Anyone else hold of on MMR for a while? How did your older toddler handle it?

[pastalady]

My DS is 2 years 4 months. DP and I felt very uncomfortable about the MMR and still do, although we feel we have held it off for long enough and now is the time. I know my DS will totally freak out and try to struggle free when the nurse does it. I'm dreading it and more importantly I'm worried about how it will effect his health and uncomfortable with the feeling that I am taking a risk with that injection, even though I would be taking a risk by not getting it done.

So, has anyone else held off on the MMR until their toddler was older. How did they handle it?

It's probably worth saying that the main reason I am uncomfortable with it is because 1) It doesn't gurantee a child wont catch measles. 2)regardless of all the subesquent studies that found not autism link, they still keep finding the measels virus used in jabs in the gut of autistic children 3)It can mae some children very poorly....

Dreading it! Hope I am making the right decision.

I assume that this is the first jab?

my ds had it at about your ds age. absolutely fine.

Your DS will sense if you are nervous and worried so probably the best thing you can do is keep calm youself. My dd1 just had her MMR booster at 4 and was fine (especially when she got an enormous choc button afterwards). DD2 (21months)has had all of her jabs as well and I find choc buttons work with her too...

I told DD1 (as we went into the surgery not before)that she was going to have an injection to stop her being ill when she was older. I said that it would hurt a little bit but only for a second and that I would cuddle her throughout and when it was finished we would go and buy a happy hippo.
Hope that makes sense.

Do read Rochard Halvorsen's book "the truth about vaccinations". He's an NHS GP - it's a very balabced, very good and informative book. Published very recently (last month) I got a copy off ebay for 6 quid.

ONe thing he does mention is that reactions are less common in the booster than the baby jab. That may be because many children are already immune.

Yep, first jab except the ones he had when he was a small baby.

If a good nurse is doing the injection he will hardly even notive it being done. Get it done asap as I didn't give it to my girls and they have just got over having measles and it was horrendus.

DD1 had separate jabs-started the course at 18 months-you need to leave gaps between jabs. reason was that I am allergic to most medication and she had ezcema as a child so was happier to do this and she was fine-mumps one left her a bit poorly but nothing woorying. DD2 was different-has a terribly poor immune system, picks up everything thats going but no allergy problems. Took a deep breath and had her done at 20 months and she was absolutely fine. Didnt cry at all. No after effects either. Trust your own insticts and either look intgo separate jabs or get MMR done but you need to feel calm about it. Have had colleague who held off til her boys were older and both fine. Only things nurse checked was that she was not allergic to eggs. Good luck, it is a hard decision.

just to clairify, when I said I had DD2 'done' I meant the MMR