if she caught it.

Saying that read the information. They can get a strain of it from the vaccine.