OT: Did you give your dc the chicken pox vaccine?

[fterie4u]

I am really on the fence as whether or not to have my dd get this vaccine. I have read many things and there are good points both ways. So, I just thought I would check with all of you to see what you did. Can you also tell me if you did have them get the vaccine, how old were they and what their reaction was to it? If they did not get it, have they had the chicken pox yet? Thank you for your help!

 

[The Disney Bunch]

Loaded question! Be prepared for this to be long & drawn out.

Yes I did give my girls the vaccine. For several reasons - I knew that it was going to be made mandatory by the time they went to kindergarten. Both my brothers got the chicken pox so severe that they hallucinated & were hospitalized. I got the chicken pox twice & was miserable. DH got the chicken pox when he was an adult & it was awful. I do not want my girls to ever go through that. So giving the vaccine might mean that they either will not get it or if they do, they will get a mild case. That is preferable.
Two of the girls did ok with the vacccine. One developed a rash the week following with a fever. Was over it in a day. I had it done at their 2 year check-up since they were not due for any other vaccinations at that visit. Good luck!

 

[F1Julie]

DD6 got it at whatever age the AAP recommends it. I can't remember, maybe 15 or 18 months? She had no reaction to it. I think vaccines are great and I'm all for preventing any illness you can.

 

[jodifla]

I did. DS had no reaction. He had it pretty young, when they first recommend it.

DH's brother had chicken pox so bad he almost died from it. I was out for weeks from school with it, and still have scarring on my face.

Chicken pox can be VERY serious, which is why I inoculated my DS. Even if he gets a case, it will most likely be very mild.

 

[Twingle]

We were really undecided about it when our son was little, and couldn't decide for sure. I had a HORRIBLE case of Chicken Pox as a child, had to be hospitalized. My DH had a very mild case, wasn't even a big deal for him. However, Virginia made in mandatory for any child in school to have it - so we had to do it! He had no reactions.

My DD's had it at their 2 y.o. well visit, like a pp said, they weren't getting any other shots so we did it then. One did fine, the other had a low grade fever and developed a "wheel", a bump at the incision site. It was gone in about three days, and didn't seem to bother her any.

I think most vaccines have good and bad points, and depending on where you are reading the info there may be strong cases for both. But, my DH and I agree that if there are ways to keep our children healthier, we're all for it.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

We gave it to them. You cannot enter school here without it.

 

[Luv'sTink]

DS had the shot when he was 18 months old. He had no reaction to it at all. He is now 10, so when he received it it was still pretty new.

 

[toesmom]

both my kids got the vaccine, no problems and no reactions

 

[MOQu]

Just went to DS3's checkup yesterday and discussed this with his dr. I have opted to wait until he is 6 or 7 and his immune system is more developed. D15 and DS16 both had the chickenpox twice! One case mild and one case more severe. I personally would rather he get the chickenpox while young instead of the vaccine.

The vaccine is fairly new (if my teenagers had not had the chickenpox already, they would have had to have a booster since there is not good data as to how long the vaccine is effective.)

What if the vaccince wears off as they get older and then they get sick as an adult? Chickenpox as an adult is horrible!

I know a lot of people think I am nuts, but my ped. is willing to work with me (and they can not make me stick a needle into my child to allow him into school. This is a free country!)

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Just went to DS3's checkup yesterday and discussed this with his dr. I have opted to wait until he is 6 or 7 and his immune system is more developed. D15 and DS16 both had the chickenpox twice! One case mild and one case more severe. I personally would rather he get the chickenpox while young instead of the vaccine.

The vaccine is fairly new (if my teenagers had not had the chickenpox already, they would have had to have a booster since there is not good data as to how long the vaccine is effective.)

What if the vaccince wears off as they get older and then they get sick as an adult? Chickenpox as an adult is horrible!

I know a lot of people think I am nuts, but my ped. is willing to work with me (and they can not make me stick a needle into my child to allow him into school. This is a free country!)

You can do what you want. That is your choice, but in NY you cannot attend school without it.

 

[macmahony]

My kids have not had it, they go to school.
You can sign a waiver in almost all states for not giving your a child vaccine. We delay all shots, and some we don't give at all.

 

[Oceana]

My kids have not recieved the vaccine. They have not yet had the pox but I am hoping we get invited to a pox party this summer. My elder child is in school with a waiver

julie

 

[beth_cam]

after giving my dd the rotovirus vaccine just because the dr said to without a second thought along with all her shots, just to have it recalled I was hesitant about the Chicken pox vaccine since it was new. While I continued with her other vaccines I didnt give her the Chicken pox one. Then my son came and his first few vaccinations went on schedule but then he started getting real sick a lot with asthma and unknown allergies. I stopped letting him get more than one stick at a time. this was reccommended thought not by his pediatrician since we had no idea about his allergies and how what might be causing flare ups. between that and not letting him get a shot if already having a fever we got off schedule but he was still getting all his shots within the recommended window. It was reccommended at 12 months but at about 18 months I decided to give my kids the vaccine. but since I wouldnt let them have multiple shots we had to play catch up and he was about 21 months before we could give it to him. I knew I probably would before they started school anyway rather than having to fight my way through the vaccine refusal forms etc. But, both my kids have ecema which makes them higher risk for secondary skin infections as well as my sons asthma (which my dd has recently been diagnosed with as well) he was also higher risk for more severe case. But what pushed me into deciding was how often my son was on steroids. Apparently chicken pox virus can be quickly deadly in asthma patients on steroids when they get exposed. Well okay then we know we will do it sooner or later so lets get it over with. If not for these things though I wonder if I would have decided to actually do it.

 

[ammo]

We vaccinated all of our children, but a pediatrician just told us that it may require boosting over the years (?).

One potential side effect of the vaccine actually affects people who have had chicken pox in the past -- shingles. Shingles is the adult flare up of the virus that causes chicken pox. Apparently it lurks in your nervous system and can cause great pain and skin lesions if it re-emerges. Lots of medical people believe that adult exposure to children with chicken pox boosts their immunity and staves off shingles. As a result, there seems to be an increase in shingles since the introduction of the vaccine. Having said that, DW and I decided that we are willing to increase our risk of shingles if the vaccine will benefit our kids.

 

[nettii]

When my DS was small (he is 12 now) it was still fairly new so I held off utill he HAD to have it. When my lil DS was small (now he is 6) I did get it when the DR recommended it.

 

[stczt]

My kids all had the chicken pox shot when they were babies and they just went in and the dr gave the oldest a booster too. Dh nor I have had Chicken pox.thats why we got them the shot. My nephew brought ot home from school and My brothers got it when they were in their late 20's and My Mom got it to in her 40's, she had them twice and almost died.

 

[minnierocks]

I did not...
When the vaccine first came out, my doc recommended against it because it does not offer lifetime immunity. If kids get the chicken pox, they have that lifetime immunity. Complications in adults are more severe than in children, so the thought was that if they get them while young, it is better. Both of my kids have had them, and had no complications-so for us, it was a good choice.
You have to go with your comfort level (and by requirements of your state). Just know that they may need boosters later in life.

 

[Tosie]

Ds got it, dd didn't. Dd ended up getting a mild case at age 2, but not severe enough to build up the immunity. Ds did not catch them from her, so I am assuming the vaccine worked.

 

[abolanwoski]

PLEASE - vaccinate your children. There are so many known cases of death and disibility from Chicken Pox (and other common infectious diseases) and virtually no documentable directly from the vaccines. While the vaccine may be new in the US, it was used in Japan with great success for 15 yrs before available here (so we got a defacto experiment in Japanese children). NO vaccines are for life, this is why kids get multiple shots into their college years and people need a tetanus every ten years. The only reason we don't continue to booster adults for all these diseases is that their incidence of exposure is so low after college.

In order for vaccination to eliminate these potential life-threatening disease, everyone needs to participate. Just look at Polio - it was eradicated in the US and is now enjoying a resurgance as people from other countries who don't routinely get the vaccine emmigrate here.

In addition, shingles is seen most often in immune-compromised adults and is a manifestation of a previous (usually childhood) infection. It can be deadly at worst, painful at best. If you never had chickenpox, you can't get shingles. Giving your kid chicken pox via a party doesn't make him/her immune, it makes them a life-long carrier of the virus (albeit a non-contagous one, until the shingles episode).

I know there is a lot of anecdotal evidence about kids getting autism, ADHD, etc from vaccines, but that is all it is. The peer-reviewed medical literature doesn't support this - and it's not some conspiracy. I have nothing to gain except the protection of my kids from infections that are so easily avoidable, but can be so deadly.

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

I had my kids vaccinated as soon as the doctor mentioned it. I never had chicken pox myself and then when DS was 3 months old, DN passed on the chicken pox to us both (nobody knew he had it yet). I got a severe case of it. Absolute misery. DS got a milder case (thank goodness). The vaccination was too late to help me, but the pediatrician did vaccinate DS a year or two later because he said DS could get it again since it was so slight the first time around. After that, DD and DN (different nephew) both were vaccinated. No problems with reactions to the vaccination for us.