I have never been one to “worry” about what is in the vaccinations our children get.  I pretty much have them get whatever the Doctor recommends without even thinking twice about it.  Well, after my experience last month with my son, my perspective has definitely changed.

My son went for his 18-month check up on Feb. 1 and received a couple of shots, one of them being the Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) shot.  He was completely fine for days and then on Friday, Feb. 11, he woke up with his horrid rash.  I called the Doctor immediately and brought him in.  After looking him over and reading his chart, the Doctor came to the conclusion that it was a reaction to the MMR shot.  Being 10 days since he received the shot, I would have never thought that’s what it could be.  As it turns out, a reaction to the MMR shot does technically show up around the 10^th day.  As long as the rash wasn’t bothering my son (his breathing was good, temperament good, etc), thn it was fine but I could give him Benadryl when needed if he became itchy.

Waking up on Saturday morning was a bit shocking.  The rash was now from head to toe and his face was completely swollen.  His eyes were swollen so bad, when he smiled, you could barely see them.  He didn’t even look like my son and to me that was very scary.  I immediately called the Doctor and made another appointment to bring him in to be seen again.  Between that phone call and the appointment, his fingers started to turn blue.  Let’s just say, I was starting to panic at this point.  I had to call 911 per the nurse’s order.

My son had his first ambulance ride at 18 months of age.  The ride from our house to the hospital seemed never ending.  Every time they put the sirens on, I just wanted to cry.

When we arrived to the Emergency Room, they had a hospital bed waiting for him and they started to check his vitals right away.  Luckily, everything was checking out just fine.  Now when we saw the ER Doctor, he told us that this was not from the MMR shot, that it was definitely an allergic reaction to something and that we would need to follow up with a specialist.  Well, now I am getting two different diagnoses and being a Mother, that is just got good enough when it has to do with your children!  We went directly to the Pediatrician’s office as soon as we left the hospital.  The Doctor that we saw concurred with his colleague that this was definitely a reaction to the MMR shot and a severe one at that.

The reason why his fingers turned blue was because the reaction was just so intense.  His reaction could last 5 – 7 days and could fluctuate until it was gone.  After a very long and stressful day, I was happy to be able to take my son home and rest.

For my son, it did take the full 7 days for the reaction to subside.  He did become a little irritable and itchy over the course of the week, so Benadryl was his friend to help him through it.

Children usually receive the MMR vaccination around 12 – 18 months old and then again around 4 – 5 years old.  My husband and I will be having a serious conversation with his Pediatrician before we even think about giving him that shot again in a few years.  I need to know what his risks would be then since he had such a severe reaction now.  I don’t even want to think about what could happen if he had an even worse reaction!

My reason for sharing this story with you is to bring awareness of vaccination reactions.  If your child already has an allergy, do your research first and find out what exactly is being put into your child’s body before you give consent.  Know the signs of a normal reaction, a severe reaction and when they can arise.

Trust me from experience, when a reaction happens 10 days later, it’s like it comes from out of nowhere so keep a record of when a vaccination was given to look back at.  Always go with your gut, if you feel that something is not right, call the Doctor!  And remember, you can never ask too many questions, especially when it has to do with your child’s life.