Worried about vaccinations - anyone else feel the same?

[ladymac]

DD is 15 weeks today. When we went for 1st jabs a few weeks ago, GP wouldn't give them because she had a cold. Since then I haven't gone back as she'd either been snuffly or we were away (jabs only done on mon afternoons).

We are going to Spain for a week on saturday and today is a jabs opportunity. Trouble is I've got really nervous about her having them. Worried about possible reactions and also if it could make her poorly for our hols.

At the same time I don't want her to get any nasty diseases.

I feel my views are somewhere in the middle of my HV and her evangelical jabs spiel, and the anti jabs brigade on the other side.

Any help/views/reassurance would be great.

some info here on mercury

The other factor in all of this is that we live in North London, and HVs and GPs all talk of influx of immigrants who have not been immunised - thus less herd immunity. And presumably dd3 will end up at school with some of these children.

more here

Thank you Cat.

can i also add that by vaccinating you are protecting not only your child but also everybody else's child. Vaccines work by reducing the probability that you will contract the disease and through herd immumity reducing the probability that you will come into contact with it.

That's true, but it does get my back up a bit when people (inc my friends) use that argument. I have to do what I feel is right for my child first, then I can consider what is right for the community.

you're welcome ladymac. hope it helps

and I agree re herd immunity (witch and ladymac)-it's extremely important...to a certain extent it's OK if small number of children are unvaccinated but if that number gets too high I think there's a real danger of some of these illnesses making a comeback.

ladylush-not having a go-
but your child is part of the community

It's probably a bit of paranoia, but I just think that when they are only 8 weeks old it's a big young to be injecting foreign substances. Doe it really hurt to wait a month or two to start. So I think I just forgot to show up for the first one and wandered into the GP at around 12 months.

I'm for vaccinating, but I don't really see what the hurry is. Same goes for MMR, I'm happy for him to have the jabs, but does he really need to be vaccinated for mups at 15 months old. I thought it was serious in the teenage years (by when it may well have worn off).

He's 26 months old now, has had the measels jab. Probably should get a moe on on the rubella jab, but if he caught the real disease I wouldn't be entirely dissappointed. Then, of course, we'll get the mups one too. But, I'm in no hurry.

I should add that he has a second cousin who is autistic. Perhaps no link to my genes, but then perhaps not. I'm not prepared to take any risks.

sorry, wandered in at around 12 weeks, not 12 months.

chicken pox does cause a health risk.
Boy in DS's class (he was 6) had a stroke following CP and research shows that there is a much higher chance of a child having a stroke in the months following CP then any other time

Yes cat of course he is part of a community, but I'm hardly likely to put his health at risk for the benefit of the wider community am I. That is the kind of martyrdom I feel many of us lack.

ladylush- I guess it depends on your point of view re risks of vaccinating. But you've had your child vaccinated anyway haven't you? so have opted not to take the risk of illness...
Am all for parents having the option of single vaccines etc if that is what they prefer.

Agree. He's only had the dtp 5 in 1. Haven't done the single mmr yet. Single vaccines are blamed for increasing incidence of disease because immunity is delayed. It is a very difficult one. Risks both ways.

I was surprised at the news this morning where they were stating that public confidence is growing over MMR and that the single jabs carry far more risk as they are often shipped in from other countries.

I let DD have the jabs, though I did refuse to have MMR and the new jab at the same time - she had teh new one first and then her MMR. Even then she had her MMR at closer to 20 months.

My issue with having seperate MMR jabs was that I would never forgive myself if we had, for example, the mumps jab first and then she got measles while waiting. Yes, I had issues with the MMR combined jab, but I felt that was probably a lesser risk than her getting one of the illnesses seeing as she is attending a childminders and several playgroups.

First ever post....

I've had my daughter vaccinated, after a fair amount of thought. I certainly agree with ladymac and CatIsSleepy regarding herd immunity and increasing rates of certain diseases. My daughter went to nursery at just under a year old when I had to go back to work, and we live in an area of South London where, the GP says, some preventable diseases are greatly on the increase. She had a BCG, for example, as I am quite paranoid about the growing number of cases of TB.

Welcome frisbyrat. Glad you've chosen to post first on a thread I started!

I agree about inner London and the greater incidence of communicable diseases. I wonder if we would feel differently if we lived somewhere rural.

The other issus is that we are really in the hands of health professionals. They decide whether it is better to vaccinate or to devote resources in dealing with the diseases (and subsequent problems) once they occur. As they have decided to vaccinate for many of these diseases, the health resources just are not there to deal with the consequences of getting them. This really increases the risk of not having the vaccine, not only for you but also for everybody else

Witchandchips, I fell you have accepted defeat in putting the cart before the horse. The Health service is there to accommodate my needs. I will not base decisions regarding my children's health on what is convenient for them.

If they are worried about low uptake, they ought to offer the single jabs for free because then people who don't want the mmr and can't afford single won't be left out in the cold.

I have made a decision!

Have decided to go this afternoon for the first jabs. I have enlisted the help of a good friend to come with me for moral support. Also because I've been told that it's better if someone else holds dd3 for the jabs then hands her back to me to be comforted and have a bf. (Anyone else heard this?)

I phoned DH at work as I realised whilst I was posting that we've not really discussed it properly. We had a really good conversation about it all, which as well as your posts helped me to climb down from the safety of my fence!

Like ladylush, I'm a bit superstitious about not having them, so we'll be off to the clinic later and just hope any side effects aren't too bad.

Good post

That was for elusis

Ladymac - glad you reached a decision and hope your lo is ok.

And as for my responsibility to the community, that always makes me laugh. Like any responsible parent would put the community before their own child. You look after yours, and I'll look after mine.

Wondered if any of you had given homeopathic remedies after jabs to help with possible reactions. For example could a little arnica help with the shock of the jabs?