Hi All. I know this is controversial, but I have to ask. I am reading infor in this section of TC about Autism and am curious to which ones of you believe that your child's immunization is the cause for the onset of autism. My heart is just broken thinking about how a mother can notice a change in her child so suddenly like that. I am no stranger to Autism. I am a special ed teacher, but do not claim to specialize in it.

My three are about to be 10 months and I know that when they turn 1, they will be given an MMR vaccine. I am now scared of it. Should I be?

Born@32weeks
Ella 4lb 3oz
Paul 3lb 14oz
Lauren 3lb 15oz

i'm not going to get into the vaccine debate at all, but we knew that there was something going on with charles LONG before he got the MMR vaccine. he was such a different baby in so many ways from the other two. i worried about him from very early on from a developmental standpoint. the other two had so many health problems, but we could tell that developmentally he was struggling early on. so, after the mmr vaccine (which as an RN and husband a dr. we have studied this extensively) we saw no change in how he acted. granted as he got older and the other two were doing more, we noticed more and more what he WASN'T doing, but we never saw any correlation between him pre and post mmr shot.

My advice (because you will get ALL SORTS of advice from whomever you ask... ) is to have a good heart to heart with your ped, assuming you really like and trust him/her. This is such a huge hot topic that most peds are ready to give you their 2 cents--whether they say what you want to hear or not, hopefully you have a relationship with your ped that helps you make this decision.
do your research, but both sides will really try to sway you in a very persuasive manner. use your common sense and go with input from someone (like your ped) that you trust.

good luck, hope this helps.

Meg

I see valid points on both sides of the MMR debate.

For us, we vaccinated out trio as recmmended. I have one on the spectrum - the other 2 are fine. Can I pin point a change in her to the MMR? - no. I did begin to notice differences at around 15 months old - whether that is shot related or not - I cannot tell.

I have talked this over with my ped as it relates to my 4th child's immunizations and we agreed to delay the MMR until she is over 2 and seperate it into seperate shots.

Gracy
BGG (9/18/04 @ 31 weeks) and G (3/6/06 at 38 weeks)...
Save the babies!
www.marchforbabies.org/4littlesplinters

I really struggle with this one too. We vaccinated as recommended and I didn't notice anything other than an ocassional fever afterwards with any of them. I have 1 on the spectrum and 1 who does have some very mild traits too. With both girls we started noticing differences at about 15-18 months.
I am an RN and do believe vaccines are important, but I do wonder if some kids have underlying issues that are exacerbated by the immunizations. With that thought, if we do have any other kids I will delay their MMR and have them spread out once given.

Katie

Katie

"

I really suggle with this too. I have asked and asked everyone I know. There are so many views on this. I have talked to my ped several times about my concerns and he stated that it is something we will have to decide on. I have asked about splitting the shot up and my ped stated that they do not do that anymore. Is this true?

Karen

Truly Blessed Moms of
Braden Alexander 4 lbs 15 ozs
Skyler Hope 4 lbs 14 ozs
Daylin Faith 5 lbs 6 ozs

Not true. May be true at that office, as they may not offer it. But not true in general. If you want to split up the shots, seek another peds office who is willing to make that happen for you.

Good luck.

I taught Sped for a while, too. I don't have any children with autism but I did want to point out that from my experience, a lot of people start noticing difference in their autistic child around 18 months which around the time the MMR is given. I personally think I *could* be coincidence. Just an opinion.

Stephanie

Mama to Beautiful Quads
30 weeks, 5 days

and ^Angel Baby^ 1/05

So, are you planning on vaccinating yours with the MMR vaccine?

Born@32weeks
Ella 4lb 3oz
Paul 3lb 14oz
Lauren 3lb 15oz

Yes, but I opted to wait until their 2 year visit. None have signs of autism and they will be getting the shot in October. I'll let you know!

Stephanie

Mama to Beautiful Quads
30 weeks, 5 days

and ^Angel Baby^ 1/05

None of my business, but are you scared? What are the benefits of waiting?

Born@32weeks
Ella 4lb 3oz
Paul 3lb 14oz
Lauren 3lb 15oz

Well, I REALLY trust my ped. He has quads himself and sees lots of multiples. He says that he has found no evidence that support the claim and that part of the scare is that the MMR shot used to contain mercury or lead or something like that (I can't remember). My ped said that he understands and asked if I would like to hold off on getting it and I said, "yes". Now I feel like it is time. My kids aren't showing any autistic signs and they are past 18 months when the signs seem likely to appear. I wanted to hold off so if something did happen because of the shot such as autism, I could pin-point a possible cause for the autism. Does that make sense or am I just rambling?!

Stephanie

Mama to Beautiful Quads
30 weeks, 5 days

and ^Angel Baby^ 1/05

The contoversy around the MMR vaccine and the link to autism is not the mercury as some would think. There is no Thimerisol in the MMR vaccine. The MMR vaccine contains the LIVE antagonist. The theory is, some children do not have immune systems stong enough to battle the diseases properly. A large number of children have a mild version of the illness then proceed to fight it on their own. With the regime of shots our kids get now compared to when we (or at least older moms like myself) got shots as children there weren't as many diseases to vaccinate, nor were there booster shots like today. If you go to the FDA website they have listed every vaccine and whether it is live or not and whether it contains Thimerisol or another preservative. They also have links to studies that have been done to date. Keep in mind this subject has had very little funding and most of the studies are conducted by the manufacturer of the vaccine, at least it was when I looked at them last. Do what you think is best in your heart.

That makes sense. Thanks Chrissy for your information. May I ask if you vaccinated your children at a year with the MMR vaccine?

Born@32weeks
Ella 4lb 3oz
Paul 3lb 14oz
Lauren 3lb 15oz

I followed the vaccination schedule to the letter per the kids (at that time) Ped. All three of my kids have neurodevelopemental issues. They are all different and to different degrees. One has autism, one has OCD and the other has a general motor tic (soon to be looked at for Tourettes), all have AD/HD. Did the vaccines cause their problems? I'll never know. They were born at 26 wks so I am sure that was a major contributor. If I knew then what I know now, I wouldv'e spaced the vaccines out more.

Thanks for clearing that up! I am definately no expert on the ins and outs of the vaccine but I am trusting in my ped.

Stephanie

Mama to Beautiful Quads
30 weeks, 5 days

and ^Angel Baby^ 1/05

the developmental psych that we saw for 3 yrs in AZ said that she has seen no evidence of vaccinated kids having more incendence of autism. she hasnt done any official studies, but just from what she sees (which are mainly kids on teh spectrum or other dev. delays) she said she sees TONS of kids with autism that have not been vaccinated.
i know a mom who has three kids on the spectrum and has not vaccinated any of them. so, you never know.