What’s a mother to do in this age of so many vaccines?  Are they harmful?  Are the possible side effects worth it?  What exactly am I putting into my child’s body?  Do they cause autism? As a mother I am overwhelmed at times.

According to the suggested vaccine schedule, Gage should have 28 vaccines before he’s 2 years old, and 9 more before he’s 12.  That’s a lot.

I’ve been reading The Vaccine Book by Dr. Sears and have found it very helpful and scary.  He does a very good job of telling you about each separate vaccine, the history, what’s in it, the benefits.  Dr. Sears also provides an alternate shot schedule which we’ve been loosely following.  It’s essentially spreading out or delaying vaccines, so Gage is never really more than a few months behind.

On Friday he got the big one, the MMRC.  It has a long list of serious side effects and is the one linked to the autism scare.  I’ll admit I’m nervous about it.

So, how do you feel about vaccinations?  Do they make you nervous or do you think it’s much ado about nothing?

Sometimes he gets cranky after his shots and I was hoping he’d be happy since the grandparents are visiting.  Well, here he is on Friday night, my favorite picture ever…