Flumist, Shot or Nothing?

[EAMom]

Nothing for us.

[colleenrn]

None of my children or my husband or I will be geeting a flu shot or mist. I am worried about flu season, really, really worried b/c last Oct. my 9 year old son with PANDAS got the swine flu and 2 weeks later got the seasonal flu. He was very sick (not hospiitalized but very ill), but I am still more afraid of what the vaccine could/would do to him.

 

I have used with great success oscillococcinum. Like someone mentioned earlier, take it at the very first sign of the flu. I also start giving it to my other children once one child has shown signs of the flu. It can be taken by any age, even in pregnancy (check with your physician first if you are pregnant), but my OB had me take it when I was pregnant and had the flu.

 

I am the most leary about the live flu mist vaccine. I don't think it is safe for any child with PANDAS. I do not like my kids around anyone who has just received it either. One good sneeze and how many kids are getting ther flu mist?

 

It is a hard decision!!

Colleen

[momaine]

My dd had quite a set back with the H1N1 shot last year. I do not plan on repeating it. I'll take my chances with the flu.

[monarchcat]

The advice from our PANDAS doc was absolutely NO flu shots for my PANDAS kids, but that it wouldn't be a bad idea for my husband and I to get flu shots, thereby reducing the risk of bringing it into the house. But shots only. Absolutely no flu mist. I'm not sure how I feel about vaccines in general any more, but my husband already got his and I think I will get mine this year too. I also mentioned something that my pediatrician had said, which was that if someone in the house gets the flu, to use Tamiflu prophylacticly on the kids to help prevent them from getting sick. The dr. agreed with this. I don't know if I like what I've read about Tamiflu, but I guess there are risks and benefits to every decision...

[Kayanne]

Obviously, this is so subjective and every family has to make the decision that is best for them. I have decided to get my kids the flu shot this year. Not the flu mist. One of the things that I have considered is the idea that the antibody load from a vaccine will be less than the antibody load from the actual flu.

[peglem]

Ok..so the big question. The outbreaks of H1N1 have started here...one kid I know of already hospitalized. Several in my son's school have had high fevers, etc. We vaccinated last year and didn't see any issues but then we didn't have PANDAS yet. That started in May...who knows if that was related to the vaccination he got the previous October. I had made the decision not to vaccinate - just to take my chances - but it looks like he is going to be exposed pretty quickly. Last year we had 400 kids in his school out at one time with the flu. So do I vaccinate and know that his immune system is only dealing with a dead virus or do we roll the dice and hope he doesn't get sick. Or should I go get the mist and let him be exposed to me so his immune system has a chance of developing a resistance before he's exposed to the actual, full-strength virus?

 

I know there are many critics of vaccinations in general and I'm hoping to hear from both sides here. This is an incredibly difficult decision! Dr. Latimer told me that she asked Dr. Cunningham this question and Dr. C said the vaccination creates less of an immune response than the actual virus so we should probably vaccinate.

 

Confused in TX!

If your son got the vaccine last October, does he even need another one? How long do those things protect for?

[dut]

Our dd7 has had a PANDAS dx for 2 1/2 years (with reactions to some bacterial, some viral and acute allergies). Dr B told us, for our situation and our dd, to not do any vaccines whatsoever.

Edited October 18, 2010 by dut

[PhillyPA]

Ironicallly, my PANDAS son does really well after a vaccination. His Pandas symptoms decrease dramatically. I always thought this was very odd. Vaccinations, for some reason, do good things for him.

[thereishope]

How long do they decrease for? Does he run a fever post vaccination? Do you give pain meds after vaccination? Asking since there's a chance either of those things play a role.

 

Ironicallly, my PANDAS son does really well after a vaccination. His Pandas symptoms decrease dramatically. I always thought this was very odd. Vaccinations, for some reason, do good things for him.

[PhillyPA]

Nope. No fever. No medications. No tylenol. No motrin. The "benefits" last about one month. Sometimes longer.

 

This was all before I even knew about PANDAS. All I knew was that vaccinations made things better.

Edited October 18, 2010 by PhillyPA

[Kayanne]

Nope. No fever. No medications. No tylenol. No motrin. The "benefits" last about one month. Sometimes longer.

 

This was all before I even knew about PANDAS. All I knew was that vaccinations made things better.

I wonder if the adjuvants found in the vaccines are suppressing the immune system? Isn't that what they are supposed to do? Suppress the immune system, so that the small amounts of attenuated viruses actually gets an immune response?--although for some reason this doesn't seem logical...no medical background here...just blowing hot air!

[PhillyPA]

Who the heck knows. I e-mailed Dr. Cunningham and asked her about this. I'll let you know what she says. Maybe he doesn't have pandas. Maybe he has blah,blah, blah, blah auto-immunity syndrome. The fact that he had a reaction to the vaccines, even though it was positive, leads me to believe that it is auto-immune. Maybe the vaccine distracts the immune system away from the strep antibodies for a bit. The vaccine gives the immune system something else to focus on...

Edited October 18, 2010 by PhillyPA

[norcalmom]

We did them for me and hubby last year, and older sister to DS(pandas) but not him. I have gotten mine, and hubby will do his, but I am not doing daughter this year - because I've seen too many siblings get pandas too...so decided not to risk it even tho she is older and exibits no pandas symptoms.

 

This is purely hearsay, but I was told, by a mom that talks to a lot of pandas parents, that one of the pandas researchers "lost" a couple pandas kids after vaccinations. As in, even ivig wasn't bringing them back. This basically has scared the $#@% out of me, so that is why I don't do it. Apparently it was years ago, but, she said that she did not think pandas kids should vaccinate (least not flu). She may have a different opinion now (after many more cases and years to observe), and maybe the vaccination wasn't the cause, maybe is coincided with something else, but I don't know, so I'm opting for no vax for DS.

 

If I think DS has flu - I will try to make a case for antiviral meds. And of course do best I can to avoid getting sick.

 

Weirdly enough, last year DS had a 24 hour stomache bug - and you would think that wold launch him into an exacerbation, but it didn't. He exacerbated for 3 days...that was it..when the illness passed the pandas stuff did too. He had a couple colds that set him off for approx 5 weeks (I would say usual exacerbation from 4-6 weeks for our DS) a few months before that...so its strange. That was the only time it was that short.

[Healingthedude]

No vaccines over here either.

 

My son spiraled into autism just after his MMR.

 

He has so many allergies and autoimmune issues-it is not worth the risk.

Also allergic to eggs which are definitely in the Flu Vaccine.

 

None of his DRs recommend it for him.

 

We did use Tamiflu when exposed to Flu last year and it nipped it in the bud.

[Stephanie2]

I'm sorry if I am posting this twice, can't remember if and where I posted this recently. Here is a link to a great flu-prevention protocol, also a flu protocol (meaning if you suspect that they actually have the flu, do the flu protocol ASAP). I printed it out and taped it to the inside of my supplement cabinet. I use if for cold viruses sometimes too. There is also some info on the mist vs. the shot on here...

 

http://www.wholisticpeds.com/default.asp?cid=956655663&n1=1&n2=39