Originally published 5/20/2014
Be patient with me here – this is going to be a long post because these words have been a long time in coming, and I’ll admit that I am absolutely terrified to say them. I have kept my thoughts about vaccines and autismout of the website, where I dared include only one small footnote, and this Facebook page. Not out of lack of desire to talk about it – I’m actually pretty passionate about the subject – but out of fear of being hurt and of hurting others.
I personally know many parents who have differing beliefs from mine on this subject. Yet I have never told them this, because vaccines and autism isn’t any old topic, it’s a subject that divides the autism community like some kind of demilitarized zone. They who dare to broach it are denounced by the opposing side, whichever side that might be. It’s to the point that I’m quite sure if I mentioned my thoughts in person to some of the parents I know, our relationship would be severed. Worse yet, I would have hurt them in saying so, for I would be perceived as questioning their perceptions of reality...and many might even see it as me questioning their parenting.
As a result, I’ve kept relatively quiet about the subject, only discussing it on occasion to either those new to the autism community, who had yet to be polarized, or with those I know outside the community.
Why am I breaking my silence? I had a wakeup call. I was browsing Facebook, as you do, and saw one of my friends had posted an article about a photo shoot of fifteen survivors of meningitis. Many of them were children; all of them had amputated or deformed limbs. I commented on her post, letting her know that this was one of the many reasons I believe vaccines are so important. Melanie messaged me back, telling me that she, too, was a survivor, and drew much of her fervor about the importance of vaccines from her experiences. What she told me made me realize that keeping silent was unconscionable. I’ll let Melanie share her thoughts with you in her own words:
"I believe that I would not be deaf today if vaccines for bacterial meningitis, a serious and life threatening disease, had been available in the 1990s for young children. I was lucky; I’m alive. I bear no other scars, such as amputated limbs or mental illness. Others were not so lucky. In Canada, the occurrence of vaccination preventable strains of meningitis have been more than halved thanks to increased awareness and vaccination programs. However, meningitis continues to affect those who are not vaccinated or are unable to be vaccinated. Recently, Canada approved the Bexsero vaccine, which is the first to protect against meningitis strain B. I will be receiving this vaccine for the benefit of myself, and others. I have friends who are pregnant or recently gave birth, who are afraid to venture outside of their homes in the first measles outbreak in over a decade.
How can this disease, which was virtually expunged in Canada, still be a concern? Meningitis, measles, pertussis, and a host of other “childhood diseases” continue to maim and kill children at alarming rates in less privileged countries. Yet here we are, worrying that vaccines cause autism, cancer {insert a hundred other diseases here}, and turning down potentially lifesaving treatments for our children. Science has established that there is no causal link between vaccines and autism, while the benefits of vaccinations have been proven countless times. My parents would have given anything to prevent me from getting ill. My friends resent being robbed of their sense of security for their unprotected newborns because others are choosing not to vaccinate. While it is your choice to not vaccinate, please be aware of the responsibility you hold and the impact of your decision on others."
You heard her: she’s lucky. Her experience is just one example of what we have to gain from vaccinating our children, and what we have to lose if we refrain.
Now, I can hear protests coming from the other side of the vaccine DMZ already. ‘Her case is different,’ they say. ‘Our problem is with [MMR, vaccine schedules, thimerosol/mercury, fill in the blank].’ Others of you may echo Jenny McCarthy’s sentiments when she said, “If you ask a parent of an autistic child if they want the measles or the autism, we will stand in line for the f--king measles.”
But what McCarthy fails to realize is that vaccines, no matter what schedule they’re given on, which preservatives are contained within, or disease they serve to prevent, DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM.* “The f--king measles,” on the other hand? It can kill people.
The results of contracting vaccine preventable diseases can be disastrous, as you can see in this video of a baby with pertussis, otherwise known as whooping cough, someone sent me to show the dangers inherent in a world where we aren’t vaccinated.
I personally know many parents who have differing beliefs from mine on this subject. Yet I have never told them this, because vaccines and autism isn’t any old topic, it’s a subject that divides the autism community like some kind of demilitarized zone. They who dare to broach it are denounced by the opposing side, whichever side that might be. It’s to the point that I’m quite sure if I mentioned my thoughts in person to some of the parents I know, our relationship would be severed. Worse yet, I would have hurt them in saying so, for I would be perceived as questioning their perceptions of reality...and many might even see it as me questioning their parenting.
As a result, I’ve kept relatively quiet about the subject, only discussing it on occasion to either those new to the autism community, who had yet to be polarized, or with those I know outside the community.
Why am I breaking my silence? I had a wakeup call. I was browsing Facebook, as you do, and saw one of my friends had posted an article about a photo shoot of fifteen survivors of meningitis. Many of them were children; all of them had amputated or deformed limbs. I commented on her post, letting her know that this was one of the many reasons I believe vaccines are so important. Melanie messaged me back, telling me that she, too, was a survivor, and drew much of her fervor about the importance of vaccines from her experiences. What she told me made me realize that keeping silent was unconscionable. I’ll let Melanie share her thoughts with you in her own words:
"I believe that I would not be deaf today if vaccines for bacterial meningitis, a serious and life threatening disease, had been available in the 1990s for young children. I was lucky; I’m alive. I bear no other scars, such as amputated limbs or mental illness. Others were not so lucky. In Canada, the occurrence of vaccination preventable strains of meningitis have been more than halved thanks to increased awareness and vaccination programs. However, meningitis continues to affect those who are not vaccinated or are unable to be vaccinated. Recently, Canada approved the Bexsero vaccine, which is the first to protect against meningitis strain B. I will be receiving this vaccine for the benefit of myself, and others. I have friends who are pregnant or recently gave birth, who are afraid to venture outside of their homes in the first measles outbreak in over a decade.
How can this disease, which was virtually expunged in Canada, still be a concern? Meningitis, measles, pertussis, and a host of other “childhood diseases” continue to maim and kill children at alarming rates in less privileged countries. Yet here we are, worrying that vaccines cause autism, cancer {insert a hundred other diseases here}, and turning down potentially lifesaving treatments for our children. Science has established that there is no causal link between vaccines and autism, while the benefits of vaccinations have been proven countless times. My parents would have given anything to prevent me from getting ill. My friends resent being robbed of their sense of security for their unprotected newborns because others are choosing not to vaccinate. While it is your choice to not vaccinate, please be aware of the responsibility you hold and the impact of your decision on others."
You heard her: she’s lucky. Her experience is just one example of what we have to gain from vaccinating our children, and what we have to lose if we refrain.
Now, I can hear protests coming from the other side of the vaccine DMZ already. ‘Her case is different,’ they say. ‘Our problem is with [MMR, vaccine schedules, thimerosol/mercury, fill in the blank].’ Others of you may echo Jenny McCarthy’s sentiments when she said, “If you ask a parent of an autistic child if they want the measles or the autism, we will stand in line for the f--king measles.”
But what McCarthy fails to realize is that vaccines, no matter what schedule they’re given on, which preservatives are contained within, or disease they serve to prevent, DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM.* “The f--king measles,” on the other hand? It can kill people.
The results of contracting vaccine preventable diseases can be disastrous, as you can see in this video of a baby with pertussis, otherwise known as whooping cough, someone sent me to show the dangers inherent in a world where we aren’t vaccinated.
That baby made it. Others, like this sweet baby, whose mother held her in her dying moments, don't.
Babies like this one, and those of Melanie’s friends with newborns too young to be vaccinated rely on something called herd immunity to keep them safe. And all over the world, we are losing that immunity. Because one parent’s ‘individual decision’ to not vaccinate their children suddenly isn’t one parent’s decision if it’s one of many that can cause other children to fall ill. Because of this false dichotomy in which parents believe they’re “choosing” between vaccine preventable diseases and autism.
Now, you may think, as an Autistic person, what does Caley have to say on this topic? She is just as pro-vaccine as I am; perhaps more because her Public Health major has taught her their importance. I say all of this, as a result, with Caley’s full support. She finds it rather offensive, in fact, that some people want to prevent her from being (which is how she sees it) so much that they’d rather expose their children to potential illness. In fact, she was the one who pointed me to the video of the baby with whooping cough, to further emphasize the dangers of avoiding vaccines that she’d learned still more about in her Public Health major. What’s more, she said that measles and polio were well on their way to being extinguished forever, as small pox was. Now, far from receding, the anti-vaccine movement has led to their resurgence.
Listen to Melanie and Caley. The risks of autism due to vaccines have been disproven. But the risks of death, injury, and illness due to vaccine preventable diseases are very real.
A note: I do not seek to convince any people who are adamantly anti-vaccine, those who refer to themselves as anti-vaxxers. If you are one, you’ve heard these words and seen these studies time and time again, and still held on to your belief. More words from me are simply that, words. Instead, I seek only peace and hope that you will not take our disagreement on this subject as reason to devalue the other posts from ASE. Please know, I do not say these words seeking to attack you, and I would greatly appreciate not being attacked in turn. And please, and this comes from all three of us, while it is your right to not vaccinate, please don’t take your unvaccinated children to visit immunocompromised or ill people, or infants too young to be vaccinated. And know that I still have the utmost respect for you, and our disagreement on this subject does not impact that.
If you want to argue with me on the topic of vaccines, that is your right, but I would prefer you do so via private messaging. I say this because I want to keep the comment thread on this particular post free of vitriol, which is pretty bound to happen if we get to arguing. Questions about vaccines and autism, however, are welcome.
*I’m going to link to a WHOLE bunch of studies here. I could link to more, but I think you get the point.
The biggest and latest one is here: a meta-analysis of five studies covering 1.26 million children and another five case-control studies of 9920 children.http://www.forbes.com/sites/emilywillingham/2014/05/15/vaccines-thimerosal-mmr-mercury-not-associated-with-autism/
Articles about still more studies:
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/reference/vaccines-and-autism/
http://www.skepticblog.org/2010/09/13/the-long-awaited-cdc-trial-on-thimerosal-and-autism/
http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2008/05/12/vaccines_do_not_cause_autism.html
http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/when-does-autism-begin/
There are MANY more where those came from, feel free to message or comment with any questions and I’ll try to find a study to address your specific concerns.
-Creigh
Now, you may think, as an Autistic person, what does Caley have to say on this topic? She is just as pro-vaccine as I am; perhaps more because her Public Health major has taught her their importance. I say all of this, as a result, with Caley’s full support. She finds it rather offensive, in fact, that some people want to prevent her from being (which is how she sees it) so much that they’d rather expose their children to potential illness. In fact, she was the one who pointed me to the video of the baby with whooping cough, to further emphasize the dangers of avoiding vaccines that she’d learned still more about in her Public Health major. What’s more, she said that measles and polio were well on their way to being extinguished forever, as small pox was. Now, far from receding, the anti-vaccine movement has led to their resurgence.
Listen to Melanie and Caley. The risks of autism due to vaccines have been disproven. But the risks of death, injury, and illness due to vaccine preventable diseases are very real.
A note: I do not seek to convince any people who are adamantly anti-vaccine, those who refer to themselves as anti-vaxxers. If you are one, you’ve heard these words and seen these studies time and time again, and still held on to your belief. More words from me are simply that, words. Instead, I seek only peace and hope that you will not take our disagreement on this subject as reason to devalue the other posts from ASE. Please know, I do not say these words seeking to attack you, and I would greatly appreciate not being attacked in turn. And please, and this comes from all three of us, while it is your right to not vaccinate, please don’t take your unvaccinated children to visit immunocompromised or ill people, or infants too young to be vaccinated. And know that I still have the utmost respect for you, and our disagreement on this subject does not impact that.
If you want to argue with me on the topic of vaccines, that is your right, but I would prefer you do so via private messaging. I say this because I want to keep the comment thread on this particular post free of vitriol, which is pretty bound to happen if we get to arguing. Questions about vaccines and autism, however, are welcome.
*I’m going to link to a WHOLE bunch of studies here. I could link to more, but I think you get the point.
The biggest and latest one is here: a meta-analysis of five studies covering 1.26 million children and another five case-control studies of 9920 children.http://www.forbes.com/sites/emilywillingham/2014/05/15/vaccines-thimerosal-mmr-mercury-not-associated-with-autism/
Articles about still more studies:
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/reference/vaccines-and-autism/
http://www.skepticblog.org/2010/09/13/the-long-awaited-cdc-trial-on-thimerosal-and-autism/
http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2008/05/12/vaccines_do_not_cause_autism.html
http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/when-does-autism-begin/
There are MANY more where those came from, feel free to message or comment with any questions and I’ll try to find a study to address your specific concerns.
-Creigh
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