Vaccine Epidemic

Vaccine Epidemic.

I don't even know where to begin.

Here's what gets my attention, from Chapter Ten, "The Greater Good" by Allen Tate:

"It is indisputable that the vaccination schedule has never been tested for safety in its entirety, or in the way that it is administered. In other words, while the government reviews, licenses, and compels individual vaccines, it does not test--or require vaccine makers to test--the safety and efficacy of vaccines given simultaneously or the cumulative effects of multiple vaccines." p. 83.

Not tested for safety in the way that it is administered as a full schedule? Not tested for safety in the way it is administered as six vaccines in one visit for an infant? I never dreamed that my team of pediatricians would push me to inject my babies with substances in ways (six or seven organisms at once in four or five vaccines on the same day, for example) that are not tested for safety.

Additionally, I believed that if someone in my family were injured by a vaccine, that help would be readily available. I was wrong on so many levels.

Almost every sentence is a sentence worth quoting for you; that would be impractical in a blog post. Borrow this book from the library. Buy it. You need to read it. You simply do. We all need to consider this information, and now.

If you're the parent of a child on the autism spectrum, you may know some of this information already. You may have been to a conference where one (or three) of the Vaccine Epidemic authors spoke. We may have been there together. I've read a lot, been to more conferences and workshops than I can count, and I can tell you that Vaccine Epidemic contains authors and perspective that I have not considered in such depth.

Vaccine Epidemic is a book about vaccine choice and informed consent; it's not so much "anti-vaccine" as it is "make an educated decision". And you will get an education. There is so much I didn't know about vaccines and vaccine policy. You too?

And yes, I want to quote almost every sentence.

Vaccine Epidemic spells out for readers not only what the current medical, legal, and ethical issues are, but history of vaccines and vaccine policy, along with some real-life stories from vaccine injured people, and not just autism-related vaccine injuries.

Vaccine Epidemic is a 350 page hardback, with 26 chapters edited by Louise Kuo Habakus, M.A., and Mary Holland, J.D. and written by 20+ different professionals, parents, and individuals who have studied issues surrounding vaccines; some of the parents and individuals have been affected negatively by vaccines.

The book is arranged in three sections.

Part I covers The Case For Vaccination Choice and includes 10 chapters by Mary Holland, JD; Sookyung Song; Louise Kuo Habakus, MA; James Turner, JD; William Wagner, JD; Carol Stott, PhD, MSC (Epidemiology), CSci, CPsychol; Andrew Wakefield, MB, BS, FRCS, FRCPath; Robert Johnston, PhD; Vera Hassner Sharav, MLS; and Allen Tate.

Part II is called "Narratives and the Echoes of 'Omelas'" and includes chapters by Ursula K LeGuin; Gay Tate, PhD (Biochemistry), LSW; mom Amy Pingel ("My Daughter is 'One Less'"); Sonja Hintz, RN and Alexander Hintz; Captain Richard Rovert, USAF (Ret.), with afterword by Colonel Felix M. Grieder, USAF (Ret); and a chapter that reminds individuals to keep your receipt if you get a flu shot at a drug store by Lisa Marks Smith entitled, "Get Your Affairs in Order". (I'd read part of Lisa Marks Smith's story here; she has Chapter 16, "Get Your Affairs In Order".)

Part III covers The Topics in the Debate and includes 10 chapters by Michael Belkin; Ginger Taylor, MS; Boyd Haley, PhD; Kim Mack Rosenberg, JD; Twila Brase, RN; Sherri Tenpenny, DO, AOBNMM; Annemarie Colbin, PhD; Louise Kuo Habakus, MA; Mary Holland in a cliff notes type version of the whole attack on Andy Wakefield; and Andrew Wakefield, MB, BS, FRCS, FRCPath.

There are so many facts I find incredible; there is so much surrounding vaccines that I trusted blindly without researching. Had I done my research, I would have chosen to vaccinate differently, skipping some completely, delaying some.

If you're researching vaccines and vaccine safety, make sure to include Vaccine Epidemic on your list of books to read and consider.

Skyhorse Publishing sent me a copy of Vaccine Epidemic for review purposes. I am not paid for this review and am not obligated to provide a positive review. I do not benefit financially if you purchase this book.

All I Can Handle, I'm No Mother Teresa

I received my review copy of Kim Stagliano's new book, All I Can Handle, I'm No Mother Teresa a bit later than other blogger/reviewers. The book was worth the wait.

Kim Stagliano writes with candor and humor about her life. Kim and her husband, Mark, are parents to three girls, all three diagnosed with autism. She takes you through the never-a-dull-moment lives of the Staglianos, including the ups and downs of diagnosis and treatment of not only autism but also a seizure disorder, several job losses and moves, a home robbery, a daughter being abused on the school bus.

Stagliano somehow manages to take some weighty events and turn them into entertaining reading, while leaving the reader with a sense of the seriousness of autism without abandoning the fun and joy of parenting children on the spectrum.

If you are the parent of a child with autism, if you know nothing about autism, or if you're somewhere in between, I think you'll like this book.

If you're the parent of a child (or children) on the autism spectrum, you'll relate to Stagliano's story. I blinked back tears, I laughed, I nodded my head in silent understanding of so many details that she describes. (I, like Stagliano, have a daughter on the autism spectrum.)

If you're not the parent of a child with autism, I suspect that your eyes will be opened in a big way. I know that even close family members (who, in my case, live a day's drive away) have no idea some of what we've been through. You'll get a glimpse into a foreign land.

At times, Stagliano's story is that of EveryAutismMom. She gave us the word, "crapisode", the perfect term for what happens when our kids play with poop. She describes the emotion and the thought process that a lot of us went through as we watched a child's development go off track. She describes the challenges of finding services, the heartbreak of learning something late in the game that you should have been told sooner, the excitement that comes with successes.

I admire Kim Stagliano for never, ever losing her sense of humor. (I lost mine more than a few times along the way.)

I highly recommend All I Can Handle to everyone. If you're not familiar with autism, you'll learn a lot from a mom who entertains you while she's explaining the challenges our children face now and in the future.

In addition to her blog, you can find Kim Stagliano at Age of Autism and The Huffington Post.

Thanks, Kim, for being a voice not only for Mia, Gianna, and Bella, but for my daughter, too.

Skyhorse Publishing sent me a review copy of All I Can Handle so that I may read it and review it here on my blog. I am not paid for reviews and am not obligated to provide a positive review.

1001 TIPS FOR THE PARENTS OF AUTISTIC GIRLS by Tony Lyons

1001 tips. I wonder if I began to write down tips how long I would need in order to pen 1001 of them?

Author Tony Lyons (he co-authored Cutting Edge Therapies) has indeed come up with 1001 tips with the help of professionals and other parents.

The 459 page book is priced at $17.95 and contains, literally, one numbered tip after another, arranged in chapters by topic, through tip 1001.

This is a book that, if you're like me, you'll read through once without remembering everything, but knowing you can return to when needed. This book is helpful as you face a new developmental stage or challenge, where you can zoom in on a chapter/topic and read tips from experienced parents and professionals about that topic when needed.

The book begins with Section 1: Pre-Diagnosis; moves to Section 2: Diagnosis and Evaluation, then Section 3: Education. Section 4 offers tips about Therapy Implementation (I had a different experience with ABA than described in Chapter 14 in this section); Section 5 covers Medical Nd Nutritional Treatment. Section 6 covers Supporting the Family Unit to include self care, marriage tips, counseling, sibs, friends, family, help at home. Section 7 overs tips on Daily Life. Section 8 covers parenting. Section 9 covers Personal Care, including puberty and periods. Section 10 offers safety tips. Section 11 covers Venturing Out, including vacations and travel, and as we contemplate our first flight with the children, I'm focusing on this section at the moment. Section 12 covers holidays, very timely, with Thanksgiving and Christmas upon us. Section 13 covers The Future (after the 18th birthday), and Section 14 covers Finances.

1001 Tips for the Parents of Autistic Girls is one that I would purchase. It's a book that I would want to be able to put my hands on and read at the moment I needed it, and not have to wait to get it from the library. Having a copy at home as a reference is handy; I can begin to research advice on my own right away, ask my doctor about medical tips (I always recommend you take medical advice to your doctor!), or I can implement an internet search to find the people who helped with tips, to see what other articles or books they may have written/published.

What's it missing? I don't see homeopathy mentioned; no rec therapy; the section on developmental and relationship therapies, where we've seen absolutely positively the most success, is skimpy, at best (especially compared to the amount of behavioral info in the book) and does not include some of our biggest helps, including Judith Bluestone's HANDLE; reflex integration; Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment; Communicating Partners. I'd like to see some information about sports, too. Figure skating is a wonderful sport for girls on the spectrum.

Overall, it's a solid resource and research starter with some great tips and hints - I suspect Lyons and his contributors will help us all think outside the box when we need to.

A late addition to this blog post: Age of Autism mentions a blog tour (which I knew nothing about until Monday morning; I must not be included in their definition of "key bloggers in the autism community". Oh well.) and a link to read several chaptes online (link isn't working in the dark a.m., Monday; I assume they'll repair that soon) on their mention of this book and the version for parents of boys.

Tony Lyons occasionally blogs here.

Skyhorse Publishing sent me a copy of 1001 Tips for the Parents of AUTISTIC GIRLS, Everything You Need to Know About Diagnosis, Doctors, Schools, Taxes, Vacations, Babysitters, Treatment, Food, and More in order that I may review it. I am not paid for reviews and am not obligated to provide a positive review.

The Autism Cookbook, 101 Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Recipes

Based upon reviews at online book sellers that I read after I posted my first thoughts about this cookbook, I have opted to remove this post until I have cooked from it. I've not experienced problems with a cookbook that I previewed here before cooking from it, but this time, I suspect I might.

Here's the preview in a nutshell: At first glance, it is a beautiful book filled with simple recipes that fit the way we cook - I'll have to make no or limited modifications to recipe ingredients.