To think it's bonkers to not vaccinate against chicken pox

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Especially if you have multiple kids who haven't had it who would probably get it back to back meaning potentially 2-3 weeks off work for parents while waiting for them to scab over.

Genuinely curious as to why people don't vaccinate. It is more expensive to have the time off work than to vaccinate and it's a nasty uncomfortable avoidable illness for kids and a standard vaccine for a lot of the rest of the world. So if you haven't, why not?

But will it cost you more than £140 to have potentially two weeks (if one child, longer if more kids) off work?

I got both mine vaccinated and I’m so pleased I did. It did the rounds at school and neither of them got it. It can cause problems for parents working, obviously pain and discomfort in the children, plus cancellations of major life events like important holidays, weddings et cetera.

I spoke to the doctor about why isn’t included in the NHS routine vaccinations and they said at one point it was seriously being considered but it was around the time of the Autism/vaccination panic so the timing was felt to be unhelpful. Plus the issue of money of course.

If you can afford it, I highly recommend it. I don’t have time for people who whinge about their children getting chickenpox when they chose not to get the vaccination provided they have the means to do so.

Just got mine vaccinated because it was cheaper than taking weeks off work as unpaid leave.
Most of my school mum friends have either had it pass through their families, or have got adequate support networks so grandparents to look after poorly children, or they're SAHM so don't have the work element to consider.

One of my children was recently part of a hospital trial and one of the doctors on the research team told me that the CP vaccination is currently being approved for inclusion in the UK childhood vaccination schedule within the next couple of years.

That's no longer true of the current vaccine.

I had chckenpox as a young adult and was extremely ill. I have read the later you catch it, the worst the symptoms. Given immunity fades from the vaccine, I think it is safer to catch it when young.

But will it cost you more than £140 to have potentially two weeks (if one child, longer if more kids) off work?

I had 2 children with chicken pox and it didn't cost me anything. They got it in the summer holidays during a period of pre-booked annual leave. I was lucky but I could have just worked from home if not and I wouldn't have lost money.

I couldn’t get DD1 vaccinated because DH was on immosupressants.

Mine is vaccinated. It’s included in the routine vaccine here but I would have paid for it if it wasn’t.

Yes, this was the reason our GP gave when we asked. They said it was better to be exposed to it as it would provide better immunity.

Chicken pox vaccine has now been recommended for inclusion in the childhood vaccination schedule, it just needs the Department of Health to sign it off. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/jcvi-recommends-chickenpox-vaccine-in-childhood-immunisation-programme

It is being added to the English schedule.

I vaccinated mine, I’ve seen friend’s children suffer terribly with it, it’s not mild for everyone.

The GP thought I was mad though when I mentioned it in relation to something else.

However I’m lucky we could afford it, lots of people can’t.

That's not correct.

Not surprising that 33% of mumsnetters are anti vaxxers. Absolute madness. Obtuse

I paid for it and it was the best £150 I ever spent.

My friend’s DC was extremely poorly with complications from chicken pox.

This is old and outdated advice.

I’ve not looked at it for two decades, it was definitely the case back then.

I didn't for my eldest as didn't know about it. He had it quite mild but still got some scarring. I did for my youngest as I was aware of it and she just didn't seem to be picking it up. Everytime we were about to go on hols, creche would say it was going around so I'd have tough decisions about whether to send her in and potentially not be able to fly. So it took the not knowing when she'd pick it up away. I am quite pro vaccines anyway. Men b wasn't part of the schedule for my eldest so I paid for that one too.

I raised my kids in the US, and almost no one there gets chickenpox any more, due to mass vaccination. It's a notifiable disease, so if kids in school do get it, they inform the parents. In 18 years of having kids in schools here, I've been informed twice, and in each case it was just one child.

I've also had this advice. Putting it off for 10 years or so is just kicking the can down the road to a time in their lives where they're likely to suffer worse symptoms and the disruption could have long-lasting consequences. Interesting to hear that this isn't true of the current vaccine - it was 2 years ago when both mine had chicken pox. You would need to be assured of lifelong immunity, because getting it when you're older could be really serious.

My oldest is 6 and I only found out there's a vaccination about 2/3 months ago. I always assumed it was one of those things everyone gets eventually and that's how you develop immunity to it.

With it being so cheap I don't understand why it isn't more advertised.

I didn't partly because I had heard it wasnt as effective as having it and decided I would rather mine had it as children then as adults when it's likely to be worse. Also I know of several children who had the vaccine and then caught chicken pox when it went round.

The vaccine isn't lifelong, chickenpox is more dangerous as an adult.

People who do know about the vaccine may not realise the opinion has changed on the shingles risk.

That was the reason it wasn't previously recommended to be in the vaccine schedule in the UK.

Now there has been longer term reviews of its use in other countries, plus the success of the shingles vaccine, the recommendation has changed.

£150 is a lot of money. Expecting families with 3 kids to find £450 for vaccines that, until very recently, weren't recommended is a lot. Especially when uptake of recommended vaccines is low.

@DoorToNowhere I'm finding it so hard to figure that one out- when did the current vaccine start? When I got my kids vaccinated 6 years ago loads of people said to me it was a waste and it would put them at risk when they were older and someone even said it would put them at risk exactly when they could be family planning (?) and I literally couldn't figure out what they were on about. I'm wondering is it as simple as they were quoting years old advice.