Should I Get My Daughter Her 9 Month Vaccines?

Have her checked for gluten intolerance!!!!

I would highly recommend reading Dr. Sears' Vaccine Book. It lays out at alternative vaccine schedule and really explains what is in each vaccine, (and which brands differ) as well as which ones are really necessary and which ones are more risky. Personally, I haven't vaccinated my daughter since she was 6 months (and she has only ever had 3 minor colds in 16 months). Here are my reasons:

1. Babies don't develop the gland that is necessary for them to build their own immune system until they are closer to 18 months, so it's pointless to give hem shots, because they can't truly develop their immune system until they're a little older anyways. Since I am breastfeeding, she is getting all the antibodies from any sickness I have ever had from me.
2. Aluminum. They have taken mercury out of *most* vaccines, but not aluminum. Mercury didn't do anything for the vaccine, but aluminum is necessary to help your body assimilate the vaccine. Problem is that aluminum is also a neurotoxin. There has never been a comprehensive study done with the levels of aluminum and vaccines. There have been studies done, however, about how much aluminum the adult body can handle before it starts effecting the brain. Adults can only absorb 50mcg of aluminum before it starts effecting the brain. Most vaccines have between 100-250 mcg of aluminum (per vaccine). So you get 4 shots, and that's almost 1000 mcg of neurotoxins going into my baby. I don't think so. That's why there's a good alternative schedule you can follow as well as finding out which brands or kinds have the lower doses. (This information is all in The Vaccine Book).

If your doctor doesn't agree with your decisions, switch doctors. Or even switch to a Naturopath for the everyday care, and find a pediatrician that will be there for emergencies.
You're not alone in not vaccinating your child. There are many good, scientific reasons to hold off, at least until they are older. You can check out www.portlandgreenparenting.com for more local moms who can offer support and advice not along the mainstream medical approach. Don't know if you'll find many of them on this site. But most of all, listen to your instincts and your gut. If you feel like the vaccines are doing more damage to your daughter than good, then listen to that. A mother's intuition will beat a doctor's opinion any day of the week.

My son had digestive issues almost from birth - LOTS of spitting up from the beginning and just generally pretty cranky. He was also diagnosed with reflux and was on medication briefly, but that didn't seem to help and we didn't want him on meds. I have restricted my diet from everything allergenic at various times as well since he has been exclusively breastfed (plus solids). At about 4 months he got really bad eczema and we finally got him allergy tested at 6 months after creams and specialists couldn't fix it. He is highly allergic to eggs. Once we both cut those out, his rash has not been an issue other than an occasional little patch and he is now generally happy and no longer spits up. The only vaccines we have given him are the DPT (without polio) and the HiB. The rest we are either skipping or waiting until later. The 9 month check up should not involve any vaccines anyway, so you might be ok until the 12 month. I firmly believe that little immune systems cannot handle all of the shots we throw at it from such a young age - what 24 hour old baby needs a Hep B vaccine??? I am not against vaccines and will give most of them eventually just not yet.

The other 2 things that I think have greatly helped our son are taking daily probiotics and seeing an acupuncturist. The probiotics are supposed to heal his gut issues and I think they have worked wonders. He gets excited when he sees us take out the bottle - I think he knows how much better they make him feel. Although he eats a lot of solids, he does not eat eggs, gluten grains (including oats - rice only!) or dairy other than kefir. You might want to look into allergy testing. We saw an allergist who is also a pediatrician and were happy with him. It might help you to know what specifically is setting her off - and will help you to know what you can actually eat. We will have our son re-tested around his first birthday before introducing wheat or dairy.

Please email me at ____@____.com if you have any other questions or want the name of our drs. I know how hard it is when you don't know why and can't fix what is making your baby uncomfortable. Conventional medicine didn't have the answers for us which is why we went to alternative medicine. Good luck!

I would trust your instinct and hold off on vaccines. Doctor may try to talk you out of it, but stick to your guns. She's sick and it's not good to get vaccines when sick. It's totally legitimate to want to hold off until her medical issues are understood. If delaying vaccines is huge issue for your doctor then you should really consider a new doctor. I would check out a book called "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You about Vaccines," by Stephanie Cave. It's not as anti-vaccine as it sounds. It's pretty balanced, but outlines how vaccines can be harmful to some children. Good luck.

Since it isn't totally clear what the issue is I would take her off all the drugs, not give her the 9 month vacs, and go back to strictly breastfeeding. This cuts out any dietary allergens that she may have with the exclusion of what you are eating. Any foods that you have removed from your diet start adding back one at a time. If she starts reacting to the food then you know that is a potential culprit rather than a possible allergen to the meds and vacs. At this point I would put all vacs on hold. I'm not saying don't get them but delay or be selective as to which ones you really should get based on what is around your area.

You know your child best, not someone who sees your child every couple of months. You as the parent have all the control. The worst that the DR can do to you is tell you that they won't see you and you have to find a new DR, which I would do if they aren't listening to you. Check your health insurance and see if they will cover you if you see a Naturopath. Many Naturopath's are extremely supportive of delayed vaccinations and look at issues from a whole body standpoint rather than just the symptoms. If this is being caused by something other than diet or vacs then a NP will be able to help more than a DR since they only deal with the symptoms not the whole body.

If you skip the vaccination then you will need to sign a statement that you did it for medical or religious reasons. Schools and preschools will accept this and allow your daughter in. If you do skip the vaccination read up on the disease that you are skipping so you KNOW what too look for and can monitor for any symptoms. If you delay then school will not be an issue only preschool.

Good luck Mama. Remember to follow your instincts. If you feel it is linked to the vacs, then delay or skip the vacs completely. Legally the DR's cannot do anything to you! Do not cave if they start to push. Just walk out of the appointment and find someone new. If they are too busy to push you into something you feel is wrong then they are not the appropriate Dr to take care of your daughter. Since they will be following their own agenda rather than look at what is best for your daughter!

I hope this helps. Feel free to email me if you need more support.

S.

Yes you should it had nothing to do with the vaccines. I have 4 children and all had shots nothing happened to them.