I am glad you bring this up! I am the mother of a 5 month baby girl :) the vaccine issue it very confusing for me and I can see/understand both sides. We live here in California where the measles outbreak happened at Disneyland so it is quite scary! My daughter has not recieved the measles vaccine because they have to be a yr old to get that one. Breastfeeding I heard helps keep the child immune to it up to a year. I can understand why some do not want to vaccinate but I have to admit now being a mommy I do worry about diseases that are coming back because people are choosing not to vaccinate. Measles can be deadly for those that are very young and very old. I will admit that I do not fully understand the way vaccinations work but I do know that people used to die of certain diseases long ago and that stopped happening once people were able to recieve vaccinations but now that parents have stopped vaccinating thir children these diseases are coming back. Our neighbor is a nurse at a childrens hospital here in Los Angeles and she has seen babies die of whooping cough, if their parents would have gotten the vaccination most likely their children would still be alive. It's a horrible thing and I'm not here to judge what a parent should do ;) would love others opinions on this topic because like I said I am getting quite confused on what is best but I do know one thing I do not want my baby girl getting the measles.

Hi girls,

Very short on time but the best thing I can tell you is EDUCATE yourself! Understand every angle, every side and then make an INFORMED decision. Don't listen to the media hype and don't let the measels outbreak effect your desicion. FYI - the measels vaccine is a live vaccine - that means you are contagious after you receive it and can infect other people.

Both of my girls 7 and 3 1/2 are unvaccinated - but it was a very personal long journey to get there. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would not vaccinate.

A good place to start is the Natonal Vaccine Information Center  - http://www.nvic.org/

I am with Livandalex on this abut I totally understand HOW hard it is as a young mom!! I agonized over these decisions. The more I learn, the more confidant I am in my decisions. I will say that right now, I am on radio silent about this with anyone else but the few trusted people who agree with me. I think poeple will look at me like I am a child abuser if they knew. I usually don't havea problem stating my opinion but with this measles stuff, I am zipping my lips.

I struggle with wanting to be the best mom to my 3 girls , 15, 12 & 7. In canada on the east coast I don't have access to much Chinese medicine when I have a problem but I hate when the docs want to push meds for everything . I thank God I found Matia and that I have assess to this treatment which works . I struggle with medicine because I am a nurse and work with public health & I vaccinate children everyday . Be careful moms - vaccine preventable diseases are present and don't only pick the children who eat junk food . We have to be careful if we think we are  totally more intelligent on this topic than national immunization centres . However we all want our children to be protected & healthy in the end . This book helped me as I questioned things & had to make decisions . This book helped me "The panic virus - Seth mnookin.".  By the way even though MMR is a live vaccine no one can get measles from them after they receive the vaccine - except ONLY if you have an immunosuppressed person living with you in the same household & the child breaks out in a rash & is in close contact with the comprised person this person  could get Measles from the rash of child as they have lost all their protection to childhood diseases because of chemo etc. a rash & temp 5-12 days could be a side effect of vaccine . Children do very well however and side effect very mild compared to how sick they can get with measles . Breastfeeding does not prevent measles - so keep your child away from breakouts until they are 12 mos & eligible for protection .    In the end as parents all we can do is our best - I know too much though & could never live with my self if I passed by a provision for a preventable disease . Vaccines have saved more lives in the last 100 years than any other medical intervention in the world .

I hear you Jeannie and yours is the mainstream view but I have to disagree with your assertion that we have to be careful to think we are more intelligent than national immunization centers. I remember questioning my pediatrician about why my newborn needed the hepatitis B vax even though we fit NONE of the risk factors and she literally said ,"A lot of really smart people have done the thinking for you." So, the parents who follow all the guidelines without question which now include Gardasil and the Flu shot are doing the right thing? There are myriad things that I disagree with about Western Medicine. It isn't about thinking I am more intelligent- it is about thinking in an absolutely different way. I definitely think some people can have a lack of humilty about the seriousness of either decision and the non vaxers fall in that category as do the vaxers. Each decision has its consequences .

Also, the Media coverage of this issue is horrendous. Last night on my local Philly news radio, I heard someone say, "An unvaccinated person is almost 100% guaranteed to get the measles if exposed to it." and "9 out of 10 people who are not vaccinated will get the Measles."

Hi Alishia,

    Northwest Ohio? I am in Northeast Ohio- A Cleveland suburb;) Firstly,  congratulations on getting the go ahead to become pregnant! What a victory for you;) I am currently 32 weeks pregnant with my third baby and I agree that informing yourself and making an educated is the best option. At the end of the day, is there a perfect decision? I don't think so......it is all what you can make peace with. My husband and I made a middle of the road choice- we absolutely refused the hep B in the hospital and began vaccines on our children on a delayed schedule once we knew their immune systems were working correctly on their own. I ordered single dose vaccines- this ensures they are formulated without preservatives because many of the "vat" vaccines are. Then I did research on each vaccine. I passed on chicken pox ( both girls have had chicken pox at young ages with no issues ) , we never do a flu shot and I will NEVER get the Guardasil vaccine. We have a close family friend in a coma from it. The rest, I did get.

    However, you are right when you say it is a hot topic. For me, I firmly believe in a persons right to make informed decisions regarding their bodies. The issue is more than the vaccines effectiveness- if the government is able to require medical procedures/vaccines, it will become corrupt very quickly. Moving away from vaccines- there have been court issues requiring parents to administer chemo/ radiation to their children for cancer when it is not their belief and would rather seek alternative therapies. My point is that mandating any medical procedure violates informed consent and may lead to a very slippery slope. 

   Congratulations again on the progress you have made in treatment!

Katie

Awesome post katie!

Deir- Thanks;) I think of you often and miss you!

Alishia- Of course you may contact me..... Whenever you would like! Many parents are now delaying the vaccine schedule and I found no resistance from any of the pediatrician I interviewed. The pediatrician I chose is in Hudson, Ohio- to be specific. Ordering the single dose vaccines was not a big deal at all- it just took some planning and research. Different companies place different " preservatives" in the vaccines so be sure to have your pediatrician actually read off the label what is in it. ;) How soon are you planning to start trying? So excited for you!

  Now I am in the process of signing waiver forms for various Cleveland Clinic "protocols" during childbirth- sheesh!

Please keep us updated,

  Katie

Alishia- I hear you about Jon Stewart that is how I feel about NPR. I am about to withdraw my 10 per month donation! There is absolutely NO balance. There are plenty of intelligent people that could be interviewed to show the other side of this issue but it is never done. Paul Offit is always on NPR and he sounds so so logical and reasonable but so do many on the anti or safer vaccine side yet they always focus on Jenny McCarthy. (Not that I have anything against her really- she is a mom who vaccinated her son and then felt he had a terrible reaction.) That is the thing about this- the moms who believe their children were injured were following the mainstream protocols before they became anti-vax. If you believe them, and I do, their children's injuries were what turned them into crusaders.

Hi Alishia,

I'm writing from across the pond so the systems/pressures are different but with my children, we selectively vaccinated. So, the kids have all had the measles vaccine , and the older ones had the polio, etc.. but nothing else. We also used single  vaccines made in Switzerland/France, and avoided the MMR. My daughter is now 15 and we have avoided the Gardasil. We did not give them boosters either as I could never find any good explanation for why boosters are given (can you really 'boost' how much someone is vaccinated or, as some state, a booster is given to catch the ones who slip through the net the first time).   We delayed the first vaccines (the polio, etc.) until they were older (and stronger). I refused all vaccines while pregnant. I feel for you as it took a lot of reading, debating and soul-searching to make the decisions that we did. I referred often to the 'babyjabs' website (it's a UK site but quite generally informative). Good luck with it all. I'm sure you'll make the right choices for you.