Decided against vaccinations for dd...... thoughts please

[bogie]

We had full intentions of vaccinating dd (ds-3 had his baby vaccines but no mmr) but our helth visitor left we haven't had a health visitor since dd was 2 weeks old, our gp practice is rubbish and even though I registered dd after the birth they lost the slip and had no record of it.
So we didn't hear anything about her jabs and when they needed to see her, nor did I have a postnatal 10 week check.
I phoned a few weeks ago when they said they didn't know we had a new baby and that someone must of misplaced the forms dd is now 4 months(18 weeks) and they said we need to get her in asap for her jabs but they have no appointments untill the 16th of Jan, We fly to USA on the 16th so we can't do that day she said well thats al we hae so it will have to be when you get back in feburary.

So I decided to reserch the vaccines and came across lots of anti-vaccine sites including this one
www.vaclib.org/
articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/11/11/some-parents-are-home-schooling-their-kids-to -avoid-vaccinations.aspx and we have decided not to vaccinate her based on the many sites we have come across, also the fact that we have alot of autisum in our family including my younger brother who had the mmr whereas I didn't have the mmr.

So I am interested to hear other peoples poins of veiw

Bogie, of course, we all just marched into the docs and said @Go on, pick a phial and jab my baby - yep, that one looks fine, 'whatever"

What a stupid question.....

wgich meningitis strain was it bogie? unlikely to be a reaction, though apparently hib vaccination can actually increase likelihood of getting Hib for up to two weeks after hib vax [still rare tho]

Yes bogie it is possible that the meningitis was related.

Did you get told what was responsible for the meningitis in terms of a bacteria or virus?

I don't think it is a stupid question at all when I had ds I had him vaccinated because thats the done thing I read on the form the midwife gave me what the were vaccinating him for and then went ahead.
I never looked at the pros and cons of vaccination I never researched further than looking at the things given to me by the midwife.
So I fail to see how it was a stupid question

if aeroplanes are such incubators, why don't we all get horrible diseases after flying - after all, there are only a very few we can be vaccinated against, plus which some vaccinations don't 'take' and anyway they wear off...
Chances of disaster are miniscule both ways round in my opinion.
Second someone else's recommendation of Halvorsen - read his book, it's v interesting.

You're mad not to have your child immunised!

Immunisations exist for a reason.

Why are you asking for peoples opinions on this topic? Are you hoping that someone will say that you're making the right decision?

It was viral he was in hospital for 10 days.

which meningitis strain was it bogie?

sorry, viral. i don't know about the implications for that. Probably zero research.

I would say that it sounds to me like you are fed up with your GP and the practice and this is why you are not having the vaccinations.

My view is only based on my experience which is that my DCs have been exposed to TB and measles and both been OK because they were vaccinated. Very unfortunately some of the other children at the nursery they went to were also exposed and some of those without vaccinations ended up very poorly indeed with lasting consequences.

What I would say is this - weigh up the % chance you think of a) the vaccinations badly affecting your child or b) if your child is exposed to those illnesses he/she has not been vaccinated against, the likely severity of consequences.

When you take the emotion out of this subject and look at it as a numbers game (which ultimately it is), it would become very clear to you very quickly which is the right choice.

You're mad, sorry.

It's not just MMR ... what about polio, tetanus, diptheria?!!

bogie- in your situation - which given your family history (& autism sometimes is related to the immune system- although this research is in its infancy), and your son's reaction is quite complicated I would want to talk to someone such as Richard Halvorsen before proceeding. He can give options for some, but not other vaccinations that most GPs can't (although you would have to pay).

I think you are absolutely correct to look at this considering your family history rather than the numbers game of populations (which is irrelevant).

We have never travelled abroad with unvaccinated ds2 or ds3 (travelling abroad becomes impossible with a sibling as severely autistic as ds1) - but I would go to the US without worrying too much. There are places I wouldn't go without vaccinating but the US is not one of them.

I don't vaccinate.

i think jute's advice the best approach. Halvorson gives fair, unbiased advice for the individual child. And US no bigger risk than UK. I eouldn't necessarily trust those website you linked to tho.

I don't think its stupid question either btw. I vaccinated ds1 without thinking, without even realising that the long list of autoimmune conditions and vaccine reactions on his father's side could even be of relevance. I had him first in the queue for meningitis C.

His regression altered my views and we became much more questioning about ds2 and ds3, which is why they haven't had anything yet.

Once you've had a reaction or a more complicated family history, it of course becomes a more complicated decision.

Quick link for ruty concerning serotype replacment.

insidevaccines.com/wordpress/2008/01/31/sisyphus-and-the-conjugate-vaccines/

insidevaccines.com/wordpress/2008/02/11/sisyphus-and-the-conjugate-vaccines-ii/

Concerning stuff I think.

I also think you are making the wrong decision.
I have vaccinated both my children and believe thats the right thing to do.

You are of course entitled to your own opinion and thats what this site is for.

I would be wary of 'sites on the internet' if i beleived the things I read about my 'condition' I would be having life threatening brain surgery by now. Which is totally unecessary, but if you read the sites i couldnt survive without it

There was some work going on at Oxford about serotype replacement when they introduced Men C vaccination. There was a concern when Men C was introduced that it would lead to an increase in Men B so a group at Oxford were looking at this. I have no idea whether the results are in yet (Men c been around ??? 8 years ??? maybe too soon), although I think I read somewhere than men B rates are up.

This has been debated many times on MN - have a look at the archives.

Personally I think you're misguided.

I also vaccinated my eldest as a matter of course because it was presented to me as a routine procedure and went without saying that it was the best thing for my child.

Except it wasn't and it destroyed her health.

I agree with jute and think her advice to contact Dr Halverson is sound.

Posters who are saying that somone who thinks one of their children has reacted badly to a vaccine and who has a history of autism in the family is "mad" or "nutty" to not vaccinate are being irresponsible and only showing that they haven't got a clue about the complexity of this issue at individual level.

FWIW

MY DS2 is severely damaged following one of his jabs and as a consequence none of my DCs have had anymore - including DD who is six and has had none at all.

I think unless you are comfortable reading the research and really understanding the decisions you are making it would be best to go and see someone like Richard Halvorenson and getting some specific advice.
I spoke to my GP and my DDs paed about our decision not to vaccinate her and they were quite comfortable with that. But they knew I was making an informed decision based on my particular family history..

I think what I am saying is if you need to ask this kind of question on a forum like this then you either are a) looking to wind people up or b) still don't feel confident.

I hope it is b) which suggests to me you need to get further specific advice.RH is highly recommended and may be able to suggest a schedule or alternatives

If it is a) please don't as people like me who have massively brain damaged children don't really need more " you are stupid if you don't vaccinate" shite thrown at them.

There's Halvorsen's book as well. Cheap paperback 'the truth about vaccinations'. Well referenced, so you can check most stuff. And as he's a GP he's had access to all the NHS/dept of health stuff.

Bogie you say that your child had viral meningitis in the period following his first jabs. Was Hib one of those jabs?

beachcomber I'm not sure what the jabs were for they were the first jabs that babies have at 8 weeks