Perhaps it is because all of us who survived measles are well on in years. Perhaps it is the prevailing anti-authority mood that has swept the current national government. For whatever reason, the top official in our country responsible for overseeing vaccinations(the agency formerly responsible for putting out this notice) has decided that he(with no medical training)is the arbiter of what children need. So far he has promoted false cures for measles and downplayed its seriousness, claiming “herd immunity” should be sufficient.
I had measles when I was six. I was desperately ill, confined to a dark room, running a high fever of 104 and hallucinating. My little brother, then three, similarly suffered hallucinations. Except for rubbing us with cool wash cloths, there was nothing my mother could do to comfort us. When my daughter was born in 1975 I couldn’t contain my joy that she could be spared not only this but also rubella and mumps. All with immunizations.
Yes, shots were unpleasant, more for me watching sometimes than for her. Yes, she was often fussy after each one. But she never had to endure the measles or the mumps. She never had to be kept out of public places in the summer risking exposure to polio, which my generation contracted before the vaccine. She never got smallpox, diphtheria, whooping cough, or tentanus as had those in my grandparents’ generation.
These diseases are in fact a very big deal. I am heartbroken that “officials” are discouraging the vaccines that prevent them.
Saved By Words 
My brother almost died when he had measles when we were young, it was very close, and it took him the better part of a year to convalesce. We both became extremely nearsighted almost overnight, despite our parents keeping us in dark rooms. It’s nothing to mess with, and
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I am not sure why the anti vax people have been given such a large megaphone right now. I certainly hope not too many children suffer unnecessarily as a result.
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Well, they are getting energy from a non-doctor, non-scientist head of health.
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Unbelievably true.
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It makes no sense whatever to gainsay vaccination when it has been proved to be so effective in saving lives and preventing severe illness over so many years.
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I generally avoid commenting on the current chaos, but very little makes sense to me right now.
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You have my great sympathy. We are all being adversely affected by an idiot and his entourage!
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Goodness I didn’t realise this was happening in your country Elizabeth, I’m both shocked & horrified.
Anti vaccination is so very dangerous, especially with these old childhood (serious) illnesses, not only for children but for the unborn as well.
True Herd immunity can only be had if ‘all’ of the population is vaccinated especially the new generation that’s arriving!
Thank you for bringing awareness to this matter.
As often Australia follows the USA in many things so I’ll watch out for this one!
Blessings, Jennifer
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At the moment many things we considered agreed upon as values are up for grabs here. It is indeed horrifying when it comes to kids’ health.
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It’s really ridiculous how many steps backward we’ve taken as a society when we no longer trust things that have historically proven to be effective.
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Plus it appears that “expert’ is now a bad word.
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I remember having both German Measles and Chickenpox as a child. Fevers, red hot skin, and being smothered in Calamine Lotion. My mum told me later that she was desperate to see me so inconsolable, and in such a terrible state. Why any parent would consider it okay to let their children experience that is beyond me. RFK must be a monster, and those who go along with his nonsense are either fools, or evil.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I tend to thinking it evil, but who knows the rationale.
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I also was of the generation before vaccinations were available for measels, mumps, whooping cough and German measles, although we did get the polio vaccines which were only just available (I recall interviews on Blue Peter with children living in iron lungs post-polio.) I caught all these and chickenpox. I still have scars from the chickenpox, but, thankfully, nothing worse.
Here in the UK, chickenpox has been added to the early vaccination given to babies. Government officials and NHS posters are urging parents to get their children vaccinated, and I cannot believe that your officials aren’t pushing these childhood vaccines!
Sadly though, vaccinations have fallen in the UK over recent years, thanks to scare campaigns and conspiracy theories online. Already children have died from complications of these childhood diseases. This may only happen in a few cases, but one is one too many.
And – I have no data to back this up, but it seems to me that children today are less hardy than we were. Perhaps because we weren’t brought up in such sterile environments?
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It has been suggested that keeping homes too clean and keeping kids indoors has led to decreased immunity to diseases. I don’t remember where or when I read this, but it made sense.
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Too right!This is no joke,🤬P&BSent from my iPad
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These diseases are a very big deal. When my big brother had the hard measles (the worst kind), any light was a huge problem. He kept screaming, and our father finally figured out that the light from the keyhole in his bedroom door was the culprit. My little sister had mumps and chicken pox at the same time, and her eyes crossed. I remember standing in line to get the first smallpox shot. Still, I have mixed emotions on some vaccines. Preventing a disease is all important, but vaccinating after having the disease is different. Since I have had flu and covid, I believe the disease has given me antibodies. My PC agrees.
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I did just see a site about grandparents for vaccines. Apparently many of us want to share what we know. I have a scar on my thigh from the smallpox vaccination. It was considered more appropriate for girls than on the bicep for some reason.
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Yes. Hubby has the scar on his bicep. I have a memory of a family member talking about getting the smallpox vaccine with cut glass. The olden days were not easy. Hubby’s mother had him much later in life, so she is closer to the age of my grandmother. When she came to visit when our daughter was born, I asked her about vaccines. She told me that there were no vaccines, and when your child was sick you stayed up all night, because most likely they would die. That’s how it was.
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I had all those diseases one right after another – both kinds of measles, mumps, chicken pox, whooping cough. That last one, for me, was just plain dreadful! Why do we want to risk subjecting another generation to these?
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A friend was recounting the horror of whooping cough. I was glad to have missed it because of a vaccine.
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