Ok, so I really tried to not weigh in on this topic and post, but after all the banter back and forth on the measles outbreak at a nearby church, I figured it was time that I gave my 2 cents worth. I am not going to write this to argue with anyone, judge anyone on either side of this debate, or question your actions. If you write discouraging or disparaging comments on either side of the issue on here I will not post your comment so save your energy. I’ll give you physiologically what your options are and talk about basics and where your head needs to be at…..and that’s all.
So most people want to know who I am and why I know as much as I do about vaccines and all that jazz. Well, I’m a Chiropractor and have been in practice for over 10 years (geez I’m old!). My wife and I (she is also a chiro) specialize in families and kids and have been lecturing about the topic of vaccinations and teaching families info they need to consider for 10 full years. But that’s not the credentials that give me any real weight to talk about vaccines. I am a father to 2 beautiful children. Harper is going to be 5 in
October and loves school, music and MMA (yes, he is into martial arts already!). Ellington is 2.5 going on 19 and steals my heart every single day. THEY are the reason I can teach and lecture about vaccinations. I did my research and studying for them, not for you. And what I found was pretty eye opening. I lecture about the topic and about the difference in natural vs artificial immunity a lot during the year and am asked to guest lecture frequently. I did write a 4 part series on vaccines here on the blog. Part 1 is HERE, Part 2 is HERE, Part 3 is HERE and Part 4 is HERE if you are so inclined and would like to check it all out. All of the statistics and research is taken directly off of the CDC government website so feel free to check them out.
Now I want to make one thing VERY clear: I am NOT against vaccinations. That’s not why I teach about them and why I educate parents. There is a certain amount of validity to vaccines and they DO provide a limited amount of immunity for the diseases they are designed for. What I am against is false information, false hope, fear mongering, and anyone trying to force someone else to make a decision for THEIR OWN children. That’s not cool with me at all and will never be. I’m also against parents making stupid decisions because they don’t have the right information. And that goes either side. I don’t think a parent should vaccinate if they haven’t done the research to truly understand the benefits, the risks, and the responsibility they have. But I also do not think parents should not vaccinate for the very same reason. The problem with the “Vaxers” and “No vaxers” and all this sided junk is that BOTH EXTREMES ARE DEAD
WRONG. There’s not an “always right” or an “always wrong” choice when it comes to vaccines and medical treatment for children as a whole. There is right for YOUR child and wrong for YOUR child as you see fit and have peace about from your own research. There….got all that off my chest. I feel better…..you?? 
To start with, here is an article from CBS 11 a couple days ago HERE. You need to read this. There’s another article in NPR on THIS site. USA Today also weight in on their site HERE.
Ok, so there are a couple things really being attacked and questioned here….and I have heard a lot of things said during this entire outbreak that just aren’t true. But before we talk about all that, let’s get re-focused on something: there is always a risk for every single person walking around you that you will come in contact with some type of disease or contagion and your body not be strong enough to fight it off and you could get sick…period. But before you get super scared or feel pressured into getting you and your family vaccinated for the measles if you are in the church or live here in the metroplex….you need to go back to the basics. Would I rather have natural or artificial immunity?? What does measles usually present as?? What are the risks for me and my family and are any of them fatal?? Are any members of my family very immunodeficient and do I need to consider their systems??
The media circus around this outbreak is bringing up topics that have nothing to do with whether or not you choose to vaccinate your child or yourself for that matter. The church’s stance on health and faith in God’s ability to heal your body has nothing to do with whether or not YOU should get vaccinated. Now I understand that their teachings on that could influence someone to possibly make a different decision, but EVERYONE needs to make their own choices when it comes to their health and vaccines. A church, or doctor, or family member, or anyone else should NEVER be the ones to decide that for you. So when I hear my patients tell me that they were told they “Have to get the vaccine since we are members of the church because it is the only way to kill the outbreak”….I get a little upset about it. Is it important that there is an outbreak of measles in the church?? YES, of course. Is this something that you should step back and re-evaluate your family’s health decisions and decide what path you will take as a family together?? YES. Should you ever do this or make any other decision out of pressure or fear?? NO!!!
Almost every one of the articles talking about the outbreak are focusing way more on the church’s stance on vaccines and health and making it more about that than the decision making process every family should go through to be able to decide whether or not they want to vaccinate their children. You have to make this decision from a place of knowledge and not ignorance, or worse than that…stupidity.
So I definitely think that everyone should take a breath and slow down…and go back to the basics:
1. The most common presentation of measles is the common cold. You could have had the measles and never knew it because your body handled it so well….your body is unbelievable.
2. Getting the vaccine does not guarantee you are immune or have protection.
3. You must decide between natural vs artificial immunity.
4. You have to ask yourself whether you would be more comfortable with your child contracting the disease or having issues with the vaccines themselves.
I tell my classes and groups of parents all the time: Compare apples to apples!! Do not make this decision by trying to decide if you want to be organic and crunchy, or to set yourself inside the “cool moms” club where you want your kids to get to play. So you cannot compare “Vaccinating, vs Not-vaccinating.” You have to take the individual disease and the vaccine and compare the two of them. You have to see which of THOSE two you are more at peace with giving to your kids or yourself.
Do that and you will be able to stay emotionless and roll off of facts and figures. Either way you still have the responsibility to make your kids as healthy as possible. You don’t get to slack off just because people are getting medicated.
But PLEASE, I beg you not to do anything because you feel like you don’t have a choice. You ALWAYS have a choice.
So my 2 cents:
There’s a measles outbreak at a church here in the metroplex: YES
Do you need to pay attention to your family’s diet and nutritional support?: YES
Should you rush into making a decision (vaccinating or not vaccinating either way) that could radically impact the health of your child?? NO
So everyone needs to chill out, take a breath, and go back to the basics. The body is an amazing creation…you’d be surprised what it can handle.
JB