We were discussing the Disneryland measles outbreak at work, and I was appalled to find some of my co-workers refuse to vaccinate their kids. They (grudgingly) receive the vaccines they need to remain employed, but doubt their safety/necessity for their kids.
I must say, I am absolutley stunned. How can one be a nurse and deny science?
As a nurse, you should darn well know what the scientific method entails and what phrases such as "evidence based" and "peer reviewed" mean.
I have to say, I have lost most of my respect for the nurses and mistrust their judgement; after all, if they deny science, on what premise are they basing their practices?
And everyone stopped listening to you right there.
You are part of the problem, implying that association, which was never proven and has been repeatedly disproven.
Former-doctor Andrew Wakefield singlehandedly created more suffering, illness, and death among children in the last 15 years than any other individual in the Western World. But, he couldn't have done it without help.
You are helping him, not humanity. Nobody is going to listen to your protestations about how we are all robots slaves while you have some special knowledge that all other nurses are ignorant of.
I would rather an Autistic child than a dead one.....
Sorry I'm not replying to everyone. I learned a long time ago that being the dissenter in a group such as this makes it impossible to keep up, even if I didn't have a million other things to do. So again, I am not here to debate the effectiveness or safety of vaccines. I've made my decision and I'm comfortable with it. I will, however, reply to this. And I'm sure you'll all hate me... which I'm also ok with.
Would you continue to be comfortable with your decision if you found out that one of your children ended up spreading one of these diseases to a newborn, who subsequently died from the illness? That due to your decision not to vaccinate your children, someone else has lost their child?
If this happened it would be tragic and my heart would certainly be broken for the parents of that baby. I can't say for certain how I would react, but I highly doubt it would change my position. Unfortunately death is part of life. It is tragic when it happens so early, but I didn't design life... it wasn't my idea. MY responsibility in life is to my children first. YES, everyone else is second to MY children, because they are mine. Is that selfish? I don't think so. I think that's pretty natural for a mother to feel. Maybe it's not the PC thing to say, but it's the truth and it's instinctual. I don't care what statistics you all come up with (I really don't have time to check their accuracy and if they're from the CDC forget it... I trust nothing from them), for MY breastfed-into-toddlerhood/preschool-years children who do not attend daycare and will be homeschooled, the risk of contracting and suffering injury from these diseases is very low. Am I willing to risk the health and safety of my children for the "greater good?" Absolutely not. Does that make me a horrible, selfish person? I don't think so, but you are all entitled to your own opinions and I certainly won't be offended by them. Obviously I care about other people and their children and I want to help them. I will do everything WITHIN REASON to ensure their safety and wellness. I do not believe that sacrificing my own health and that of my family is reasonable.
Some have asked about my vaccine status. I am vaccinated to the max. I've had damn near every vaccine known to man. I was in the military for 6.5 years and they shot me up with everything you could imagine. During my time in the military I began to develop allergies. It started with my lips. Anything but vaseline (and now an organic chapstick I've discovered) would make them break out in hives and swell up for days. Shortly after my last HPV vaccine, I broke out in hives on my entire body (for no apparent reason). It was severe and miserable and required several days of prednisone to clear up. I am now allergic to EVERYTHING I've tried on my skin besides coconut and olive oil. I spent almost a year covered in hives - my body, my face, my hands... miserable. I was pregnant and there was nothing they could do for me. I've also suffered bouts of extreme, completely debilitating joint pain. I can't say with certainty that these things resulted from vaccines, though I am certainly inclined to believe that they did, since we know vaccines can and do cause autoimmune problems. This did NOT influence my decision to not vaccinate my children. I did not make the connection between my problems and vaccines until about a year and a half ago when the joint pain started.
Specializes in Pediatrics, High-Risk L&D, Antepartum, L.
No, IrishizRn, not because the vaccinated child has more rights, but because the non-vaccinated child has choices. The immune suppressed and too-young-to-be-vaccinated child has no choices. They are at the mercy of those who choose not to vaccinate.
And all this boils down to opinion though...who each person values more. I value choice.
And all this boils down to opinion though...who each person values more. I value choice.
No one is taking away anyone's choice. They are simply saying that with every choice comes consequences, and the proposal is that kids whose parents refuse to vaccinate them not be allowed to attend public school, or utilize waiting rooms at pediatricians' offices who apply that policy, or that unvaccinated HCW cannot do patient care or be employed at those institutions, or whatever other restriction that the citizens/government/businesses decide.
No one will ever physically force anyone to be injected with a vaccine, but if they are deemed to be a menace to society, restrictions can and will be placed upon them.
I think the tide is finally turning, and there is going to be an end to some of this personal exemption business as it relates to public school attendance. Every case of measles that is reported is chipping away at the public's tolerance. And God forbid polio gets a foothold here. There will be a huge backlash against anti-vaxxers and what effects their "choice" has on their innocent children.
When you were in the service, was your diet different than your pre-enlistment diet? We're you exposed to a lot of sunlight? A lot of stress? All of these cause hives. Joint pain is a hallmark of somatoform disorder.
It's an old saw, but correlation does not imply causation. I had a boatload of innoculations in the Peace Corps, and I'm fine. That's anecdote, not evidence, as is your military vaccination story.
In the interest of your own well-being, aubrienora, please look broadly at these "hind-sight is 20/20 vision" connections you're making. Because if you are wrong, and overwhelming evidence indicates you are, you will not be well.
I don't care what statistics you all come up with (I really don't have time to check their accuracy and if they're from the CDC forget it... I trust nothing from them), for MY breastfed-into-toddlerhood/preschool-years children who do not attend daycare and will be homeschooled, the risk of contracting and suffering injury from these diseases is very low. Am I willing to risk the health and safety of my children for the "greater good?" Absolutely not. Does that make me a horrible, selfish person? I don't think so, but you are all entitled to your own opinions and I certainly won't be offended by them. Obviously I care about other people and their children and I want to help them. I will do everything WITHIN REASON to ensure their safety and wellness. I do not believe that sacrificing my own health and that of my family is reasonable.
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I'm a mom who breastfed her children into toddler-hood, who doesn't believe in day care, and who homeschooled my kids off and on. We were also a dreaded co-sleeping family.
They are also fully immunized.
The fact that you don't care about the statistics people here are sharing and you don't have time to check accuracy of information kind of leaves you without much to say except how you FEEL.
I don't think we should base our decisions on feelings . . . those can mislead us.
Hard facts, statistics, research . . . .that's where I want to focus.
Obviously this vaccine story is in the news but I was pleasantly surprised to hear Dr. Paul Offit on the show Doctor Radio (Sirius) at 5 p.m. He was being interviewed for the whole hour about immunization fears. One of the callers just lambasted him with innuendo and he did an excellent job of rebutting every point she made. Wish I could link you to that interview - but if you have Sirius Radio, you can probably find it on their online site. (Dr. Radio).
Here is a link to his website though and some interviews. Just an FYI.
From January 1 to January 30, 2015, 102 people from 14 states were reported to have measles*. Most of these cases are part of a large, ongoing multi-state outbreak linked to an amusement park in California.
Obviously this vaccine story is in the news but I was pleasantly surprised to hear Dr. Paul Offit on the show Doctor Radio (Sirius) at 5 p.m. He was being interviewed for the whole hour about immunization fears. One of the callers just lambasted him with innuendo and he did an excellent job of rebutting every point she made. Wish I could link you to that interview - but if you have Sirius Radio, you can probably find it on their online site. (Dr. Radio).
Here is a link to his website though and some interviews. Just an FYI.
SummitRN, BSN, RN
2 Articles; 1,567 Posts
Nice snark... haven't seen you respond to the evidence showing that the "too many vaccines too fast" position you support is nonsense.