One Unhappy Little Girlie

Yesterday I took Summer into the Drs so she could get her 2 month vaccinations. I was kind of dreading it, not so much the needle part more the aftermath as the vaccines contain some live bacteria in them and they can cause fever and unsettled behaviour. Youd think after having one child go thru this then Id be used to it and not worry, but honestly it never gets easier, doesnt matter how many kids you have.

So anyhoo, my Dr gave her a once over to see how she was doing and said she had "an excellent ticker, with no murmurs", then he sent me out to the practice nurse so she could give her the needles. I put Summer down onto the couch and she was all smiles and coos while the nurse gave her the oral vaccine for polio. Im amazed that she took it without a fuss, Im sure if it were Paige then she wouldve been screaming the place down. I cant even give Paige nurofen without her gagging and screaming.

The nurse commented on how Summer was smiling and if she would be still smiling after the needles. Well, needle number one went in and Summer let out a very loud cry of pain. Then needle number two went into the same leg and she continued to scream and go red in the face. I calmed her down a little but she wasnt let off that easily as needle number three went into her other little leg. She cried and cried and it broke my heart :( I gave her a huge mummy cuddle and put her into her pram where she continued to whimper until I gave her her beloved dummy to suck on for comfort.

She was so unhappy, and it makes you feel so guilty for making them go thru that trauma but vaccines are a necessary evil and there is no way I wouldnt vaccinate my children. Sure there is so much talk of all the nasties in vaccines but the risk of not having your child vaccinated outweighs the risk of a bad reaction. Once we got home my grandma took the bandaids off her legs, which left large red marks on her soft baby skin and she seemed much calmer, but she was probably still reeling from having three huge needles in her legs!

I gave her some paracetamol, which she didnt mind taking, and she had a few catnaps. I think her legs are tender where the injections were put in so Ill have to watch that Paige doesnt hit her there. Summer had a good night and didnt seem unsettled, I gave her some more paracetamol before bed to help her, so far no sign of any fever but I shall keep my eye on it.

Thats one lot of needles down, the next lot is at 4 months, hopefully she wont scream as much!