I am dipping my toe into the pool of controversial parenting topics. To vaccinate your child or to avoid vaccinations at all costs.
I have some pretty deep-rooted beliefs about medicine, health, healing, and illness. I blame my father.
Let the record show that I, Mrs. Messy, believe the following:
- If my body gets sick, it is screaming, “Hello! It’s time to slow down and get some rest. NOW!“
- If I eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, my body will thank me by keeping me in good health. If I feed my body junk, I will feel like crap. Period.
- Unless I am feeling serious pain, it is best to let the flu or cold run its course. That means no drugs. They don’t work anyway. Admit it, they don’t!
- If a vaccine can’t guarantee avoiding illness, is it really useful?
- Natural remedies and preventative medicine work best (for me).
I have operated by these principles my entire life. I don’t have cold medicine in my house. I don’t take pain relief for a headache unless I have had it for more than a day. I think it would be pretty accurate to say that I am almost afraid of medicine
A slight tangent: I had my baby without any drugs. If you were to ask me how I did it, I would probably say that I didn’t want to risk my baby’s health in ANY way if I could avoid it. But the real reason. The deep-down-in-the-pit-of-my-stomach reason is that I am afraid of epidurals. Hello! They stick a catheter in your spine. YOUR SPINE! Doesn’t that freak you out just a little? There is no way that I could ever agree to allowing someone, trained or not, to stick anything in my spine. SHUDDER.
Back to the piggy flu. It should also be noted that I have not had the flu for about seven years. I have had a series of sinus infections, but no flu.
Now, Mr. Messy sits in another camp when it comes to medicine. He will shove anything down his throat if it promises any kind of relief from any kind of illness. And this has got him into trouble. Three or four years ago, Mr. Messy injured his foot. His doctor prescribed rest and ibuprofen. A couple of weeks later, he was no longer worried about his foot because he had an ulcer. An ulcer! From ibuprofen! Yes, read the side effects. Now he takes me seriously when I nag him about suggest alternative healing methods. But, Mr. Messy has never had a flu shot. I don’t know why, I just know that he hasn’t.
But.
You knew that was coming, didn’t you?
But, all of that changed the day I gave birth to Jacob. We have Infant’s Tylenol in our bathroom because there is no way that I can stomach my child’s pain. Not good for a breast feeding mother, if you get my drift.
At eleven months old, Jacob is considered high risk for severe symptoms of the H1N1 virus. If he were to contract the virus, I would blame myself. It is fine and dandy for me to have my opinions about medicine, but he doesn’t get a vote. Jacob cannot make that decision and I shouldn’t put him in harm’s way because I am afraid of what drugs will do to me. I need to think about his health and safety.
So, Mr. Messy and I will be getting vaccinated against the H1N1 virus along with Jacob. We read. We talked. We decided. I can pretty much guarantee you that if it weren’t for Jake, I would not be getting the vaccine. And not because I am not in a high risk category. We are doing this to protect Jacob. It’s the best thing for us.
If you are undecided about, or even against, getting the H1N1 vaccine, I urge you to inform yourself. The World Health Organization has an information page that is really helpful. And not just about the pros of getting the vaccine. Read about it. Consider your health. Consider your family’s health.
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