GainesvilleMoms.com

Baby got his 2 month shots today I had to hold his legs! The nurses were really quick and simultaneously, on the count of three, shot up his chubby little legs! He screamed but thank God for breast pumps cause I popped a bottle right in there and he was asleep in 30 seconds! I was convinced he looked at me like, "How could you hold me down while they stuck me like that?"

The second issue is all those vaccines! There's something a little scary about injecting live viruses that once killed or paralyzed thousands of people in your child. I get the process and its safety, but are all of them necessary? Have you ever refused any? If you do, can your children just not go to school?

I feel that the shots are necessary but spread them out over 4 years rather than get them all with in the first 2 years.

That is way too much for a baby and not at all needed in such a short time frame
It is recommended that we get them but not mandatory.

As far as schools they can go to any school you have to get a form from the health dept that says you have chosen not to have the shots and you are allowed by law to do that.

I am a grandmother but if I were a new mom with a baby needing shots I would get them over 4 or 5 years and only single shots not any multi’s.

This is a free country and the Dr's will argue with you but it's your child, you have to make that choice.

its a good thing they won't remember all that.

I know some say they remember that young, but most don't.

This is kind of a sensitive issue that I've stressed over quite a bit (I wrote a blog about it a few months ago). My nephew, who is six months older than my 3-year-old was diagnosed with autism about a year ago. His symptoms started showing up right around that 18 months mark, right after his immunizations. My sister-in-law is still unsure what role, if any, the immunizations played in his development. (It's very hard to not make a connection when he was on track developmentally, got his shots, then within a month was reverting, especially with his speech.) But she and I still agree that shots are beneficial and necessary. We've continued to get both our boys vaccinated, but we've spread out the shots over a longer period of time. They'll still get all the shots they need before they start kindergarten, but they'll get two shots at one time max.

On a positive note, my nephew is now doing speech therapy and other types of therapy. He's in preschool, and he is such a happy, smart boy. I love seeing him and my son play together -- they really are best friends!

Mary, I fondly remember nursing my boys after every round of shots through their first year. They barely cried, and I was able to calm them each time. I felt so wonderful knowing I could help ease their pain.

I think this is a very personal decision. As a baby, I had a very severe reaction to my first round of vaccines and nearly died. As a result, my parents only got what was required for the rest of their children. Now, everything is optional and we have to do careful research to determine what we are comfortable with. I have chosen to get them spread out over a longer period and not have the first round until they are 2 years old. This will ensure they have what is required by the time they are 5 and go to kindergarten. My son's school does not require any at all until kindergarten (not sure why that is). Also, what is required is only a fraction of what the doctors recommend. We are only getting what is required to go to school. However, my son's school (and our pedi Olga Mass) said the exemptions are very easy to get. Personally, I am not comfortable getting more than what is required by the schools. I am also not comfortable not getting what is required. Therefore, we are taking a middle of the road & conservative approach. We feel good about our decision. That being said, we did not arrive at it easily and did a lot of reading on the topic on both sides of the debate. I think a lot of parenting is just doing research and then listening to your instincts.

There is always some confusion when it comes to vaccines about live and killed viruses. The vaccines the kids get are all made up of "dead" or "inactivated" viruses. The purpose is to build up the immunity to the disease but not actually cause the disease. The only vaccines made from live virus that can, rarely, cause any symptoms of the real disease is the MMR and varicella (chicken pox) vaccine. Also the flu mist nasal vaccine and the rotovirus (oral vaccine). It is the same concept as the flu vaccine, it is made up of a killed virus and people assume they can get the flu from it but they cannot. I know there is a lot of controversy about vaccines and autism, etc. but I hope this helps at least explain what not to worry about a little.

Thanks for this advice. We decided to extend them over a period of time now. His next round was in just 2 months! We will be cancelling that appointment. I will do some more research and not take it lightly. Sometimes I forgot that I'm in charge and don't have to do just what the doctors say--they're so authoratative that you don't realize there are options.

Don't forget that adults need some repeat vaccinations too!

You should get a tetnus shot every 10 years. And of course a flu shot (my daughter just got the flu mist...doc says it's better than the shot, and it's only a squirt in the nose). What alot of people don't realize is that they should also get an MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) between the ages of 19 and 49. And if you have no prior infection you should also get a varicella (chickenpox). This may not be a bad idea for those of you who do choose to delay the immunization schedule for your little ones....it would really stink to have to take care of a little one while nursing yourself back to health from chicken pox!