Chicken pox vaccine, would you do it?

[firsttimemama1994]

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

Yes my dc has had it. No side effects at all. I didn't want to risk CP landing at inconvenient times or having to deal with the hassle of spots etc. So glad I did it!

Mine are all grown up now (early to mid 20s) so didn’t have it as youngsters though all caught it at playgroup and were generally ok with the infection. I’d be getting them vaccinated these days and dh agrees - he’s a GP.

Both mine got the vaccine and no side effects. My eldest never got it when he was at nursery so when he started school we decided to get them both vaccinated.

In Canada the chicken pox vaccine has been part of the vaccination schedule for many years .
Both my Canadian grandchildren have had it with no issues or side effects.

It’s going to be added to the childhood schedule, likely next year if not before.
Practice nurse.

Yes, i had younger dd vaccinated and zero regrets. Her older sister had awful chicken pox age 2 which was the reason. She also had shingles age 11.

Yes. My baby had both doses - no side effects whatsoever.

Yes, I came here to write the exact same! So another vote for just getting it. In countries like Canada I believe it’s actually a standard vax all kids get. Really just a cost thing that it’s not available so readily here I think

Yes. I did it for my youngest as she hadn’t had it by age 5. I was severely ill with it aged 7 or 8 and didn’t want her to suffer like I did. Would 100% recommend.

My DS had chicken pox at 2. He caught a secondary eye infection from pustules on his eyelid. Apparently that can be very serious as the virus can travel down to the optic nerve to the brain and cause complications. (Fortunately our GP spotted it quickly and gave DS a hefty dose of antibiotics.) My friend's son was hospitalised with it and almost died.

Honestly, I don't know why we don't have a vaccination programme for chicken pox like we do for measles. It can be a nasty bloody illness.

We did, money well spent as chicken pox has gone through his nursery several times as well as several of the activities we go to. I had chicken pox twice as a child and have scars on my face from it, and I know people who have been hospitalised with it. I think the idea that chicken pox “isn’t that bad” and is something you should just suffer through is moronic. Even if it usually isn’t harmful, why take the risk? And even if the risk of complications are small, chickenpox is often miserable and even when it’s mild then why put your kids through even a temporary suffering that you can avoid? If you can’t afford the jab that’s one thing, but if you can and don’t get it, I cannot understand it at all.

My son had no reaction to either of the jabs.

Nurse and mum of two here. Both of my children have been vaccinated. No side effects and no regrets!

DD had it 10 years ago. It wasn’t expensive as our GP surgery only charged us cost price for it. Think it was £80 in total for both jabs. No side effects and no regrets at all. She hadn’t caught CP up until then despite being at nursery and around other kids all the time. A child at nursery was hospitalised with CP, had it really bad, in their mouth and all sorts. We just decided to get the jab, not many places were offering it then and we didn’t know anyone else that got it for their kids, possibly our friends thought it was a waste of money. It wasn’t though, it worked and it cost us a whole lot less than a week off work and nursery.

This isn’t true.

I didn’t even know there was a vaccine. Both my DC had chicken pox and luckily weren’t bad with it just had some minor itching. If I had another though would maybe consider it.

Best £200 I’ve ever spent. No side effects.

I had my eldest vaccinated at 9 for this reason. She still hadn't caught it and our vaxx nurse advised it before end of primary.

DD 21 months had dose 1 a few weeks ago. Didn’t even cry. No side effects whatsoever. Dose 2 next week. Worth every penny. Chicken pox with DS was awful.

My DS and I both had a vaccine at different times. The only downside - 4 years after his vaccination my DS got chicken pox, but because symptoms have been so mild, doctors were saying it's an allergy or rash. I realized it was it only after I got fever and fluid filled rash 28 days after his "rash". But I vaccinated 11 years earlier.
None of us had itch.

No question

I absolutely wish we had done it. Both my dd's suffered horribly with it. One has been left with a really deep, quite large scar on her forehead due to to 3 spots merging together and becoming infected.

Its pretty contagious. A colleague caught it as an adult from someone else’s kid (at a birthday party perhaps). Best that she gets vaccinated herself rather than relying on her kids vaccination to protect her.

I got mine vaccinated - no side effects and no regrets.

yes and they've added it to the nhs vaccines now this year!
got it for my son when he was 2 , he's now over 3. Never had any side effects from it x

I caught cp at 40, I was very ill, ended up in hospital. I wish I'd had it as a child or that there had been a vaccine.

Had it, no issues. Delighted we did as there’s outbreak in school now - some kids so unwell, they ended up in hospital and lots of missed holidays over Easter.