Some food for thought....

Sorry no pics this time, but this is something I think is really important - so bear with me!

First a little family history:

When my brother was two years old, he suffered serious neurological damage immediately after getting some routine immunizations. The CDC was called, the vaccine batch was checked, and my mom was given the number of The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. And yet the pediatrician told her that it was not the vaccine that had caused my brother to collapse in the office immediately after being giving the shot. Does that seem right to you? If a doctor gives you a shot of penicillin and you collapse and can't breath - they logically conclude that it was the penicillin. Strange.

The side effects of Rob's reaction were very real and scary. He would not wake up after he collapsed in the doctors office and was out for more than 16 hours. He stopped communicating altogether. He didn't speak, he wasn't interested in playing or any physical activity. He had night terrors almost every night, and every afternoon like clock work he would go into these high pitched screaming fits that would last for 2 hours. He could not be consoled no matter what my mom did. This lasted for two long months. Thankfully with the help of priesthood blessings and a homeopathic doctor, the side effects slowly started to go away. Unfortunately though the night terrors lasted for two more years. Even though we were told that it couldn't be the vaccine that caused Rob's reaction, it was suggested that he not get any more. Needless to say Rob and I did not get the rest of our vaccines and my younger sisters never had any.

So when Mike and I found out we were expecting Aiden, we did like most parents and started looking for a great pediatrician. I did some research and asked a lot of moms in the area who they took their kids to see. We finally settled on Wadsworth Pediatrics, who seemed to have a good rep in the area and were only accepting newborns - just my luck I thought. I called them before Aiden was born to make sure they had everything and to let them know that due to our family history we were not going to be vaccinating him til he was older. They acted like it was fine. In fact they even told me that they had other families at their practice who had chosen not to immunize their children too. I thought everything would be fine, I was wrong. At our first well baby visit I had to explain again to the doctor why we were choosing not to vaccinate Aiden at this time, sign a form saying that I was refusing the shots, and listen to the doctor try to convince me that I was wrong and that vaccines were perfectly safe. It continued like that every well baby visit for a year. Although some of the doctors were more pushy and rude than others, I figured it was their opinion and they were entitled to it. Then right after Aiden's first birthday he got sick and had a fever of 102.6! He had never been sick (other than a cold before) and so I called the doctor. As soon as I mentioned that Aiden had not been vaccinated yet, the nurse’s tone changed and she told me in a very condescending way that “that was very serious” and that she would have to talk to the doctor right away and get back to me. I was then called back and informed that one of the doctors said I would have to take Aiden to the emergency room immediately! I asked why they wouldn’t see him in the office and if they were going to be sending me to the emergency room every time he was sick? The nurse said they couldn't do the cultures needed at the office and if he had something they didn’t want him there, and yes every time he was sick they would not see him in the office – we were going to have to go to the emergency room. All the nurse heard was my son has a fever and he hasn’t been vaccinated yet. She never even asked me if he had any symptoms other than the fever, which might have indicated that it was something serious or not. Totally ridiculous!

I was not about to take my sick, cranky baby to the emergency room and sit there for who knows how long, and with who knows what diseases floating around. We might not even be able to see a pediatrician! And just because he had not been vaccinated did not mean he had some deadly disease and needed to be poked and tested for everything under the sun! Thankfully my mom was a big help and so was a doctor friend of hers who also does not vaccinate her children. We decided to just give him some Tylenol, make sure he rested and had a plenty of fluids, watched his temperature and gave him a blessing. Thankfully his temperature was down the next day and he was back to his old self in no time!

I was totally baffled by the way I was treated by Wadsworth Pediatrics and I was not alone. Every other doctor's office I spoke to said that they had never heard of any pediatrician acting that way, and there was no reason for them not to have seen Aiden. They never once told me that if I chose to disagree with them and the CDC's recommended (not mandatory) vaccination schedule, they would punish us by not seeing Aiden when he was sick. If I had known that from the beginning we would have gone some place else. What use is a doctor who will only see you when you are well? I sent them a letter telling them that I felt I had been treated badly and lied to. And that in the future they should be up front with parents who choose not to vaccinate about how they will be treated or not as the case maybe. They sent me back a letter to tell me how I was wrong and a selfish parent and endangering the world by not vaccinating my son. They also enclosed a copy of their "new" vaccine policy (effective July 1, 2008) which basically states if you don't vaccinate on our schedule, you will be asked to find a new doctor.

We have since found a new pediatrician who supports our right as parents to decide what we feel is best for our child's health. This decision not to vaccinate my son was not one that I made lightly. I have done a lot of research on vaccines since my family was affected by them. I am not against vaccines altogether, but I do feel that there are a lot of unanswered questions about their complete safety to children. I have been told by many doctors that vaccines are perfectly safe. If that is true then why was The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program established by the government to pay families who have had their children permanently damaged or killed by a vaccine? And why was my family told after what happened to my brother, that it was not the vaccines but call this program and they can help you?

I believe as parents we should have the right to decide, based on thorough examination of the facts and family history, what is best for our children’s health and well-being. Thankfully this is America and we all have the right to choose. Whatever your choice is - make sure you are an informed and educated parent on the subject of immunizations. It really is important!

For more info:
www.cdc.gov/vaccines
http://www.909shot.com/
http://www.standupbecounted.org/
http://www.vaccineawakening.blogspot.com/