To be in two minds about the chicken pox vaccine

[trippingovertoysinthedark]

I’m really on the fence with this one.

On the one hand, I have two preschool children in full time childcare and a SE partner. Financially, we could be in trouble if we had to take time off work to look after them if/when they get chicken pox. Also, I don’t want them to be unwell.

However, on the other hand, them being unwell now might set them up for lifetime immunity and that would probably be ultimately better than the vaccine when it wanes - I’m also not a fan of vaccinating children when it isn’t needed, as vaccine damage can happen and yes tiny chance blah blah but why take that chance if you don’t have to? Although I haven’t read of any adverse reactions to the pox vaccine but then would I be likely to?

So I’m dithering here

If you don’t vaccinate, your DC are at risk of getting chickenpox.
The virus then remains in the body for life, lurking in the spinal cord. As you get older, and suffer from something else that stresses you, the virus reactivates, spreads along a random spinal nerve to your skin and erupts in the painful blisters of shingles, all over that particular dermatome.
If you’re especially unlucky it will be the one including your eye, and you risk blindness.
Once the blisters heal, you can be left with severe chronic pain requiring life long powerful medication such as Gabapentin.
I’d vaccinate purely for the fact it prevents shingles - avoiding the potential complications of primary chickenpox is a bonus, making it a no brainer!

@BertieBotts@Berti at 07:20.

Done the hard work for you OP

Not a spectrum disorder? Well neither is the unnecessary death caused by the anti-vax 'movement'.

And your attitude to people responding to a question you asked is abhorrent. Qurstioning people's comprehension is ironic considering you're arguing against vaccines.

Hang in there OP, you might come across some sense one day

Apparently neither is yours.

Whether you like it or not, groups of people frequently use a shared language to bond, and to make other people "other". If you don't want to be linked to the anti-vaxx brigade, stop using their language and rhetoric.

Sar, I’m going to continue posting on a parenting website about any issues I have with parenting including my children’s health.

You are of course free to respond as you wish, but tbh when you respond to something I didn’t say you make yourself look pretty stupid.

Why ask a question then argue back? It's not always a minor thing and as PP have said it can cause deafness and other permanent damage in the worst cases.

As for not knowing anyone with scaring, WTF. It's so common!

My DD had it a few months ago. She had them in her throat, mouth and ears. She needed antivirals and it was horrendous to watch her go through.

I had fully intended to get the virus but time escaped me and she got it younger than I thought she would. I would 100% have done it if I could, but no one is making you if you're concerned with 'vaccine damage'

However, I work in a small primary school and a handful of children have had CP in the past few weeks. All have really suffered with an intense and prolonged bout, with one child being hospitalised for 2 nights and returning to school on strong antibiotics for seriously infected spots.

The HCPs I’ve spoken to about it recently agree that the strain currently doing the rounds here is particularly vicious the longer it goes round. My boys were the last at nursery to get it and it does seem like the cases got increasingly severe. She was shocked by how bad it was and said she’s rarely seen it so bad, and that there are many more kids needing treatment this year than she’s seen previously. I don’t know if this is a widespread issue or more local.

I thought DT1 was a particularly bad case, until DT2 was far more unwell even with fewer spots (although more than enough). Both were particularly affected in the nappy region and it was absolutely horrendous.

We can talk about statistics all day, but the fact is that complications from vaccines are far rarer than complications from chicken pox. My friend’s son had been hospitalised for febrile seizures after the Men B vaccinations and has had many since so she decided not to vaccinate against chicken pox but has now changed her mind - at least after the vaccination you can give both calpol and ibuprofen to try to prevent them, something you can’t do with chicken pox so high temps are even more of a concern.

Yes, there have been cases of vaccines causing encephalitis, but far more cases of the illnesses they prevent causing encephalitis.

DT2 was born with a condition affecting 1 in 100k. I would never have been concerned about the risk of him getting such a rare disease, but he still has it.

Fal - as I’ve said, I’m in two minds. That means I don’t know yet. That means I argue because I am playing devils advocate to be sure whatever I do is the best decision for my children.

@Stringervest the vaccine prevents shingles because it's a weakened version of the wild virus. Shingles is when the chickenpox virus reactivate years later. The weakened virus is much less likely to do so - there have been studies that prove this in the US. I looked into it a couple of years ago so can't remember the exact details, but there have been a few cases of people getting shingles from the weakened vaccine virus - I think they were all / almost all immuno compromised.

The benefits far outweigh the risks

In two minds about what though? What argument could you have about not having the vaccine? As others have said it's a no brainer.

@AlbusPercival I had my toddler vaccinated a few months ago (2 doses). The nurse didn't mention anything about a top up one at 18. Is that definitely what you're meant to do?

@trippingovertoysinthedark

My cousin who is now 30 years old had the vaccine as a child, he has a very serious rare blood disease which only a few people have in the UK.

He's never caught chicken pox since being vaccinated and has kids that have had it around him.

Ita highly unlikely they will get it as adults once vaccinated.

Having caught chickenpox when 25 weeks pregnant, I'd say get them vaccinated.

‘Should I give my children a vaccine?’

‘You’re an anti vaxxer’

There are anti vaxxers, sure. I am not one of them.

I am anti potentially harming my children.

It seems fairly simple to me - mild childhood disease, immunity for life (in most cases) no risk from vaccine.

OTOH there could be complications arising from the disease and when they do get it this causes disruption to our personal lives - money, ill kids etc.

I’m trying to weigh up the pros and the cons.

That does not = anti vaxxer.

seven201 no its just the 2 vaccines. I'm wondering whether the pp son only had 1 vaccine (which gives 95% immunity) and for some reason is having the other later. There is no current advice that any booster will be needed.

At Boots (which is where I’ve booked the DCs) it’s two - small discount if you pay for both at once.

But OP you still haven't said what the cons of the vaccine are

Thank you @cccameron

@trippingovertoysinthedark good luck with whatever you decide. I got my dd vaccinated as I'd heard some horrible stories about toddler being admitted to hospital with very bad infections and I was worried about having to take time off work if she caught it.

A few people on here have said that the vaccine protects against shingles too. How is that? I would have thought that once the disease is latent in your body, whether that be by virtue of having had the illness or the vaccine, you then have the risk of getting shingles.

I might be wrong, but I don't think the vaccine does cause the virus to be latent in your body, not in the way a chicken pox infection does.

In any case it does appear to have reduced shingles cases among children in the US. Bear in mind shingles among children is rare to begin with, but here's an article about a study that shows children who have not had the chicken pox vaccine are more likely to develop shingles (also bear in mind this is in the US, so it's much less chance that the unvaccinated children will have had chicken pox as it is simply not as common there as most children are vaccinated)

www.scientificamerican.com/article/two-for-one-chickenpox-vaccine-lowers-shingles-risk-in-children/

I have actually ccc

• the fact it may wane over time meaning that they could be vulnerable to nasty diseases as adults

• the minute possibility of vaccine damage.

Yes, she's said that the cons of the vaccine are the very small but severe risk of life changing disabling reaction to the vaccine. She has stated this several times. If you don't believe it's large enough to be relevant fine but that's the decision OP is making.

If you think chickenpox is a mild illness, you need to get educated. Plus, worrying about having time off work if your child gets ill wouldn’t be my first concern.

I researched the vaccine before I had dd vaccinated. The chickenpox vaccine is very safe and side effects mild and temporary. It is a routine childhood vaccine in most of the world. I'd be very interested if you could show me any examples of permanent vaccine damage from the chickenpox vaccine.

Wrt losing its efficacy. Latest studies have shown it lasts at least 20 years. The vast majority of hospitalisation and death occur in children so this is not really a valid argument against protecting your DC

We had it done. Even though we both work adjusted hours to mean we only need 2 days childcare a week, the time off for an avoidable illness would have a big impact (cancelled clinics as we are both hospital consultants)
I’m not ashamed that this was the number one reason we did it.
The risk of serious complications from chicken pox was secondary (but a definite bonus).
Now there’s two injections they are seeing much longer immunity for chicken pox too (potentially life long but we don’t know yet)