This morning Ben and Hannah each had an appointment with their doctor for a yearly physical. They will soon be headed off to camp for a week and a physical is one of the unwanted but necessary requirements. Now that my children are older I normally let them go back for their appointments alone and wait for the doctor to call me in if she has a question or needs me to sign for immunizations or something. Hannah had three shots this time and Ben just two. I came back to sign the consent forms. When Ben was finished we all stood up to go but Hannah had a strange look on her face and said, "I can't see." A million things ran through my mind at once! I had just read the shot information... Or maybe she was just reacting to a blood pressure change? The nurse hurried back over just in time to catch Hannah as she crumpled to the floor inside the exam room. The doctor assured me it was not likely the content of the vaccines, but the actual "poke" of the needle. They did seem concerned but not overly nervous. As my daughter came to I began to feel a sense of relief. They had her sit up and finally got her back on her feet. She was asked how she felt and said "good" but her color was off again... We almost made it to the exam table this time, but not quite. There she was on the floor again. I wasn't sure what to think but was thankful the Lord had Ben recieve his shots after Hannah. The short lapse of time between her shots and his meant we weren't yet back in the waiting room when she passed out or worse, the parking lot. We did find that she hadn't eaten breakfast before the 10:30 am. appointment (they gave her a Tootsie Roll and some water) so that may have been a contributing factor. Whatever the reason, she sure gave me a scare. I'm so glad she is okay!-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After looking around online a bit, I am not altogether convinced that Hannah's reaction was not from the injection itself. I was hesitant to allow the HPV vaccine anyway, but have now read that as many as 10% of girls who receive it have a reaction like this. I think she'll not be getting the final dose.
Hello Martha, thanks for coming over to my blog and saying Hi. I thought I'd pop over here, and glad I did. Your cheery banner and cheery smile!
ReplyDeleteNow your post that I just read...that is one frightening experience. I do hope by the time you read this, that your little one is all chipper again...
Oh my goodness, Hannah! What a scare for sure. I am glad Hannah is okay. I bet the not eating thing made a big difference in how she reacted to having the shots. Poor thing.
ReplyDeleteThanks for not taking a picture. :) Yeah it was weird 'cause I don't remember what happened after i said i couldn't see the first time & everyone says that I said it twice.
ReplyDeleteIt was weird for other reasons too though.
ReplyDeleteHow very scary! I am SO glad she's okay! Dave says that every single time his dad gets a shot or gets blood drawn he passes out, but you say this happens to girls 10% of the time with the HPV shot. If she had the final dose is there a chance something worse might happen?
ReplyDeleteI don't know but I don't wanna go there.
ReplyDeleteMartha, im so glad to hear that Hannah is okay, how very scary for you....
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, this happened to my oldest, Emily, when she went in to get some immunizations for college...she didn't quite land on the floor, but she turned greyish, and they couldn't even get a blood pressure...in her case, it was severe anxiety about needles. She hadn't mentioned it, just tried to ignore it...well, this girl ended up in nursing school...and had to get a shot along with the rest of her class, and she was darned if she was going to faint in front of her peers....she now takes blood, gives shots, (and donates blood, too)....Psychological and physical reactions are hard to separate, because the mind sort of controls the body....tell Hannah I'm glad you didn't have your camera....and I know how scared you probably were...
ReplyDeleteArg!! KIDs. scary at any age. Squirrel name now final, thanks :)
ReplyDeleteHow scarey! Glad she's okay though!!!!
ReplyDeleteYeah, if nothing else at least I got a tootsie roll out of the deal. :)
ReplyDeleteGood work on getting a tootsie roll Hannah.
ReplyDeleteYikes! I'd be freaking out!!! Glad she's ok now!
ReplyDeleteHere we are over a year later and the doctor now says she received a notice two weeks after Hannah passed out that there is a high rate of girls fainting after receiving the HPV vaccine. We now also deal with sleep apnea which appeared soon after the vaccination. My guess is they are connected in some way, but no one appears willing to look into the possibility. Hannah has been a light sleeper her entire life. Why would she suddenly start waking up because she wasn't breathing. I shudder to think what may have occurred had her first two shots not been a year apart, or if she were to accept a third dose.
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