How do you feel about flu shots for your child?

Carrie - posted on 01/10/2013

DO NOT feel guilty!!! I got a flu shot when I was pregnant for my daughter,........then at 35 weeks pregnant, I went into labor I didn't know until we got to the hospital but my daughter had already passed away.......and the doctors could never give me a reason as to why????!!! That was the only time I got a flu shot when I was pregnant!!! I had been pregnant once before this and once after with no complcations and two healthy boys!!! Was it the flu shot??? I don't know but I DON'T trust it!!! So me, my hubby and kids DO NOT get flu vaccines!!!!

Ashley - posted on 11/26/2012

Julie L. Do you have a child on the spectrum ??? You are right autism does not kill , it just destroys lives ,bankrupts families and pushes these children back into regression . If there is NO correlation between the vaccines and developmental disorders ,then why , OH WHY, has Poul Thorsen been indited on 13 counts of medical fraud for extensively refuting the autism and vaccine link in his study "The Danish Study"?? Or why did Dr. Paul Offit make false statements on Sharyl Attkisson, who is the CBS news investigative correspondent, about her report and the ties between ASD and vaccinations.Do your research lady . You can sue me any day if my child infects you , but good luck with that considering the average family shells out roughly 1million dollars in treatment for their ASD kid. We pay to get our kids that have a neurobiological brain disorder better , not keep them sick . The pharmaceutical industry is just thriving off of ignorant and/or scared people like you and so many others. There is a reason it is 1 in 88 children now and I cannot just chalk it up to genetics since my daughter has had genetic testing and heavy metal blood testing. Some children have more sensitive immune systems and you have these QUACK DOCTORS giving babies shots 3 at a time . I lost my daughter to the Dtap vaccine . The same vaccine I am allergic to and it caused me to have a seizure when I was 2 . THESE KIDS ARE THE FUTURE !!! IF WE LOOK THE OTHER WAY , WE ARE ULTIMATELY AT FAULT FOR OUR IGNORANCE. I ONLY HOPE PEOPLE LIKE YOU NEVER COME CLOSE TO MY CHILD WITH THE BLAME GAME AND COURT THREATS. HOW RIDICULOUS ! HOW COLD-HEARTED AND MOST OF ALL PITIFUL TO EVEN MAKE PARENTS THAT ARE DOING THE RIGHT THING FEAR THEY WILL BE SUED BECAUSE YOU OR YOUR KID GOT MUMPS OR MEASLES. YOURS TRULY, ASHLEY TATE

Angela - posted on 10/20/2010

I am the first person to say that my son was definitely (In My Mind) Born with autism as I had problems from day one in the hospital when he nearly starved himself...However, It is possible and certainly is not disproven that these childhood shots could definitely heighten the severity...who wants to take that chance?

As I said before my son's shots are up to date and he is seven however I do not see the point in these flu shots...I never had one as a child ...Do you think that shots replace hand washing and cleaning routines? I also vitamin supplement my son and myself so I do not feel I am doing anything wrong!!!

Jennifer - posted on 10/20/2010

the only reason why you cant find any studies stating that shots are harmful is no one is going to do a study with people with Autism or have a pre-existing condition to Autism. Its not humane. however there are thousands of testimonies and cases of children who are developmentally fine until the receive their shots, their body's go into shock and they loose everything they ever had and spend a life time trying to get it back.

Christi - posted on 10/18/2010

There is no direct correlation between ANY shots and Autism. Any that says so has obviously got caught up in the hype. My son still receives all his vaccines, including the flu shot. All you moms who swear up and down that their shots made them regress or caused it, seriously, we do not know what causes Autism. Sometimes it can be genetically linked, sometimes it just pops up like it did with my SISTER. She was the first in our family to ever have any sort of deveolpmental issues and she is female, which you rarely see. She has Asperger's. It amazes me that people are not only willing to risk their child dying from something completely preventable, but they are willing to put other children at risk. If you child contracts something they are not vaccinated against and passes it on to a infant that cannot receive their vaccines yet, how would you feel knowing your own stupidity caused a child their life?



Oh and to the woman that said she 'lost' her child to Autism, what a cruel way of looking at things. Our children just see the world differently than we do. Doesn't mean it's wrong, just means they need a little extra help with things.

Jennifer - posted on 10/18/2010

my son is 7 and has autism. i never give him the flu shot. i make sure that it is written in his IEP that he does not share any school supplies, washes his hands after every activity and his desk and work areas are disinfected every day after school. my two older children know to wash their hands and use hand sanitizer several times a day to help prevent bringing home infections. we also stay proactive on anti-oxidants in our diet. we've done this for the past 3 years and have yet to catch the flu.

Angela - posted on 10/18/2010

That is exactly why my son has never had a flu shot! To lose all we have gained is unacceptable to me! I just can't take the risk!

Raquel - posted on 10/18/2010

Terry, I agree with you. I will not do anything to compromise my son's health to have him regress or to lose him again.

Raquel - posted on 10/18/2010

Cynthia, I wish you the best! A flu shot isn't worth the risk to have your child regress! My heart goes out to you!

Raquel - posted on 10/18/2010

Shelly, how do you explain children that already have autism & get vaccinated/flu shots & regress? That is my concern! My son has come too far to be lost or regress from a flu-vaccine or any other vaccination. Anything my son does compared to a "normal" child he has to try so much harder. I am proud of my son's determination & all his progress. I refuse to take that away!

Raquel - posted on 10/18/2010

Amber, I understand... my son has come so far that I would hate for it to all go away by a flu-shot...

Raquel - posted on 10/18/2010

Angie, you've listed very good information... exactly why I have concerns...

Raquel - posted on 10/18/2010

Michelle, you bring up interesting questions that I've also wondered about...

Raquel - posted on 10/18/2010

Hello Jennifer, thanks for your post. Yeah, for the most part my son has always been a healthy boy. Maybe when he was 3-7 he had more allergy problems, colds & would get stys. I attribute the allergy problems to living in Houston at the time with all the pollution, mold & pollen. Also, at the time doctors then didn't tell me to use natural cleaning products/stay away from chemicals/toxins. When I did that his symptoms got better as well as his allergies.



My son will have another check up w/ some testing in December. My son was diagnosed as severely autistic, then moderately autistic. Last year they diagnosed him with PDD. However, my son just took a psycho-educational evaluation that the school mandates and he shows to be high/probable in asperger's & possibly in autism... However both are all part of the spectrum. What is the main difference with asperger's and autism? I've directed all my attention towards autism that I don't know much about aspergers.



It's hard for me to believe that all this is genetic. Especially when the statistics continue to rise each year. I think it is an alarming rate! I made a comment to my husband the other night, "Wouldn't it be something if we were the minority & those on the autism spectrum were the majority." I hate to say this, but it looks very likely if it continues at the same rate.

Amber - posted on 10/17/2010

I'm not getting myself or my kids the flu shot. They both had all their other shots on time. My brain knows the shots did not cause my son's autism but everytime I give my baby girl a shot I'm scared of losing her.

Angela - posted on 10/15/2010

Interesting, thanks for the info!

Kristen - posted on 10/14/2010

They do have the preservative free flu shot,which contains no mercury, but you have to ask for it.

Angela - posted on 10/14/2010

I do not let my boy get the flu shot..he has never had one and won't this year either! In fact last year my husband and I did not get one either and we likely won't this year either! As for the other routine childhood shots, I feel that my boy was born with autism as I had problems with him from day one! However I don't know if the shots maybe made him more severe who knows! The point is that James is up to date with all of his shots except for the ones that we would have had to pay for like the chicken pox vaccine...of course I had that in Grade Five and I am still here but he does have all the other shots and I guess I will continue to allow him to have all his shots (He is 7) I agree with your final statement and yet what can we do?

Diane - posted on 10/14/2010

My son is a vaccine-injured child, and we have spent years reversing the damage incurred with his 18-month vaccinations, afterwhich time he spent the night in the ER and lost all language, not to speak again for over two years He is now a healthy, very verbal and highly intelligent middle schooler, and has had no vaccinations since age two. He has been sick 3-4 times since we pulled dairy and gluten from his diet at age three, and when he does get sick, he bounces back within a day or two.

As for the flu shot, I have researched it enough that .I will never get another flu shot myself, nor allow my son to be given one. This is a very personal decision, and one that must be made individually by parents. I am saddened when I read blanket opinions that promote a one-size-fits-all approach. That's like saying milk is good for everyone, ignoring those who cannot tolerate dairy products. As in any controversy, research both sides and make decisions that make sense for your own situation. Prayer can help too.

Nidia - posted on 10/13/2010

Very true. Thimerasol is still around - you can even ask the Physician for flu shots with thimerasol free (they have few) but you know it will still contain the ingrediant.

Angie - posted on 10/13/2010

Vaccine facts that you can find if you just research:
1. There's no actual evidence that vaccines work. All the diseases we vaccinate for were slowly becoming less and less of an issue LONG before vaccines were put into use. We're led to believe they don't exist due to the vaccines, and that's not necessarily true.
2. You are exposing your child to the disease you're vaccinating against... purposely allowing that disease to be injected. That's how vaccines work, they introduce the disease to your immune system so you build an immunity. Problem is, no child is tested before the shot to see how their immune system is functioning. If they are carrying a virus that hasn't shown symptoms yet, the immune system can't fight the disease from the vaccine. This is where I believe the serious reactions come from.
3. All of the diseases we currently vaccinate can be treated if your child was to contract it on their own. However, brain damage and death due to a bad reaction cannot. Polio is a good example of a vaccine gone wrong. The only new cases of polio after, I believe the late 80
s, are contracted AFTER the vaccine.
4. Children who are not vaccinated do not pose a risk to other children... children who ARE vaccinated pose the risk. We become carriers when we get vaccinated. Epidemics do not occur in communities that don't vaccinate, they occur in poplulations that do vaccinate.
5. Vaccines contain animal by-products, aborted fetus cells, eggs, heavy metals, and antibiotics (which tear down the immune system). Babies are not tested for allergies to eggs, which can be another serious effect of vaccinating, causing death.
6. When an autopsy is done on a baby who died from vaccines, the brain is swollen and bruised just like it is from shaken baby sydrome. How many parents are being falsely accused of SBS, when it was actually the vaccines?
7. This one is my own project. I, unfortunately, know a lot of parents who have lost infants to SIDS. Through the course of conversation about the events of the baby's death (their end, I haven't ever pushed anyone), a high number of these babies died within 36 hours after receiving their 4 month shots. In most cases, a full autopsy is not done on an infant, they are looking for blunt trauma. It usually isn't detected that it's vaccine-related because they're not doing bloodwork, or testing for allergy-related deaths, etc. To me, this is too high a coincidence. I'd rather risk my child getting a natural disease and fighting that than allowing someone to inject a disease into my child and hope and pray they don't get it, or lose them because I gave permission for it.

Michelle - posted on 10/13/2010

It really all depends on what risks you're willing to take. If we're talking strictly about the flu vaccine, I think it is every family's personal decision. Some years we've gotten the vaccine; some we have not. Some years we have gotten the flu, some we have not. Last time we didn't do vaccinations and I got the flu and had horrible lung side effects. Because of my now even more compromised lungs (I already had asthma) I'm likely to get the vaccine every year.
But the other ones? Well, the neurological damage odds from measles is 1 5 vs. autism’s 1 in 110; tetanus is 45% fatal and I do allow my child to play outside, where it thrives….

I suppose it helps as my child was one with autism signs in early infancy; we never considered the vaccines did anything because she was clearly autistic from birth. But I will be curious to see as our immunization rates go down and the disease rates rise, are we going to see more children dying or harmed by the disease effects? Will we see lawsuits from parents whose children contract them and were too young to be vaccinated or immuno-compromised? It will be an interesting time.

Kasei - posted on 10/13/2010

My boys are both autistic and I still don't give them the flu shots anyone who has the nazel(sp) one isn't allowed in my house or around my kids because one of the boys has almost no immune(sp) system. I got the shot this year and today woke up feeling like crap so I am not a big believer in the flue vaccine. Our parents had the flu and lived through it. Sorry if I offended anyone.

Debbie - posted on 10/12/2010

I won't get the flu shots as they still contain mercury.

To Eva Whitley (the person that said Thimerosal hasn't been used in shots for many years), this is not true. If you do research, you will find that some vaccines DO still contain it, and the flu shots are one of them. And while the other vaccines have had mercury removed, they still contain heavy metals - the mercury was simply replaced with ALUMINIUM!!!

Angie - posted on 10/12/2010

I don't vaccinate at all, but I especially wouldn't give my kids the flu shot. It's not necessary... then again, none of them are, we're just led to believe they are. Don't feel guilty. This is YOUR child, not your doctor's. You are the one given the responsibility to raise your child and make decisions for her, not the dr., not the government. Stand your ground. The flu can be treated, we all get it and survive. My dad and grandma both almost died after receiving their flu shots, yet they both had the flu numerous times before and after and were just fine. Getting sick actually build our natural immunities, to whereas vaccines destroy our immune system.

Amy - posted on 10/12/2010

I agree completely! I didn't know much at all about the connections until after the fact. I would rather work with the autism than see my die from a disease that could be prevented. My son was fine until he had his mmr shots in particular. After every other he was fine low grade fever a little welt where the shot was. After mmr shots he had a double ear infection & sinus infection.that was not coincidence. His behavior was out of control and he lost his speech completely. My son is 8 1/2 now. I have not gotten the flu or the hepatitus shots either. These are not mandatory for anything.

Pennie - posted on 10/12/2010

In my blog this week I wrote about a study on parents' concerns about vaccine safety and desire for more medical research in that area. penniesempell.wordpress.com

Rhiannon - posted on 10/12/2010

I do not give any of my children the flu shot, or other vaccines at this time. I started looking into vaccines when a doctor actually told me about the link with autism and that my sons autism was most likely due to his 18 month shots, seem in so his milestones were perfect up until that point then he had a huge decline. I would just keep researching and do whats in your heart. Something like the flu is not going to kill your child if you seek medical help, and your mothers intuition will have you do that anyways. Here is a link that might help! God bless!

http://vactruth.com/2010/09/30/tall-tale...

Eva - posted on 10/12/2010

My older son has a fever following his second DPT shot. He got his master's degree last year, summa cum laude. Console yourself that if makes your baby fussy, someday he might be getting straght A's in grad school! Hey, it's the same logic!

Eva - posted on 10/12/2010

Thimerosal hasn't been in shots for many years.

Eva - posted on 10/12/2010

Causation is NOT correlation. Get the shot.

Nidia - posted on 10/12/2010

Ive never given my girls the flu shot. I have thought about it and read about it; but it scares me. For now, I just given them vitamins with immune system strengtheners. (My oldest who is PDD-NOS, is caught up on her vaccines, my younngest who is typical - I spaced them out and is almost caught up.)

Dont feel guilty, just read up about it.

Michelle - posted on 10/12/2010

It is clear that some people react badly to vaccines. Have you had him thorougly tested for allergies? It could be the blockage was related to an allergy to one of the components of the vaccine. There are LOTS of components that go into the vaccines and while I don't subscribe to the notion that they cause autism, there is no denying that some people are allergic to the vaccines.
Before you get another flu shot ask for allergy test, noting the blockage and very severe reaction he had to the last flu shot. Allergies to the components are a very real reason to not have the shots. Then of course you're relying on the herd immunity of everyone else getting the shots to protect your child.

Melissa - posted on 10/12/2010

I don't give my kids the flu shot and it has absolutely nothing to do with autism. Our family is not in a high risk category to get the flu. If we were, I'd get them immunized.

Julie - posted on 10/12/2010

unimmunised children get autism. The fact that autism starts to show just after the age that a bunch of immunisations is given is coincidence. The shots are given at a set age, autism starts showing at a set age - the fact that these ages are close in time does not prove one causes the other. The fact that unimmunised kids get autism DOES however prove not immunising your kids won't stop them getting autism.

All it does is expose them to deadly diseases that can easily be prevented.

Worst still... it exposes children who are too young to be immunised yet, it exposes unborn babies and it exposes the immuno-compromised members of our community (eg those with cancer etc), to getting the deadly diseases that you don't immunise your kids against.

If you could see the parents whose kids are born without arms or legs (or sometimes without either arms or legs) because their kids were exposed to german measles an non-immunised kid... or the parents whose newborn baby died of whooping cough because a non-immunised kid infected them, or the cancer patient recovering from chemo but was killed by a simple disease that could be irradicated if people got immunised.....

Quite frankly, if it happened to me, if my child died or was born with no arms and leg because some selfish person didn't want to immunise their kids, I'd be suing for wrongful death in the first case, and for the medical care of raising a disabled child in the second case.

Unless you plan to go live on a far somewhere with your kids and never have contact with another human being again, not immunising your kids is the real russian roulette- but it's not just some made up link between immunisations and autism, but other kids' actual LIVES your playing with.

As for the flu shot... that's a different matter. I'm not sure about other parts of the world, but here they are not recommended for small kids, nor are they affordable anyway. If I could afford a flu shot, the only person in my household who would get it is me - because I work with elderly people and wouldn'tlike to make them sick, and I'm I have immune issues and constantly get the flu several times a year - whereas my daughter has never had it.

But if the makers approved it for children and it was my daughter getting the flu frequently, I would definitely get her immunised. Flu kills. Autism doesn't.

And ultimately, the link between autism and immunisation has shown to be fraudulent. It's merely two events that can happen in the same age group.

One other thing... all the research being done into autism is constantly proving time and time again that autism is genetic, and in many cases hereditary.

You are born with your genes, a vaccination can't change them, and it sure can't change hereditary.

Cynthia - posted on 10/12/2010

My children were not vaccine damaged. While both on the spectrum they are both high functioning and very lucky. For us it was a genetic issue TOTALLY since Autism runs in my husbands family. I however am reluctant to do flu shots.

For one they are the only shot that is administered that has Thermasol, a preservative that contains mercury. They don't recommend them for patient with Alsheimer's for that reason. Mercury is a bad thing if your brain is already having a hard time of things. Why would I give my kids something that could make it difficult for their brains when they have to compensate so much already. Also the flu shot is not needed for healthy kids and families with not immunity problems.

Here is the kicker though...my school is going to try to MAKE me get them. My husband is stationed overseas and my kids go to the American school on the base. They just instituted this year that in order to be "up to date" on their vaccinations they will both require flu shots! I am upset because it is something that should be MY choice not the school's. Apparently this is a test to see if mandatory flu shots will work nationwide. Starting with military families who have very little choice.

I am now having to wait until the shots are available to try to get paperwork to get out of them. I am thinking about flat out LYING and saying we are Kosher. I love my kid's school and it sucks because if they deny my petition to forgo the shots I will be force to get my kids a flu shot just to keep them where they are.

In the end I believe it is a parent's decision to give or not give them, as it is they who know their child best NO ONE ELSE!

Shelly - posted on 10/12/2010

Get the flu shot without guilt. A girl I babysat as a teenager died from the flu.
The supposed link between immunizations and autism has been disproven - actually found to be fraudulent, and no genuine study has been able to replicate the falsified results Crawford, McCarthy et al keep trumpeting about. The doctor who falsified the study did so because he was being paid by lawyers to do so, so that they could get money out of the pharma companies. He's been stripped of his medical license for malpractice.
Anyone who tells you that there is a link between vaccines and autism is a quack.

Terri - posted on 10/08/2010

first I would look it up.. look on VARES site and see what people have reported on that shot..
I wont ever get my son another flu shot or immunization shot.. I cant I love him too much and I lost him from the shots.. I am starting to get him back.. to break down the walls of the glass box he is in.. I want him back WHOLE.. not broken....
My father in law got us all to hate my sister in law cuz she did not do shots... So we all hated her...
I know now she was SMART.... we were wrong and I hate him for it.. HE said we need to FIX our son before he starts school.. hummm IS he a dog??? nope he is my son MY SON .
YOu have to do what you feel is right.. I may say YOu are a fool to do it. but IT IS YOUR Choice.. I really cant say.. IF you noticed something happen who's to say it wont happen again..
I gave my son a dtap shot knowing I did not feel right about.. DR lied and said HE is fine just collic.. she did not do test.. he was sick all the time... HE is not sick hardly at all with NO SHOTS...
HE had seizures * small ones.. but still DR did not care...
IT is us as parents to pick what to do.. and live with it.. I felt guilty for years.. but I have forgiven myself.. I have asked Josh to forgive me... HE is doing much better now...
I have a RX from our DAN dr saying NO SHOTS can be given to my son.. SO school's wont mess with us...
You dont have to defend yourself one way or the other.. Do what you feel is right ok hun..

Sarah - posted on 10/08/2010

My son with autism is 8 now. Last year we had our flu shots, first one since his diagnoses 3 years ago. I will never do that to him again! All of the school staff, his aides, his therapists, and myself had never seen anyone regress so bad, and as fast as he did! Within hours of his vaccine, he completely shut everyone out, tantrumed daily, did nothing but spin himself or objects, bite, hit and jab sharp objects into his legs and arms. Sleep went completely out the window, he became very aggressive and mean! He also jumped and flapped his hands constantly, wedged himself between tight spaces. An absolute mess!

To each their own, my son never tolerated any of his vaccines though, right from infancy, so I should have known better. I will never do that again to him, or to us.

Nothing is ever a one size fits all, including those stupid little stretchy pantyhose! LOL

I would just say, ' USE CAUTION! AND TRUST YOUR GUT!'

Good luck with your decision!

Kristen - posted on 10/08/2010

My daughter developed normally and hit every milestone until her shots at 13mos. She had a 5-1 combo and 1 month later the flu shot. We lost her to autism then. It has taken 6 years and thousands and thousands of dollars to bring her back to us. No. I no longer vaccinate her. The flu in younger children can be much more severe, but for older kids, it's not usually as bad. Proper fluids, diet, rest and monitoring should get them through. We want our kids to develop their immune systems naturally - by getting sick! It's good to get sick. What's not good, is overloading the immune system by giving shots filled with aluminum, mercury, human fetal tissue, sheep lungs, formaldehyde, oils, etc. You can't believe the things that are put into shots called "adjuvants" to jump start the immune system. Your kids would never be exposed to that many "bad" things all at one time naturally. It makes the immune systems work in overdrive - and for some, it's just too much. If your child has ever had a bad reaction to any shots -you need to be very careful and very selective about giving additional shots. Autism was minimal when kids received 10 vaccinations in the 80's- but now kids
get 36 shots by age 6 and 25 of those are at birth to 12 months of age. Do you think their might be a correlation as to why autism has soared 260% from then? Do your research and make informed decisions. Vaccinations are NOT mandatory at schools. Know your rights. For more information and actual facts and science you can go to www.generationrescue.org. Good luck this flu season - my daughter just had the flu. It lasted 1 1/2 days and she is fine. We eat well, take lots of good supplements and get to bed on time regularly. Her immune system is now working like it should. Use common sense and follow your gut - there is no need to rush out and get a flu shot out of fear.

Jennifer - posted on 10/08/2010

I wouldn't feel guilty about not getting a flu shot. I haven't gotten my kids flu shots for the past couple of years. My daughter (5) has PDD-NOS and my son (7) has aspergers. I don't think the immunizations caused the autism, I really believe it was an inherited trait (hubby's side, ha, ha). Because, when I look at my husband and father-in-law, I really do believe they both have aspergers. I think my daughter is more serious because her birth was very traumatic - she went without oxygen for a little bit and was early and breach. Anyhoo, it was a nightmare at the time.

But seriously, not getting a flu shot will not hurt him. Hell, half the time they can't even get the right flu shot out anyway. I figure they pick up crap at school all the time anyway, then my husband and I usually get it way worse then they do so no worries!!! You are a good mom! Just remember the immunizations are there to prevent diseases that are fatal - meningitis being one of them.