Emma is appearing to be on the mend. She is moving around, a very good sign following 22 days of general inactivity. The hospital asked for permission to vaccinate her. Such a normal request, right? When there has been so much that is not normal happening with your child, it is easy to be blind-sighted by the normal. Up until baby #5 was born, I never questioned the whole vaccination routine. If the doctor said it was time for a shot, baby received said shot. But as I have evolved in my adult life into ... well, into someone who does not just do simply because we are told to do, I have come to question many things, vaccinations being one. (The whole issue with the Gardasil vaccine, involving lawmakers making it mandatory for children -our children - to be vaccinated, did nothing to make me feel less insecure when it comes to this issue.) I truly am on the fence when it comes to vaccines. I can see both sides of the issue, especially when it comes down to what is best for the majority versus the small minority that might suffer complications.
But, when you are part of that small minority... when you are the one who has to suffer, to "take one for the team" ... when it is your child that is suffering, and your family that must cope... I just believe we need to preserve the element of choice, the right of the individual parent to decide what risks he or she is willing to take for the sake of the child. When someone stands to make a buck, good judgment tends to take a back seat to the dollar signs that are waving in the breeze. If we have those in authority making laws that are in favor of things they stand to profit from, the potential risks may be great. When we lack trust in those who rule us, fear abounds. And that is a far greater threat than a virus.
If our school system has done all that it purports to do, then the populace in this country should be educated enough to make informed decisions. And that is what I will try to do as I research vaccinations and the potential risks to my child. But please do not ask me to give consent over the phone for something just because this is how it is done. You may have received my consent unflichingly just a few years ago. But now ... I don't think so.
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