Dare i raise the question....

[CharlotteACavatica]

who has let their kids have the MMR? how do you feel about it? Ihave a 6yo a 3.5yo and a 1yo and my 1yo dd is due to have hers next week, i havent let the other two have theirs and neither shall i be letting dd, but as so many people know its 'supposed' problems im still interogated and asked why why why? i have heard that the more patients your gp gets to have the MMR the more he/she gets paid, if they get 100% they get a shed load of money but if the percentage drops below 90 they start getting charged!!!????

Okay, I will rephrase, then bow out gracefully. I chose MMR for my 3 for many reasons

1. I could get it from my GP as there is nowhere local I could have got it done separately

2. It was free from the GP, I couldn't have afforded to pay for it the other way

3. They had the jabs done once in one appointment and I didn't/don't need to take them again until their boosters. For many reasons that is better for us as a family

Sorry Charlotte, you asked what people felt about this, and I told you while making it clear that I respected other people's choices.

I thought I would be accorded the same respect. Hope you get the answers you are looking for from other posters.

Spidermama, terms such as 'witch hunting' don't help measured and dispassionate discussion. And neither does implying ignorance.

I really think its unfair for parents to be shot down because they have OR havent let their kids have it, parents are trying to do whats best for their kids nothing more, there shouldnt be any reason for people being made to feel bad about their choices, what it all comes down to is that if your for or against MMR you cant ignore the stigma that it comes with, my cousin let her kids have it and i can see her side of things, but i still wont let mine have it, i dont trust it, and thats that.

bowing out with you annie..am talking 'bollards' apparently....as i pointed out earlier...

"the only issue with this sort of question is that it is a topic where you can get very pro & very con arguments, which may not help youmake the right decision for your family......if you have a stronger feeling either way, go with that maybe?"

hope you get the answers you need Charlotte....

evilanniedividedin2byalargeaxe - please dont leave, im sorry if i appeared 'pushy' or anything im not at all, i promise, clearly i came accross all wrong, i am truly interested in everyone's opinions/thoughts im not here to listen only to people i agree with - honest!

I belive in herd immunity and are happy for my children to be part of that herd

Its a shame some people feel bullied by this topic Thanks for your input lulumama.

charlotte- you say you don;t trust the MMR - you have the answer then don't you? don't need anyone else to tell you..

I have only ever mentioned it to health professionals who asked
DS went into anaphylactic shock after his mmr in 1995 - they never found out why - no egg allergy nothing - great mystery.
So with dd, having a rare genetic condition - albeit she is very healthy, I had arranged for ehr to have hers in hospital as agreed by her paed. I chose for her to have it as my younger brother nearly died in a measles epidemic in NZ in 1991. I though from my experience, it was easier to control the anaphylaxis than the measles.
Week she was due she came down with shocking sickness, high temp, the works, yes it was full blown measles - as if she knew - doctors then agreed about not giving her the mmr
So she is down to have single rubella before she starts school.
Each parent to their own, I think the more people are aware and debate, the better for all tbh.
Questions should be asked about medicines. Always.

Both mine have had it....all fine,

OK I'll rephrase. It is not true that Andrew Wakefiled would have benefitted financially from the development of the "alternatiive vaccine" (which was being developed primarily as a treatment for autistic enterocolitis rather than as competition for the MMR- had it proved a safer way to vaccinate against mealses then I can't really see the problem with introducing it). Anyway it was shelved. He works a lot in association with the thimerosal guys these days anyway (theory being thimerosal first hit, live virus- vaccine or natural- second, interesting to us as ds1 regressed after a natural viral infection). He has never suggested to anyone that they shouldn't vaccinate at all. Shame that because he;s left severely autistic children have to fly to the States to access treatment for an incredibly painful condition. It's a disgrace.

Of the 3 options the only one I feel comfortable with is singles so that is what my dd will get in a couple months. But I understand not everyone can afford that option, and of the other 2 really don't know which option I'd go for.

I feel i do have the answer yes lulumama, but it doesnt stop me questioning it, just because my ds1 and ds2 never had it, doesnt mean HV's GP's leave you alone, im still REGULARLY interagated, as to why, and if and how they can change my mind and if so when? sometimes i sit and think why dont i just let them have it, but then i get lots of people saying no no no no!!! surely im not the only one in this situation???

Satine you should try being on this side of the debate for a day and experience the reactions I get from making the informed choices I believe in. You might then also struggle to remain dispassionate about the debate.

Incidentally I've said to every specialist we've seen "ds1 regressed following eczema herpeticum (a viral infection), he lost words, withdrew, started to refuse food blah blah blah" and they've all noded their heads sagely and not one has challeneged me on the possibility that he perhaps he didn't regress following the virus. Not a single raised eyebrow.

ok rant alert - apologies if anyone is offended but...
Mine have all had it, and eldest has had pre-school booster. Yesterday my DS1 brought a letter form the health authority home form school, alerting parents to a measles outbreak in Surrey generally (didn't specifically mention where) and suggesting that parents should consider bringing forward the second dose (ie the pre-school booster) for any younger children. DS2 id sue it anyway, so i think i will get DD done at the same time.
What some people fail to understand is that immunisations only work if the majority are immunised ('herd' immunity). Even if your child is immunised there is no guarantee that they will be immune, but if the majority are immunused the chances of coming into contact with the disease is significantly reduced. Threfore anyone that 'opts out' is doing everyone else a dis-service, they are not just putting theirt own children at risk but also everyone elses. It is socially irresponsible and grossly selfish to refuse immunisations. Have them done separately (if you can afford it) if you must, but please get them done.

I rest my case. It's because of posts like yours fox that I feel justified in using the words 'witch hunt'.

oh ffs.

And what about those who have done thier civic duty- vaccinated their child and then that child has paid the highest bloody possible price, robbed of the chance to ever speak, robbed of the chance to ever live independely and robbed of the chance to ever live a life of free will.

What do they get- isolated, shunned and then told they're "selfish" for choosing not to put a needle near their other children. Been there done that, and will spend the rest of my life picking up the pieces -cheers. They certainly get very little help from the perfect parents just dripping social responsibility.

Charlotte you have to do what you feel is right for you and your kids. My dd had the MMR and so will this next one because I felt it was right for us. It sounds to me like you know what you want to do. As you can see from this thread it is something people will never agree on!

no i see your point foxtrottingtotransylvania, i am saving to get my children done singley, and have no intention of leaving them un-immunised.

jimjams about your story

No one possesses the right to tell other mothers what to do.
I think mothers who use disposable nappies are threatening the world ecology and environment but I'd never come out and aggress my point like that.

This debate is polarised.

Some (seemingly the majority and certainly the medical establishment) consider vaccines to be miraculous medicines that can relieve humanity of burdensome diseases.

Others, like me, see vaccines as overhwelming to young and developing immune systems leading to increases in diseases that severly reduce the quality of human life with their degenerative and chronic natures.

I have to say at this point, a good family friend had her ds given the MMR and he went from loud and cheeky, to grey-faced, thin, mute, and he now 4 years later walks round and round in circles flicking things and and repeatedly spelling long words, he is also randomly having violent outbursts, their GP cannot find any specific reason why he should be this way, our friend truly believes it was the MMR that did it and i can see why, her other children are all fine and have not had it!!