Handling the actual shots...

[Aletheia]

Any advice about the best way to handle the actual vaccinations themselves? Do you hold your children, letting them think that you are complicit in the pain? Or do you not hold them, letting them think you somehow can't protect them from pain?

Any psychology out there on this?

[thtr4me]

I nursed DS through his first two sets of vaccinations. After that he was too distracted to nurse, so I just held him. Now that he is older we have stopped vaccinating, so no experience with older kiddos. I found that he wanted me for comfort immediately, and now no longer likes the doctor or the nurses (only the nurses gave the shots though).

[anj_rn]

I hold them and comfort them. Now that my DS is old enough to understand, I prep him for it and so he knows before we go to any appointment if he is going to get any shots and how many. I also ask them to pull the vax out of the fridge at the beginning of the appt and warm it in their hands prior to administering it. A cold vax HURTS!!!!! We do not have any problems. I have also limited it to 2 shots per visit, so our schedule is a little wacky, but I feel they are in less pain, and not reacting to so many things at one time. My doc has no problem with this and we have frequently discussed rationale for one shot over another.

[carriebft]

this new study might be of interest to you:

http://pediatrics.aappublications.or...ct/124/6/e1101

They studied the use of different pain relief methods when giving the Hep B vaccine:

RESULTS: The use of oral 25% dextrose treatment reduced the duration of procedural pain in the studied population. Skin-to-skin contact decreased injection pain and duration. The combination of the 2 analgesic measures was more effective than either measure separately for term newborns.

CONCLUSIONS: Nonpharmacologic analgesic measures were effective for the treatment of procedural pain in term infants. The combination of oral 25% dextrose treatment and skin-to-skin contact acted synergistically to decrease acute pain in healthy neonates.

[bbrandonsmom]

Before we stopped I held my son-there was no way around that. I don't know about older kids. I guess by a certain point they know they are getting a shot and are fine w/ it?