Saturday, February 23, 2008

Have You Educated Yourself?

I know a lot of people think Channing and I are crazy for choosing not to vaccinate our boys, but when I see articles like this, it completely reinforces the passion we have for keeping those needles away from our boys.
Check out this article on the Hepatitis B vaccine (which is one vaccine that makes absolutely NO sense to me. It never has).

We would never tell someone not to vaccinate their children; however, we strongly encourage you to do your own research first. Please don't make your choices based on what the crowd is doing or based on what someone with "Dr." in front of their name tells you to do. You are the deciding factor for your child. I challenge you to do some research before you give your baby another shot. If you do your own research first, you can feel confident in the decision you've made.

For instance, can you tell yourself or anyone else exactly why you vaccinate? Do you know what is in the vaccine that is being injected into your child's body? Do you know the last outbreak that occurred for the disease or sickness that you are vaccinating against? Have you done the research about the living conditions that people were experiencing when those outbreaks occurred? Do you know how many children have been harmed by the vaccines that your child is receiving? Do you know about the government fund that is set up for families of those children who are harmed by the vaccines? Can you answer the question 'Who benefits the most by having your child vaccinated?'. Would your doctor sign a document promising the safety of the shots they will administer to your child?

If you can't answer those questions, you have work to do. Educate yourself. If you still decide to vaccinate, good for you. You've done more than most Americans simply by looking into the drugs before they're administered. You can be proud of yourself. Don't leave this important decision up to anyone else. Doctors are human beings just like you and me. They don't formulate these vaccines. In a lot of cases, they don't even study them. They are educated by drug reps, who are educated by drug companies, who are making MILLIONS of dollars.

This post was hard for me to write. I don't want to step on any toes or offend anyone. I have so many people I love who give their kids medication for everything under the sun. I have friends I love who work for drug companies. I love you guys so much and do not judge you for the decisions you make. I just feel the call to tell everyone about the flip side as well. I have to remind myself that if no one ever steps on any toes, things will go unaccomplished. Think if Jesus had come to this world and had not offended anyone. What if He had just gone with the crowd? I think things would look a whole lot differently now. Of course, please don't confuse this. I am, in no way, comparing my post to Jesus and to the amazing work He did. I just want parents to educate themselves before they make decisions regarding their children's healthcare. They can't make the decision for themselves. They depend solely on you. (Ok, I know this last paragraph is all over the place and would get an "F" if it were for a grade in English. I'm just rushed and caught up in my passion. Forgive my poor writing!).

In closing, I encourage you to do some research. As Proverbs 14:12 says, There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great post Annie! I don't think it was offensive at all! Something I definitely needed to be encouraged to do!

Les

Jeremy and Michelle said...

Hi Annie - I was in one of your and Channing's "Body by God" groups several years ago with Amy Leigh and Anne-Michelle and I'm great friends with Jenni Goodson. Through her I have had no choice but to get educated on vaccinations and I'm so thankful - before I heard her talk about them I never really thought anything about it. My husband and I have a 6 1/2 month old, who at this point we have not vaccinated at all and most likely will not do so - the more I research, the more I can't come to a peace about doing it. Anyway, I commend you for posting this on your blog. I have often contemplated doing the same on ours but haven't done it yet. Maybe in a future post when I get a little more courage!!:)

Rachael said...

Amen! Where is that article you mentioned??? I did not see a link to it. :)

annieck said...

Thanks, ladies!
Michelle, it was so great seeing you at church today! I can't wait to catch up with you on your blog. :)
Rachael, click on the red word "article" to get to it . Let me know if it doesn't work. :)

Rachael said...

Thanks, Annie! Don't know how I missed that. Ha ha ha!!! That is CRAZY, by the way! I am glad someone is trying to hold them accountable for what they are doing.