I'm wondering if there are any parents out there who started vaccinating their child and then stopped.
This is our situation: We started vax according to the schedule our ped recommended. I was unsure about vax, but admittedly I had only done little research on my own. Bottom line, I trusted our pediatrician who is a mother and had worked in third world countries and felt that vaccines were very important. My parents and DS other grandparents also strongly recommended vaccines. DS's father was for the vax. I didn't ask many questions because I didn't find out enough ahead of time. I dreaded each visit, but figured that no one enjoys taking their kids for shots. He always cried a ton after and often had a fever though nothing too extreme or requiring more than pain reliever and extra nursing/cuddling. Even so, it felt extreme at the time considering that vax day was the only time he ever seemed so miserable. I convinced myself (and my mother helped enforce) that it was still better than him getting a horrible disease and being hospitalized or worse.
My son seemed to get every cold and flu that went around which baffled me considering he stayed at home with me and was breastfed, and had no other siblings in school or daycare. Was this because his immune system was overwhelmed by so many vax or was it better to protect him because he surely would have contracted whooping cough or worse? I am a worrier so I worry equally about both
He seemed to get sick so much more often than other babies I knew. He was 9 mo. old the last time he received any shots. He conveniently seemed to catch a cold or flu right before his scheduled well baby exam and I would ask them not to administer the vaccine since he was already under the weather. Our doctor had many patients who were not vaccinated and it was not a huge deal.
In the meantime I read more and felt very uneasy about the vaccines. There is risk no matter what but I felt somewhat secure after awhile that it was better to do no harm and not continue the shots (even though we were almost done). I began to feel confident that the diseases were very rare and I was confident in the health care he would receive if he did become ill.
He is almost 3 and I again feel very unsure of what to do. Then we moved to another state. The laws are different (medical or religious exemption only) and it is very tough from what I hear to find a ped who is okay with unvax/partially vax children. Also, we moved from a small mountain town to one of the largest cities in the country and besides the general increase in stress and anxiety from a faster paced lifestyle and the trauma from leaving a place we loved (phew!) I am concerned there is a greater risk of infection in such a busy and densely populated area.
Can anyone relate to this? I know it was not smart to vax without feeling very well informed, but what now? To finish or not to finish? I am so overwhelmed by this situation and the radically different views on wellness from the southwest to the midwest.
This is our situation: We started vax according to the schedule our ped recommended. I was unsure about vax, but admittedly I had only done little research on my own. Bottom line, I trusted our pediatrician who is a mother and had worked in third world countries and felt that vaccines were very important. My parents and DS other grandparents also strongly recommended vaccines. DS's father was for the vax. I didn't ask many questions because I didn't find out enough ahead of time. I dreaded each visit, but figured that no one enjoys taking their kids for shots. He always cried a ton after and often had a fever though nothing too extreme or requiring more than pain reliever and extra nursing/cuddling. Even so, it felt extreme at the time considering that vax day was the only time he ever seemed so miserable. I convinced myself (and my mother helped enforce) that it was still better than him getting a horrible disease and being hospitalized or worse.
My son seemed to get every cold and flu that went around which baffled me considering he stayed at home with me and was breastfed, and had no other siblings in school or daycare. Was this because his immune system was overwhelmed by so many vax or was it better to protect him because he surely would have contracted whooping cough or worse? I am a worrier so I worry equally about both
He seemed to get sick so much more often than other babies I knew. He was 9 mo. old the last time he received any shots. He conveniently seemed to catch a cold or flu right before his scheduled well baby exam and I would ask them not to administer the vaccine since he was already under the weather. Our doctor had many patients who were not vaccinated and it was not a huge deal.In the meantime I read more and felt very uneasy about the vaccines. There is risk no matter what but I felt somewhat secure after awhile that it was better to do no harm and not continue the shots (even though we were almost done). I began to feel confident that the diseases were very rare and I was confident in the health care he would receive if he did become ill.
He is almost 3 and I again feel very unsure of what to do. Then we moved to another state. The laws are different (medical or religious exemption only) and it is very tough from what I hear to find a ped who is okay with unvax/partially vax children. Also, we moved from a small mountain town to one of the largest cities in the country and besides the general increase in stress and anxiety from a faster paced lifestyle and the trauma from leaving a place we loved (phew!) I am concerned there is a greater risk of infection in such a busy and densely populated area.
Can anyone relate to this? I know it was not smart to vax without feeling very well informed, but what now? To finish or not to finish? I am so overwhelmed by this situation and the radically different views on wellness from the southwest to the midwest.
