Week 30: The one with the vaccines

By Published On: December 8th, 2015

Hey—I made it to the third trimester! (I realize I’m […]

Hey—I made it to the third trimester! (I realize I’m two weeks behind in this recognition, but you may understand why when you read about what I’ve been dealing with in that time.)
FullSizeRenderTwo weekends ago, our 5-year-old came home from a sleepover at her Grammy’s house and told us that her throat was hurting and she wasn’t feeling well. She then proceeded to nap for four hours and puke all over the floor when she woke up. I’m no medical professional, but seeing as this particular child has had strep throat, oh, I don’t know, 11 thousand times this year … I knew it was strep. A trip to the after-hours care doctor the following day confirmed this, and plans to have her tonsils removed immediately commenced.
Last week, I got a call from the 4-year-old’s school to tell me that he wasn’t feeling well, and was complaining that his back was hurting. And then a follow-up text to inform me that he had puked. My husband took him to the doctor and the strep test came back negative, but obviously something was wrong since, while they were waiting to check out at the doctor’s office, The Dude ralphed all over the floor in the waiting room. His fever and vomiting (and diarrhea … oh, the diarrhea!) continued through the night. Here and now I will give thanks for anti-nausea medication. It is a gift sent straight from the Almighty.
Basically, I spend my days praying that my phone doesn’t ring. If it does and the school’s phone number pops up, I know we’re in trouble: Either someone has been misbehaving or someone is ill. I’m not sure which is the preferable scenario. At least if it’s a behavior issue, it’s unlikely that someone is going to heave chunks in my car … or on my feet.
All of my family members have had their flu shots. All of them, that is, except me. My excuse? Laziness? Forgetfulness? The thrill of living on the edge, knowing I could get the flu and die? I think it’s mostly the first two. When I was pregnant back in 2009, I waited in line for six hours to get a swine flu vaccine because they weren’t readily available to the public unless you were in one of the high-risk categories. And pregnant women are high-risk for the flu.
I am 100 percent in favor of any and all vaccines. If there’s a shot to prevent me from getting something, I want it, and I want my kids to have it. (I realize that strep throat is not a disease preventable by vaccine, but removing the tonsils helps cure the chronic strep-throat-having which is why we’re signed up for the first available time slot.) And just so you can all appropriately hate on me in the comments section, you should know that I also love GMOs and pesticides; the more the better. Bring on the chemicals! I refuse to buy anything organic. I love gluten and soy and especially high-fructose corn syrup. And dyes of all colors. Oh, and I prefer all my food to be processed. … But I use cloth diapers! (That last part is a lie. I use disposable diapers. Because I hate the environment.) Better living through chemistry, people!
Anyway, while my children are still working on the concept of sharing their toys, it’s quite clear that they’re up to speed on how to share germs. So I’m thinking that I’ve put it off long enough, and should make getting that flu shot a top priority.