You know, I got Ronald shots at 12 months, three total. He got MMR, chickepox, and Hepatitis A. I talked with my doc and made sure they were all mercury free before he got them. Wish I had read these last posts before we went.

After his last shots, he got several red bumps on he behind the day after. I was scared to death that he couldn't handle all the shots at once, and he was catching chickepox from the vaccine. That happened to my nephew. The bumps went away after several days, and didn't spread any further, but very definitly looked like chickenpox. I had them when I was 6, but I was alot older that 1 and could understand not to scratch. It would have been terrible for him to have them at 1 year old.

My question to you all is, have any of you considered taking a religious exemption so you eliminate the risk involved with all of these shots? I have certainly considered it, but I still want my LO to get the important shots, the ones that have been around forever, like for polio and the MMR when their bodies are ready, but just not sooo many. It scares me senseless.

APril-mommy to Ronald-1 year old

Alabama allows both medical and religious exemptions. A parent does not have to declare a specific religion but signs an affidavit that vaccinating their child is against the tenets and beliefs of their religion. We are not one of the 18 or so states that allow for a personal or philosophical exemption.
Unlike the "blue form" that kids get every year from their doctor to show that their vaccinations are up-to-date, the exemption only has to be gotten once, so I would imagine that there would be nothing to stop you, if you chose to request a religious exemption, from then selectively vaccinating.
How that all shakes out morally is a different issue.

It's not against my religion to have him get these shots, but how else can I protect him? It is all very confusing, even the doctors and researchers don't have any answers, so what should we do? Anyone else this frustrated? I don't want to claim a religious exemption when it is not the truth, but for me, the protection of my child against something as devastating as autism is wwwaaaaayyyyyy more important that lying to get that exemption(I would do ANYTHING to protect my child). I just don't see any other options. If anyone else has any ideas I about ways to protect them, I would love to hear them.

It is very difficult when you live in a state that doesn't allow you to refuse vaccines for personal or philosophical reasons. There are very few religions that are clearly anti-vaccines, but there are many people who worship according to many different religions that believe that the body is sacred and that God created humans with a fully functional immune system that shoudn't be assaulted by multiple vaccines (much less vaccines mandated by the state). I believe that is how some people reconcile the religious aspect of it. The Catholic Church, in fact, is against certain vaccines (some chicken pox included if I'm not mistaken) because they are manufactured using stem cell lines; they advocate either choosing an option, when available, that is not made from stem cells, or concientious objection to the vaccines.
It is a very complicated issue that the majority of parents don't give a second thought, but for those who do, it can be an agonizing decision made only after hours and hours of research and thought.

Ronaldsmom,

You're right, researchers and doctors don't have the answers for your questions...but they are making progress. There are numerous studies looking at the relationship between mulitple vaccinations and neurodevelopmental disorders, not just autism. There have been several well executed studies completed which have not found a link between thimerisol and autism. The only vaccination in the U.S. that still contains thimerisol is the flu shot and some multi-doses of Hep B. I talked to my pediatrician in length about the flu shot. He showed me the label on the vax, which indicated trace amounts of thimerisol. He told me that he has used the same vaccination for 20 years and has not seen any neurobehavioral consequences. I still chose not to give the shot to Ben (not just bc of the mercury), but I appreciated the information sharing he provided.

Having mentioned the lack of correlation between vax and autism, the AAP and CDC have recently acknowledged (verbally and with grant dollars) that more research is needed to explore environmental influences on autism. My understanding is that this initiative may target the multi-dose effect of vaccinations more than the thimerisol effects, as well as other environmental pollutants. It will be interesting to see what they find.

There is lots of information about vaccinations out there---some is not evidenced-based and can cause parents to be very fearful of some vaccinations that, in fact, may be very beneficial for children. For example, there have been pockets of outbreaks of measles and mumps in countries where families have stopped vaccinating. The other side of that argument I've heard from parents is that they would rather risk their child getting measles than having a neurodevelopmental disability. I can see it both ways....I rambled about that to say
I think it's important as we're researching these types of issues that we check to be sure the source is credible.

I am learning to consider the risk-benefits issue in so many aspects of parenting!! Baby soap or smelly baby, for example.

It really is a personal decision that, as LawMommy said, requires thought and research. I think it's great that you are arming yourself with knowledge about the issue to make logical decisions for your lo. Good for you!

I definetly want to get my LO the shots that I know are beneficial like the MMR. But I am just scared of some of the others that have not been around for very long. How many medicines have the Federal agencies allowed on the market, only to find out they are very harmful to people, and even cause death to some. I just don't trust anything the government says. Noone really knows what causes these issues, and autism is very scary. I have a nephew with a moderate case of autism, he is 9, and is just now able to speak with any coherency(?spelling). I shudder to think a shot that is supposed to protect my child could possibly make him have a lifetime disability. It really is just the unknown about the situation that is scary. Noone knows what is causing the sharp increase in autism.

That said I will probably just do what I can to eliminate the shots I can and space out the rest. No more three at a time. Only one at a time. Even if I have to make more doctors trips, I will. It is worth it in the long run. I can't bring myself to lie for an exemption. I am terrible at trying to lie, I never have been able to do it. I will have to just do what I can to protect him, and say alot of prayers in the process.

I hear ya. Jack is scheduled for his MMR next month and I'm not sure if I want him to get it or not. I might delay it. I need to think more and read more. But it's like, the more you read, the more confused you become. Ugh.