Additional Needs

A plea to vaccinate

Posted by Carolyn Voisey on 21st October 2019 Additional Needs, Advice & Support, Disabilities

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I want to ask everyone who reads this to learn about vaccination.

Not the scare stories and absolutely not THAT discredited study.

I need people to realise their importance; if not for your own children, for children like mine.

People who have never had flu to say daft things like ‘I’ve got a touch of flu’. Believe me, if you are upright and walking then you almost certainly do not have the flu.

People today do not understand how dangerous it really is.

Flu attacks your lungs, airways, muscles (remember your heart is a muscle). Every year hundreds of patients die due to complications of flu – many of these are children.

Two weeks ago, Sam contracted the flu.

In 8 hours he went from being wheezy to critically ill. His lungs filled with thick fluid, and he needed additional oxygen to keep him alive.

His fever rose so rapidly that his entire body was red and blotchy and every touch/movement was excruciating.

His heart rate skyrocketed; lets just say he had more than one foot through the door to intensive care.

He has needed 24/7 oxygen, half hourly nebulisers, IV fluids/antibiotics/steroids, regular blood gas checks, physiotherapy three times daily together with deep airway suction just to get him stable.

After a week of intensive medical support he started improving gradually and shortly after was well enough to come off the oxygen and IV’s.

He is now home to continue recovering.

Sam has neurological disabilities, a group with a very high risk of life-threatening complications from flu.

He has the vaccine every year; there have only ever been two years when he hasn’t had the vaccine; when he was too young and this year as he caught the virus before the vaccines arrived.

Both times he has had to fight for his life.

If you don’t vaccinate your child your decision affects those who are high risk like Sam and those who can’t be vaccinated; newborns and children having cancer treatment for example.

So don’t tell me that you don’t believe in vaccination; or that it’s a ‘big pharma’ con.

Very few have a good reason not to vaccinate; so for their sakes if not your own, go get it done.