Do the Duggars vaccinate?

[azombieatemyshoelace]

My son is another one who was vaccinated for chicken pox and got it anyway, but it was a really mild case. He caught it from my husband who had shingles. We didn't even know what shingles looked like or would have expected someone as young as my husband to get it, well we know now!

As for the Duggars, I bet they do vaccinate the kids now. They'd have to for all the out of country trips they've taken.

My cousin got shingles right after he had the chicken pox. I don't remember all that well, but I think the two illnesses were at most a month or two apart. He was probably about five at the time.

[LennyLou]

Haven't they shown Josh and Anna taking their newborns for vaccines? I remember Anna having to shield her eyes and talking about how painful it was to watch her kid be injured. So, at least those Duggars are doing it, even Jim Bob and Michelle aren't.

I remember this, too. And I remember Josie getting some sort of shot when she was a baby. RSV?

I can see the Duggars, if they didn't vaccinate for "religious reasons", making a big deal about it. Like when the kids all had chicken pox, I wouldn't have been surprised to hear one or the other say "We chose to trust the Lord in keeping our family safe, therefore we don't vaccinate. Yes, the kids caught chicken pox, but our faith in the Lord has brought them through the illness safe and sound!"

Anyway, by not hearing them state that they don't vaccinate makes me believe that they do.

[Jana814]

Good point!!

[SassyPants]

Good point!!

Probably true. If they felt there was a platform, we'd be continually hearing about it.

[ADoyle90815]

I agree that they would be major idiots if they didn't get the kids tetanus shots at least, especially with the Howlers. Then again, their dad said that they won't get shingles now that they all had chickenpox, so he's already a special type of stupid, so I'm not so sure they get most vaccines unless it was required for travel. :angry-banghead: :angry-banghead: :angry-banghead: :angry-banghead:

I've mentioned before that the mumps portion of MMR didn't work for me, as I had mumps when I was 10. At least I will say that the case for me was mild as I was about to go to school with swollen cheeks because I didn't feel any real symptoms, only it was my mom who kept me home. That was reported to the CDC as a vaccine failure at the time, and later I heard about other cases where the mumps vaccine also failed to prevent the illness. I still think that the stupidest thing ever said by a Duggar was that comment about shingles, as my mom, an uncle, and my grandma all had it, and the reason they had it was that they had chickenpox as children.

[Alachantal]

I remember an episode where they were getting Josie an RSV vaccine, because she was a premie

Josie is the only one I can see getting all the vaccines. Everyone else can just go to a chicken pox party. (Anyone else go to those when they were kids? Any time one of the kids at school got it the mums would coordinate "play dates" with the intention of getting you sick. I've had it twice, so if I ever have kids I'll get them everything healthlinkbc provides except chicken pox And hpv.)

I would hope they at least do measles, polio, meningitis etc. Im not sure how it works un the states - here its free (healthlinkbc.ca/toolsvideos/immunization/) but I'm not entirely sure how it works in the states. If it isnt free it would be extremely expensive to vaccinate 19 kids, wouldn't it?

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

Josie is the only one I can see getting all the vaccines. Everyone else can just go to a chicken pox party. (Anyone else go to those when they were kids? Any time one of the kids at school got it the mums would coordinate "play dates" with the intention of getting you sick. I've had it twice, so if I ever have kids I'll get them everything healthlinkbc provides except chicken pox And hpv.)

I would hope they at least do measles, polio, meningitis etc. Im not sure how it works un the states - here its free (healthlinkbc.ca/toolsvideos/immunization/) but I'm not entirely sure how it works in the states. If it isnt free it would be extremely expensive to vaccinate 19 kids, wouldn't it?

If they were going to vaccinate Josie, they'd vaccinate all the kids. Herd immunity only works if the herd is immune -- Josie would still be susceptible to a mild case of the disease if anyone else in the family caught one.

[LadyPriss]

Curiosity has kicked in...

What does the insurance companies of the US do with Anti-Vaxers...or do they even care? Canadian here. You'd figure insurance companies would demand vaccinations due to the costs of treating some of these diseases (Polio can have lifetime implications, among others).

[Rescinded and Mended]

Josie is the only one I can see getting all the vaccines. Everyone else can just go to a chicken pox party. (Anyone else go to those when they were kids? Any time one of the kids at school got it the mums would coordinate "play dates" with the intention of getting you sick. I've had it twice, so if I ever have kids I'll get them everything healthlinkbc provides except chicken pox And hpv.)

I would hope they at least do measles, polio, meningitis etc. Im not sure how it works un the states - here its free (healthlinkbc.ca/toolsvideos/immunization/) but I'm not entirely sure how it works in the states. If it isnt free it would be extremely expensive to vaccinate 19 kids, wouldn't it?

This is how I got chicken pox. Only in this case, it was my babysitter's daughter who had it, and I was over there all the time anyway, so my mother and my friend's mother just sent us over like they always did after my babysitter's daughter got infected. I remembered wondering why I was being sent over there when she was so sick, because my mom didn't actually come right out and tell me that I was being sent there to get infected deliberately with chicken pox. Maybe rightfully so, as I probably would have put up a fight.

[LennyLou]

Curiosity has kicked in...

What does the insurance companies of the US do with Anti-Vaxers...or do they even care? Canadian here. You'd figure insurance companies would demand vaccinations due to the costs of treating some of these diseases (Polio can have lifetime implications, among others).

They don't do anything. It is completely the parents choice if they want to vaccinate or not. Some doctors, however, will refuse to see a child who is not vaccinated. Some doctors will not even see a child who is on a delayed and/or selective vaccine schedule.

[starfish]

That's disheartening, hearing about so many kids that still get it even with the vaccine. But for those who can handle the vaccine, it is good to get it since, even if an outbreak did occur in the child, it often does mean reduced symptoms.

I remember having chicken pox as a child, and it was pretty hellish. No complications, but the itching, fever, and oatmeal baths were no fun. My mother actually sent me over to someone's house to get infected, since that was how parents handled chicken pox back then. Once, your child got sick, they usually wouldn't get it again.

I bugged my son's pediatrician incessantly after the vaccine came out, wanting to know when he could get it so that he wouldn't ever have to go through chicken pox.

It was hellish for me too, and I didn't have any of the terrible side effects like some folks. I too bugged my pediatrician incessantly when the vaccine came out. I thought how wonderful science was, that I could keep my children going through what I experienced with that awful disease.

I'm not old enough yet for the shingles vaccine, but I want to take it. Shingles is painful, and there can be terrible consequences from it (blindness is one).

[starfish]

I don't think the Seewalds vaccinate. I saw on fb that michaels sister who also homeschools stated she doesn't vaccinate at all.

There is a lot of talk about the whole "vaccines are grown with aborted fetal cells" within religious anti vac groups, and the Duggars are very pro life.

Even though that theory has been debunked, they cling to that belief like crazy. I heard it all over FB too. There is no reasoning with people

who believe that.

[Elvis Presby]

I am not sure who mentioned it, but my mom let me play with children with chicken pox. I was 7 at the time and she wanted to "get it out of the way" because I had not had it yet and since I was in 2nd grade at the time she thought that it would be better to have it then rather than when I was older and the schoolwork would be harder to make up. I had a very mild case and was really not terribly sick. My sister, who was 2 at the time, had been tucked away at my grandmother's house because she was so young. After several days, my mom brought her back home since it wasn't that bad. My sister had a terrible case and had blisters in places that hurt to just think about!

One of my children was born with a complex heart defect and my father very nearly died as a young boy from diptheria. So, In general I am very pro-vax. However, the last time I took my 12 year old boy for a check up (the one with the heart defect) they wanted to give him Gardasil. It did't seem right to vaccinate him against something he could never possibly have.

[carebaer]

So, In general I am very pro-vax. However, the last time I took my 12 year old boy for a check up (the one with the heart defect) they wanted to give him Gardasil. It did't seem right to vaccinate him against something he could never possibly have.

Gardasil is one vaccine I'm totally okay with whatever decision parents make. My child will never get HPV from sitting in a classroom, standing in line at the supermarket, or any other daily event that your son also happens to be doing.

However, I'm curious why you believe your son could never possibly have HPV?

[Elvis Presby]

Gardasil is one vaccine I'm totally okay with whatever decision parents make. My child will never get HPV from sitting in a classroom, standing in line at the supermarket, or any other daily event that your son also happens to be doing.

However, I'm curious why you believe your son could never possibly have HPV?

I should have worded that better. He can get it, but it will not harm him.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

I should have worded that better. He can get it, but it will not harm him.

It won't harm him, but it could harm a girl he's with or (if he were to be gay) could be passed on to another guy and then harm a girl he's with. Vaccines aren't just about protecting one person, they're about protecting as many people as possible. And, while your son may not engage in sexual activities when he's a teenager, he also probably wouldn't seek vaccinations that weren't required as an adult. I mean, how many people over the age of 20 do you know that have actually gotten all their booster shots to ensure they continue to have full immunity? I know that about 98% of the people I know don't even understand that you should get boosters as an adult; and those that do have rarely received any of them beyond maybe whooping cough.

[Elvis Presby]

It won't harm him, but it could harm a girl he's with or (if he were to be gay) could be passed on to another guy and then harm a girl he's with. Vaccines aren't just about protecting one person, they're about protecting as many people as possible. And, while your son may not engage in sexual activities when he's a teenager, he also probably wouldn't seek vaccinations that weren't required as an adult. I mean, how many people over the age of 20 do you know that have actually gotten all their booster shots to ensure they continue to have full immunity? I know that about 98% of the people I know don't even understand that you should get boosters as an adult; and those that do have rarely received any of them beyond maybe whooping cough.

I agree with all that you are saying, but since my son has a heart defect I don't want to have him vaccinated unnecessarily. I am not sure of the stats, but HPV clears on its own within 2 years in most people. I myself have had it (the cancer causing kind), but by the next year it was gone.

[carebaer]

I mean, how many people over the age of 20 do you know that have actually gotten all their booster shots to ensure they continue to have full immunity? I know that about 98% of the people I know don't even understand that you should get boosters as an adult; and those that do have rarely received any of them beyond maybe whooping cough.

The reason 98% of people you know "don't even understand that you should get boosters as an adult" is probably because the CDC isn't particularly clear on this. The posters/information they have indicate you only need most vaccines (MMR, etc) if you did not receive them as a child. But I took their online quiz and it says I need an MMR booster because of my age. The evidence is that most people don't actually need the booster. For example, we aren't seeing large numbers of people in their 30s and 40s who haven't gotten an MMR booster as an adult catching measles even during the recent outbreak. This suggest the vast majority are still immune. Although that doesn't make it a bad idea to get a booster, it just may not be necessary. Whereas most people don't hold long term immunity to the current pertussis vaccine so the CDC and doctors are more a clear that boosters are necessary.

Elvis Presby: Just FYI, the guardasil vaccine has shown some ability to prevent cancer in men as well as women. You or your son may want to do more research and consider whether he wants to get the vaccine before he becomes sexual active.