MMR - worrying (temporary) change of character afterwards, what to do about boosters?

[diyqueen]

Dd had her MMR and the other standard vaccinations at 12.5 months; however I was extremely worried about her afterwards. She had a sudden change of character - miserable, glazed eyes, not engaging with anything, dreadful screaming uncontrollable tantrums that haven't been repeated since, after being a lively, sociable and energetic little thing - it took her about 2 months to get back to normal (thankfully she is completely back to her old self). Friends noticed the change in her as well. The GP said there was no link with the vaccination and that it was probably 'a virus' - but I know it was related, she went suddenly quiet and 'strange' straight after the jabs and that was it for 2 months.

It's a while before I need to decide what to do about the MMR booster, but I really want to get my head round it in advance. DP is of the opinion that she recovered, it could just have been coincidence, and she should have them to make sure she's protected. I however have a real worry about the same thing happening again but her not getting back to normal, I love her so much and it seems such a risk. I've never been so worried for her, I could see so many parallels with the stories of those whose dcs developed autism that they attributed to the jabs... and yes I know all that's been discredited but there's still that niggle of doubt.

So, did anyone else have similar issues with the first jabs and what did you do about the booster?

My DS had no reaction to his first MMR shots (apart from a slight rash), but he did go through a horrendous "terrible twos" phase half a year later. For 6 months or so, he would not speak, just point and whine (we used to call him "talks with wailes") - it felt like a real depression. Then we took him to his second MMR (at 30 months) on a Thursday and by the weekend, he was a changed child. He was of totally sunny mood, he was talking in 5 word sentences, he was showing interest in potty training. I don't think the MMR had anything to do with that, but I had been watching him like a hawk because I had started to hang out on (anti)vaccine boards and I was a bit nervous. The change was so striking, had it gone the other way (from sunny to depressed), I am sure that I would have blamed the MMR.

I am not sure that is helpful - I hope you'll find the confidence to do the booster, otherwise, you could ask your GP to run titers to see whether your little one responded to the first round of MMR so well that he would not need the second round (I would still boost a boy before puberty, to make sure he has lasting mumps protection, but you may be able to drag it out if his titers are good now).