scared of not vaccinating

[mumsgotatum]

Hello, At the moment I am currently reading Dr Richard Halvosen's book, 'The Truth about Vaccines'. I am finding it and interesting and quite alarming read.
I have a 7 mth old DD who has not been vaccinated apart from BCG in hospital. I have been reluctant to take her for any of her vaccinations; partly because I have a DS (3.5 yrs), who I did get vaccinated and I just couldn't bear taking him. (Dad took him)...and also because I have been procrastinating about it, and can't make up my mind one or another. It's a minefield!
I have quite a few friends who have not vaccinated at all, and then it looks as though Dr Halvosen does offer some single vaccinations. With my DS I did get him vaccinated because I didn't really know any better and wasn't so informed on the subject. He has had only one MMR.
As mentioned quite a few of my friends have not vaccinated and very happy with their decision. They have made an informed choice and are convinced they are doing the best for their children.
But somehow I do feel scared of not vaccinating, are there any mums out there who did not vaccinate and do you feel ok about your decision? Did you ever feel fear? What about playgroups or large groups of children?
Or any mums who did vaccines privately or have consulted with Dr Halvosen?
Just trying to get help making a decision...it's very difficult....

Thanks

The fact that you can make (and presumably believe) such a daft statement.

i have 3 largely unvaccinated children. you have to make a decision on a vaccine by vaccine basis and on a child by child basis, looking at as much information as you can find at the time (there is 9 years between my oldest and youngest so i have done things differently for each one based on current vaccination schedule and current information).

dr halvorsen has done the jabs that mine have had (less with each successive child, as it's turned out) and is an extremely helpful and objective man. we talked through each child individually, he made his recommendations, some of them i followed, some of them i didn't. he treated me with the utmost respect and made me feel that i had done the best i could to understand the issues. highly recommended.

Balia: if you knew in your heart of hearts your child would be damaged by an injection, would you still roll up his/her sleeve and sacrifice the child to protect unknown others THEORETICALLY ?

What an interesting moral dilemma. What does it have to do with what I have said? I have found no evidence of 'damage' done by the single Rubella vaccine, and the protection of unborn children is not theoretical - if a pregnant woman is infected with rubella her child has a 90% chance of being damaged. (and as I said, it is largely sub-clinical, and you yourself say you aren't sure if one of your girls has had it or not - and presumably you also don't know if they passed that disease onto a pregnant woman - but that's not your responsibility, right?) The elimination of rubella in the States is not 'theoretical'.

Look, if what you are saying is that you will not put your child at any risk, however small, in order to protect others, then just say that. It is your choice, after all. You can choose not to vaccinate until the risk is to your child or grandchildren, and ignore about the risks to others (those who are having cancer treatment, for example) but don't misinform to make your position seem more justifiable to the rest of us. Don't 'eyeroll' at people who are trying to add to the information, or 'yawn' at people just because they don't agree with you. Many people think that caring for others, taking responsibility for others, makes the world a better place - and I think they deserve more respect than a 'yawn' - after all, they have taken risks that you refuse to take for the benefit of the wider community.

And BTW, I have tried to answer all questions to me on this thread - I notice you have answered none of mine.

"if a pregnant woman is infected with rubella her child has a 90% chance of being damaged."

Where did you get this figure from balia? The risk is highest in the early weeks of pregnancy but it reduces quite quickly and after 15/16 weeks the risk is very very small. I have only seen 'over 80%' in the early weeks - not 90% throughout...

What is wrong with allowing your child the opportunity to contract the disease in childhood and vaccinating girls, if required, in their teenage years? You seem to object to this idea on the herd immunity grounds to protect pregnant women but if women were being tested for immunity in their teenage years and being vaccinated if they weren't immune then this wouldn't be an issue - they would be taking responsibility for their own immunity rather than relying on other people.

Unvaccinated children are not the only potential risk anyway. Vaccines do not offer lifelong immunity and how many people know their immunity status in adulthood? When was the last time your husband had his immunity to rubella checked? He could just as easily pass it on to you. Or what about the person sitting next to you on the bus? If anything, Leonie's unvaccinated child is less likely to pass it on because at least she is aware that she is not vaccinated and would make the effort to avoid going out if she was showing symptoms whereas someone else would just wander around completely oblivious!

Every medical intervention carries risks including vaccines. Your child is at greatest risk from the disease in question. If you're concerned, look at each vaccine. Don't just google - go to sites with accurate and scientifically informed information eg CDC, NHS, AAP, CHOP vaccine education centre (absolutely wonderful - I use it all the time). Ask what is the disease you are protecting against and how serious it is and what are the possible side effects of the vaccine.

My dd got suspected measles before Xmas. She was only 14 months old. I didn't know much about measles beforehand, but having read up on it, I can categorically state, that IMO, it is NOT something you would want your child to get if there was any possible way to stop it. While it can be quite minor, there is a relatively high rate of complications which can cause significant long term problems.

To vaccinate or not can IMO seem academic until you are faced with a very sick child.

Yes Stata, that is what I have done and what I recommend that people do.