Spread the Word, Y'all.

Twice, today, I saw facebook status updates that stated that Autism is caused by the MMR vaccine. Twice. In one day. Um...

THE MMR VACCINE DOES NOT CAUSE AUTISM!!!
It. Was. A. LIE.

Those looking for enlightenment might enjoy this goodie.

My guess is that it will take 10 years to undo the 10 years of damage that has been done by Andrew Wakefield. It appears that many have not heard the good news that it is safe to immunize (as it always has been). Help spread the word.

On a serious note

My daughters had Pertussis.

You're thinking,
Huh? What?
Do people still even get Whooping Cough?
Didn't you give them the vaccine?
and
Did our kids play together while yours were contagious?

Answers:
Whooping Cough. Yes. Really.
Yes.
YES.
Probably.

We did vaccinate our children.
Others around us did not.
And we got it anyway.

Luckily, since we're immunized, they did not get a very bad case of it.
Luckily, all of my children got on antibiotics and everyone in our home is fine.

Well, except that Quincy sounds like Joan Rivers:

Funny.

Know what's NOT funny?

This. (videos via google and youtube)

or this:

What a nightmare that would be.
They're on my own blog and I can't even watch them again.
If your kids have symptoms of Pertussis, ANY of the symptoms, just go get the test done and find out, even if they've had the vaccine, because your kids might be like mine.

Maybe, they'll seem fine.
Maybe they won't even really be bothered by that "little cough" that was only at night time, and only lasted 2 days.
Maybe it is just teething.
Maybe it is just a virus.
Maybe it is just allergies.
Maybe it is just laryngitis.
Maybe it is just the heat.
Maybe they're just tired.
Maybe she's just grouchy.

Or maybe it is Pertussis.

Even though my kids weren't as sick as they could have been, they had still been contagious for a week.
Sick enough to infect a child with no immunity.
And I didn't know it.

Infants don't get the 1st dose of the vaccine (DTaP) until they are 2 months old, and won't have the full dose of the vaccine until 15-18 months.

How many un-immunized infants did I unknowingly expose to Pertussis, while I packed my kids all over town assuming they were "just grouchy", "just tired", and "just fine" because it was "just a cough"?

Fight the spreading of communicable diseases.
Vaccinate your children.

Because maybe, if more people had the pertussis vaccine, my kids wouldn't have gotten it in the first place.