Interesting article to check out above and although it seems
a little scary, there are elements in this article that makes sense to me. Worm
therapy freaks me out a bit but the mention of immune system abnormalities is
one I am totally on board with. My son’s immune system has always been a
question in my mind. Today I am going to tell you why in detail, a description
I have avoided because I don’t like it to be direct but if I am going to make
any point about the immune system it’s an important part of our story to share.
Phillip
had some sensory sensitivity as a baby. Quick and loud sounds would upset him
and he was set in his ways. I breastfed him and he refused any form of bottle
no matter how many I tried. He didn’t like to be held by anyone but his immediate
family. That being said he was also advanced according to our medical charts.
Each well check he passed with flying colors and he was beyond his age as far
as progress. The only thing he fell short on was weight and it was a never a
concern. He was talking, fine motor skills were awesome, and everything else
was up to par. In fact dad and I would take him in and fill out the papers with
a huge amount of pride in our above and beyond little man.
Here is
the part I believe we fell short on knowing his immune system was different. Before
I go further I will tell you this is a day that will haunt me for the rest of
my life. At 15 months I did not take Phillip in for his well check as he was
perfectly healthy and I procrastinate. So I held off and eventually took him in
around 19 months. I was told that day he was due for shots and I knew that because
I gave him some Tylenol before we left. However I hadn’t had children in ten
years and the vaccine schedule along with number had changed. I was told he
needed a high number that day and I asked if that was ok to do. The answer was,
“it’s better to get it all done today then to make him suffer again soon”. I agreed to it.
I will
never forgive myself for that moment in his life, never. I am not against vaccines
at all and I understand why they are important but what happened that day is
not ok. He was given 6 shots all together and keep in mind he already has some
sensory issues so high possibility he had an immune system difference we were
not aware of. I did not understand what sensory differences were at the time
and wish I had known back then what I know now.
You see
I took my son home that day and he slept most of the day, typical reaction for
shot day. The problem is he faded and he didn’t come back. He stopped eye
contact, he stopped laughing at silly things, getting his attention was
impossible, and yes I can pin point it to that very day. A mother knows when
her child is in distress even if it’s not an emergency situation. I watched him
fade and just thinking about that day puts a squeeze in my chest. I don’t blame
vaccines but I do blame the medical community for being careless when it is
there job to protect and keep my child healthy. I am supposed to trust them and
they are supposed to have more knowledge than I do. Only now do I know the vaccine schedule
is only in place for people like me, who procrastinate. The CDC has not one
medical explanation for the push, not one.
Phillips
next appointment was a couple of months later and this time he failed all of
the tests for progress. Didn’t just fail he regressed back to 6 months old and
this was the appointment the word autism came into play and I burst into tears
in front of my doctor. Uncontrollable tears I could hardly talk through.
In my
sleepless nights of research and trying to put things together I understand my
child was possibly born with the autism gene. I also believe the autism gene
carries some immune system differences that don’t allow him to process as
expected. That’s our story and it has taken me along time to accept it because I
don’t like it. I even denied it for a very long time because it means I led him
to it. You will even find in the beginning of my writing my denial in full
force.
Everyone
has a different autism story and I respect each and every one of those stories because
I do also believe autism comes into life in a different way for everyone. Some
would say to me, vaccines don’t cause autism and I agree, they don’t, but the
immune system certainly plays a role. The sooner those immune system differences
are figured out, the sooner some challenges can be addressed or even avoided.
I have
also sat down a number of times to write this only to stop and keep it to
myself because I know how people feel about the ugly vaccine debate and didn’t
want to be perceived as an angry vaccination hater. The article above is
interesting and a little scary but at the same time adding it released this
story from being trapped in my mind. Trapped is exactly how my son’s autism was
described to me the day he was diagnosed and if he is expected to bust out of
the trap, then I need to follow his lead because he is doing a phenomenal job
with his progress.
If one
person reads this and proceeds with caution, is able to address an immune system
difference before it’s attacked or even just can relate to the story, then I
have made a little progress of my own.
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