To get DS vaccinated against chickenpox?

[HamCob]

DS 6 hasn't had chickenpox and although there are some germs flying around school at the moment I haven't heard of anyone having chicken pox in a fairly long while.

I'm getting a bit anxious that he hasn't had it yet as I know it can be quite nasty at any age but particularly in teens/adulthood.

DH thinks along the lines of 'well catching it never did me any harm' but one of my secondary school friends was hospitalised when it went into her spinal cord and travelled to her brain so I admit to being a bit twitchy.

I'm not sure whether to wait and see if he catches it naturally or get the vaccination. I don't want to hang on too long though as the vaccination is more effective in children than teens or adults.

So AIBU to get him vaccinated or would you hold off?

My Dp had his first chickenpox vaccine (varicella) when he was growing up in America. He thought he was protected for life but caught shingles when our dc had chickenpox. Turns out there's 2 doses of vaccine normally given but he'd only had the first due to moving back to the UK. He was very ill with shingles and if anyone is thinking of getting their children immunised against chickenpox then I'd make sure you check what vaccine it is and how many doses you need beforehand.

Vaccinated mine as soon as they were eligible.

@mog27

My Dp had his first chickenpox vaccine (varicella) when he was growing up in America. He thought he was protected for life but caught shingles when our dc had chickenpox. Turns out there's 2 doses of vaccine normally given but he'd only had the first due to moving back to the UK. He was very ill with shingles and if anyone is thinking of getting their children immunised against chickenpox then I'd make sure you check what vaccine it is and how many doses you need beforehand.

You dont catch shingles so you cant have shingles without having chicken pox first (can you get shingles after the vaccine - does it count as an exposure?) It is a reactivation of the chicken pox virus and sometimes happens if your immune system is low or you're stressed, etc

Chickenpox vaccine is a 2 dose schedule

I've just booked him in at Boots. I now feel bad for not doing it sooner! Honestly though in RL I don't know anyone who's had the vaccination.

One of the worst periods of 25 years of parenting were when we had CP. It was bearable when the 4 year old had it but absolute hell when her siblings, including 6mth old sister AND my dh caught it from her. It annoys me when people dismiss CP as 'not that bad'. For some it is horrendous and the next child was vaccinated as soon as it was possible.
I still shudder when I think of that period of time.

@dementedpixie I have absolutely no idea how it all works tbh. All I know is he wasn't fully protected because he didn't have both the vaccines and our GP diagnosed shingles and said it was because he only had the first dose. He never caught chickenpox as a child though so the first vaccine must have given him some degree of protection, I remember looking for information but because they routinely give 2 vaccines in America there's not a lot of data on how much protection you have if you only receive one. His mother didn't realise he needed both doses, being from the U.K. she wasn't familiar with the chickenpox vaccine so never thought about getting the second dose when she moved back here.

it's more than a few quid. IIRC I paid around £250 5 years ago so not cheap. Not everyone can afford that which makes it more of a shame that's it's not given on the NHS.

When you compare it to the time and money it takes from working parents who will have to take care of their child and isolate them for 2+ weeks, it can be and that doesn’t include if it passes on to their other children or them for that matter.

@phoenixrosehere

it's more than a few quid. IIRC I paid around £250 5 years ago so not cheap. Not everyone can afford that which makes it more of a shame that's it's not given on the NHS.

When you compare it to the time and money it takes from working parents who will have to take care of their child and isolate them for 2+ weeks, it can be and that doesn’t include if it passes on to their other children or them for that matter.

Not everyone can afford the outlay of £250 even if you reason that it won’t be lost due to time off for illness.

It's £140 at boots not £250

If you can afford it, do it.

£70 per dose and two doses needed I think

I would my DD got it age 3 from nursery and she was hospitalised and very poorly I know it’s rare but why take the risk when you can stop
It?

I had my boys vaccinated as toddlers too, as soon as I could. I would definitely do it again.

I just paid £140 for the course in Boots for my ten year old.

@WaterBottle123

Chicken pox is more fatal to children than COVID which will blow much of Mumsnet's minds!

I'd vaccinate. DD1 had it age 3 before I knew there was a vaccine and DD2 got it before she was old enough for vaccine, otherwise I definitely would have vaccinated her

Flu also has less annual fatalities in children than chicken pox. I’m amazed the CP vax isn’t part of childhood immunisation and flu is. One actually protects the child, the other protects those around them.

CP is part of many countries standard vaccination program.

If you can I would.

Someone my DH knows lost his hearing and his lower leg from chicken pox as a child. Usually it is a mild illness but not always