Injection or Infection ?

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It amazes me that after all this time so many people still choose not to vaccinate their children against Measles, Mumps and Rubella.

I can understand the fears related to the vaccine, and everybody is entitled to their own opinion, but is it really worth the risk?

Not only to your own children, but to everyone else's too?

Little Man has been poorly for a few days now. Not eating or drinking very much, very irritable, waking from his sleep crying, and suffering from fever.

Being 6 months old, and knowing that he is teething, I put these symptoms down to the fact that he was probably about to cut his first tooth.

Unfortunately that wasn't the case.

When he woke up this morning he was particularly irritable, and when I went to undress him I noticed that his entire body was covered in a red rash.

After a hasty trip to the doctor, I was informed that Little Man has got the measles.

CJ, Boo and Roo have all had the MMR vaccination, so I know he has not contracted it from them.

At the moment there seems to be less and less children being vaccinated against these illnesses, and as a result of this we are now having a measles epidemic.

Is your child one of the ones at risk?

Did you know that if a child who has not been vaccinated comes into direct contact with the illness they have around a 90% chance of contracting it themselves?

Measles is an infection of the respiratory system, caused by a virus. It is spread via contact with fluid from an infected person's nose or mouth, either directly, or through aerosol transmission (for example, sneezing).

Although an infected person normally recovers within around 5 days of developing the rash, it can also carry further complications, from the mild, such as ear infections, to the more serious, like pneumonia.

Because measles has an incubation period of around 14 days, it is not possible to tell the infected from the healthy, until the rash appears, and by then it will be too late to prevent the infected person from coming into contact with anyone else.

It is not a nice illness for anyone to suffer, least of all a baby who can't express how they are feeling. It makes you very uncomfortable and the rash is very often itchy.

Little Man is now suffering because of this illness, and the fluid in his ear, that has been caused by it.

On top of that he has also been in contact with other babies, and a close friend of mine who is pregnant.

Imagine the guilt I now feel about putting her and her unborn child at risk, even though I could not have prevented it.

Obviously you should always ask for further information from a professional if you are unsure about vaccinating your child, and make an informed decision based on their advice, but please consider the risks that you are taking if you decide against it.

In my opinion (which is all this blog is), I would much rather subject my child to an Injection that carries minimal risk, and is forgotten within a few minutes, than up to 2 weeks of discomfort and serious complications.

What would you choose ...... Injection or Infection ?

Missy xx

About Missy B

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Marissa Bird is a busy mum of six, blogging the realities of parenting, whilst trying to keep her sanity by reading books and taking photographs in her spare time... if she can ever find any!