to pay for my daughter to have the chicken pox vaccine?

[cherrybun01]

hi,

UK based so this isnt part of routine immunizations here (as I'm sure many know). I have seen you can pay to have it done in children, I was really for it but have now had doubts put in my mind.

my partner was a bit on the fence but his 4 year old niece had it this year and was very uncomfortable and unwell so he decided okay let's do it. but my mum, who is not massive on vaccines anyway but whole other story there, has said it is completely unnecessary as it's a mild illness and how do I know a vaccine that is not routine over here is "safe"

she has not dropped it since and has made me paranoid and anxious. I just feel like if I can avoid my baby getting in the state that 4 year old niece did and being fortunate enough to be in a position to avoid that why not?

has anyone here had this vaccine for their children? how was it? would anyone not do it, on the flip side, and if so why?

thanks!

I would - we had booked my eldest to have his, but he got it two days before his appointment and had a pretty miserable time :(

If you can afford the vaccine then get it done.
My three dc had it last year and it was not mild, it was extreme. One got away reasonably lightly but the other two suffered. Absolutely covered head to toe with blisters even in their mouth and on genitals. Agony when they burst. Oldest was 6 at the time and he was the most poorly with it, hardly moved for a week.
It's like something from the dark ages and I can't really believe we don't vaccinate here!

We got it for our boys because I grew up in the States where it’s part of childhood immunisations and I’ve never had it even when my sister caught it before her shots and my dad caught it with her and he was around 40 (wasn’t a part of his immunisations as a kid). Both had mild cases. My husband is British caught them at 15 and was out of school for three weeks. My niece and nephews caught them and two had a mild case but the youngest caught it from them and he was quite poorly. I was pregnant with the second at the time so we didn’t chance a visit and I wasn’t sure how long my immunity was. It was tested and I still had immunity and I’ve possibly passed some of my immunity to my children, but wasn’t taking the chance so had my oldest vaccinated before I had his brother and then once his brother was old enough, had him vaccinated.

I rather not gamble with if they get a mild case or a serious case and didn’t want my husband to catch it twice.

I had mine two years ago aged 23. Totally anecdotal but it didn't affect me whatsoever. And now I won't get chicken pox. Yay.

I paid for DS to have the vaccine. A few months later he spent all weekend playing with his cousins, and the following day they came down with chickenpox so they were almost certainly contagious and DS didn't catch it from them, so it works! It also went round nursery a few times and he didn't get it. I've just booked baby DD in for her vaccination now she's old enough to have it.
I also plan to get them a booster when they go to university to make sure they're protected into adulthood.

People always saw chicken pox is mild etc and sure it can be. One of my children was fine with it , the other was extremely ill, it went on for well over a month, he’s had behavioral issues since and v bad scaring . Chicken pox like other viruses affects the central nervous system so it can leave children with lifelong effects, I strongly believe my son has been left with some behavioral problems as a result, he was definitely traumatized, he was so ill. He also stopped sleeping properly for a year after . If I’d had known about the vaccine I would definitely have given it.
Btw even if you get chicken pox naturally you can get it again and you can also get shingles for the poster who said that the vaccine immunity can wear off. You can get most viruses more than once .

This idea that chicken pox is always very mild is very wrong. My sister got a large spot under her eyelid and it ended up infecting her eye and now she still as an adult has issues with this eye as a result.

Yes I would and did for DC3 at age 4 as they had been exposed to it twice and not caught it. DC's 1&2 both had it as preschoolers before DC3 came along and it was utterly miserable for both of them and left scarring. I know someone who had a rare complication from CP with life altering consequences so it was a no brainer for me. No hesitation to get it for DC3. Also missing 2 weeks of school was a consideration, this was pre-covid though so 2 weeks sounds like a drop in the ocean now

Btw, having chickenpox also doesn’t guarantee lifelong immunity. A friend’s daughter had them 3 times now, each time worse than before. First case was mild, second moderate, third pretty bad (scaring, ill for almost 2 weeks), she is 7 years old. She now got vaccinated on top, let’s see if that helps.
We don’t know for how long the vaccine usually works - at least 20 years we know.

Totally agree with the posters saying that it is NOT always mild. I couldn’t afford it for children, unfortunately. DS1 got away with a mild case but DS2 was very ill. Spots in ears, covering the inside of his mouth, on eyelids, underneath his foreskin . . . It’s bonkers that a child should have to endure that because a parent is lower income. If you can afford it, I would go for it.

My older two children had it mildly. But my youngest is nearly 4 and still hasn't had it (I expect he would have had it this year if it weren't for lockdown, as its most virulant in spring). I plan to get the vaccine if he hasn't had it by the time he starts school or if he hasn't had it before the next overseas holiday, whichever comes first.

Oh and you never know if they'll catch it naturally. Me and my best friend never got it - all our pals and siblings did, but never us two. We're both vaccinated now from adulthood

I’m thinking about this as Ds hasn’t had CP and isn’t that young anymore

OP, go on Google and read up about the pox vaccine. You can learn a lot. Once your child has had the injection they can have a temp for the next two days but that's one of the few possible issues

The vaccine is offered in Germany and America as part of the normal injections, not sure but I think cost is the reason it isn't in the UK

As said it isn't a lifelong immunity but it lasts ten or more years and also means the children are protected against shingles which can also be very painful

I researched a lot before making a decision with my DP. We had our DD vaccinated about three months ago at a local private travel clinic who is listed on nhs.com with excellent reviews. In and out in minutes, most children will cry for a few mins due to the shock of the pain but the other option is possible scaring on our beautiful little girl and of course time off nursery, time off work and if you can prevent your child going through discomfort and pain why wouldn't you?

Our DD has already had hand, foot and mouth twice and the second time had to stay in hospital as she had a virus too. It was awful to see. We don't want her going through anything like that again esp if we can prevent it

I’m not risking my child’s health to protect someone else who can’t be arsed to get the vaccine NHS won't give you the shingles vaccine until you are 70, I'm not 70 yet and I've had shingles 3 times. I suppose I could find out if I could get it privately, never thought about it as GP just said I had to wait.

The big thing isn't your DD protecting me it is about protecting her.

I got my DC vaccinated at Superdrug. They hadn’t caught it, despite it going round at school every year, and every time we were due to go on holiday, I got paranoid they’d catch it, and we’d be unable to fly. So it was partly for that reason, and partly to save them from inevitably catching it at some point and it’s just not pleasant.

My daughter had it, helped her avoided it doing the rounds twice at nursery. No adverse effects.
Didn't want her to potentially be very poorly (girl at nursery had it and it got infected, she was poorly for 6 weeks) or miss nursery/work/potentially a holiday.

I had my dd vaccinated against it privately. She hit to about 13 and still hadn’t caught it so I got it done. The older they are when they catch it the poorlier they are. I had it at 16 and was horrendously ill with it

It's not routine because it's too expensive for the NHS. It's routine in plenty of other countries.

I'd go for it. The chicken pox virus never actually goes away once you've had it, it just becomes dormant, a lot like the herpes virus and coldsores; and while chicken pox is usually mild, shingles (caused by the dormant virus becoming not dormant again) is no bloody joke.

@ancientgran the shingles vaccine is privately available
Giving my kids the chickenpox vaccine protects them - from shingles and chickenpox. It doesn’t protect others from shingles (but does protect others from chickenpox). Point is, I refuse to make my kids suffer to protect others from a disease they can easily get vaccinated against.

I’m not as convinced by the chicken pox vaccination as it’s longevity isn’t proven (essentially, you might not have it when young but get it in your 20s when it is much nastier). I am also friends with an obstetrician and she wouldn’t have the vaccination when they were young - in the hope they had it as it provides better immunity - but would if they hadn’t had it when they are older. Reasoning being that if they hadn’t had it chicken pox in pregnancy is awfully dangerous for the baby. I am pro-vaccination and have all the ones routinely given (plus paid for the BCG) but this wouldn’t be one I would go for. That being said, if you feel strongly about it, do so as you will be doing what you feel is right for your little one.

Yes of course get it. The evidence is that it’s a live vaccine and immunity lasts a long time. It’s routine in many other countries but the NHS refuses to pay for it.
I think it’s a no brainier if you can afford it

I've never had CO as a child so I was urged to take the vaccine when I was planning my first pregnancy. I got my shots when I was 29. It's never too late to have them. I might need boosters later in life I suspect.

I wasn't expecting to but had shingles 20 years after the CP vaccine. A bit baffling.

I wonder if I could still have the shingles vaccine later in life.

I paid for it privately 20 years ago as I had nursed very unwell children with chicken pox and could vividly remember my own childhood experience. Two friends who are paediatricians strongly recommended it and my GP had vaccinated all his own children.
15 years years ago it was put on the National Schedule of Vaccines in Australia.
My children had no side effects from the vaccine.

I wish I’d got it for my children. I didn’t even know there was one. They got chicken pox when one was 15, the other 17 and were horribly ill and it took them quite a while to get over it. I just thanked the Lord they didn’t get it during an exam time.