For the most part I don't write about certain topics. Religion, parenting choices and vaccinations. As all of those things tend to start arguments and many have strong opinions regarding those topics. As I feel that those are all personal choices. However, I am going to break my cardinal rule and talk about one of those subjects. Vaccination. Now before I get started I am going to simply put, the choice to vaccinate your child is a parental choice, that only you make. I respect those who do not, as that is the choice they have made. And for what ever reason you have chosen, it should be respected. As is my choice to make parental choices for my own children. Now that I have cleared that up, here goes.
I do not hide the fact that I vaccinate my children. It is my parental choice to do so. I am an educated person, who likes to research everything and anything before doing something. Vaccinations is just one of those things. Now I have always vaccinated my children from the time they were born. More for the fact that I have seen what things like Polio can do to a person. But I am under the firm believe there is a time and a place. I am not for giving a child a boat load of shots in one sitting. I honestly think that the staggered schedule for immunizations is a better way. As in you don't want to overload your child. Again, these are just MY thoughts. With information so easy to access, there is no excuse for not doing your research on anything.
I write this piece a day after I had to take my youngest to the hospital because he had an allergic reaction to one of his vaccines. Now I am not going to jump on the band wagon, of all the vaccinations are the root of all evils. Will this experience make me a little more cautious? Yes. There was no way that I could have predicted my son was going to have a reaction to it. No way. After yesterday, I went back and did some more research on the two vaccinations my son received. And I came to the same conclusion that I had suspected, there is no way I could have known he would have reacted to them. But now I know that for the future, we have to be careful to what he is getting.
This will not deter me from vaccinating my children. What this means is my child is allergic to a component that is in a vaccination. Is it scary to think about that? Sure. And through a process of elimination and the help of Doctors, we can figure out just what caused this child to react. An allergic reaction doesn't mean the vaccination is bad. It is still going to help protect my child from diseases that will cause him more discomfort that just an allergic reaction to something. I can deal with an allergic reaction. I can monitor an allergic reaction. I also know, that when my child is allergic to something, to prevent exposure. I can't prevent my child from contracting a life threatening disease, if I am unwilling to prevent the spread of them.
This is just my personal view. I know that people are going to disagree and that is fine. Please be respectful. It shouldn't be a Pro vs Anti. Its a parental choice. Nothing more. Whether you decide to vaccinate your children or not, do your research. Go past the glamorization that celebrities put forth. Do honest, unbiased research. Its out there. If you are serious about your child's health that you are willing to fight with perfect strangers over, than cover every angle. Don't just join the band wagon or the latest fad. Your child's health and the choices you make as a parent aren't the latest fad.
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