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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To have my child vaccinated against chicken pox...

176 replies

MummaT86 · 13/07/2023 07:48

... even though there's no medical reason to do so (i.e. chicken pox doesn't pose a risk to anyone he's in contact with)?

To be honest my reasons are kind of selfish for getting him vaccinated - he picks up everything from nursery so it's only a matter time I think. We've got a holiday booked in September and I understand you can't fly for 7 days after the first spot.

Has anyone had their child vaccinated privately and why did you do it? I haven't read any cons to the vaccination itself in respect of the child being vaccinated; only to the wider population hence why the vaccine isn't part of the routine NHS program.

OP posts:
Caravanvirgin · 13/07/2023 07:48

Yes, we had DD2 vaccinated a boots.

Mirrormirror2 · 13/07/2023 07:49

I would.

Mine contracted chicken pox while I was waiting for the jab appointment and was really poorly with it! After that experience it cemented to me that I would 100% vaccinate any future children!

legalseagull · 13/07/2023 07:51

No benefits? Chicken pox can be really nasty.

I decided against it for two reasons

  1. I couldn't afford two kids.
  2. I read that the immunity from the vaccine isn't as long lasting as the illness itself. There's a risk that they might be exposed to it again and catch it in their teenage/adult years and that's much more dangerous
Octonaut4Life · 13/07/2023 07:51

I had my son vaccinated and I'm glad I did. Chicken pox is awful, a small minority of kids can get extremely poorly with it, and even if they're not seriously ill they're still miserable. I'd rather he just doesn't have to deal with it.

Runningoncake · 13/07/2023 07:52

Yes, we vaccinated DS. The cost of two vaccines was considerably less painful than having an ill child and having to take time off work.

The research I did at the time seemed to suggest it was better for DS too, and that vaccination would have happened as standard had we lived in many other countries.

Willyoujustbequiet · 13/07/2023 07:52

I had the vaccination ( 2 doses) on the NHS. I still caught Chickenpox so it's not a guarantee.

Having said that if I had known about it earlier I would definitely had got my children vaccinated. It can be a really nasty illness and have complications. The child of one poster on here died due to Chickenpox. It was heartbreaking.

I would if you can.

Mirrormirror2 · 13/07/2023 07:53

And tbh my reasoning for wanting the vaccination in the first place were similar to yours, holiday coming up, constant nursery illnesses etc, but also if I can avoid your child being poorly & miserable then I do - ie flu spray annually, all other vaccs. So why not CP if its available?

Panda89 · 13/07/2023 07:57

Yes we got DD vaccinated when she was 2.
Reasons were, the vaccine was less expensive than the cost of a week off work, we didn’t want to play the waiting game with upcoming holidays, and also DH has a couple of nasty facial scars from chicken pox and wants to avoid that happening to DD.

Twizbe · 13/07/2023 07:57

I’ve had both mine done. No regrets.

Eldest did catch it in year 1, but got 6 spots and no other symptoms. Was only off for 2 days.

Youngest has been exposed multiple times (including to older brother’s dose) and has never caught it.

Runningoncake · 13/07/2023 07:58

This Oxford Uni article talks about why it’s not available on the NHS - basically because it’s not cost effective because it would result in an increase in Shingles in the unvaccinated population. Surely though, the gains would be long term as if no-one got Chicken Pox as they were all vaccinated then eventually no-one would get Shingles. In any case what is in the best interests of an individual child and the NHS don’t align in this case, in my opinion.

Everything you need to know about chickenpox and why more countries don’t use the vaccine | University of Oxford

https://www.ox.ac.uk/research/everything-you-need-know-about-chickenpox-and-why-more-countries-don%E2%80%99t-use-vaccine

NowYouSee · 13/07/2023 07:59

I had mine done. I remember how very sick with CP I was as a child and wanted to spare them that.

Hugasauras · 13/07/2023 07:59

If someone can afford it, I think it's a bit of a no brainer personally. I am not risking my child having lifelong scarring as well as the various other risks of CP when it can be avoided for what it would probably cost in cancelled plans when inevitably it was caught just before a holiday or something.

UndercoverCop · 13/07/2023 07:59

We did, my niece was hospitalised with chicken pox and was incredibly unwell, she also now has done awful scars.
It's done the rounds two or three times at nursery since and he's been completely fine.
Worth the money in my book

Hugasauras · 13/07/2023 08:00

And my older DD got it when she was 1 and has avoided several nursery outbreaks and her own little sister catching it (at 6mo so hadn't been vaccinated yet).

Saschka · 13/07/2023 08:00

Do it! We vaccinated DS (lived somewhere it was part of normal childhood vaccinations) and I have to say I have felt very happy about that decision when the annual chickenpox outbreak happened at school/nursery. Nothing worse than a grumpy, itchy, sick poxy child.

My friend’s daughter caught it aged 4.5, and passed it onto her 6month old younger brother. My poor friend basically didn’t sleep for about a week.

Figment1982 · 13/07/2023 08:03

Absolutely go ahead. I didn’t realise it was available and then when I was procrastinating about booking it (not because I had doubts, because I procrastinate about everything), my DD caught it at nursery. She stoically got through it but it really wasn’t fun for her or for us (the stress it put us through trying to balance work whilst she was off nursery for a week would have been worth the cost alone).

SingaporeSlinky · 13/07/2023 08:03

I had my 2 DC vaccinated through Superdrug. Same reasons, every time we were due to fly abroad I’d worry they were going to catch it, especially when it would do the rounds at school.

Flo84 · 13/07/2023 08:04

I was thinking about this too. I was going to wait until my son is seven or eight and then if he hasn't caught it vaccinate him as apparently it's worse to get the older you are.

TeaAndStrumpets · 13/07/2023 08:05

My DH is partially deaf from CP as a child. Nasty illness.

Original poster
MummaT86 · 13/07/2023 08:06

Thank you all so much for your replies. I hadn't even realised it was available until a few weeks ago and it seems it's more common to have the vaccine than I realised!

OP posts:
Fleur405 · 13/07/2023 08:07

I had my daughter vaccinated because I’ve never had CP and I don’t want it (it’s worse in adults apparently and the vaccine less effective)

Onekidnoclue · 13/07/2023 08:09

Get the jabs. My eldest got it as a baby before he could have the jab. Week of hell. Then got it again later (apparently common if had as a baby). Another shit week with treats missed. He hated it.
younger son got jab. He had ten minutes of being pissed off in the pharmacy.
which would you rather?
like so many things it’s a cost decision for the nhs. Not what’s best for patients.

PeacyCream · 13/07/2023 08:10

They vaccinate as standard where I am from (Australia)

CeratopsofthePharoahs · 13/07/2023 08:10

Wish I had. My eldest caught it when he was 3 and was absolutely covered in spots. Still has some scars. A friend of his caught it at the same time and ended up in hospital as one of the spots got infected.
Then my youngest caught it who was 5 months old. He wasn't as ill, but has been left with worse scars.

HobnobsChoice · 13/07/2023 08:12

I was about to book my kids in to have it done when they caught it from their cousin. We flew to Spain on the Thursday morning. The cousins had played together on the Wednesday and cousin's spots came out on the Thursday night. i took a week unpaid leave, my daughter missed her school trip and I paid for but didn't use a week of nursery for her brother. It would have been a LOT cheaper to have paid for the vaccine. My son got it a week after his sister so it was two weeks of spotty hot itchy grumpy kids.

We also accidentally exposed a plane load of people to the virus as my daughter was "brewing" her first spot which turned up on the Friday after we flew home.