Welp! Lil thumper got her first cold from grandpa when she was 2 months old. It turned out to be just your average regular cold. One that was quite nasty for the adults (terrible terrible coughs) but just okay for her. I'm guessing it's because I was breastfeeding. Her symptoms were about a day behind mine. Though it did last longer. Either that, or she just didn't cough unless she had to because she didn't understand the sensation of a tickling throat.
As I'm a worrywort mom, the whole time she was sick I was constantly googling the website trying to see if she had something bad. Was it one of things I could have prevented with a vaccine? Was it Rotavirus? Pc? HIB? Or maybe she had an ear infection? Bronchitis? Croup?
This was basically a test, a test of reality. I'd thought that since she would just be around family for the first 6 months of her life, as we don't go out much with her at all and have a very small social life, that the chances of her catching anything would be really small. I hadn't counted on my dad being on an 14 hour international flight and catching whatever was going around. I hadn't realize that catching colds are like catching STDs; anyone you come in contact with have contact with other people who have contacts with other people who could have that cold.
The vaccine choices I made logically collided with the emotional worry you get when your child actually gets that cold and you wonder if you'd made the right choices. It's so hard to watch the baby cough or sniffle or sound like she has trouble breathing. It crossed my mind that if I followed the regular vaccine schedule, I could bypass all this other than the symptoms she'd get when she gets the vaccine.
So I had to keep reminding myself that
1) the likelihood of her getting any of those viruses (Rota, Pc, HIB) right now were small, save for that increase chance due to unforeseen trip of dad to another country.
2) the pediatrician says babies catch several colds during their first 6 months.
3) my philosophy that I wanted the baby to experience colds and other sicknesses as long as they don't don't normally lead to complications; rather than be vaccinated against it.
4) that I DID get the whopping cough vaccine, which is really terrible and actually making a resurgence. So the one that IS going around and HAS terrible complications, I did get vaccinated for.
5) that the preservatives in vaccines are actually worse than the common cold or viruses you can overcome.
It was a hard week all around, esp since I didn't feel so great myself. I'm sure I'll always second guess myself a bit in my choices. It's hard not to when your emotions play with your mind. But I think I'll stick to my vaccine schedule.
