shots
Honey Badger Demands Shots Once a Week
Just before leaving the pediatrician’s office, Maddie stared down the doctor. With defiance plastered across her face she declared, “Next time, hit me with a bigger needle and put your back into it!”
Maddie took her cue from Rocky IV this week when her poor little body was covered with bumps and she was racked with sickness. The evil Russian from the movie, Dolph Lundgren tells little Rocky, “I must break you!” Sly Stallone, always the smart one replies, “Go for it!”
That was just a movie, but my little Honey Badger is toughness personified.
Maddie took the worst her one-year vaccinations had to offer and shrugged it off in a little more than 24 hours. As if being sick wasn’t enough, Maddie bounced her left cheekbone off the corner of the living room table. She cried for less than 30 seconds and kept on playing as if nothing had happened.
Her grandmother MiMi always called Maddie a “Toughie,” but this is just ridiculous. Maddie even has a grizzly bear carpet in her room. The bear isn’t dead, it’s just too scared to move.
Baby Falls Victim to New Round of Vaccination Sickness
The best part of getting your baby vaccinated in the United States is the CONSTANT misinformation, secrecy and idiocy surrounding the shots. Make sure you read about the shots before you take your baby. In our experience, doctors don’t seem to be very forthcoming no matter how many questions you ask them.
Nine days after her shots, Maddie started getting a few bumps and was unusually cranky. If we thought that was the end of it, we were sorely mistaken. Maddie woke up the next morning covered with bumps from head to toe and feeling absolutely miserable.
We went back the doctor’s office to get an expert medical opinion. “Well, it could be a number of things,” said the doctor. Really??? Doc, you found the missing piece! What a stunning diagnosis! You cracked this one wide open – Move over Dr. House!! All those years in med school really paid off – Another feather in the cap for the medical community.
We have been very lucky that Maddie has only been sick three times in her life. It just so happens that every bout of illness has been associated with her shots. Maddie is tougher than nails and refuses to let this latest bout of shots drag her down. It’s her parents that really seem to be having the tough time when Maddie doesn’t feel well.
Baby Shrugs Off Shots for Friday Festivities
Road to Nowhere Trumps Shot Trauma
After two rough rounds of baby vaccinations at the two and four month mark, Maddie’s parents tried to shake things up a little for today’s 6-month shot extravaganza.
- Instead of an afternoon doctor’s appointment we switched it to morning.
- We gave Maddie baby Tylenol before her appointment even though she swallowed very little of it.
- We also decided that I would carry her home rather than put her into the stroller.
As expected, the shots themselves were not pleasant. We got Maddie home quickly and she was literally falling asleep in my arms. Unfortunately that nap lasted less than 20 minutes and trouble was brewing in Maddie’s world.
A sleepless hour later, it was apparent that if the baby was going to get any sleep – we had to go not just the extra mile, but also several of them. I strapped Maddie into the car seat and followed the advice of Horace Greeley and Kid Rock – we headed west. Within five minutes, Maddie was zonked out and sleeping soundly.
We had no destination in mind, just the Beirut-like war torn roads of New Jersey rumbling beneath us. It reminded me of the 80’s song by the Talking Heads called Road to Nowhere.
As the miles ticked by, I thought about this McDonald’s drive-thru about 70 miles away. I figured that after forty years plus, it was time to try my first shamrock shake. I considered waking Maddie for her approval, but ultimately decided that she should rest up after her ordeal.
140 miles and two and a half hours later, we arrived back at home and Maddie was just beginning to stir. It turns out that shaking things up was just what the doctor ordered to help the baby make it through her 6-month vaccines. Thankfully, Maddie was able to sidestep any major shot trauma and I finally got to try my first green milkshake. Life is good!
6-Month Shots Put Household on High Alert
Tomorrow morning, Maddie goes under the needle for her 6-month vaccinations. This might sound overly dramatic, but the 2 and 4-month shots proved to be both sad and disruptive for all parties involved.
Seeing Maddie in great discomfort is a helpless and debilitating feeling. Your little girl is hurting and confused and is equally curious as to how you allowed this pain befall her in the first place.
The other issue is the glut of information out there about the potential hazards of these vaccines. At one point, the government insists that a particular shot is critical for your child’s health and the next year crosses it off the list.
I’m sure that keeping a positive attitude about the process can only help, but it sure won’t appease my little girl.
I’m also not convinced that knowing what to expect provides any tangible peace of mind. Maddie’s worst reaction seems to come almost four hours after the injection. She suddenly breaks down into panic as if its all taking place again. At this point, Maddie becomes completely inconsolable.
During the last two rounds of shots, Maddie was out of sorts across the board for at least four to five days. All naps and normal sleep schedules are truncated by these vaccination events as well as Maddie’s appetite.
So shields up and prepare for impact because tomorrow morning we are going in!
Maddie Squashes the Flu Bug
After going back and forth, Maddie finally sided with the medical community and insisted that her parents go in and get their flu shots. After weighing the pros and cons, Maddie decided that she was not willing to risk a potential flu outbreak in her home.
Personally, I think Maddie was looking for a little payback after her vaccine issues in early October. (READ: Baby Pays the Price) But we decided that even though neither of us have ever gotten the shot or contracted the flu in the past ten years, we would comply with our daughter’s wishes.
So after an almost two hour nap on her PaPa – Maddie was ready to escort her parents out on the town for some nice flu shots. We saddled up the baby and headed downstairs for our walk. I was in the process of placing the wind guard over the baby’s stroller when the buggy was rocked by a frigid blast of wind. Maddie’s eyes went wide with confusion and she wondered if the weather was actually a greater threat than the flu bug.
We started walking and Maddie was on full alert, collecting every bit of visual data she could absorb. Once we made it to the drugstore with out anymore rogue winds buffeting the stroller, Maddie was content to grab a quick nap while her parents got their turn with the needle.
Trying to get the flu shots presented a little more of a challenge than we originally anticipated. The girl behind the counter seemed overwhelmed by not only her job, but by the sheer act of taking down our information. I could already tell that interacting with her was certainly going to be more painful than the flu shot itself. Even Maddie woke up long enough to eye the clerk with complete dissatisfaction and let out a few disapproving snorts.
Once the shots were over, Maddie seemed to lose all interest in the process. However, on the way back home she did a crack a little smile that seemed to say, revenge is a dish that it best served cold. Little does she realize that her next round of shots have already been scheduled for early December.
Stay Home PaPa 