thought no vax, now all vax.

[happyhippie]

Hi moms,

we gave dd her first vax at four months. I chose only for her to have the dTap as I was really worried about Pertussis. 

Now, however, I am convinced I want to completely vaccinate her, minus flu shots and hpv. I am feeling increasing anxiety and guilt about not vax'ing her. I couldn't live with myself if perhaps she became very ill. 

So, my question is, she is 13 mths old now and has only had that single dose of dTap. Where do I start? Our pediatrician is not very helpful with this. 

Thanks.

[LisaSedai]

Well here is the "catch up" http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/recs/schedules/downloads/child/catchup-schedule-pr.pdfschedule from the CDC

[Jugs]

It depends. What sort of time frame are you looking at? Do you want to get her up-to-date sooner rather than later, or are you wanting to space them out?

[ma2two]

Why are you anxious about hepatitis A? Have you read the CDC's PInk Book chapter on hepatitis A, which says, "In children younger than 6 years of age, most (70%) infections are asymptomatic." http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/pinkbook/downloads/hepa.pdf (page 102) That sounds like a pretty good deal to me, since natural infection will give lifetime immunity.

Why are you anxious about polio? The CDC's PInk Book chapter on polio says, "The last documented indigenous transmission of wild poliovirus in the United States was in 1979." http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/pinkbook/downloads/polio.pdf (page 260) Are you seriously worried about your daughter being the first person in more than 32 years to get polio in the U.S.?

I could go on with other diseases, but my point is, perhaps you have not fully researched each disease that is vaccinated for, if you are so anxious about all of them. It only makes sense to vaccinate for something if you think the disease is more dangerous than the vaccine. Be sure to consider not only how dangerous a disease is, but the actual chance your daughter has of catching it, as well.

Edited by ma2two - 8/22/11 at 10:07pm

[happyhippie]

Thank you for the links.

Well, I don't know her chances of catching things. That is the problem. I have done a lot of research, but I keep coming back around to "what if?"

Plus, the research overwhelms me. 

Hep A? 30% is quite a bit don't you think???

I am not really interested in getting her up to date, rather just knocking out the ones I am most worried about. I suppose then I would want to "catch up" but at a delayed schedule. 

[ma2two]

Originally Posted by happyhippie 

Hep A? 30% is quite a bit don't you think???

Quite a bit for what? 70% are asymptomatic, meaning 30% have one or more symptoms, such as fever. 30% would be too much if it referred to severe illness, but it does not.

My mother had nothing against vaccines, but I was never given the hepatitis A vaccine because it didn't exist when I was a kid. Now, as an adult, I know the illness could be worse for me than for kids, but I still have never felt the need to go out and get vaccinated. Have you felt the need, for yourself?

[Wild Lupine]

I know you've read a lot already, and I agree, the research can be confusing and contradictory. But since you said you're most concerned about the ones most risky to her you might want to do even a little more research about which diseases your DD is more at risk for. That might help you decide which ones to start off with and which ones to wait on. Some vaccines are for the child's immediate benefit others are public health measures. Personally I support public health measures, but time those vaccines very differently than the ones for diseases that my children might be exposed to today. 

This is a completely personal decision, and depends upon where you live, whether or not you travel, and your child's health, but if you are looking for some ones to start off with because they might affect your baby sooner, consider HIB and pnuemococcal. Some you might consider waiting on are the MMR (unless there's a current measles outbreak in your area), polio, chicken pox, and Hep B. But again, do the research, you might come to a different conclusion.

Hep A depends a lot on where you live. Some parts of the country have much more hep A than others. 

[cinderella08]

Your change of heart is understandable and I do not think your opinions/thoughts should be questioned since that isn't the question you asked.

My first thought would be perhaps to find a pediatrician willing to listen to your thoughts and concerns regarding which vaccinations you do and do not want, which are most important to get into her first, ect...  A good, supportive pediatrician can help you greatly in comming up with a plan to get her completely caught up.

[Jugs]

^^Ditto. Step 1 is finding a better doctor.

I was decidedly non-vax for many years, so when I became pro-vax, it was really hard to sift through the information. With my previously-unvaxed 3-year-old, I started by categorizing the vaccines in order of priority. The highest priority were the diseases she is more likely to encounter (flu, chicken pox, pertussis); even if they aren't the most serious, they are still worth avoiding. Moderate priority went to the diseases she isn't as likely to encounter but are more serious, whether it be from a personal or public health standpoint (MMR, hepatitis a, hib, pcv13). The lowest priority went to the diseases she is at least risk for encountering (hepatitis b, polio). Then with my newbie, I intended to do the same, but decided to follow the recommended schedule.

To get started, I highly recommend the new book Paul Offit co-authored. Its a similar format to Bob Sears' book, but more factual and less wish-washy:  

http://www.amazon.com/Vaccines-Your-Child-Separating-Fiction/dp/0231153074/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1314104869&sr=1-2

[~Charlie's~Angel~]

My only advice to you is to find a ped who IS helpful with this.  Its so important to me.  I jumped on the NO VAXXES EVER badnwagon when DS1 was 4 months old.  He hasnt had any since, and my little guy has never been injected with anything except Vit K.  I was always continuing to research here and there, and recently decided to get back on a selective schedule.  I called my ped, and she was SUPER helpful about what to give, how many, how often, how far apart.  She said we would come up with a schedule TOGETHER, and let me tell you, to have a doctor be THAT supportive of me being in charge of my kids health is so comforting.  For us to be on the same page seems like such a gift, and I really hope you can find a doctor that give you the same warm and fuzzies mine does. 

[Turquesa]

Yup.  New ped (or family practice doctor!) for sure.    We see someone in family practice.  I went from DTaP-only to adding a few more vaccines for my kids, and I called with a nervous lump in my throat to discuss this option.  I was dreading a Bad Mommy Lecture for not getting all of the vaxes.....and was pleasantly surprised to get transferred to a really helpful nurse.    We were on the phone for about a half an hour and worked out a catch-up schedule based on CDC recommendations.  She only asked about which vaxes I wanted to do and didn't even mention the ones that I didn't want. 

Now I just bring DD in on a walk-in basis (they have toys in the waiting area, thank heavens!) and she gets each dose "free" of charge (obviously, we pick up the tab as taxpayers!) 

Why not post in the Find Your Tribe section and get recommendations for a more helpful provider in your area? 

[MJB]

My daughter got one vax (DTaP) at 9 mos. so she was at the same place at 12 mos. as your 12 mo. old is. Here's the schedule I decided on:

9 mos: DTaP

12: Pediarix (DTaP, HepB, IPV), PC

15:  MMR, Hib

18: Pediarix, PC

2: Hep B, varicella

4-6: MMR, DTaP, IPV, varicella

If you do Hib before 15 mos. she will need 2 doses. The kindergarten boosters are pretty standard, but we're skipping a dose of DTaP (our ped. said there is research that 3 is enough, and she'll get 4 instead of 5). Only 4 are required if the 4th is at 4+. 

[happyhippie]

Thank you so much for the book recommendation and all of your kind words.

Sounds like I am going to have to try and find a new ped....eeek!

[Turquesa]

Originally Posted by happyhippie 

Thank you so much for the book recommendation and all of your kind words.

Sounds like I am going to have to try and find a new ped....eeek!

  Well, you'll never completely escape disagreement on these forums, so respectfully, I'm going to express  wee bit.

While I haven't read the specific book that Jugs recommended, I would hands-down recommend Robert Sears' book over Offit's.  Unlike Offit, Sears does not hold any vaccine patents, and to my knowledge, he isn't operating under any grants from the pharmaceutical companies that manufacture vaccines.  (In the PBS documentary, Vaccine Wars, Offit dismissed this conflict of interest as "irrelevant.") 

I've also read two of Offit's books and find them emotive, angry, fanatical (believes in banning all but medical exemptions), and even a tad bigoted, (a sexist smear campaign against Jenny McCarthy in his latest book, and condoning the Willowbrook Experiments on what he calls "retarded children" in the book, Vaccinated).

Sears, by contrast, takes a much calmer and more level-headed approach.  He doesn't talk down to parents by minimizing vaccine ingredients and potential risks.  On the other hand, despite Offit's attempt to lump him in with the anti-vaccine camp, to which Sears has responded, Sears actually convinced me to get vaccines that I otherwise wasn't considering!

Contrary to some hyperbolic responses that Offit's critics often receive...

1. I do not think that Paul Offit is the anti-Christ.  Criticizing somebody's statements or actions is not tantamount to denouncing them as eeeeevil. 

2. A conflict of interest is NOT a conspiracy theory; it's a statement of fact that warrants a raised eyebrow.

3. I don't "fear" vaccines; I question them as I question any medical intervention.  I get some vaccines for my children and am waiting until I know more about others. 

Sorry for the tirade.   ......

Seriously, read BOTH books and see what you think.    I read books from both authors, after all.  Good luck with your decision! 

[happyhippie]

Yes, I have read Sears' book. Actually, that is why I keep coming back around to vaccinating. It's really sort of hard to take that first step. 

I have read a lot from Jay Gordon as well. I find him very honest and concerned. 

[Jugs]

Originally Posted by Turquesa 

 I've also read two of Offit's books and find them emotive, angry, fanatical (believes in banning all but medical exemptions), and even a tad bigoted, (a sexist smear campaign against Jenny McCarthy in his latest book, and condoning the Willowbrook Experiments on what he calls "retarded children" in the book, Vaccinated).

LOL, I think the co-author helped tone him down this time.
 

[guatemama1]

Originally Posted by Turquesa 

Sorry for the tirade.   ......

Super interesting posts - I'm learning a lot about this topic.... & I just thought the above smilies were funny :) I feel that way a lot :)