tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post10460209392398580..comments2024-01-01T20:33:52.554-08:00Comments on a moon, worn as if it had been a shell: Why I Am Not Irresponsible, A Jerk, A Moron, A Fucker, An Anti-Vaxxer Worthy of Your Contempt with an AddendumElizabethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03313726816776097840noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-76638823478075173342015-02-11T23:26:35.571-08:002015-02-11T23:26:35.571-08:00Anonymous, thank you for your comment. I've st...Anonymous, thank you for your comment. I've stated over and over that I am not against vaccinations and recognize their positive impact on public health and eliminating some horrific diseases like polio and smallpox. However, that doesn't preclude demanding that vaccines and the schedule for them be safe. It also doesn't preclude you or anyone else for that matter from recognizing that there are risks inherent in vaccines and that those damaged by them should be recognized and not shunned, denounced or vilified. I appreciate your kind words and wish you well.Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03313726816776097840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-11174543152590150212015-02-09T09:09:06.614-08:002015-02-09T09:09:06.614-08:00I understand the fear of uncertainly in this issue...I understand the fear of uncertainly in this issue for sure ... but I also realize the certainty that had Jonas Salk been a few years earlier in his development myself and millions of others could have avoided the sometimes visible and sometimes hidden effects of Polio. Had the relationship between cow pox and small pox not been recognized countless more would be dead or scarred for life. There is no right or wrong answer other than the rules of rights. Yours stop where mine begin. God Bless you and keep you in your decisions.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-70437618129701624782014-05-18T04:15:13.943-07:002014-05-18T04:15:13.943-07:00Finally. I have found two soul sisters.
My daugh...Finally. I have found two soul sisters. <br /><br />My daughter, nineteen, is profoundly, and I mean utterly profoundly, disabled cognitively and physically. Until she received her MMR at 14 months, she was deemed a bearable "developmentally delayed": no seizures, normal EEG, just reached her milestones late and with massive input from us and professionals. <br /><br />Within two weeks of the vaccine she was having "head drops". Within several weeks of that, she was in status epilepticus. After six weeks of hospitalization in that state - needless to say, in the care of an incompetent, arrogant neurologist - we switched doctors. Yes, we were, ignorant and slow on the uptake back then. <br /><br />The new neurologist immediately administered ACTH (steroids). Our daughter stopped seizing immediately and began regaining her previous skills. But once she was switched from ACTH to standard meds, the seizing and functional deterioration returned. She has never recovered from that descent. <br /><br />We'd like to bring a lawsuit against our government (we live outside the U.S.) for failure to warn us of the increased dangers inherent in the vaccine to neurologically impaired children. Obviously, had we been informed, we would not have vaccinated. We have consulted a lawyer who believes we have a relatively good case. But it's contingent on the expert testimony of a supportive doctor. For now, it seems no such creature exists in this country.<br /><br />Raising our daughter has been a never-ending battle against the systems. Every tiny bit of assistance we have gotten has required copious blood, sweat and tears. <br /><br />I too blog about life with our daughter, C. Ours is a small community where criticism of doctors, health funds, teachers and aides would boomerang on us. So, for the sake of uninhibited and safe railing I remain anonymous. No names, only initials, blurred faces in photos, the whole shebang. <br /><br />You have already helped me enormously. I had never heard of treating epilepsy with cannabis. It was news even for my daughter-in-law who is about to earn her degree in clinical pharmacology. Googling revealed that it was approved here recently as a treatment for severe epilepsy in children. I intend to raise the option at C.'s upcoming neurologist's visit later this week. Many thanks! <br /><br />Mary Silenti <br />Blogging at http://TheSoundoftheSilent.blogspot.com<br />The Sound of the Silenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09669598042879486343noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-7681612426284477242014-03-30T12:15:32.906-07:002014-03-30T12:15:32.906-07:00A confession: I've spent too much time in int...A confession: I've spent too much time in international airports not to be adamantly pro-vaccinne…. but with the caveat & understanding that there are "those who can't be" and over the years your family has come to mind every time one of these articles circulates. I've thought "everyone else" should step up & encircle your family in a sterile, cushioned, measles-free herd. I've never really addressed my own flawed logic or thought about all the other families that need to be encircled in sterile herds but such is tribalism - first thought for those nearest & dearest to us. I don't have any answers and, further confession, having read some other grand conspiracy anti-vax essays, I retain doubts about the amount of thought & reason other families put into their position, but am grateful for the discussion. krlrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14392064691347464660noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-46846152734624234712014-03-20T23:52:17.849-07:002014-03-20T23:52:17.849-07:00THANK YOU for writing this.
I read the Blogher po...THANK YOU for writing this.<br /><br />I read the Blogher post and was disgusted by the kneejerk assertation that we are "jerks" and "asses" if we dare disagree with her viewpoint. It did nothing to make me believe the rest of her argument was more legitimate than mine.<br /><br />The problem I often find, is that many of those would would bemoan a world that isn't vaccinated against EVERY THING, often discard the "small percent/small risk" group who have to daily live with the effects of vaccinations.<br /><br />You brought this into searing 3D and magnetic emotion for someone who is also a mother who weighs risks carefully. And I hope you brought that into the same reality for the writer of the Blogher article.<br /><br />Until you've experienced the devastation... you cannot question another parent's love for their child or ANY child by the decision they make to not vaccinate.<br /><br />I have a painfully personal history - which led to me refusing the varicella vaccination for my son. <br />He just experienced a completely natural bout with chicken pox and THANK GOD is not deaf from it.<br /><br />His deaf mother has done everything she can to educate herself - and I won't accept the label of "jerk" or "ass" or the claim that I don't care about someone else's child because I didn't subject mine to great risk.<br /><br />Thank you - for writing this. Thank you.Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12112453369738198010noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-48124615286716551712014-03-20T15:58:50.320-07:002014-03-20T15:58:50.320-07:00Yay! Welcome Sue March! You sound a bit like a cha...Yay! Welcome Sue March! You sound a bit like a character in an Austen novel and I'm pleased to meet you.Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03313726816776097840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-20476053306608745022014-03-20T15:07:53.848-07:002014-03-20T15:07:53.848-07:00It's one of those exhausting to the bone days ...It's one of those exhausting to the bone days in the good day/bad day/rinse/repeat cycles. You probably know them well. Tears stream from fatigue but the joy of discovery and pursuit of knowledge sustains as I mold myself into the couch trying to reflect on something good about the day that'll drive me to repeat another and engage learners… it's in your reply. It's the open hearts that we gravitate to, the people who make sense and not spout nonsense that levitate us with love and keep us going. Thank you for welcoming me. Sue March (no longer anonymous - it's high time I said hello and dropped the "stalker-like" profile - lol )Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-81653502349470403052014-03-19T23:05:36.531-07:002014-03-19T23:05:36.531-07:00Anonymous -- I'm overwhelmed by your kind and ...Anonymous -- I'm overwhelmed by your kind and supportive words. Thank you for joining this discussion and sharinga bit of your own story. Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03313726816776097840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-34577282436790353962014-03-19T23:03:56.408-07:002014-03-19T23:03:56.408-07:00Thank you, Lisa. I think you make a really importa...Thank you, Lisa. I think you make a really important point about the celebrity thing -- I, too, have always wondered how many people REALLY listen to celebrities when they make any decision at all. It's so simple, so easy, to use them as scapegoats, a common denominator to mock and pillory --Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03313726816776097840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-70141902884365811352014-03-19T22:09:57.888-07:002014-03-19T22:09:57.888-07:00Francesca -- these are articles that are posted on...Francesca -- these are articles that are posted on Facebook but that appear on mainstream sites and newspapers. They are always incendiary.Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03313726816776097840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-33903385197864460422014-03-19T21:45:15.836-07:002014-03-19T21:45:15.836-07:00I am here. I will always be here. I am exhausted...I am here. I will always be here. I am exhausted for you and with you. I believe there are so many people you are reaching like me. I am an educator, a parent, and a faithful silent anonymous daily follower with 2 healthy children. <br />Elizabeth, you have an amazing ability to unlock what I don't understand. I have learned how to advocate for the kids I work with through your resolve. Don't give up, get it out because we all need your voice in our ears. I will hold your hand like the connections who have held mine when my son had a spinal tap in the ER for suspected meningitis and I watched with terror multiple tries with long needles, like the friends who were there when i watched him have an MRI in fear, and the countless blood work and tests he endured just 2 short weeks from arriving on his college campus as a freshman. He is 18, handsome, and amazing - a "Henry". We are all blessed. The most amazing children I have worked with have been the special needs ones included in my regular ed classroom. I need parents like you and Calvin's mom to help the parents of these kids understand they are not alone, and the rest to hold each other's hands. You are loved. March on and don't give up. The invisible threads you have woven are strong and supportive reaching beyond sunny CA to cold New England. I applaud you for your courage as a devoted caregiver, mother, wife, teacher, writer, nurse and especially the informative advocate you are. We need to follow your lead and proceed cautiously with vaccinations. There are many things I would reconsider if I had the chance but doing the best you can with the knowledge you have at the time is the only path we can take. I hear your fears. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-2832706881065763362014-03-19T21:12:37.131-07:002014-03-19T21:12:37.131-07:00The moral outrage over this is a scary thing. Isn&...The moral outrage over this is a scary thing. Isn't this how pogroms start? With judgment?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10818795902981871173noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-40310839608981921752014-03-19T19:51:36.799-07:002014-03-19T19:51:36.799-07:00Elizabeth, as usual you have captured both the rea...Elizabeth, as usual you have captured both the reason and emotion, and I'm struck by a couple of things as I read both the original BlogHer post and your response. I believe a couple of things to be true: No reasonable dialogue can be had when incendiary words like "jerk" are the opening salvo and many people use incendiary words to mask fear. Maybe that is the case with Stacy, I don't know her as well as I know you. You, on the other hand, have faced your fear head on and shared it with beautiful words that evoke emotion and respect. I can't imagine that there are parents who have acted solely on the "advice" of a celebrity; indeed, I can't imagine that parents who decide to vaccinate, to vaccinate on a varied schedule or who decide not to vaccinate at all that come to that decision without some level of thoughtful consideration. Lisa Lilienthalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03152500885897993371noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-89089020300596148032014-03-19T18:30:09.605-07:002014-03-19T18:30:09.605-07:00What Maggie said.What Maggie said.Denise Emanuel Clemenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10982725113569943337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-73207249329900231032014-03-19T17:04:07.989-07:002014-03-19T17:04:07.989-07:00You're welcome. I was inspired by your honest,...You're welcome. I was inspired by your honest, powerful, raw words (as I always am). I loved your response to Stacy M, given that she basically said the same thing to me on FB about not wanting to offend anyone but to generate conversation. If the only thing that comes out of all of this is that she will ruminate on her awful choice of words and tone of her writing in the future, it may have been worth the belly ache. That said, I couldn't leave it alone and went ahead with yet another blog post on the subject. Oy. Perhaps tomorrow will bring something more entertaining and less inflammatory. Or maybe I'll get admitted to that 1800s asylum and only be responsible for taking the pills they give me and eating when they tell me to...kariohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10150537989886423212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-88360050537696731222014-03-19T16:52:49.121-07:002014-03-19T16:52:49.121-07:00Love you and your brave honest writing. Love you and your brave honest writing. Maggie Worldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12578683202372124444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-25454435158561769142014-03-19T15:40:18.913-07:002014-03-19T15:40:18.913-07:00When major pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer...When major pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer and others are fined by the FDA for, among other things, paying physicians to write positive articles about their latest drugs does that give you the confidence to vaccinate and accept that all will be well? Not me. And why, why, why have there been no studies to validate that giving infants with undeveloped immune systems multiple vaccines all at once is not harmful? We have gone from giving one vaccine at a time in the 1950s to giving doses of multiple and very different vaccines all at once. I am not a scientist but this strikes me as irresponsible. Parents have a right to object to using their children as industry guinea pigs.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-72777164588791886592014-03-19T14:50:08.434-07:002014-03-19T14:50:08.434-07:00Elizabeth, this was a gut punch of a post...so raw...Elizabeth, this was a gut punch of a post...so raw and honest and powerful. As the scientist mother of three vaccinated (and blessedly healthy) children, I never *really* got the other side of the argument until now. I have to say that even with as much as I know about vaccines and the immune system courtesy of my professional training, I might well not have vaccinated my sons in your shoes either, but for damn sure I wouldn't have been able to channel the muse to write about it as you did. Your gift with words leaves me in awe. Mama Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02486091328948046021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-15269414298178206272014-03-19T14:37:28.523-07:002014-03-19T14:37:28.523-07:00Thank you so much Elizabeth, for bravely stepping ...Thank you so much Elizabeth, for bravely stepping out into the nets and telling your story. I'll be passing it on.Maggie Mayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14699674732274478502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-78132746810625384262014-03-19T14:23:32.055-07:002014-03-19T14:23:32.055-07:00Elizabeth, I hope you can feel my hand in yours.
...Elizabeth, I hope you can feel my hand in yours.<br /><br />To tie in with one of the earlier comments, it's because we love our children so much - all of us - and we want them to have happy, healthy, long lives. Clearly, people have different ideas about what is the best, safest, most supportive way to accomplish that.Gbergerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08895779471612397202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-69688322397061916112014-03-19T12:18:30.001-07:002014-03-19T12:18:30.001-07:00Elizabeth, if it may give you any comfort at all t...Elizabeth, if it may give you any comfort at all to know that my four grown-men sons were not vaccinated and have lived to tell the tale, then I will risk the condemnation of the masses to confess it. <br /><br />My eldest is soon to be thirty and his three younger brothers are 27, 24 and 22 this year. They had measles, rubella, chicken pox and one had pertussis. They survived quite nicely thank you, with no more trauma or discomfort than a long-term breastfed child free of antibiotic dependence should expect to experience. <br /><br />One of my beautiful sons developed epilepsy at age 21 anyway. It makes my blood run cold to think how much sooner it may have commenced if we'd poisoned his vulnerable immune system as a baby. Some children are more prone to vaccine damage than others uninformed readers!!! Do vaccines CAUSE the problem? Perhaps not, but they can be the straw that breaks the camel's back in these at-risk children.<br /><br />I encourage your readers to explore the work of Dr. Natasha Campbell Mcbride, the Russian neurologist residing in the UK who developed the Gut and Psychology/Physiology Syndrome protocol. She makes it clear that until the abnormal flora residing in the child's digestive tract is normalized, these children will be much more likely to sustain damage from from vaccination. She encourages parents to have their baby's stool sampled before vaccinating. If your child's gut flora is abnormal, then steps must be taken to rectify the abnormality BEFORE the child can be safely vaccinated.<br /><br />Moreover, 'on the fence' parents are advised to read A Shot in the Dark by Barbara Loe Fisher of the National Vaccine Information Center.<br /><br />Sending a virtual 'warm hug' your way,<br /><br />Annie DruAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14658633004544993860noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-66637017117973481692014-03-19T10:43:27.870-07:002014-03-19T10:43:27.870-07:00Thank you for responding so eloquently here -- I k...Thank you for responding so eloquently here -- I know how the stomach churns with this issue and appreciate what you've added to the discussion. Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03313726816776097840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-87099852512674790812014-03-19T10:11:31.298-07:002014-03-19T10:11:31.298-07:00When my son was born the vaccines were forced on h...When my son was born the vaccines were forced on him without my consent BOOM IN THE ARM what did you do? What did they do? It was a time of the hospitals taking over the doctors being GODS and we trembling women folk followed order. His circumcision was the same way I barely knew what was happening when the door opened a bit and I saw him strapped to a flat crucifix and heard his screams. How I wish the internet had been around then that I could have been better educated not so isolated and alone. My mother took horrifying drugs including Miltowns and speed when she was pregnant with me then of course had me thoroughly vaccinated. I understand polio it was still an active disease when I was a baby but the rest? Did that cause me to be mentally ill? Who knows? And what of my son whose body is perfect but who suffers from extreme depression? I think about it all the time. I want to lay blame. And now I would do things differently. Much love,<br />RebeccaRadish Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06534752971317927559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-12661132075239820462014-03-19T09:52:19.585-07:002014-03-19T09:52:19.585-07:00I wish I could hold your hand right now... maybe *...I wish I could hold your hand right now... maybe *I* need a hand after reading your words in both this post and the last one. I'm glad you write about it so I am reminded of all the realities, but I hope it helps you to write about it. Hope it heals something for you. Emily P.https://www.blogger.com/profile/15910999749422036098noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4863417462909147257.post-16301118587614123312014-03-19T09:11:12.981-07:002014-03-19T09:11:12.981-07:00What really makes me crazy is that some folks who ...What really makes me crazy is that some folks who have branded anyone with a hesitation or question about vaccines as "anti-vaxxers" or "pseudoscience-lovers" or "conspiracy theorists" may read this and say to themselves or to you, "Oh, well, of course you're excused. Your family has an absolutely valid reason not to vaccinate." But what they fail to realize is that there are other families like mine who may not have had dramatic reactions to vaccines who are still wary for very good reason. Lola had terrible reactions to the MMR every time with high fevers, confusion, agitation and sleeplessness for days afterward. She has sensory processing issues and a severe gluten allergy and you're damn right I'm worried about giving her more vaccines. I also recently discovered that many of the vaccines have MSG in them (no pediatrician thought to warn me about that before offering the flu shot to my gluten-allergic kid). While my girls both have had most of their vaccinations, I don't think it's unreasonable to question, to research, to attempt to get more information or wait for longitudinal studies on newer vaccines such as varicella or fast-tracked (for no reason other than financial) vaccines such as Gardasil. And yet, I don't get a pass from folks who want to label me a "libtard" because I want more information. Where do we draw the line about who is entitled to ask questions and who isn't? What they fail to understand is that we all want the same thing - healthy children. I am not disregarding the health of the community, but I'm not willing to sacrifice my kids to the herd immunity, especially if it means that we have to keep getting boosters for everything every few years. I understand that there is a great deal of fear out there, but it is the agitation and the questions that prompt investigation and change. There is a reason thimerosal was removed from many of the childhood vaccines - it is because people questioned the toxicity of mercury; PEOPLE, not pharmaceutical companies. Without continued vigilance on the part of the public, we cannot hope to create safer and safer vaccines because the companies making money hand over fist have absolutely no incentive to make their formulas better without the noise we make. Instead of calling people names or drawing hard-and-fast lines in the sand about who is excused from getting their kids vaccinated and who isn't, let's realize that we all share a common goal and work toward ensuring that our vaccines are safe for nearly everyone while respecting the individual differences and circumstances of others that we know nothing about. I love that you wrote this, Elizabeth, and I appreciate your powerful voice in this discussion. kariohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10150537989886423212noreply@blogger.com