Vaccinations.

Yes, I post links on my personal Facebook wall about vaccinations.  Sometimes my pro-vax friends get a little crabby cranky snippy pissy about them because I have FACTS, and those don't line up well with their opinion.  Can I sleep at night knowing that?  You're damned right I can!

I don't post links to argue.  There's nothing TO argue.  Facts are facts.  Opinions are opinions.

The fact is that I have been researching vaccinations for 3 years (this month).  I know more about vaccines than any sane person needs to know.  I didn't even MEAN to find out half of what I know.  I wanted nothing more than to see that vaccines were, (against my instincts), safe.  My intentions of researching them was to prove to myself that I was just being an over-cautious, super-paranoid new mom.  But I didn't.  What I did was find out that when push came to shove, having my children shot up with countless chemicals wasn't for me.  Or for them.  And if by speaking out from time to time, I can have people actually stop and do some stinkin' research, then I've done my job.

I would never tell someone to just STOP vaccinating...but I would say WAIT, and do some research first.  If you want to vaccinate after doing REAL research, you can always go in and do it.  Nothing is set in stone, as the nurse at our Dr.'s office says, but you can NOT un-vaccinate.  Once its done, its done.

My top favorite places to go for information are:

Proud Parents of Un-Vaccinated Children on Facebook.

Dr. Tenpenny on Vaccines

Vaccine Truth.org

National Vaccine Information Centre

Vaccine Risk Awareness Network

And as crazy as it may seem...the CDC website is fantastic for information.  (Why they post information that shows how ineffective and pointless vaccines are, I'll never know!)

For example...look at THIS (in regards to Polio):

"Polio is an infectious disease caused by a virus that lives in the throat and intestinal tract. It is most often spread through person-to-person contact with the stool of an infected person and may also be spread through oral/nasal secretions. Polio used to be very common in the United States and caused severe illness in thousands of people each year before polio vaccine was introduced in 1955. Most people infected with the polio virus have no symptoms; however, for the less than 1% who develop paralysis it may result in permanent disability and even death.

And THIS:

"...Less than 1% of polio cases result in paralysis of the limbs (usually the legs). Of those cases resulting in paralysis, 5-10% of the patients die when the respiratory muscles are paralyzed. The risk of paralysis increases with age."

I admit fully that I suck at math...so I've asked a math friend (thank you Katy!) to do the numbers for me.  According to what's written on the CDC's own website, here it is, broken down.

MOST PEOPLE infected with Polio show NO SYMPTOMS.

LESS THAN 1% of Polio cases result in paralysis of limbs.  (Lets say that means .98%)

Only 5-10% of THAT .98% will die...meaning 0.049% - 0.098%.

In other words, 49-one-thousandths of a percent, and 98-one-thousandths of a percent will die.

WOW...good thing they made that vaccine, eh?  DERP (And I don't mean "Derp" as in "you vaccinate so you're an ass", I mean "The polio vaccine does pretty much nothing, and it's useless."  So just in case someone wants to get all upset and butthurt over that, just don't.  It wasn't an insult to YOU.)

I have a suggestion for those afraid to get Polio here...in the Western Hemisphere.  When you crap, wash your hands.  And when you change a baby's diaper, wash your hands.  (Just sayin'.)  There hasn't been a case of polio in the Western hemisphere since 1979.  Don't even ask me why we still vaccinate against it.  If you do, I'll probably start ranting about money being more important than lives, and all of us only being a number.  (Moving on...)

For those who travel abroad, and you see food being cooked on the side of the road, just a foot from the hole they dug as a crapper...don't eat there.  Seems like common sense but it's not...

(FTR, I JUST watched a special where a guy was trying "native cuisine" and ate food being cooked LITERALLY a foot from their crap hole...which he said was not uncommon.  It didn't stop him from eating that food either...  yum.)  

Gag.  If you're a grown adult travelling somewhere that Polio thrives, research.  I'd be lying if I said I thought vaccinating yourself in THAT situation was stupid, because it might be a good idea.  (Or it might not.  Who knows.  I'm not planning any trips to a 3rd world country...EVER...so I haven't looked into it.  Do some research, though, before you get the jab.)

Polio is the example I used here because I saw that information about 6 months ago and figured this is a good way to keep it documented, and because all my pro-vaxxing friends site Polio as the disease that would have killed us all if they hadn't made a vaccine for it.

So the whole point of this post is to say that I don't give a flying monkey's butt if someone on my friends list gets mad that I've posted information about vaccines being dangerous.  


Someone getting pissy:

                             

Now, I agree we all have the right to do for our child what we think is best.
BUT what we think is best is not always actually what's best.


She did not do "extensive" research.  I'm calling bullshit.  She looked online for an hour and then stopped. We've had this conversation before...two years ago when she posted a very similar comment on my wall.


It's funny that someone who vaccinated her own (preemie) daughter out of fear from that one event 6 years ago (which I DOUBT, since in the 3 1/2 years I've known her, this is the first time I've ever heard of it...and it seemed to be her go-to reason for vaccinating), didn't take the time to find out what strain of measles he had...or if he had any other health issues at the time...and couldn't elaborate on exactly what those "life changing side effects" were...  But she can tell you that it "could have been prevented with vaccination."  I think that's pretty amazing.  Good job Doctor!  (Oh wait.  She's a grade 4 teacher...not a Doctor...hmmm...)


And, FTR, whether it makes me a bitch or not, I'm going to say it...


We all make different choices...true...but we're not ALL right all of the time!  That just doesn't even make sense.
(If all parents made GOOD choices ALL of the time...only RIGHT choices...please tell me why we even have things like the Children's Aid?!  Please tell me why we have so many parents that regret the choices they made for their children?  Please tell me why this blog exists at all?!)

 Some good parents make some poor choices, some poor parents luck out and make some good choices, and sometimes people who really believe they're making great choices find out later that infact, the choices they made were not so shit hot after all.


As I said to that friend (right before she un-friended me), some of my favorite people in life are pro-vax.  I don't hate people for vaccinating!  I hate when people BLINDLY vaccinate without ever doing a second of research.  I hate when people sit back and assume their Dr. is going to tell them what's in the vaccines, give them sites to do some research, and treat their child as though they're more than a number...or a pay cheque.  Because they just AREN'T.

I asked my own Dr. why it's important to vaccinate.  He told me that it's because of "herd immunity".  He said that if children don't get vaccinated, it lowers the "herd immunity", and suddenly children start getting diseases that "could be prevented with vaccination."  He never once said that any of the diseases he was talking about were CHILDHOOD ILLNESSES, or that those diseases were SAFE to get in childhood.  He told me that "adverse effects don't happen".  I'm serious.  I told him that I know they do...I've looked at the VAERS website.  Then he told me that my kids would "get polio if [we] go to a 3rd world country."  Um....whaaaaat?  Who's going there??  Not us!

(Herd Immunity:"When sufficiently high numbers of people contracted the wild form of the disease and secured lifelong natural immunity, statisticians observed a protective effect in the community...")

Anyway, I just wanted to put it out there that sometimes I post information that pisses off my friends.  I can live with that.  I don't post information to cast judgement on them for vaccinating their kids, I post it to make them question what they've been told.  If they research and still come to the same conclusion, whatever.  I can live with that too.  But too many times I've had friends say straight out that they have NEVER researched vaccines, and their kids are fully vaccinated...as though they're proud of it.  And THAT disturbs me.

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Looking up the exact definition for herd immunity, I found THIS, THIS, THIS, and THIS, (and it's wrong).

Hydrocephalus...What This Has To Do With Me

Well, as you may or may not already know, my twins were born 10 weeks early (30 wks., 2 days).  They had a rough start, and one day I'll get into that further.  (Today is not that day.)

Because of their size and gestation when they were born, the kids were signed up to attend the "Developmental Follow-Up Clinic" at the hospital where they were born.  They went every 4 months at first, just to make sure things were moving forward...that their development didn't fall too far behind their peers.  (We always knew they'd be somewhat behind for the simple fact that they were born 2 1/2 months early.  The developmental follow-ups were to make sure that if they failed to progress, we could get some early intervention to help them out.)

From the time my son was born, he had a big head.  Even at 3 lbs., 14 oz., his head was 32 cms.  (12.5 inches), which was only 3 cms smaller than my last daughter who was born 3 days past her due date.  From the start, his head was always above the 90% percentile.

Over the course of the first year, his head was always a growing concern (no pun intended).  It got to the point that it was in the 96% percentile, growing much faster than anyone liked.  The pediatrician at the follow-up clinic had us take him in for an ultrasound of his brain (they did it through the soft spot on the top of his head).  There was excess water there.

I want to mention that at the time, the man who did the ultrasound on his head told us that he'd seen tons of children come in with excess water on the brain, and that it ended up being reabsorbed over time, never resulting in anything except a large head.

I didn't care what he said.  Honestly, IMO, an ultrasound tech isn't the person I want telling me that my baby boy is okay.  I wanted to hear it from someone with some letters behind their name...like the pediatrician.  But she didn't.  She sent us to a pediatric neurosurgeon.  The appointment was scheduled for two months later.  It was the longest two months of my life, next to the two months the twins spent in the NICU. 

Everyday I would kiss my son's head over and over and over.  (A mother's kiss is healing...right?  "Please let these kisses heal him...please, please...please the them heal him...")

For two months all I could think of was what would happen if he was diagnosed with Hydrocephalus.  I'd never even heard the word before, and believe me, Google doesn't give you a really hopeful idea of what can happen.  I joined some support groups on Facebook, telling them that I didn't know if my son had it, but it seemed like everyone important thought he did...

I met a man named Perry.  He may or may not end up telling his story here.  He had it since he was small, and has been through it himself.  He told me what I needed to hear.  My son would swim, he would play, he could do whatever any other child could do, even with a shunt.  The only things he may not be able to do would be contact sports like football (and I mean real football, not soccer.  LOL).  He gave me hope when I needed it, and I'll forever be thankful for that.  His words didn't make everything better, but gave me enough hope not to lose my mind while we waited to see the surgeon.

At the assessment, the neurosurgeon looked him over, had him walk, and said that from what she saw from the ultrasound pictures, it could be something that goes away...or not.  Only time would tell, and she wasn't going to put in a shunt just yet.  She wanted to see what happened, and scheduled another appointment four months later.

Well, I'll tell you.  My brains don't work like they used to.  Being alone with twins 12-14 hours a day can get to me...make me forget anything other than what is happening that moment, right in front of me.  I lost the card that had the appt written on it, and no one called me to remind me of the date.  So we missed it.  When I found the card, it was about a week after the appt. was scheduled, and we had to rebook.  Great.  Another two months of waiting.  All this time, I had still been holding him and kissing his head over and over, every single day, praying and wishing and hoping that my kiss would be enough to help him.

Finally the day of the appointment.  I was so scared I couldn't eat, couldn't think straight...I just felt sick from worry.  We got there early, and waited in the room for about 40 mins before the neurologist finally showed up.  (She'd been in emergency surgery.)  He spent all that time just running around the entire wing of the hospital...being crazy (as usual)!

She watched our son walk to the toys.  Pick them up.  Turn around and run back to us.  She heard him talk, and she saw him smile.  She picked him up and put him on her lap and looked at his eyes.  She put him down and looked at us and said the words that I'll never forget.  "He's fine."

She explained to us that because he was clearly developing...moving forward in speech and movement, he was able to bend over, pick up a toy, and bring it to us...he was okay.  Children with Hydrocephalus stop developing without a shunt.  She said that his eyes looked perfect, that he was just as crazy and active as any other child.  She measured his head again...still in the 96th percentile.  Then she measured my husband's head.  Same.  LOL  My husband was also in the 96th percentile!  His big head wasn't from Hydrocephalus, it was genetic...passed down from Daddy!

The entire thing put it all into perspective for me.  There are brain disorders that are just not known about by the general public.  Sometimes someone can look totally normal and have something going on inside of their bodies or their brains that we can't see from the outside.  And the lack of education about Hydrocephalus is just upsetting to me.  It's something we need to talk about.  Something we need to find a cure for. 

Although my son was not diagnosed with Hydrocephalus, everyday others are.  I'm sure there are people in my community (and yours) that have it and no one even knows, because the shunt is inside of their body, you can't see it and identify it.  So, as a thank you to Perry, I am going to start a Hydrocephalus Support Group in my city as soon as my twins start school next year.  I will find them a place to meet, get things going, and leave them to it.  I am a fantastic planner.  It's what I do.  And I think that no matter what you're going through, it's easier when you know you're not alone.  I don't feel like I should be at their meetings, because my story is not like theirs.  But I know the fear that they faced when they were given a diagnosis.  It's the fear any mother would have when she's told that there is something wrong with their child.  I can't fix things for everyone, but I can help them find other people who can relate.  No one should have to face Hydrocephalus alone.

So there it is.  That's my story about Hydrocephalus.


Donations for research can be made here:  GUARDIANS OF HYDROCEPHALUS RESEARCH FOUNDATION

**Update:

I am in the process of figuring out where meetings could be held if I am able to find people interested in joining a support group.
My twins started school yesterday, and this has been on my mind, again, for the last two weeks.

As it progresses, I will post about what's going on.  : )