Consider Chicken Pox Vaccine

[Lilasmom]

I live in Vermont where it's very common to opt out of vaccines and easy to do, and I completely understand the reservations people have, but as someone who had the chicken pox at 17 yrs old, I wish I had been vaccinated. It was a nightmare. And because I had such a bad experience, and I knew I could avoid that for my kiddos I opted to have them vaccinated. I know so many parents think chicken pox is harmless, and they'd rather just let nature take it's course, but it was traumatic for me. It's an individual choice, but I thought I'd offer the other side of what to many seems like a no-brainer, to opt out of that vaccine. I'd be happy to share the grim details, but will wait to be asked -- don't want to gross anyone out.

[Daisie125]

I had them at 17 too. In my eyelids, down my throat... in other places I don't want to talk about. One chicken pox blended into the next. I was a big walking chicken pox.

I'd still rather that than the vax.

[jocelyndale]

Originally Posted by Daisie125

I had them at 17 too. In my eyelids, down my throat... in other places I don't want to talk about. One chicken pox blended into the next. I was a big walking chicken pox.

I'd still rather that than the vax.

Ditto, though I was 16. I'd much rather my kids have it while young children, like my husband and little brother.

[annethcz]

I figured that if my kids reached their teens without contracting the disease, I'd think about vaccinating. I had chicken pox at 13, and it wasn't horrendous.

It seemed like I waited forever, but my kids finally caught the wild virus this year (at ages 5-9). It was uncomfortable for them, but nothing horrible.

[darcytrue]

I worry about this with my oldest child. He got the chicken pox vacc at a year old and they had just begun doing them that year. I did it without questioning it back then, 13 years ago. But I never got him the booster. I'm hoping he never gets chicken pox but if he does that it isn't a bad case. I refused to get the booster once I became more educated on it. I didn't get the chicken pox vaccine with my DD because she actually contracted CP a week before her 1st birthday so she didn't need it, thank goodness.

[Turquesa]

As a delayed/selective vaxer, I also suffered a case of CP at age 13, as horrendous as the rest of you have described it. I still don't think that's a compelling reason to give that vax to my daughter during her infancy and early years. I may choose to revisit the issue if she gets older and still hasn't had CP.

The problem, or so I've heard, is that it is still undetermined how long a period of immunity you get from the vax itself. So it may only succeed in pushing the disease up to an older and more dangerous age. This means that adults may think they're immune and still end up with a dangerous case of CP. If nothing else, we'll all end up vaxing ourselves continuously for the rest of our lives . . . all for a disease that would have been (in the vast majority of cases) harmless if we'd had it in early childhood. How convenient for Merck.

I need to confirm all of this for sure because I can't remember where I heard this criticism of the vax. Maybe one of the seasoned veterans on this forum can help out . . . ?

[crittersmom]

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience in your teens.My oldest was given the chicken pox against my consent when he was 1 and that was one of the reasons I stopped vaccinating any of my children, another reason is that he has eczema that was most likely triggered/worsened by the vaccines themselves.Last year, my three oldest children caught chicken pox.DS#1 was the one who had the vaccine and he had the worst case of it ( yeah it was pretty bad)and it also took the longest for him to get over it,DD just got a couple of spots.I also had a hard time getting the correct diagnosis since the DR. was so into the faith in the vaccine.I don't think that early childhood is the best time to get this particular vaccine if one is really trying to prevent the problems that chicken pox presents for older people.

[gbailey]

Originally Posted by Turquesa

As a delayed/selective vaxer, I also suffered a case of CP at age 13, as horrendous as the rest of you have described it. I still don't think that's a compelling reason to give that vax to my daughter during her infancy and early years. I may choose to revisit the issue if she gets older and still hasn't had CP.

The problem, or so I've heard, is that it is still undetermined how long a period of immunity you get from the vax itself. So it may only succeed in pushing the disease up to an older and more dangerous age. This means that adults may think they're immune and still end up with a dangerous case of CP. If nothing else, we'll all end up vaxing ourselves continuously for the rest of our lives . . . all for a disease that would have been (in the vast majority of cases) harmless if we'd had it in early childhood. How convenient for Merck.

I need to confirm all of this for sure because I can't remember where I heard this criticism of the vax. Maybe one of the seasoned veterans on this forum can help out . . . ?

In agreement. DD is not getting vaxed for this. We're hoping for a chicken pox party in a couple of years.

[Peony]

I have no doubt that is not a pleasant experience at all for an older child or an adult. I had to hunt high and low to find CP for my girls, but we got it last year, I didn't want them to be too old before getting it.

[bubbles]

While CP is very difficult for adults and can have rare side effects in children is it important to understand the ramifications of giving the vaccine to a child. It isn't as simple as saying that CP as a young adult is a horrible experience therefore vaccinate your kids. There are other ways to approach it and both short and long term ramifications of the vaccine to consider.

[BAU3]

Yeah.. I had the cp at 23 and man was I sick.

So... the more people who vax their children=the less chance of children contracting cp as children= either vax dependency or cp as an adult.hmmmmm.

[Mom2Mason]

Originally Posted by Turquesa

As a delayed/selective vaxer, I also suffered a case of CP at age 13, as horrendous as the rest of you have described it. I still don't think that's a compelling reason to give that vax to my daughter during her infancy and early years. I may choose to revisit the issue if she gets older and still hasn't had CP.

The problem, or so I've heard, is that it is still undetermined how long a period of immunity you get from the vax itself. So it may only succeed in pushing the disease up to an older and more dangerous age. This means that adults may think they're immune and still end up with a dangerous case of CP. If nothing else, we'll all end up vaxing ourselves continuously for the rest of our lives . . . all for a disease that would have been (in the vast majority of cases) harmless if we'd had it in early childhood. How convenient for Merck.

I need to confirm all of this for sure because I can't remember where I heard this criticism of the vax. Maybe one of the seasoned veterans on this forum can help out . . . ?

I think it's going to end up being even more complicated than this. I remember reading recently (think it was linked from here...I can dig it up if necessary) that even for those of our generation who had the disease, we will likely not have lifelong immunity. It is beginning to look as though immunity is "re-upped" in adulthood by being exposed to kids with cp. So, the vaccine is eventually going to become necessary for our generation, who all had cp. And that doesn't even begin to address the shingles issue. But don't worry, there's a shingles vaccine now, too. Convenient for Merck, indeed. This is the perfect example of why it's not nice to mess with mother nature. I don't think we've even begun to know the implications of this vaccine. Same for measles. I predict that we will eventually have a widespread outbreak of measles in our parents' generation.

[kittywitty]

I had chicken pox. My kids and dh are the only people I know that haven't had them and everyone I know always laughs about it. I want my kids to have chicken pox, it's so hard to find it around here, though...

OP, I would suggest reading what this forum is about and maybe glancing through the archives and other posts.

[katiesk]

yep. i had a mild case when i was two...and the again when i was 15. no vaccinating dd here though.

[Marnica]

Originally Posted by Mom2Mason

I think it's going to end up being even more complicated than this. I remember reading recently (think it was linked from here...I can dig it up if necessary) that even for those of our generation who had the disease, we will likely not have lifelong immunity. It is beginning to look as though immunity is "re-upped" in adulthood by being exposed to kids with cp. So, the vaccine is eventually going to become necessary for our generation, who all had cp. And that doesn't even begin to address the shingles issue. But don't worry, there's a shingles vaccine now, too. Convenient for Merck, indeed. This is the perfect example of why it's not nice to mess with mother nature. I don't think we've even begun to know the implications of this vaccine. Same for measles. I predict that we will eventually have a widespread outbreak of measles in our parents' generation.

Yup....human beings are so arrogant to believe that they can manipulate mother nature without consequneces. Most of these vaccines, IMO, will end up having serious consequences .
I had CP when I was 18. I was pretty sick and miserable, but I will not vax my child right now. I would wait and search for natural exposure and then have titers drawn later and then reevaluate.

[jessjgh1]

We lucked out an dd picked chickenpox up a few weeks ago, somewhere. My ds got a more severe case as he was in contact with her while she was contagious, but he is just almost recovered. I had been planning on exposing them if someone nearby had chickenpox but ended up being the one to offer to host... We are pleased that they both will likely have lifetime immunity to chicken pox and not be vulnerable as adults, or when my dd, if she chooses, is pregnant.

If they had gotten older, I would have considered the vax. But since it is around 80% effective, sheds, and requires a booster at 5-6 years (at least), I have little confidence the vaccine is really 'effective' or that chicken pox will be eradicated. There are many more reasons that I can see NOT to use this particular vaccine.
I would like to see the health public policy plan that was created before vaxes were mandated to see what there expectations were for the vaccination- somehow I suspect what reality IS and what the public policy was supposed to do are worlds apart.

There's a lot to look at about the vax and the chicken pox and everyone should find out as much as they can to make the best decision. It wasn't 'easy' to have my children sick, but it was also a good experience for us. My son is old enough to be told about the chicken pox, and why some parents were coming to visit with their children, why we typically avoid sharing, etc. He was also old enough to tell me his symptoms and we would work at finding ways to help him, things he could, things we could help him with, etc.
I hope that he will come away with a better awareness of his body, health, and things he can do-- something I know I got very little of. We'll be talking about it so he can have an appropriate answer when he goes back to school- etc.
Of course, its possible he might also be mad at us for making this decision for him-- but it doesn't seem like he's leaning that way since we have explained our main reason is to protect him (and dd) from getting it as adults when it is more severe/threatening.

Good luck to those looking in to these issues(-:
Jessica

[veganmama719]

I had CP at 16, my brother was 15 and it was horrible. My 8 year old sister gave it to us (we assume since we had both been through many rounds of it at school and never gotten it previously).

She breezed through it even though she was COVERED in pox.

I'd way rather my kids get it young. When DD is 12 or so, if she has not had it, I will research it again and decide if she should get the vax then or not.

DS did get the CP vax at 2, without my consent, when he was getting another vax that I had delayed and then consented to. NOT happy about that. I genuinely think it was a msitake on the nurse's part and she didn't mean to go against my wishes.

[Turquesa]

Originally Posted by Mom2Mason

I think it's going to end up being even more complicated than this. I remember reading recently (think it was linked from here...I can dig it up if necessary) that even for those of our generation who had the disease, we will likely not have lifelong immunity. It is beginning to look as though immunity is "re-upped" in adulthood by being exposed to kids with cp. So, the vaccine is eventually going to become necessary for our generation, who all had cp. And that doesn't even begin to address the shingles issue. But don't worry, there's a shingles vaccine now, too. Convenient for Merck, indeed. This is the perfect example of why it's not nice to mess with mother nature. I don't think we've even begun to know the implications of this vaccine. Same for measles. I predict that we will eventually have a widespread outbreak of measles in our parents' generation.

Oh, yeesh! It's not at all surprising. If you could dig up a reference I'd appreciate it. That way people will believe me when I tell them!

I was watching Dr. Jay Gordon's DVD on vaccinations. He said that the chicken pox vaccine was originally created for the immunocompromised, e.g. children with leukemia. For these populations, it literally did save lives.

But as you can imagine, it wasn't a lucrative enough pharma product. So Merck lobbied the AAP to push it for all children. The industry reps were laughed out of the meeting. Later, they threatened to pull funding (for what exactly, I've forgotten), and the AAP caved to the blackmail. Now, vaccine dogmatists would have you believe that chicken pox=small pox.

[Gitti]

Originally Posted by Mom2Mason

It is beginning to look as though immunity is "re-upped" in adulthood by being exposed to kids with cp. So, the vaccine is eventually going to become necessary for our generation, who all had cp.

Right. But I would never get this or any other vaccine since you can't predict what will happen when in fact you've stored the virus (this on in the nerve endings) or built antibodies and then get the virus injected into the muscle/blood. It would bypass all natural warnings and then what? Free reign to all the organs in your body. I will take my chances with being exposed enough to vaccinated kids and thus boosting my immunity naturally (still).

And that doesn't even begin to address the shingles issue. But don't worry, there's a shingles vaccine now, too. Convenient for Merck, indeed.

That was the plan. It's all running according to plan for big pharma drugs and sales.

This is the perfect example of why it's not nice to mess with mother nature. I don't think we've even begun to know the implications of this vaccine.

We've been saying that all along.

Same for measles. I predict that we will eventually have a widespread outbreak of measles in our parents' generation.

And again I trust that my body gets it boosters via being exposed to vaccinated kids.

[Mom2Mason]

Originally Posted by Turquesa

Oh, yeesh! It's not at all surprising. If you could dig up a reference I'd appreciate it. That way people will believe me when I tell them!

I was watching Dr. Jay Gordon's DVD on vaccinations. He said that the chicken pox vaccine was originally created for the immunocompromised, e.g. children with leukemia. For these populations, it literally did save lives.

But as you can imagine, it wasn't a lucrative enough pharma product. So Merck lobbied the AAP to push it for all children. The industry reps were laughed out of the meeting. Later, they threatened to pull funding (for what exactly, I've forgotten), and the AAP caved to the blackmail. Now, vaccine dogmatists would have you believe that chicken pox=small pox.

I'll see what I can find. It's something I'm pretty sure I remember reading here, but give me a little time and I'll see if I can find links.

Ok, here's one that predicts an epidemic of shingles because of the vaccine (I read this one to say that because adults are no longer being exposed to children with cp, they're more at risk for getting shingles):

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science...f8adc3b330e55f