Today when I asked a friend who works for our city (and whose office is next door to the health department) if she could steer me to info on when/where the H1N1 vaccine will be available, she scoffed at me: "I thought you were anti-vaccine!"
I was taken aback by her flippant remark because I thought I'd been very clear when we discussed this topic before, not so long ago. I am not anti-vaccine at all, just cautious after my son's negative experiences with scheduled vaccines early on in his life (read more about my decision to put my son on an alternative vaccine schedule). Because of those negative experiences I choose to have him vaccinated on a slower, alternative schedule to the one recommended by the AAP and his pediatrician. He will get all of his shots, just not according to their timetable.
My friend seemed to think it was silly (crazy? hypocritical?) that I was considering the H1N1 vaccine for my kids when I'm still not ready to give my not-yet-two-year-old son the MMR vaccine (the only major vaccine currently missing from his shot record).
To me, it seems obvious. After having carefully considered all sides of the H1N1 issue and reading up on the H1N1 vaccine and it's production methods, my husband and I have decided to have our kids vaccinated to protect them from a potentially deadly virus that's currently sweeping the country. Is measles also a potentially deadly disease? Of course. But it's not currently a pandemic and I'm also not as comfortable with its safety as I am with the H1N1 vaccine. However, if there were to be a major measles breakout I'd probably be first in line to get my son vaccinated since he'd be at high risk of catching that disease and that heightened risk would outweigh my concerns about the MMR vaccine and its potential side effects.
As parents we have so many concerns, so many worries. We have to educate ourselves about a multitude of things and make decisions based upon our experiences, our intellect, our research and, sometimes when it comes down to it, our gut.
Deciding to get my children the H1N1 vaccine is not a decision I take lightly. It's not something I decided to do just because some talking head on TV told me that it's the way to go. It is a very personal decision that our family arrived at after much research and discussion (the same way we made our decision to put our son on an alternative vaccine schedule).
When the H1N1 vaccine becomes available to us, we'll get it. And my son's MMR? Well, I'm still waiting to see what my gut tells me about when he'll get that one.
I agree with you on researching to come to an informed decision about getting (any) vaccines. It's a scary world out there, and especially with H1N1 spreading like wild fires, it is probably a good decision to opt for the vaccine, but then again we never know if the vaccine will actually work. I recently wrote a post about how there was a case of mumps that spread throughout a community in New Jersey because a child went overseas(Britain,) then came back and attending a camp, he spread it to others. In fact, I believe that 75% of those people actually had received their two vaccine (and it's supposed to be effective 90% of the time)
EESH! I'm with you on the being cautious though. My daughter is receiving all of her vaccines, but every time we go, my mind is racing with all the risks, and the chances that it won't even work! It's a tough job being a parent!
P.s. I look forward to meeting you this weekend!
Posted by: Erica | November 10, 2009 at 05:40 PM
oops! I forgot to add the link to the post: http://halemom.com/2009/the-efficacy-of-vaccines/
You'll find the link to the article about the mumps outbreak.
Cheers!
Posted by: Erica | November 10, 2009 at 05:43 PM
Hi, Erica! Thanks for commenting. I enjoyed reading the post of yours that you included:
http://halemom.com/2009/the-efficacy-of-vaccines/
It's a great explanation of "herd immunity" and how vaccines are supposed to work.
There is a line between deciding what is best for your child and what is best for everyone. Although most of us would like to think we make decisions based upon what is best for everyone, as parents we probably almost always make our decisions based on what we believe is best for our own children. We put them first. It's our job. But your post does make me stop and think that my decisions, my actions could affect others (just as others decisions could affect me and my kids - my daughter is fully vaccinated).
I appreciate your thoughtful comments (and I look forward to meeting you this weekend too! :)
Colleen
Posted by: Colleen Pence | November 10, 2009 at 06:50 PM