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Original poster

Chicken pox vaccine, would you do it?

105 replies

firsttimemama1994 · 27/04/2025 10:07

Just wanting to get general opinions on the chicken pox vaccine. If any children have had it, was there any side effects? We have no particular reasons to get it, but I worry about my daughter being poorly and having scars etc, potentially ruining holidays and flying and that sort of thing. Just normal concerns about chicken pox I suppose.

thank you x

OP posts:
doodleschnoodle · 27/04/2025 15:00

Both of mine are vaccinated. It’s a very unpleasant illness that can cause scarring and much worse and can be avoided entirely by just spending some money, so if you can afford it then absolutely.

User5274959 · 27/04/2025 15:00

Did it for my younger two and it was fine.

Middle one was 7ish and still hadn't had it.
So I was getting worried she might get it really badly.

Shortly after, the childminders dd was really unwell with it; badly infected spots etc and I was so glad I'd done it.

It was a number of years ago now but I went through Superdrug

Catherinethenotsogreat2 · 27/04/2025 15:03

Yes I would. I am very pro vaccine and chicken pox is very unpleasant. I have lots of scars from having it as a teenager.

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VerityUnreasonble · 27/04/2025 15:21

Had DS vaccinated when he was 10, he'd never had chickenpox and it's not pleasant at any age but I particularly didn't want to him to have the higher risk of complications that comes with getting it as a teen / adult. It's a very easy vaccination, needle is tiny (given subcutaneously, like insulin) and it took literally 2 seconds. No side effects.

OtterMummy2024 · 27/04/2025 15:57

Got the first dose at the earliest time. No side effects, just an extra nap that day. I remember being miserable as a toddler with chicken pox, it's one of my earliest memories. Happy to pay £75 to spare my baby that. Will get the second dose once old enough (have to juggle around MMR).

OtterMummy2024 · 27/04/2025 16:01

Happymomoftwo · 27/04/2025 13:34

My dd is 11 and has always avoided catching it. I’m wondering whether to get her vaccinated in case she doesn’t catch it til she’s an adult when it’s meant to be more painful. I’ll be watching this thread with interest.

It's a real risk if she catches it much later eg is she becomes pregnant and catches it. Chickenpox while pregnant can cause birth defects. I don't think that's explained very well in the UK!

Sofiewoo · 27/04/2025 16:02

Best thing we ever did, every kid in DC’s room in nursery got chicken pox except mine because they had the jab.

Glitchymn1 · 27/04/2025 16:05

I didn’t have the jab, I had a very nasty and bloody, massive keloid scar sort of under my armpit /bra line area. God it was like hole, bright red and deep. It was gross. Looked like it needed stitching.

DD has had the vaccine (it’s given with the MMR in other countries. It’s absolutely fine. Think it needs to be repeated after a certain time?

Lifestooshort71 · 27/04/2025 16:05

hernameis · 27/04/2025 13:41

Get the vaccine, chicken pox can be awful and scars last a very long time!.

It is very rare to have chicken pox a second time - if you do its termed shingles and is more prevalent in middle age. Shingles is very painful.. If you are vaccinated against chicken pox you will never get shingles.

My kids didn't experience any reactions to the jab either.

My daughter had it twice (40 odd years ago) and the first time at about 2 was the usual - lots of scabby spots, itch like mad, dowsed in calamine every night. The second time (about 2 years later?) she had all the above plus blisters down her throat and all around her vulva - trying to comfort her when she peed was almost impossible. I wish we'd had a vaccine then 😕

3amamama · 27/04/2025 16:05

Yes did it with two of three - other one got it before he could get vaccine. He was ‘fine’ with it but I remember a horrible week or so of a very miserable baby. Life is hard enough! Between all the tummy bugs, respiratory bugs from nursery, scarlet fever, HFM, etc…I’ll gladly swerve what I can!!!

stargirl1701 · 27/04/2025 16:08

I was going to wait until the end of primary school and then schedule it but they both caught chicken pox before that point. The immunity from infection is longer lasting than the vaccine.

crazycatladie · 27/04/2025 16:10

My daughter had the jab and had no side effects. We had a big holiday planned and at 9 she still hadn’t had chickenpox so we decided to do it.

alcoholnightmare · 27/04/2025 16:14

Yep, all three of mine have had it. No side effects. If you get it done at boots, use your boots points card!

BrentfordForever · 27/04/2025 16:16

oldest had the vaccine, awful fever and spots for around a week

youngest had the actual cp when we were abroad and doctor gave antivirals . Within 3 hours whole virus was gone and spots dried up immediately … no clue why here they don’t give them !

BertieBotts · 27/04/2025 16:16

We live abroad where it's done as standard bundled in with the MMR and had no issues with it at all.

It's great not to have to worry about chicken pox. When I see friends in the UK dealing with it it seems like something so archaic - and I never thought I'd say that, just saw it as a totally normal thing before we moved here.

Seems like a no brainer if you can afford it and your child isn't incredibly needle phobic. Most children catch chicken pox at some point and that's 7-10 days of misery you could be avoiding (per child).

Plus it reduces their risk of getting shingles later in life if I understood correctly.

BertieBotts · 27/04/2025 16:20

NHS says you don't need a booster - so I'm not sure how the immunity from the vaccine lasts less long than from infection? Isn't this just a myth?

Less side effects/risks compared with a chicken pox infection as well.

BertieBotts · 27/04/2025 16:23

Happymomoftwo · 27/04/2025 13:34

My dd is 11 and has always avoided catching it. I’m wondering whether to get her vaccinated in case she doesn’t catch it til she’s an adult when it’s meant to be more painful. I’ll be watching this thread with interest.

Because DS1 was too old for the toddler dose when we moved here, his doctor advised for him to wait and see if he had ever had chicken pox by the age of 13/14 and if not, get him vaccinated then.

This is what we did, he never caught it so we caught him up with the vaccine around the same time he had the HPV one. The doctor advised they needed to be at least 6 weeks apart, and he had two doses.

It is a good idea for her to be vaccinated in case she has children in the future as others have said, since it's highly likely with one child in nursery and a second one on the way she might get exposed. Though it is possible that chicken pox will be added to the typical schedule by the time she wants to have children so that might not be an issue.

Fleur405 · 27/04/2025 16:24

My daughter was vaccinated when she was maybe 18 months. Only downside is she couldn’t see my dad - who is immunocompromised - for about 8 weeks. She didn’t have any side effects. There has been an outbreak of chicken pox at her nursery since and she was fine. It’s given as standard in many other countries and so seemed like a no brainer to me. It’s expensive but not as expensive as having to take maybe 2 weeks off work while still paying nursery fees.

Ethelflaedofmercia · 27/04/2025 16:42

I didn’t even know there was a vaccine

ErrolTheDragon · 27/04/2025 16:45

My DD didn’t catch CP when she was in primary. This may partly be because there was an immunocompromised child in her school and they had told parents to keep their kids off if they were (or were likely to be) infectious with this, and various other things.

I don’t think we became aware of the CP vaccine till she was about 13 (this was a few years ago now) - at which point we discussed it with her and she said she definitely didn’t want to catch CP when she was doing GCSEs etc or as an adult so she had the vacc. No side effects whatever.

Misspacorabanne · 27/04/2025 17:03

Yes, both my DCs have had the chicken pox vaccine! Decided to as I know there can be complications with chicken pox, I know this isn’t common at all, it’s super rare, but I didn’t want to risk it. My ds has autism and I know he would have found the itchy spots really distressing, I figured if we can vaccinate then it’s so worth it! I Don’t regret it at all, they’ve been exposed to chicken pox at nursery and school since and not had any spots, so definitely worth it for our family!

Yogagrandmum · 27/04/2025 17:28

If it had been available, def yes, the child had a horrid time of it.

Adviceneededpleasehelpme · 27/04/2025 17:32

Both mine had it. No side effects whatsoever (and one of them always gets sick after the usual vaccines)

Maddy70 · 27/04/2025 17:39

Yes definitely have it

kiwiblue · 27/04/2025 17:41

Both my kids had the vaccination, no side effects. So glad I did that as it's gone round school multiple times. I didn't want my kids scarring. I remember having it and having pain urinating. It really is horrible.

I heard they were considering adding it to the vaccine schedule here but then COVID happened?

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