Day 7 at CHOP was probably the hardest day yet. Not because Dillon is declining, not because he had a bunch of test or even surgery. Today was hard because of a Dr. Paul Offit. Here's how it happened:
When the doctors did the scope on Dillon they took samples directly from his lungs to culture and see what bacteria was in there. The results were positive for several things; including staph, e coli, something that is often immunized against, and something the attending didn't even know what it was. No one knows how he got these bcteria in his lungs. The doctors contacted ID doctors (Infectious disease) to make sure the two antibiotics Dillon is on are enough to kill all these bacteria.
The ID fellow came in and talked with me about how they wanted to stop all antibiotics since he is so good clinically and does not seem to be reacting at all. She said they think his plastic bronchitis was because he is not immunized. She wondered why we do not immunize him and if I immunize my other children. I told her how I knew of someone who had a son with brain damage and it was made worse - both clinically and on a brain MRI - after an immunization. I also told her how Truett went from smiling and sitting up on his own to staring right through us, not smiling, took over a month to start to sit again, and how his hand shook and he couldn't find his mouth to feed himself snacks anymore after an immunization.
She told me to ask her attending if I have any questions since he knows all about vaccines and dedicated his life towards them. I didn't say much since I didn't feel I have any questions. I am comfortable with our decisions.
After she left I knew they were going to keep pushing the vaccine thing so I started to do some research again to pass the time. My mother in law sent me an article that someone "just so happened" to send to her this morning on Hep B vaccines. I posted a quote on my facebook and some friends and I started talking. A friend "just so happened" to send me a link that had resources about what is in vaccines and the effects of them. I "just so happened" to find a link on there for a video that I watched.
The video was from CBS news questioning how independent are these groups that claim to unbiasedly test vaccines to know if they are safe. CBS found that the American Academy of Paediatrics takes hundreds of thousands, even millions, of dollars from the drug companies that make the vaccines. One company even funded their headquarters!
There was one doctor named that was well known to advocate for the vaccines. He is from... you guessed it... Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. He sits on a board here that is funded by a drug company in the amount of 1.5 million dollars! He owns a patient for a vaccine that the royalties sold for 185 million. CHOP made about 150 million off of it and the doctor made somewhere around 6+ million (according to other articles I was reading). This doctor was also quoted to have claimed that it is safe for a baby to be given 10,000 vaccines at once!
Please watch the video - to see for yourself and to make sure the terms I used were all correct. The video can be seen here: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/07/25/cbsnews_investigates/main4296175.shtml
After watching this video I couldn't believe what I heard. I thought to myself - humm I wonder if I could find this guy here and ask if he would be willing to get 10,000 vaccines at once so I could see that it really is safe.
About 20 minutes later, guess who walked into Dillon's room. THAT same doctor, Dr. Paul Offit! As soon as he said his name I knew who he was. He said again how they don't want to treat him with antibiotics and then started right into vaccination speech.
He told me that I am "putting him in danger by not immunizing him." I knew I would not be able to talk with him so I said You can leave. I also told him that I don't need a doctor to come tell me I am putting my son in danger when everyone is surprised at how healthy he is, how he coughed up the mucus plugs that healthy children can't cough up, how his lungs looked better than they thought. I told him I just saw a video about him. Again I told them they needed to leave the room. I followed them out of the room and Dillon's nurse and I both heard him say in the hallway "Well, that was fun."
I then told his nurse what just happened as I was shaking. A social worker was just bringing me some meal vouchers and I told her that something just happened so she told me that she would probably get a page to come talk with me so we chatted for a few minutes. I also asked the attending from the floor to come in so I could explain why I told this doctor to get out.
One thing I can't quite figure out: If I "put him in so much danger" by not immunizing him and that is what supposedly caused this bronchitis... why did he want to stop treatments? Why did my attending seemed shocked when I told her he wanted to stop the antibiotics and had to go get him to sign off that she CAN continue to treat him?
I was shaking for a while and felt terrible! I never told a doctor to get out of my room before. But I will not have a man, who is basically a politician being paid to push an agenda, tell me that I am putting my son in danger! He knows nothing about me, Dillon or what we do for Dillon. I do not believe I am putting him in danger by not injecting him with 55 vaccines that contain mercury, formaldehyde, anti-freeze, animal feces, animal blood products, etc. in them.
Dillon is extremely healthy for how severely disabled he is and I will not have a doctor tell me I am putting him in danger! How dare this doctor try to bully me into doing what he wanted! Attack me as a parent when all I want is to treat my son as naturally as possible to preserve his liver and kidneys so he can have a long healthy life.
There is a lot of info on Dr. Paul Offit if you google him. Some good, some not so much. I understand he is working to try to make kids healthier. I don't doubt his intentions are probably good. I do question at what point does money skew your view? How much money does it take? Dr. Paul Offit claims money, even his 6+ million hasn't skewed his position. Maybe he just has poor bedside manner to talk to parents like this. I'm not sure, what I am sure of is Dr. Paul Offit won't be seeing my son again.
14 comments:
Hey Tiff,
I've seen you grow so much through these past several years with Dillon. God continues to mold you through difficulties.
Praise the Lord Dillon has a Mommy and Daddy who stand firmly on what you believe, who are his faithful advocates, and who do what you believe is best for him. There is no one else to speak up for him. He can't. So God gave him wonderful, understanding, loving parents like you & Josiah.
I'm so thankful for your love for him, and protection of him. I'm thankful that you study things out and are knowledgeable on many healthcare issues.
And if I had been in your place, I would've been shaking too. From head to toe. And I think that the reason you were shaking was not so much from outrage as it must've been from that confrontation. What a scary moment! I am glad to see you were able to stand your ground, and graciously ask the doctor to leave the room.
You're Dillon's Mommy and you know him way better than that doctor. I'll continue to pray for God to give you His grace and wisdom as you care for this precious little boy.
You know what, I am going to delete the posts b/c I think the problem is just that we don't know each other well enough to know what each other meant.
Obviously you're entitled to your opinion, and I was just sharing mine. People that I don't know comment on my blog and make statements that I don't always fully agree with, but its the fun of having a public blog. You're right, I haven't spoken to you in awhile and I don't know you that well, but mostly because of how you portray yourself on your blog. You're not really the type of person I want to get to know better. I haven't been through here in awhile because your negativity really brings me down and I've never made a comment, but today I did. Its apparent that you don't handle criticism or different opinions well.
As far as Dillon's life being on the line, that is a decision that is between you and God and I'm grateful that I don't face that choice in my life, but if I did, I hope I'd go about it differently.
You do what's right for you. It is a free country after all.
And as far as deleting comments, its your call, its your blog.
Have a good day. ;)
Tiffany,
Wow I can not believe the audacity of that Doctor. Not many people have the true knowledge, or "desire" to have the true knowledge about vaccines. I give you a standing ovation for not being another victim. Many are just lost sheep being herded around in the political "health care" system. You are a very smart and brave mother trying to care for your children. We will continue to pray for Dillon and your family.
I have been praying for Dillon and your family for a couple of years now. I first started following your blog and praying for you because Hannah is a friend of my son. I just want to say good job! I believe God gave you Dillon because he knew you would have the wisdom form Him to make the best decisions for Dillon. You just keep doing what you know is best and don't listen to the critics. I am very proud of the way you handled the doctor. My children haven't been immunized and they are so much healthier than a lot of other kids their age. At ages 20 & 21 they have have very few common colds and nothing serious at all. Praying for you all. Keep up the good work!
Hi Tiff,
Being a Mommy is a big job. As Dillon's Grandma I so appreciate your love for Dillon and stick-to-itivenss in helping Dillon. I know you and Josiah have faced so many storms with our dear precious Dillon. I'm so thankful to see you both growing and coming through the storms stronger and closer to God.
Confrontations are always scary but God has something for us to learn from them. Vacinations and medications in general are huge debatable issues. The video you mentioned was very interesting. As a nurse, I've given so many "meds" that have now been taken off the "ok" list as they were dangerous. Many more are presently on the "iffy" list. Vaccinations have helped in many ways and caused problems in many ways. This is where James 1:5 in asking God for wisdom is so important. Without God in the mix we would be at a loss.
On Monday we had a ladies meeting at church and a friend spoke on storms. It was so good that I want to share a little bit here.
1)The storms of life will come no matter how close our walk or deep our devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. None in Matt. 14:22-33 were closer to the Lord than those who were constrained to get into the ship that night. Only our closeness to the Lord will help bring victory over the storms. We face storms largely because we have an enemy that seeks to destroy us. I Peter 5:8
2) The storms of life will come no matter how successful we seem to be in our walk for the Lord. Such as with Elijah (I Kings 19:1-3), Paul, Peter, John, etc. The greatest storms seem to follow the greatest success. The storms humble us before God. If we didn't have them, we would think there were no more battles to fight and we would become complacent.
3) The storms of life teach us that Jesus is never far away. Often we do all we can to calm the storm ourselves but we need to look to God. Isaiah 43:2; Ps. 139:7-10; Heb. 13:5
4) The storms of life teach us that impassable storms mean victory when we trust in Christ. Did the disciples ask for the storm to stop? No, Peter asked the impossible Mt. 14:28 to walk on the water. Peter walked on the water and only sank when he took his eyes off Jesus. There are lots of Bible examples of this-David and Goliath; the 3 men in the fiery furnace, Daniel in the lion's den, etc.
5) Victory in the storms of life give us confidence to face the next one.
This has been long but it was a blessing to me to review it as I wrote it. I hope it is a blessing to you too.
Give Dillon a big hug from me.
Much love and prayers, Mom K.
Hi Tiffany, I wish you the best with your little family.
Concerning Dr Offit and the rotavirus vaccine. He began developing it as a young paediatrician after watching a young patient of his die from rotavirus and deciding that didn't need to happen anywhere in the world .
In 1986 when my second son was 3, he contracted rotavirus. It was the scariest time of my life watching him lying there in hospital motionless hooked up to drips and monitors. I'm sure he would have died if medical help had not been available. I was so grateful when I heard a vaccine had been developed although I didn't know it was Dr Offit until about 12 months ago.
I am also a Christian and I believe God gave these men and women the skills to help mankind. I am old enough to remember polio epidemics and the introduction of the Salk vaccine. My grandmother was crippled with polio when she was 2. My mother nearly died of diphtheria when she was about 7.
So that is 3 now vaccine preventable diseases that have affected my family. I am thankful we didn't have to suffer from any more because of medical research.
You and your family are an amazing encouragement! You have been through so much from your first year of marriage and still going. You have leaned on the Lord and He continues to carry you through. Blogging about your "unique opportunity" as you call it, is an awesome way to teach others about so many things. Not just the medical side of things, but also the spiritual. You care for your son the way God has prepared you to. Negative or not, you telling exactly what you're going through and it's affects on your life and family. I'm glad I "stumbled" upon your blog today. Thank you for sharing and teaching me to lean on Him and to live every day for Him.
I'd be angry too knowing a mere man can do what your god cannot.
A man who loves, where your god hates. A man who saves, where your god kills. A man who persists once your god has left you in pain.
How sad for your child.
Wow – this blog sure got a lot of attention! I just want to reply to people a little bit.
Emily – I am sorry if I misunderstood what you meant by your comment. I assumed the worst in you, please forgive me for that.
Joh – Thanks again for all your support and your phone call! I miss you guys and can’t wait to see you again soon!
Jody – Thank you too for your support and encouragement.
Lori – I didn’t even know you follow my blog – thank you for letting me know that you follow my blog.
Mom – Thank you for that devotional. That was great. It is so true but of course it is so hard to remember that in the middle of the trials. It is always easier near the end or at the end to look back and see God’s hand in ways we couldn’t when we were going through it.
Nutralady – As I said in my blog – I am sure Dr. Offit’s intentions are good. I also told the doctors here on the floor the same thing. I told them if there was one or two that they really thought would help him I would consider it. I think 55 by the age of 6 in a severely brain injured boy is too much. I know there is a time and a place for vaccines. My second son is fully vaccinated. My third son had a bad reaction so we stopped his until he is bigger and we plan to wait till our daughter is bigger to start hers. I had asked the doctors if the vaccination would have made any difference in my son’s case and they clearly said no. I don’t think a doctor needs to tell you that you are putting your child in danger, when in truth that vaccine would not have made any difference at all in his case. And Dr. Offit didn’t feel Dillon was in any danger b/c he advised to stop treatment and my Attending had to go back and get him to allow her to treat Dillon. He said everyone has ecoli – but not everyone has it in their lungs! She seemed completely shocked that he said to stop treatment (which was before I asked him to leave). Maybe he didn’t see enough of the chart to know the ecoli was directly taken from his lungs! I don’t know. I just want you to understand that I would have told a doctor to leave for speaking like that even if it was over something other than vaccines. I don’t think a doctor who has never met me or my son before and probably looked at his chart for less than 5 minutes should ever talk like that to a Mom. He doesn’t know the great lengths we have gone through to help our son. He doesn’t know that we took him to China for umbilical cord stem cells to try to help him. He doesn’t know that while I let main stream medicine help him, Dillon was here at the hospital every other month for aspirations and had to stay here a week each time. He doesn’t know that since I started treating him naturally it has been around 3 years since the last time he had to be in the hospital for pneumonia. My Attending said doctors try to scare you and take a “tough love” approach to make you do what they want you to. As I told her, I would think giving parents information would be a better way to try to get them to agree with you rather than insulting and using fear.
Shales – Thank you for your kind note. I will have to visit your blog so I can get to know you a little more too!
Firesnake – My God does not hate or kill. God has saved my son’s life over and over again. After my son was born and it became clear how disabled he was, I was angry at God because I wanted God to do things my way and heal my son. But then I was willing to ask God to use me and my son to show others His love. God never walked away from me – not even when I was angry at Him! He waited for me to turn my heart around. I asked God for a long time to heal my boy, but I was finally willing to let God show me His plan. God has done so many miracles in my little boy! Man has not saved him, God has! They thought Dillon had a blood infection yesterday and people all across the country started praying. Before the first dose of antibiotic was even given his nurse said how much better he was. When he was in the NICU the doctors didn’t think he would live - they had pretty much given up hope of being able to help him… yet he is here 5.5 years later. God allows horrible things, like my son’s birth injury, because he is gracious! How does that make sense? I heard it stated this way – if God stopped all sickness, injuries, illness, etc. he would have to stop all sin. If he stopped all sin he would have to stop all sinners. He would have to wipe out mandkind! He is being gracious in not doing so because he wants more people to love Jesus Christ and accept his own life’s blood as payment for their sin. God has used my son to help many people open their heart to what Jesus Christ did for them. His life is only sad if people reject the God that allowed him this great opportunity to share with them. Even you Firesnake – have now heard about God’s great love in dying on the cross for you because of Dillon’s life. If you choose to ignore this, and scorn God – that is when his life is sad.
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