Make sure to mark the box that says, “seizures”. We don’t know for sure that she had seizures, what the doctor told me was not an absolutely official diagnosis. But he said it certainly sounded like I was describing a seizure. I actually have not seen an episode since her eighteen-month checkup. I buckled her into her car seat and was about to back out of the parking spot at the doctor’s office right after that checkup. That was it. I told the doctor about them and they disappeared. I wish more medical things worked that way.
Anyway, the first rounds of the H1N1 vaccine were supposed to be administered on the 31st of October. I’m not worried about the swine flu, but if there is a vaccine and I have a kid in the *high risk* age range, you bet I’m going to get ready to stand in line for Sophia’s shot. I don’t care if I’m there all day. I printed out the form we have to fill out and marked that she has had seizures, just in case that is what those episodes were, so that she would get a shot of the dead virus and not the live virus nasal spray meant for those over the age of two.
I located the nearest vaccination clinic, and mapped out my route. I got ready for that day about a week and a half before hand and it was a good thing too. The next day I stayed up late and just happened to surf over to the local paper to see the headlines for Friday’s paper, the clinics were to open a week early for children under four years and pregnant women. This news came out only a day before the event. I knew with such short notice not everyone would get the news but I still planed to get there early and did. To our surprise, they actually opened early and we were in and out within fifteen minutes. After the event, the paper had reports of low turn out. I can’t imagine why, with only 24 hours notice. There were 17,000 doses available between nine sites and only 5,000 doses dispensed. Because of Sophia’s age, she needs two doses with four weeks between each dose and now there are no more mass vaccination clinics. Now it’s an appointment with the doctor…if they have any.
