The Vax Debate

Opinions are like a$$holes. Everyone has one, and everyone thinks everyone else’s stinks. So here’s my safe place to vomit out my own two cents. Today’s topic: Vaccinations.

It makes me nutty when I see witch hunts going on for parents. Parents who, for the most part, are trying to do what’s right. Much like parenting, what is right for your family might not be right for your sister’s family, or your neighbors, or your enemy’s. Families all have their own operating systems.

In the giant empty hole that is offered up for the answer to “Why are so many kids on the spectrum?” and “Where are all these developmental/psychological delays coming from?!” some people fill it in with what they deem as common sense.

One very seemingly obvious blatant common sense link would be vaccinations. Nearly all children get them, (or they used to) and they get many in a short amount of time before their bodies are fully developed. Why wouldn’t we look at this as a possible theory?

And then all hell breaks loose. People just stop vaccinating. Celebrities start giving theories and opinions. Judgement begins. You’re an idiotic granola compound-dweller if you don’t vaccinate, and you’re a blinders-on minion of you do.

I am not blaming parents for their choices, personally. I’m blaming this terribly cynical, awfully manipulative, completely controlling big business pharmaceuticals.

How on earth is anyone supposed to get subjective information that can be trusted?! So many unethical, immoral business decisions have come to light that make it impossible to take anything at face value! I think the tobacco company implosion started all of that. As a member of the general public, I take what is being delivered through various media outlets and what am I to do with that?

Blatantly believe it all? Is it Fox news? Is it MSNBC? Is it SNL weekend update? It all depends, right?

The vaccination debate is completely out of hand, thank you Disneyland, and I think fingers are being pointed in the easiest direction, but not the correct one. The parents.

Yes the parents are ultimately responsible. Of course! But do you know how terrifying it is to be a first time parent just before the imminent arrival?! Do you know how much information you need to stuff your brain with ?! ALL of which are important and impactfull, btw.

I remember standing in Babies R Us, 8 months pregnant, if front of The Wall of Bottles. It was overwhelming. Bottles! I had no idea which was necessary, which was harmful, which was affordable, which was sustainable, BPA – what? blah blah blah.

Diapers. Which are affordable, which are responsible, which are understandable, which can my husband operate?

Cribs. Which are safe? Which are sustainable? Which can be used as a toddler bed?

Car seats. Holy shit, I STILL don’t fully understand all the rules for car seats

… and these are things that are responsible for the outside of our babies. When it comes to what we put inside our new bundles, there isn’t anything more terrifying. I STILL feel guilty for feeding my son Costco brand baby formula. He’s 8!

I remember the vaccination debate VIVIDLY when I was about to have my son. Do we or don’t we? Modified schedule or none at all? What does the overworked pediatrician think? What about the news lately? What if … what if ..

You go with your gut and there’s no going back. I chose to vaccinate my kids. You know what? We have found recently that my son has Dyspraxia and ADHD. Who’s to say it didn’t come from the vaccinations? Who’s to say that while it was a biological occurrence, if he hadn’t had the vaccination maybe it would have stayed dormant? Who the f- knows?!

What I DO know is that the people who are responsible for producing the mass created vaccinations are businesses. Companies. HUGE giant entities. Billion dollar companies that undoubtedly have politicians in their pockets from East coast to West coast. Do these people have your newborn baby’s best interests in mind? Absolutely not! They sell drugs. And what happens if your kid has an adverse reaction or develops some sort of syndrome? How do we treat that? MEDICINE! Guess who happens to make medicine? The same company that provided the shot when he was a week old. What a coincidence! Guess who funds the hospital your kid needs to be seen at ?

It’s a scary and horrifying carousel to consider, but I certainly don’t see parents operating that carousel. I see confused and anxious parents standing at the gate wondering whether or not it’s right to put their kids on the horse.

We have got to stop blaming the parents when ultimately, the health of our children is out of our hands. We can advocate, we can demand, we can petition and we can research, but unless we all have biochemical and neuroscience PHDs, we are ultimately completely dependent on the two factions that decide what is safe and healthy and what is required.

Until we have all of the unbiased and free-of-dollar facts, that’s when we can make an educated decision. We have got to stop pointing fingers and blaming parents who ultimately think and feel each choice they make is the right one for their child. I don’t know one parent that decided not to vaccinate their kid because they wanted them to get sick. I never hear parents saying, “Eh … no biggie. We just aren’t.” and I don’t hear parents saying, “YES! I’m so excited, stick that needle in my baby!!!”

We are all in this people-creating, people-raising business of parenting together. My kid will go to school with your kid, so we are in it together. My kid might be the boss of your kid someday (or vice versa) and I truly hope that compassion, understanding, humanitarianism was taught in their homes and not just blame and accusations.