Flu vaccine and H1N1 vaccine...

[rlk1]

Hi everyone!

Moms (and Dads!), I need your advice!

My son is 10 months old, and his doctor said that he wants him to get 2 rounds of the flu vaccine in October, 2 rounds of the swine flu vaccine in November, and the MMR and chicken pox vaccines in December (at his 1-year check-up).

Doesn't that sound excessive---two vaccines a month for the next three months?

I'm thinking of just doing the MMR and chicken pox vaccines at this 1-year check-up and skipping the flu and H1N1 vaccines. I'm especially leery of the H1N1 vaccine as it's brand new and the side-effects are still unknown. But...I'm really conflicted about this and could use some advice.

May I ask if you guys are doing the flu vaccine and the H1N1 vaccine? I'm so torn about what to do, so any advice is much appreciated!

Thanks in advance!

[CT_Michele]

I too am a nervous nelly when it comes to the vaccines. We hemmed and hawed for weeks as Ella approached the one year mark. And then we go in and they start talking about flu!

So we ended up doing the MMR and chicken pox that was due and we did the first shot for seasonal flu. We have to go back in October for the second seasonal flu shot for it to be effective. The biggest reason we decided to go for the seasonal flu shot is because I spend a lot of time at schools and my husband also works in a contained environment, so we do not want to bring anything home. I guess I would also consider if your child stays home, or goes to daycare. If they are in daycare, I said do flu, but if they stay home with you and are not at high risk of being exposed, then you could possibly skip it, is what our dr said.

They did not talk to me about H1N1 b/c they didn't have info on it yet, but I think I am too nervous about it because it is so new, so we will probably skip that one.

Keep in mind that your little one will have shots at 12 months and then also at 15 months too (I think, at least at my pedi they do.)

[rlk1]

Hi CT-Michele,

Thank you so much for responding. It really helps to hear other people's perspectives.

My son is not in daycare, so that is one of the reasons we were leaning against doing the flu vaccine. But....I wonder if I'll be paranoid every time we go out or are with friends who have kids if I haven't vaccinated him. Sigh. Who would have thought that being parents would require us to make such difficult decisions?!?

Thanks, again, for your post!

[TammyS]

This has been a big topic on my local mommy's board this week....because Zach just had his 1 yr appt last week and I, at the last minute, opted out of the MMR shot, because I was scared. However, not knowing everything that I now know this week, I did let them give him the flu shot. I wish I hadnt, knowing what I know now. He will definitely not be getting the H1n1 shot either. Zach is home with me, not in daycare.

I am still researching every shot now and still learning. My best suggestion is to start googling and start reading. The pros and cons....everything you can find on each shot....and then make the decision that is best for your family.

As far as what I am doing...I am making my pediatrician spread his shots out over a longer period of time. I wish I would've held out on a few of the shots he has had over the past year...but I didnt know.

[wolffie]

There is a fantastic book by Dr. Sears all about vaccines. I think it's called The Vaccine Book. It goes through in detail all the various vaccines and it also provides a modified vaccination schedule. I have my son on a modified schedule. I think it's important for him to have vaccines (with the exception of flu) but I don't want his system to be overwhelmed with too many shots at one time. I copied and took the vaccination schedule to my ped office and they were perfectly happy with using it. It is a great book. I am leary of the H1N1 b/c there have not been any human trials yet. I also don't get the flu shot and my son wont either.

[TammyS]

Could you possibly copy and paste your modified vac schedule here? I would really love to see it. I am looking for a modified schedule and would love to read that book, but I never read books...read on the computer I love, but I hate reading books. LOL

[Warren Dew]

Our daughter is 15 months and does not use day care. We do take her to playgrounds a lot, though, and she does catch a lot of colds.

She got one round of the seasonal flu vaccine and will probably get one round of H1N1 when it comes out - though we might skip that one. Why do they want to give your son two rounds?

Another thing to consider is whether your son is breast fed and will continue to be breast fed through the winter. Breast milk is highly protective against infection, so if your son is breast fed, he's less likely to need the flu vaccine.

I'd definitely get the MMR vaccine, and the chicken pox vaccine if you are in the U.S.

[rlk1]

Hi all!

Thanks so much for all of your posts--I can't tell you what a help it is.

Wollfie: I agree with TammyS--if you're willing to share the modified vac schedule I'd also love to see it! I think that sounds like such a good idea, because I'd like for him to receive scheduled vaccinations...just not all at once!!

TammyS: You said you wished you hadn't gotten your son vaccinated with the flu shot knowing what you know now? Would you mind sharing what you know, or would you prefer not to on a public forum. If you're willing, I'd love to hear what you have to say. The more info I have the better!

Warren Dew: Yes, I'll definitely get him the MMR vaccine and the chickon pox vaccines (though it makes me nervous). I'm just going back and forth about what to do for the flu shot and H1N1 (though I'm leaning against both). I'm not sure why they said my son needed 2 rounds of both--maybe due to his age (maybe those less than 1 need two rounds)? Sadly, I was only able to breast feed for 6 weeks. I wasn't able to produce, which I hear happens to a lot of PCOS patients. Sigh. It was sad for me.

Thanks, again, everyone! You're the best for posting!

[wolffie]

I'm not sure if this is the Dr. Sears schedule exactly. I don't have the schedule at work with me. This is what I could find online. I would suggest checking the book out at your library and make a copy of the schedule in the book. He may have something on his website too... askdrsears.com

2 months DTaP, Rotavirus
3 Months Pc, Hib
4 months Dtap, Rotavirus
5 Months Pc, Hib
6 Months Dtap, Rotavirus
7 Months Pc, Hib
9 Months Polio
12 Months Mumps, Polio
15 Months Pc, Hib
18 Months DTaP, Chickenpox
2 Years Rubella, Polio
2 ½ Years Hep B, Hep A
3 Years Hep B, Measles
3 ½ Years Hep B, Hep A
4 Years DTAP, Polio
5 Years MMR
6 Years Chickenpox
12 Years Tdap

My son goes to a sitter 1-2 days a week and she watches 2 other kids. My son was also breastfed for his first year. I just don't feel safe with the H1N1 since it hasn't been tested on humans yet. I will definitely speak with my ped more about it. I also plan on waiting until at least 6 years for the chick pox. I am not nervous about my son contracting chicken pox as a child. However, it is much more dangerous as an adult. With so many kids getting vaccinated for it it is possible that he won't contract it as a child and I don't want him to contract it as an adult. So he will get that vaccine but not until he is older.

[rlk1]

Thanks for the vac schedule, Wolffie! I did the 2, 4, and 6 month vaccines as specified by the CDC---(basically a lot of vaccines at each visit), but maybe I can start spreading them out a bit more from now on.
What you said about the chicken pox vaccine makes sense--it does seem odd that they want us to do that vaccine so early when it's usually not life threatening.

Anyway, thanks for your input. I will definitely check out that book by Dr. Sears!

[TammyS]

rlk1 I first started reading a blog, by a friend of mine whom I met in Kindermusik class, and recently joined our local mommies board. Our board has been talking quite a bit about the various shots now, too. She has given me permission to post the link to her blog here, for you and whomever to read. She is one smart cookie who works for NASA (was a librarian researcher and a teacher and like us went through years of infertility and finally has a baby girl, from IVF.

By no means is she an expert or doctor, but she does list many links to more information and her thoughts on this are definitely something to consider. She touches on every shot out there, her research, her conclusions, and their possible side effects...so be sure to click around to read it all. The idea behind her blog was to put the info that she found out there into writing and not to push her opinions of no vaccinations on you, but to let you read, learn, and draw your own conclusions. I hope this helps in making the decisions that is right for your family. Hope you enjoy her blog.

http://www.babydustdiaries.com/2008/12/ ... snake.html

[TammyS]

Thanks Wolfie!!!

[EYCI]

Hi -
Just wanted to add some information about H1N1. IT HAS BEEN TESTED IN HUMANS. The vaccine was FDA approved on September 15th. There is NO WAY that this would be approved with out human trial.

Just google "H1N1 clinical trials" and you can find hundreds of articles about the different trials, including those done in children. You can also confirm the human trials at FDA.gov

http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/ ... 182399.htm

I am not saying if the vaccine is safe or not. I just want to make sure that you are not basing your decision to avoid it because it hasn't been tested in people... it has!

Wolffie makes a good point about immunizing for those things that are riskier than others. If you are really concerned about too many shots at once, maybe consider getting those that are emminent diseases like the seasonal flu and H1N1 flu and skip until later the MMR shot. When was the last time you heard of a child dying of measles, mumps or rubella in the United States? When was the last time you heard of child dying of the flu? I'd say the flu is a much riskier disease right now.

As for risk... you may stay at home, your child may stay at home... but the next time you step out to a grocery store, the library, the local park, a mall, etc... or if your spouse works outside of the home... then you are at risk.

Just food for thought.

[TammyS]

EYCI That is great news! Thanks for sharing.

rlk1Here is some more links and info that my same friend shared on our mommies board in one of her responses to someone else's questions, that I will c&p here...

Aluminum is just one of the nasties in vaccines. Here is a complete list from the CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/pinkbo ... able-1.pdf

You can also search the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) for side effects. http://www.medalerts.org/vaersdb/index.html This is voluntary reporting so one of the criticisms is that parents can report. On the other hand, the CDC admits that this represents only about 10% of the actual adverse events. This search form is LONG and weird. I just go to step 3, choose the vaccine I want to know about, and click "find" right on section 3. This gives you a report per vaccine.

[rlk1]

Hi everyone!

TammyS: Thanks so much for posting all that info. I'm going to check out those links as soon as I finish this reply! I'm hoping that I'll be able to make a decision soon--every time I make up my mind something happens that makes me question everything again. For instance...a friend of mine just sent me a link from CNN that said that some of the H1N1 vaccines contain thimerosal. WHAT?!? Why would they do that if they don't need to? Ugh. Here's the link if you're interested: http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/09/30/h1 ... index.html

EYCI: I hear you about the risk. I was actually just at the grocery store this morning with my son and there was a kid behind me at the check-out counter with a mask on. Good grief. I think that's the biggest reason that I'd consider doing the flu and/or H1N1---I don't want to be paranoid every time I go out that I'm putting my son at risk. On the other hand, I want to make sure that the vaccines themselves aren't harmful.

Okay, girls (and guy!). I'm off to do some research with all of the info you sent. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!!