Let it be said that scare tactics do work.. sometimes.
In the case of the measles outbreak in Wales and its impact on our decision to get Holly the MMR jab, job done.
Sue and I had really been humming and hawing about whether to get the jab for Holly (it should have been administered about 3 months ago, around her first birthday), but all the horror stories of it opening the floodgates to autism were all too real for us to want to proceed any further.
It's really the lesser of two evils - the horrors that can come with infant measles (which are NOT nice) or a lifetime communication problem.
This hasn't stopped us videoing Holly in an attempt to remember the good times (and to have evidence if the worst does happen). We realise the evidence linking MMR to autism has been discredited, but when you read about people winning lawsuits, it makes you sit up and notice.
We're hoping for the best with Holly in all this, and if Emily wasn't an Autie, we probably would have no concerns. Time will only tell if we did the right thing. I'm hoping this is not yet another instance where I wished I had a suped-up Delorean.
Showing posts with label jabs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label jabs. Show all posts
Tuesday, 9 April 2013
Tuesday, 22 January 2013
Holly's paediatric check up - therapy and the MMR jab
Went to the paediatrician today for Holly's 6 month check up and all seemed to be in order, which was nice.
The doctor was very impressed with Holly's progress, her ability to do peek-a-boo, her sensory awareness (turning when she heard a noise, etc.), and general progress.
We discussed the hot topics that Sue and I are thinking about right now - further private intense therapy and the MMR jab debate.
While the NHS won't sanction any more than 6 sessions of additional therapy (£70/hr if your curious), we did discuss that we're prepared to pay for it ourselves after the initial "freebies".
We were told that while intense therapy is good on paper, there's a question about how effective it actually would be. If Holly is going to eventually get to 95% normalcy anyway, the therapy may only serve to get her there quicker and then there's no telling how much quicker. It most likely wouldn't serve to provide any additional help.
Regarding the MMR jab, we were regaled with horror stories of the effects of measles (which just sounded ghastly). While the jab itself may not actually cause autism or other illnesses, it may trigger any dormant neuro problems that are not yet detected and allow them to manifest themselves.
Sue and I are quite confident that Holly is a lot less "Emily-like" (for lack of a better term... "austismy"?) than Emily was at this age. A lot more engaged, verbal and alert.
Again, with the benefit of hindsight, all those people telling us we were lucky having such a lovely placid baby in Emily didn't know how utterly wrong they actually were.
We're still really skittish about the MMR jab as it's still not 100% certain that we wouldn't be signing Holly up to a lifelong disability if we did go through with it.
More sleeps and convincing required.
The doctor was very impressed with Holly's progress, her ability to do peek-a-boo, her sensory awareness (turning when she heard a noise, etc.), and general progress.
We discussed the hot topics that Sue and I are thinking about right now - further private intense therapy and the MMR jab debate.
While the NHS won't sanction any more than 6 sessions of additional therapy (£70/hr if your curious), we did discuss that we're prepared to pay for it ourselves after the initial "freebies".
We were told that while intense therapy is good on paper, there's a question about how effective it actually would be. If Holly is going to eventually get to 95% normalcy anyway, the therapy may only serve to get her there quicker and then there's no telling how much quicker. It most likely wouldn't serve to provide any additional help.
Regarding the MMR jab, we were regaled with horror stories of the effects of measles (which just sounded ghastly). While the jab itself may not actually cause autism or other illnesses, it may trigger any dormant neuro problems that are not yet detected and allow them to manifest themselves.
Sue and I are quite confident that Holly is a lot less "Emily-like" (for lack of a better term... "austismy"?) than Emily was at this age. A lot more engaged, verbal and alert.
Again, with the benefit of hindsight, all those people telling us we were lucky having such a lovely placid baby in Emily didn't know how utterly wrong they actually were.
We're still really skittish about the MMR jab as it's still not 100% certain that we wouldn't be signing Holly up to a lifelong disability if we did go through with it.
More sleeps and convincing required.
Friday, 17 July 2009
Jabbingtons
The doctor's went well and Emily has now had all the jabs she'll need until she 3.5 years old.
She had the MMR jab, which attained controversial status a couple of years ago. I really do hope it is as safe as the government is leading us to believe.
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She had the MMR jab, which attained controversial status a couple of years ago. I really do hope it is as safe as the government is leading us to believe.
Tuesday, 29 July 2008
More jabs
We took her Eminence to get her 16 week jabs today... at just over 19 weeks. It was a three needle affair.
I managed to entertain her during the first one, but failed miserably during the second and third. She eventually regained her composure and we moved on to weigh her as well. 17 lb 11.5 oz!
One of the side effects from some of the many inoculations Em was given include upset stomach and copious sleep. When we got back home around 3p she nodded off and we had to really rouse her after dinner so she would sleep though the night. There's been no sign of upset tum yet though, which is good.
The weather's cooled down and Em movements have returned to normal colour, so the worry we had about their greenness was probably down to the heat and her sweating more. The midwife said she may have also caught a slight bug which would have turned it green.
All in all, another good day in the life of Em.
I managed to entertain her during the first one, but failed miserably during the second and third. She eventually regained her composure and we moved on to weigh her as well. 17 lb 11.5 oz!
One of the side effects from some of the many inoculations Em was given include upset stomach and copious sleep. When we got back home around 3p she nodded off and we had to really rouse her after dinner so she would sleep though the night. There's been no sign of upset tum yet though, which is good.
The weather's cooled down and Em movements have returned to normal colour, so the worry we had about their greenness was probably down to the heat and her sweating more. The midwife said she may have also caught a slight bug which would have turned it green.
All in all, another good day in the life of Em.
Tuesday, 24 June 2008
Latest set of jabs today
Had an appointment this afternoon to get Emily's latest set of jabs done. This time they started her course to combat meningitis as well.
She was quite good, all things considered, and really only grizzled slightly during the jabs, even though there was a bit of blood (thankfully the cotton wool to most of it).
Last round of jabs, we gave her Calpol and she was knocked out for most of the evening. This afternoon, we've not been as lucky. Most of the Calpol ended up on a muslin or on her dress and she kept breaking into crying randomly. Sue's been able to send her off to sleep with a feed, but we're not sure for how long.
While at the clinic, we also got the little tyke weighed. She's now clocking in at over 16 lbs! That's quite the heft, but they're quite happy with her progress and so are we.
The next major hurdle is how Spain is handled...
She was quite good, all things considered, and really only grizzled slightly during the jabs, even though there was a bit of blood (thankfully the cotton wool to most of it).
Last round of jabs, we gave her Calpol and she was knocked out for most of the evening. This afternoon, we've not been as lucky. Most of the Calpol ended up on a muslin or on her dress and she kept breaking into crying randomly. Sue's been able to send her off to sleep with a feed, but we're not sure for how long.
While at the clinic, we also got the little tyke weighed. She's now clocking in at over 16 lbs! That's quite the heft, but they're quite happy with her progress and so are we.
The next major hurdle is how Spain is handled...
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
Immunisation Jabs
Took Emily to get her immunisation jabs yesterday.
We were told she'd probably have a reaction against them as they're really just small (mostly harmless) doses of illness to which one develops immunities. Thankfully there was no side-effects... yet. Emily came through the "ordeal" like a trooper. There were tears, probably her first tears, but that was probably a mix of the jab pain and her hunger, as she was wailing like a banshee before the jabs.
We bought some Calpol at Boots just to be safe regarding any side effects, and dosed her up during feeding to be on the safe side. One of the side effects of Calpol (apparently) is your child sleeps and sleeps and sleeps. Between 3pm and midnight she was awake for a total of about 40 minutes.
Why parents don't go down the Calpol route all the time for a restful evening's peace was made clear by the warning, something about excessive use can cause liver failure.
We were told she'd probably have a reaction against them as they're really just small (mostly harmless) doses of illness to which one develops immunities. Thankfully there was no side-effects... yet. Emily came through the "ordeal" like a trooper. There were tears, probably her first tears, but that was probably a mix of the jab pain and her hunger, as she was wailing like a banshee before the jabs.
We bought some Calpol at Boots just to be safe regarding any side effects, and dosed her up during feeding to be on the safe side. One of the side effects of Calpol (apparently) is your child sleeps and sleeps and sleeps. Between 3pm and midnight she was awake for a total of about 40 minutes.
Why parents don't go down the Calpol route all the time for a restful evening's peace was made clear by the warning, something about excessive use can cause liver failure.
Thursday, 8 November 2007
Worries. Part Three
It seems everyday you wake up there's horrible news, and when you're an expectant parent, the news surrounding children hits you hard (I guess the news regarding whatever you're into or have an interest in hits you hard, I've just never taken the news about children to heart as I haven't had any).Anyway, the Times had an article today on doctors wanting to combine the MMR jab with one for Chickenpox. Fair enough, although the MMR is controversial for making kids autistic and such. However, the article goes on to list all the potential issues and problems a person can have with chickenpox. Here I'm thinking the worst that can happen is you look like Bryan Adams, but nooooo.... You can catch things like "pneumonia, blood poisoning, encephalitis, ataxia (loss of control of limbs), toxic shock and necrotising fasciitis (the flesh-eating bug)."
I just remember rubbing the hell out of my skin with calomine and hoping not to look like Edward James Olmos when it was all done. Cripes, I would have cacked myself if I'd known what I could get!
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