Pros:
1) Obviously, protecting against swine flu.
2) Flying during Christmas = Germ City.
3) Our pediatrician recommends it, and last time I checked neither Ryan nor I have attended medical school.
Cons:
1) Brand new vaccine... should I be worried?
2) I have little to no faith in flu vaccines in general.
3) The stress of constantly calling the doctor to see if the vaccine is available yet is less than appealing.
We decided not to bother with it. There's a lot of media hype and public hysteria, and we refused to get sucked into it. Our minds were made up.
And just as quickly as we had made our decision, we started second-guessing it.
We talked to a friend who DID happen to attend medical school, and he said it was a good idea to get the shot. Another friend, feet firmly rooted in the pro-vaccine camp, passed along articles with lots of GREAT information (and attention grabbing titles!), such as Swine flu still spreading; blamed for 76 child deaths and Sebelius: Americans must get swine flu vaccination. I referenced FluTracker, which maps confirmed H1N1 cases and fatalities in the US and around the world. I checked Ethan's horoscope (nothing about swine flu, but apparently he's going to have an incredible financial opportunity arise in the near future). It certainly gave us a lot to think about - what we thought before was a good decision was perhaps, with a little more research and some input from trusted sources, not in Ethan's best interest.
After careful consideration and countless conversations, we've re-made up our minds and are definitely going to try to get our hands on the H1N1 vaccine for Ethan. We're also taking further precautions, just to be on the safe side.
Bring it on, swine flu, we're ready for you.
3 comments:
I can't very well tell you what you need to do to protect your child's health and well-being. If it was my child I would be just as concerned, torn and thoughtful about the matter. From where I'm sitting (childless I might add) I have grave concerns about new vaccines...particularly ones that have virtually no precedent or history of testing. Some vaccinations on the market today contain endocrine disrupters, other's adverse reactions have been linked with inducing autism. I'd avoid the hog wash, immune boost through other means and only vaccinate with stuff that has a long history and documented success rate.
That is absolutely hilarious(the picture I mean)! My friend Brooke got the swine flu(she is a teacher) and Grant, her 8 month old got it as well! They are both fine, he ran a 101.5 temp, she got him to the dr, and he got medicine! I wouldn't worry too much(even though imagining your baby getting any type of virus is troubling, and scary to wonder if a vaccine is the answer, or if it would be better to just chance it)!
love the picture! but the poor little dude looks scared!
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