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Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

Original poster

Anyone NOT getting the whooping cough jab?

76 replies

Mother2be100 · 22/05/2016 17:46

Just curious to know if there's anyone who has decided not to get the whooping cough jab in pregnancy? I understand the uptake is 50/60% so people must choose not to. If so what are your reasons? Do you worry about the risks of baby catching it? Ive not decided either way so not posting to start a debate just be interested to hear from people who have decided against it for general research

OP posts:
GlacindaTheTroll · 23/05/2016 07:34

"But who wouldn't save their children before someone else's?"

That only stacks up if you assume the risks of the disease are lower than the risks of the vaccination.

I would not make that assumption, as it does not seem to be backed by any evidence.

"It's a shame that only people pro vaccine are allowed to post their opinions."

It's an open internet site, and you cannot control who posts.

Perhaps a useful next question might be "why is the overwhelming weight of opinion in favour of protecting their children against risky diseases?"

Ughnotagain · 23/05/2016 07:43

I have read plenty of comments from people for it whose views are purely opinion based and nobody bullies them.

Nobody's bullying anyone.

The thing is, being pro vaccines has a lot of good, solid science and research behind it. It's very clear to see why they exist and why they are offered. It is easy to provide backup as to why someone should vaccinate their child.

It isn't easy to provide information as to why someone shouldn't vaccinate their child because there is no solid research to back up issues claimed. It's mostly woo bollocks or harking back to studies and claims that have been disproved.

I don't think it's bullying at all to call someone out when they make woolly claims about the dangers of vaccines. The absolute worst that can happen is that someone doesn't vaccinate their child and that child gets sick or dies. Just because these diseases are preventable doesn't make them any less dangerous.

ArgyMargy · 23/05/2016 07:53

It wasn't available when I was pregnant but I wouldn't have had it. I wouldn't have had flu vaccination either. When I was pregnant the overriding mantra was not to take any drugs unless entirely necessary. Vaccines are drugs. Of course the DC had the jabs at 3 months and that's fine.

heyhulahoop · 23/05/2016 07:55

Argymargy that would mean you don't feel that vaccinating your baby against a potentially fatal disease is "entirely necessary"?

maybebabybee · 23/05/2016 07:59

I got it. I didn't get told about it though - I'd read about it so knew I should be offered it but I never was. I had to ask for it myself. Perhaps that's why uptake is so low!!

Don't really know why you wouldn't get it.

ArgyMargy · 23/05/2016 08:03

No. I wouldn't vaccinate them against Ebola either.

maybebabybee · 23/05/2016 08:04

I've read a lot about it and I don't really care what the doctors say.

Oh well that's ok then. I mean what's 5+ years of scientific evidence based medical training vs some bollocks you read on the Internet?

ArgyMargy · 23/05/2016 08:06

To be clear, I mean lots of diseases are potentially fatal but the decision to vaccinate against them is made on a case by case basis.

heyhulahoop · 23/05/2016 08:07

No. I wouldn't vaccinate them against Ebola either.

Er ok, not sure what your point is there.Confused

ArgyMargy · 23/05/2016 08:07

Anyway heyhula the question isn't about vaccinating babies it's about having vaccinations while pregnant. I did say my DC had the vaccine at 3 months.

heyhulahoop · 23/05/2016 08:08

Oh x post, thing is argy, not many babies in the uk have died of Ebola have they? Unlike whooping cough. The vaccination is offered for a reason.

ArgyMargy · 23/05/2016 08:09

No, not many have died from whooping cough. My threshold is different from the government's, that's all. I'm entitled to my own opinion.

heyhulahoop · 23/05/2016 08:15

1774 cases in the first 6 months of 2015 according to the bbc, and rising rapidly due to only half of pregnant women getting vaccinated!

Of course you're entitled to your opinion, never understand why people feel the need to state this.

cecinestpasunepipe · 23/05/2016 08:20

Get it!! I caught whooping cough from a friend's child almost at term (even though I had been vaccinated as a baby). Ended up with going home without DD1 who was put in SCU, and I had to express milk at home for my then DH to take to the hospital for her. I didn't see her for two long weeks, and would not have recognised her when we were reunited. Although I was lucky she didn't catch it, I spent every minute of that time on tenterhooks. To say nothing of the agony of coughing with stitches. Worst time of my life, and I have still not really got over it 38 years later.

hownottofuckup · 23/05/2016 08:21

I wasn't offered/told about it when I was PG last year either, i rang and made an appointment to have it at the Dr's as I remembered it from last time I was PG. They said I had fallen through the cracks due to a change around with the MW's Hmm

Ughnotagain · 23/05/2016 09:53

ArgyMargy yeah but Ebola has never exactly been a common childhood disease in this country has itHmm

GlacindaTheTroll · 23/05/2016 11:06

"No, not many have died from whooping cough. My threshold is different from the government's, that's all. I'm entitled to my own opinion."

14 deaths in babies too young to be vaccinated in 2012. That death rate was the reason for the roll out, because it was held that those deaths were preventable. It's just a pity, in my opinion, it hadn't been in place before that.

KnitsBakesAndReads · 23/05/2016 11:22

There's an awful lot of inaccurate information on this thread. For anyone who comes across this and would like some accurate information backed up by research, the NHS website is a good starting place: www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/whooping-cough-vaccination-pregnant.aspx

Y0uCann0tBeSer10us · 23/05/2016 14:28

I chose not to get it while pregnant, despite a lot if 'encouragement' from HCPs, after weighing up the data myself and deciding that I wasn't happy with the risks. I'm in the fortunate position of being a scientist and so had access and the skill set to do that. In my particular case the jag was unlikely to work as I'd never had a primary course or the disease - the product info itself (for Repevax as was used at the time) states that it is a booster and so unlikely to give sufficient protection in immunologically naive patients.

Also at the time there was no evidence that it either would work, or be safe. Despite what some HCPs had been trained to say, the U.S. had only used a similar vaccine in pregnancy for 11 months longer than us, and so were still conducting trials themselves. There was no direct data on it's use in pregnancy. The advice was issued on weighing up data from other vaccines and animal studies etc, an approach that can have a wide margin of error. There has since been a study published using UK women as the trial group that did show some antibody response after vaccine that is expected to give a few weeks protection to a new born, and that short term risks were no higher with the vaccine (so risks like miscarriage, still birth etc). There is still no data on longer term risks, such as to neurological development or immune system development, because 4 years isn't that long in epidemiological terms.

Thirdly, I was worried by early data suggesting a blunting effect, whereby maternal antibodies reduce the effectiveness of the baby's own vaccines, even at levels that won't offer protection. This has since been confirmed, and while the JCVI considers that protecting newborns outweighs a possible increase in WC risk after the first few weeks I wasn't convinced.

Lastly, I looked at actual WC incidence in my area and it was clear it had returned to pre-peak levels, so the risk was no higher (in my case) than before the vaccine came out.

I chose to have it immediately after birth to try and give whatever minimal protection I could via breast milk. We wanted to cocoon as the Australians do, but were told that the vaccine was rationed and we couldn't even get it privately. Ds had his own vaccines on time, and it all worked out.

ArgyMargy · 23/05/2016 17:47

Excellent post, thank you.

happysunnydisposition · 26/05/2016 08:29

Hey Mother2be100
I have whooping cough at the moment and I wouldn't wish it on the worst troll i could find

I haven't slept in more than 90 mins in 14 days, have an attack of coughing every 45 mins or so. The attacks are really frightening (still) because the choking that causing the whooping sound feels like you don't have lungs and you just swallow air - I have busted the blood vessels in both eyes and broken a rib - and i am maybe only 2 weeks into 6 to 10 weeks

So if you don't get the vaccine your little one will at some stage definitely get whooping cough and suffer because of that decision.

If you do get the vaccine there is a very low risk that your little one may have a reaction that would have to be managed.

malvinandhobbes · 26/05/2016 08:37

One of those 12 babies in 2012 was in my area. I've been with this surgery for decades and never medical staff so lined up behind a cause as they are behind the whooping cough vaccine. I had mine yesterday, and they were all very happy to give it to me (my arm is sore today!)

When the baby is 8 weeks old and gets the same vaccine, I know I'd do just about anything to take it for her and spare her the sore arm and grumpiness. The data are very good that the vaccine is safe. Generally, NICE does a very good job for us - in the USA you do need to worry about marketing and profit and American mothers do need to be a bit more careful. Their kids do get a lot more vaccines. We are lucky in the UK.

SolomanDaisy · 26/05/2016 08:39

I am not in the UK and asked if I could have the vaccine and the midwife was horrified at the idea of giving it to a pregnant woman! I'd have had it if it was possible.

SouthDownsSunshine · 26/05/2016 08:44

I had whooping cough as an adult. It was awful. I had coughing fit after fit when I was unable to breathe. It took months to recover. I broke a rib coughing.

Why oh why would you not make use of modern medicine and significantly reduce the risk of this happening to your newborn baby.

Britnyspears · 26/05/2016 08:54

My mother was against the jab so I caught as a child. Does that give me any ammunity?