My Child has Autism, the MMR vaccine did not cause it, but I am not pro vaccine.

My child has autism and I vaccinated her, but I am 100% certain with out a doubt it was not the MMR shot that caused it, however I am still not pro vaccine.

For those who don’t know me here is a quick background: I have triplets, they are now 14, one of them has autism.

Now you may be thinking if you vaccinated your children how can you be so sure it is not what caused the autism? That is because they did not get the shots until age 4. That was 2 1/2 years AFTER we suspected autism spectrum with a developmental pediatrician, and a full year AFTER it was confirmed in diagnoses by a pediatric neurologist. So that makes it impossible for the shots to have caused it.

So if I am certain the vaccine did not cause autism then why am I not pro vaccine? That is because I believe in working hand and hand with our doctor, educating myself on vaccine risks verses rewards, attending conferences that discuss both sides of the issue, as well as looking at the bigger picture. I believe in “educated selective vaccination” where I work with a doctor I can trust (that has not always been the case) to agree together how to handle their health care.

I do not have a medical degree, and I do not claim to know more than doctors and scientists, however I also do not have the bias some of them possess. I don’t believe in blind loyalty to doctors when many have deaf and blind loyalty to big Pharma. I do believe that pharmaceutical companies are a huge help to us but are also driven by their bottom line. That is just business plain and simple.

Since before the triplets were even born I read everything I could get my hands on, medical journals, books, articles, debates you name it. Not just for vaccination but for every aspect of their lives. God gave me these beautiful people to care for and I take that privilege seriously. I do not listen to celebrities (my kids were born before good old Jenny McCarthy’s son) for guidance in raising my kids, and it makes me angry when people make rude comments claiming those who don’t vaccinate or choose a different path are stupid, narcissistic, or down right crazy. The comments, charts, bullying, name calling, and degrading I see from pro vaccine advocates is downright infuriating. Please friends think before you lash out. Insulting people will never make them see your point of view, it will only make them dig their heels in more. Aggressive attack of people who do not vaccinate will do nothing, but an act of kindness or concern might.

Please no matter which way you choose to parent your children, be kind to others even if you don’t agree with their choices. We are all trying to do our best for our kids, and we all have different views on what that is on many things. Just because we all think we are right doesn’t mean we all can’t be wrong.