Guillain Barre' Syndrome vs. The Swine Flu

Are you getting a Swine Flu shot?

My family WILL NOT be getting them.

I wonder how many of these people, after getting the Swine Flu shot will come down with Guillain Barre' Syndrome?

In 1976 President Gerald Ford ordered a National Campaign to get the whole country immunized against the Swine Flu, in fear of a national Swine Flu outbreak. The US ordered 40 million doses of the vaccine and on October 1, 1976 started immunizing people. In December of 1976 a halt was put on the immunizations, no more were to be administered.

Why?

Because more people were being diagnosed with Guillain Barre' Syndrome than the Swine Flu. The feared Flu epidemic never came, only 1 person died, but more than 532 people came down with GBS, 25 of them died.

I have been doing some research on this issue for obvious reasons, and it's interesting what I have found out. Some articles down play the severity of GBS while others give it the credit it deserves.
Here are some tidbits of what I have found;

CBC Canada
Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), a form of paralysis that is usually temporary and can occur after some common infections, may be associated with seasonal influenza vaccine in about one per million recipients. It is expected that a similar pattern may be seen for the H1N1 influenza vaccine, say health officials.
CBC News, Canada

(Is this seriously all they could say about GBS? For some reason they are trying to downplay the severity of GBS. I hope people in Canada do a little more research and find out the truth about GBS.)


The Reporter Online
Glen Beck, a conservative talk show host for Fox News, raised the possibility that the neurological disease Guillain-Barre Syndrome would break out. "How much do you trust your government?" Beck asked. "I think that's the main question."Think about it for a moment. Glenn Beck? Bill Maher? Or the best scientists in the country?

The Reporter Online.com



Washington Post
Why did the previous swine flu vaccine cause Guillain-Barré Syndrome?
A complex question! First, its not clear how much of an increased risk of Guillain-Barré Syndrome was associated with influenza vaccination, partly because its not really certain how many cases of GBS occur annually in the United States. Most rigorous studies have suggested there was either a low or no risk of developing GBS after immunization with the 1976 H1N1 vaccine when compared to the general population. GBS has not been convincingly or consistently linked to any other influenza vaccine before or since. So the link between GBS and influenza vaccines remains controversial but it is a relatively low risk, if any.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/29/AR2009092902800.html


New York Times
The feared swine flu epidemic of 1976 never materialized. And several hundred people, including Ms. Kinney, who is now 68 and lives in Gig Harbor, Wash., developed Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare neurological condition that causes temporary muscle weakness or paralysis. More than 30 of those people died.
Many experts say they do not think a vaccine for the new flu strain, called H1N1, would raise a similar risk for Guillain-Barré. But answering that question is difficult because to this day, no one has figured out why the 1976 vaccine caused the disease, in which the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the nerves.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/09/health/09vaccine.html



This is not meant to scare anyone, more to inform. It is just something that has been in the forefront of how we approach vaccines these days.
In my opinion, getting the Flu/Swine Flu is better than getting Guillain Barre'. If a family member ever dies from the Flu I may change my mind, but after weighing the risks and having been through the GBS experience with my own child, I'll take the Flu.
It will be interesting to see the statistics on the side effects of this new H1N1 vaccine. I won't be surprised to see an increase in GBS. We were told that Cameron can never again have a flu shot or many other vaccines because they all carry a potential risk of GBS. While I know that the risk of any of the rest of us getting Guillain Barre' is very very small, it still makes me nervous to vaccinate my kids for anything, not just the flu.


You weigh the risks for yourself, Guillain Barre' vs. The Swine Flu.

Cameron, February 2009.

To see more pictures and read about Cameron's experience with Guillain Barre' you can click here, here & here.

Or just go back in my archives to Feb. 09. There are too many posts to link to all of them.

Hayden, Cameron & Colby

I'm kinda sad. Our plans to ride the Haunted Train tonight had to be cancelled. My cousin's little boy was sick, and we are all still sick at our house too. Hopefully next week we will be able to ride the train.

Below is a recap of our week.
I hope it doesn't stress you out as much as it did me!

When Hayden saw this picture he said, "Hayden. Taking a nap."
I took a picture because I thought he looked so darn cute.
This short 5 minute nap happened to be pretty much the only nap or sleep for that matter that he has had all week. And if he was not asleep he was crying and wanting me to hold him. He didn't want to sit down though, he wanted to walk around the house. I'm pretty sure that my back is permanently damaged.

36 pound 22 month olds with the flu are not so easy to take care of. This has, hands down, been the longest, most stressful week of my life! But, I'm still alive and so are all of my kids and my husband and so are all of the deer that he was hunting for!

This is Cameron, entertaining himself and making us all laugh. He came home from school sick on Tuesday with a fever, coughing, body aches, etc... After a couple of doses of Oscillococcinum and lots of EmergenC, he was ok to go to school the next day and still so far so good.

Crazy Hair Day at school.

This do was his version of an "Umpa Lumpa."

Colby stayed home from school on Thursday because he was tired and coughing. Gave him a couple doses of the O stuff and EmergenC, and he was feeling much better by mid-morning. With this kid I am not sure if it was the medicine and the rest that made him feel better or the fact that he realized that he really was successful in his attempt to fake sick and was going to get to miss the whole day of school?! He was pretty upset when 3:30 rolled around. All his friends were home from school and he realized after numerous attempts to convince me that he was not sick at all anymore, that I really was not going to let him go play.

Whats really amazing is that this morning before school he tried to play the "I'm really tired" card. We told him that he was going to school, but if by lunch time he didn't feel any better he could call me. Sure enough right after lunch recess I got a call from Colby, saying that he was "so so so tired and needed to come home. So I went and got him and made him lay down with out TV and rest. But yet again, I swear this kid is the most stubborn kid I know, at 3:30 he was asking if he could go play. Seriously Colby!

over & over & over

Does anyone else ever feel like they are living this movie?

Well, I do.

Especially this week with a sick little boy. Sick with the nasty flu. I mean really nasty flu. I so hope that none of you get it. Prevention is so so worth it. I know that with other kids in the house actually preventing it is not really possible, but we should at least try. Nasal spray, salt water gargle, oscillium at the first signs or symptoms, and of course, constant, constant hand washing. I think my husband and kids think I am seriously crazy because of how many times I tell them to wash their hands. They are sort of right though, I am crazy! This groundhog day life of mine is driving me crazy!

I guess what I am really saying is a need a vacation and there is not one anywhere in sight!!
Maybe I just need my mom. Yep that's it. Mom, come up here I need you......Hayden needs you.....

And after my mom comes, then I need a vacation!

I am excited to ride the Haunted Train this weekend with my cousin and some other friends!! That's something to break the monotony! Bring on the Train.

Monkey see, Monkey do

Hayden is living proof of how much influence older kids have on younger kids.
He does everything he sees his big brothers do.
At times like this, in the pictures, it's really cute and sweet.

The times when we are in Wal Mart and he demands to "go look at toys", or when he takes off down the street on his scooter because he wants to follow Cameron it is not so cute.
Hayden pretty much thinks he is 5 instead of almost 2. And he pretty much wears me out everyday. But I also can't kiss and hug him enough everyday either. And I guess with kids that's how it's supposed to be right?!

On TV

You all remember the airplane that crashed in my parents backyard last August don't you?

Well, if you don't then where in the world have you been?
It was BIG news! You can refresh your memory here & here & here.

After you refresh your memory set your DVR to record Oprah tomorrow. Thats tomorrow, Wednesday, October 7th.

I miss it already...

We won't be doing anymore of this, and I am kinda sad about it.

As much as I love Fall, I know that winter follows Fall and I am not looking forward to winter.

Hitting golf balls is a big part of summer life for our family.
Lucky for us we have quite a few great golf courses here in town to keep the boys busy.

This little boy loves it but is so loud and busy that he can only stay for a few minutes before he and mom have to go for a walk so he doesn't disturb the other golfers.
Something about Golf Etiquette...

If these two boys decided to play golf instead of any other sport I don't think I would be disappointed at all. They are really good at it already.

When Hayden and I go on our walks it's really not so bad when you have scenery like this. I think that Golf courses are some of the most pretty places there are.

At the Homestead there are lots of geese and fish to keep the little ones entertained.
Don't you love how they all walk in a line?!

Today was a first!

I have been a mom for almost nine years now and until today, I have never had one of my kids call 911.

When there was a knock on my door at 9:15am I had no idea who it might be. But as I approached the door I could see through the window that it was a police officer. My heart started racing. My first thought was that something had happened to Mark, he is out hunting. Then I thought he might tell me that we need to move our boat that is parked on the street. As I opened the door the officer was looking at me like "are you ok?" and then said, "we had a 911 call from this address, is everything ok? Your phone is still off the hook."

I am sure the look on my face was great because I had no idea what he was talking about. Hayden was standing there with me so I asked him, "did you play with the phone?" He smiles and says, "I push buttons, phone, over there." and points to the phone on the couch.
I walk over and pick up the phone, sure enough, the number on the screen are 911111111!!! Hayden is standing at the door talking to the officer, whom I sure is totally bugged at this point. I apologize over and over and assure him that everything is fine.

He turns around and looks at the toy gun laying on the front porch and asks Hayden if it is his gun. Hayden says, "no, it's Tam's gun, Tam at school." I then try to explain that we have two older boys and that it's just a toy gun, because I guess from a distance it could look like a BB Gun. Who knows what the officer was thinking as he said goodbye and walked away!!

Thanks Hayden. You broke my perfect record. I still love ya though.

Whats cookin'?

On Sunday's I like to bake.
This week I tried this new recipe for Pumpkin Orange Cake.

It was super moist and very easy to make. The flavor combination is different, not something your tongue is expecting, but really good. This one will definitely go into my recipe box.

recipe and photo from Taste of Home


CAKE

1/2 cup butter, softened
1-1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 cup chopped walnuts




ORANGE FROSTING:
1/3 cup butter, softened
3 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons milk
2 teaspoons orange juice
4-1/2 teaspoons grated orange peel
Candied orange peel, optional
Directions: In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In another bowl, beat pumpkin, orange juice, milk and orange peel. Combine dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture alternately with pumpkin mixture, beating well after each addition. Fold in nuts. Pour into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. For frosting, in a large bowl, beat butter and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Beat in the milk, orange juice and peel. Frost cake. Garnish with candied peel if desired. Yield: 12 servings.

All Better

The house is scrubbed and disinfected.
The sheets and towels and pillows are all washed.
And everyone in my house seems to be back in good health!

Now maybe we can get out of the house and enjoy the beautiful fall weather.

**Under the Weather: UPDATE**

So I mentioned last night that Cameron went to bed saying that his tummy hurt.  At midnight he started throwing up and did so until about 3am. 

Mark left for the Mountains at 6am and I couldn't go back to sleep.

All three boys wake up at about 7:15am and Colby is complaining that his stomach hurts.

At 9am Colby starts throwing up and Cam says that his tummy still hurts a little.

All the while I am a tired Zombie and Hayden for some reason picks this morning to be Grouch of the Year.

Mark finally gets home at 10am.

At 10:30 Colby is still throwing up and Cameron seems to be feeling a lot better, he is whistling again, that's a good sign for Cameron.  He whistles all day everyday, sometimes really loudly!

It's now almost 11:30 am and I have been to the store for Sprite and Gatorade and movies from Red Box and am now ready to fall over asleep. 

Have A GREAT DAY!!!

Under the Weather

My husband started it all last week, when at 10pm I got a phone call from him saying that he was in the Emergency Room. That's pretty much all he said and hung up.

He and his friend Mike had been out hunting and I was starting to wonder when he would be home since he wasn't answering his phone.
Getting that phone call from him in the ER was part of one of my nightmares about him hunting.
I called his phone right back and Mike answered saying that yes they were at the ER here in town and that Mark was pretty out of it. He said that while they were out Mark got really really sick and could not stop throwing up. Amazingly Mark was very slowly able to make it back to the truck but was still so so sick.
Mike decided that Mark was probably dehydrated and needed some IV fluids. So after getting him to the ER and all checked in they called me.

Anyway.... long story short, Mark stayed at the ER for a couple of hours until he could actually walk out to the car, then Mike brought him home. He got in bed and stayed there for three days.
AHHHH!!! Not GOOD!
We had just been planning our winter strategy for not getting sick in our family because Cameron can not have a Flu shot ever, for the rest of his life and is more prone to getting a bad case of the flu because of the Guillian Barre'. So we were all ready to keep the sick bugs out of our house and dad gets sick.

Just when we thought that Mark didn't spread his flu bug, Hayden throws up Sunday night. He only threw up once but just doesn't feel good and has no appetite.

Then the BOMB really dropped and now I AM SICK. Yesterday I thought I wanted to DIE. Today was a little better, I didn't actually throw up, I just felt like I was going to all day. Mom's aren't supposed to get sick right?

Now tonight Cameron says that his stomach hurts really bad. I covered his bed and pillows with towels and but a big bowl by his head.
Just in case.
Wish us luck.

**I have to give the BIGGEST thanks to my sweet husband who, thank goodness feels good now, has been taking good care of me.

**And another HUGE HUGE thanks to my mother -in- law for taking my kids yesterday and Hayden again all day today. You saved my life! Thank you so much

3rd grade romance

Mom, this year in 3rd grade a lot of the girls are chasing some of the boys and I am one of the boys getting chased. Lots of the girls like me.

Jocelyn and Harley like me but only Harley chases me. Except today, Mr.Campbell (the principal) told us that no one can chase anymore because he thinks someone is going to get hurt. So he ruined all our fun at recess. I guess we will have to go back to playing football or something.

This is what I heard from Colby today after school!

And he told me this too.... "today Pearl and Ricky broke up but then they got back together."

What?!?!?!?!?!?!? This is 3rd grade people. I am so not ready for this.

I told him that he didn't need start "going out" with people in 3rd grade and that he should just worry about playing football.

He says to me, "mom, we are growing up now, you are just going to have to change some of your rules."

Oh, man I really am not ready for this.

Although he is pretty cute!

Ohhhhh, I love it!

It's this time of year around here and I love it!
Fall is great, I loved it as a kid in St. Johns and I think I love it even more now. Of course Fall where I live is in a league of it's own. I don't know a soul who wouldn't love it.

Yesterday the clouds rolled in over Mt. Timpanogas and then it rained!
Lovely Sunday afternoon!

Today was the same. You could feel and smell Fall in the air and it rained again, all day.

I anticipated the call from my husband telling me how much he loves days like today and how he hears the mountains and the elk in them calling his name.
I was not disappointed. He called and said just that!

If any of you have never experienced Fall in Utah I highly recommend it. If you live in Utah you should take a drive up this way. You can even stay at my house!

The best Fall colors are yet to come and I will have pictures to prove it. Stay tuned

Some of my favorite Swiss Days items

Swiss Days was absolutely packed this year, just like every other year. It was almost a joke trying to see the inside of most of the booths so I did my best at gathering business cards from the busiest booths. I figured that if there was a line to get into the booth that I should at least get their card and check them out at home where I didn't have to wait in line! It never ceases to amaze me how many people there are and every year there is some new product that all the women want. This year it seemed to be headbands. Seriously, headbands that cost like $15 a piece for a little girl!! I didn't get any headband business cards and the only one I can remember is www.pinkbench.com. Below are some of the items that I found the most interesting.

Swiss Days was absolutely packed this year just like normal. It was almost a joke trying to see the inside of most of the booths, so I did my best to pickup business cards of the booths that were the most crowded. I figured that if there was a line to get into the booth that I should at least get their card!! It never ceases to amaze me that every year there are a million people there and always some new craze that all the women want!

The paintings by the Winborg Sisters' Design were by far my favorite. They really were awesome. Check out their blog to see for yourself. http://www.winborgdesign.blogspot.com/

These vinyl wallets and bags were pretty cool too. You can see them at http://www.vinyliciousdesigns.com/

I LOVE family history so this booth from Stories By Me really caught my attention.

http://www.storiesbyme.com/

http://www.storiesbymeblog.blogspot.com/

Don't know that I would wear one of these hats myself, but they looked great on everyone else. They had so many great fabrics and a couple of great styles. Check them out.

http://www.caleandco.com/

If you are in the baby stuff market here are a few places to check out.

LOVE this outfit from Saranoni.

http://www.saranoni.com/

I really want one of these for the next baby. They are baby slings from Mod Mum.

http://www.modmum.com/

I know that these Minky blankets are everywhere there were even quite a few booths of them at Swiss Days. But I like them and these were pretty fancy.

http://www.babylaundryandmore.com/

They went back to school...

Finally. Well, I think that finally is to harsh a word to use, makes me sound like a bad mom. How can I say it and not sound like a bad mom?

Yesterday the boys went back to school!!

My excitement is real, Colby's however is apparent by the look on his face in the picture below.

Cameron was Super excited though!

Seriously Colby. All I could get out of him was a forced smile. He really knows how to play the part of sad miserable child, he's so good at it he worries me!

I wasn't sure how the day would be for Hayden without his brothers around to entertain/tease him. He was sad to see them go and glad to see them come home!

The BIKE BRIGADE on their way home from school. Colby was especially bugged that Hayden and I met them at the corner and that I had my camera. He would not even slow down to wave. Cameron gave us a big wave though!

When we all got home I tried to talk to them about their first day of 1st and 3rd grade. I was excited for them and really wanted to know how it went. All I could get out of either one of them was an "It was good." That's it! They just wanted a snack and then wanted to head out to play. When it came time for bed though, they were ready to talk. Anything to prolong going to bed!

One great thing for me about having two of my three kids in school all day.

My house stayed clean and I got to be really lazy while Hayden took a nap.

I love back to school!