To Vaccinate or Not to Vaccinate?

amandaf6383 · April 2014

This may be a touchy subject but per RAB's post, this place is dead as shit and I need some intellectual stimulation.

What are your thoughts? I'm especially curious about if views will differ between moms vs. non moms.

BruinsBabe33 · April 2014

So the debate is that vaccines cause autism and such right? Well, I would rather have a child with autism than a child who died from a disease that could have been eradicated.

LooneyLife · April 2014

If it's good enough for the AMA, it's good enough for me.

In the words of Fat Amy, "You should really listen to your doctor."

FutureMrsWright2012 · April 2014

Let's consider the facts.... Literally millions of children have received vaccines, they have been studied more than any other "medication" or substance that we put into our bodies and has NEVER been linked to autism. In fact, in communities that do not immunize, the rates of autism have still continued to rise. There are certainly some populations that should not receive vaccines (such as kids with cancer, HIV/AIDS, or metabolic disorders), but those are also the same kids who will likely DIE if exposed to many of the preventable diseases that can be avoided if people vaccinated their healthy children. The idea that any celebrity can be given a platform to scare well-meaning parents unnecessarily is hugely disappointing. As someone who diagnoses and works with children with autism, I can tell you that I have seen many children who are not immunized that still went on to have autism. And... Now they are also at increased risk for preventable illnesses.

Sorry for the rant... Very passionate about this topic, obviously

nfp147 · April 2014

I doubt I'll ever be a mom, so I don't think about it a lot, but I assume that I would vaccinate. I bitch to DH when I see streetpeople/homeless people with dogs. If they are begging for money, surely they can't afford to have their dogs vaccinated. So, yes to vaccines

amandaf6383 · April 2014

I read an article that really freaked me out. It was all about how the increased decision to not vaccinate could lead us right back to the days of people dying from measles, mumps, etc. Do I think that the article was maybe a bittttttt extreme? Sure. But I also don't think it was too far off.

BruinsBabe33 · April 2014

I would like to add that there is not one molecule of my being that thinks autism is caused by vaccines.

MRads · April 2014

Considering there is a measles outbreak, I say vaccinate. I honestly think it is downright selfish to not vaccinate. Not just your kids but also yourself. There are a lot of people who can't get vaccinated for one reason or another, and they rely on healthy people to vaccinate for herd immunity.

I have an aunt who had polio and cannot walk. The stories she tells about having polio are downright horrific.

FutureMrsWright2012 · April 2014

amandaf6383 said:
I read an article that really freaked me out. It was all about how the increased decision to not vaccinate could lead us right back to the days of people dying from measles, mumps, etc. Do I think that the article was maybe a bittttttt extreme? Sure. But I also don't think it was too far off.

http://www.antivaccinebodycount.com/Anti-Vaccine_Body_Count/Home.html

MH1006 · April 2014

I'm a NICU nurse with a lot of Pediatric experience (most of it forced upon me) and it irritates me to no end the number of admissions we get for preventable diseases. I can't tell you how many kids I've had who were unvaccinated and had been admitted multiple times for respiratory type illnesses and pneumonias. Ridiculous waste of money. Don't even get me started on the dangerous stuff that can be prevented like pertussis, H flu and measles. I hate asshole parents.

BruinsBabe33 · April 2014

I agree @mrads

poppies717 · April 2014

Don't be an idiot: vaccinate.

I'm with Looney - if it's good enough for the AMA, it's good enough for me, too!

LuckyAngel07 · April 2014

To me, this isn't even a question. Yes to vaccinations. Period. Considering the measles outbreak in the US right now, it's all too real thathordes of people continuing to not vaccinate would put a large number of people at risk for serious preventable illlnesses. Do we really want to go back to the days of people being crippled/scarred by or DYING of diseases we've had the technology to prevent entirely for decades? It's moronic. And until there is irrefutable evidence that a particular vaccine actually causes autism or anything else (not just that there MIGHT be an increased incidence of X happening to occur), people need to listen to their docs and vaccinate themselve and their children.

nightmare_of_beauty · April 2014

Vaccinate

MH1006 · April 2014

Would also add that people who are TTC should make sure they are up to date on their vaccines. A lot of us think we are when we are not. Remember the pertussis outbreak a few years back? Still getting itty bitty babies in the ICU periodically for pertussis and it's scary as shit for the parents. You need to be proactive, as my doc did not recommend the booster (didn't not recommend, just never said anything so I figured I was up to date) and I ended up getting it from a baby at work (thanks, baby) WHILE I was TTC. These babies are getting it from their parents, who think because they were vaccinated as a child it carries into adulthood. It does not... I learned the hard way.

sgautschi · April 2014

Vaccinate! Not even a question.

As a psych major it drives me nuts to see headlines saying things like "autism linked to vaccines", just as one example. Correlation DOES NOT equal causation.

My favorite example is ice cream consumption linked to aggression. A rise was noticed in both ice cream consumption and aggression but the actual cause for the aggression was heat, not ice cream. And heat also caused the increase in ice cream consumption. See how twisted those headlines can be now? Sure they have some sort of relationship, but that doesn't mean one causes the other.

BackseatDriver · April 2014

@MH10006 I believe that they now recommend that women get vaccinated for pertussis during the third trimester regardless of whether they are UTD so that antibodies are passed to the baby.

BackseatDriver · April 2014

I believe that vaccines are important for public health and I believe in the social contract aspect.

I believe the anti-vaxers have a number of different reasons. There are some that fear autism, but others worry about reactions, the potential effect of the preservatives, and ethical concerns with how certain vaccines were derived. It seems like quite a few people choose delayed schedules which is baseless IMO, but it doesn't necessarily bother me either.

MH1006 · April 2014

BackseatDriver said:
@MH10006 I believe that they now recommend that women get vaccinated for pertussis during the third trimester regardless of whether they are UTD so that antibodies are passed to the baby.

Glad to hear it. I was seriously annoyed when there were commercials, adverts on bus benches, the works about vaccinating YOURSELF to protect your baby and we were still getting pertussis admits with moms who just stared blankly when asked if they had gotten a booster. Have to admit that I haven't taken care of a baby w/ pertussis in a while though, so what you're saying makes sense.

LuckyAngel07 · April 2014

BackseatDriver said:

@MH10006 I believe that they now recommend that women get vaccinated for pertussis during the third trimester regardless of whether they are UTD so that antibodies are passed to the baby.

(PR)

I was actually told to get it before leaving the hospital or something. This is on my list of questions to follow up on at my next appt. But the nurse talking to me DID say that I, DH, and anyone else who would be around baby a lot needed to get it.

cinderin · April 2014

There is an outbreak in my city (Seattle) currently for a preventable (vaccine) disease.

Babies/children can't begin to recieve the vaccine until they are 12 months old.

I hope no babies die from this.

islandmonkey8 · April 2014

Vaccinate. My cousin has two amazing children with autism. She is no way believes there is a relation to her kids being vaccinated and autism. Just genes/bad luck. I get that some people are basing their beliefs off bad information, I think the good information just isn't shared as often or as blatantly as the bad. The media loves controversy, so they tend to publicize anti-vaccination stupidity, instead of the actual scientific facts.

botanicalbliss · April 2014

Vaccinate. Always vaccinate.

saralynn7 · April 2014

There was never a doubt in my mind about vaccinating. I made sure my vaccines were updated as well as my DH's. I wish I had read more about a delayed shot schedule though.

Flamingo86 · April 2014

Vaccinate. Also I am sick of anti-vax memes showing up on FB.

brij2006 · April 2014

Definitely vaccinating. It isn't worth taking the chances of them getting a deadly disease.

Apollo11235 · April 2014

Vaccinate. For my children, but also for the people who can't vaccinate.

stephkf · April 2014

I agree with everyone else, definitely vaccinate. Its such a easy way to protect not only your child but those that cannot get the vaccinations for actual medical reasons.

KonaCoffeeBean · April 2014

I can argue both sides of almost any issue. But this anti-vax crap makes me feel like my head is going to explode.

mrsskiz · April 2014

Totally on the vaccinate board. Though I will fully admit that DH, DS nor myself have gotten a Flu shot. I have a lowered immune system due to psoriosis and the one time I got the Flu shot, I got the Flu and it was horrendous. DH just flat out refuses to get one and I am not comfortable putting a live virus into my 12 year old son.

But to totally contridict myself, if I am ever lucky enough to be pregnant again, or have a close family member pregnant or have a baby during Flu season, we will all be getting vaccinated.

We are all up to date on our Tetnus/Pertussis vaccination, but will be getting another dose should the above happen.

lfk2013 · April 2014

I'm like the rest of you...it's highly irresponsible to NOT vaccinate both yourself and your children.

I'd like to say I respect the anti-vaccine people's view, but I'd be lying.

To me, if your kid catches a preventable disease because you believe celebrities over the medical community, that's child abuse. The same goes for prayer healing. (A couple in PA refused to give two of their kids antibiotics and prayed for them to get better instead. Both kids died from something that could have been gotten rid of if the antibiotics were given. There was even a court order to the parents after the first kid died that they HAD to give antibiotics if they were prescribed. They obviously didn't.)

To Vaccinate or Not to Vaccinate?

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