Let me just start out by saying, I am SO SORRY that I have been MIA for the last few months. Nursing school has taken up so much of my time. I missed y’all! But I’m here to talk about something that’s extremely important to me, but also extremely controversial. I know not everyone is going to agree with what I say, and I’m even more certain that there are people out there who will be outraged at my opinions. Because I have very strong opinions.

Here goes nothing.

I am so incredibly proud of Kristen Bell’s stance on vaccinations and her babies. As seen here from February 14, she does not let anyone near her precious babies without their pertussis, also called whooping cough, vaccine. I am beyond words. Babies can’t receive their first DTaP (Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis) vaccine until at least 2 months of age. That’s 2 months that the only protection the baby has is from the people around him or her being vaccinated. 

People these days feel that they no longer need to vaccinate their children, or themselves, simply because diseases such as Polio, Smallpox, Measles, etc. are no longer prominent in our society. Well guess what? The reason these diseases are not rampant among our population is because people get vaccinated. 

Yes, in the last decade or two, the few parents that were stupid enough not to vaccinate their children were fine not vaccinating them but only because other parents were vaccinating their kids. The unvaccinated children were protected because everyone else was protected. 

But now, the cool “new thing” to do is not vaccinate children. As adults, you have every right to not vaccinate yourself, but it is selfish and negligent not to vaccinate your kids. There are risks that come along with anything you do in your life, but the benefits (e.g. being vaccinated) far outweigh any potential risks. 

Take the measles outbreak in California that started in December 2014. So many people have made the poor decision to not vaccinate their kids that the measles virus ran rampant. Further adding to that, the number of international visitors the United States has on a yearly basis. The U.S. has the second leading number of tourist visits per year, only after France. There are people from international countries that do not have the privilege and availability of vaccinations. They bring these long forgotten diseases to our country. Unfortunately, that leaves those not vaccinated at risk for contracting these scary, and sometimes deadly, diseases. 

I know this is a major topic and everyone has their own personal views on vaccinations. I will never stop preaching the importance of vaccines. I personally keep mine up to date and have gotten a few extra because of my profession choice. I’m interested in learning the views of my readers regarding vaccinations. Do you get all the required (or “recommended”) vaccines? Do you only get a few? Have you vaccinated your kids? Let me know in the comments below!