Yo, Cut ’em Some Slack

Like many of you, dear readers, I am a woman with strong convictions and opinions on a variety of topics. These are generally based on intuition, research, or both. The former can be a bit challenging to express, since innate knowing doesn’t always come with language. It’s a gift, and those of us who are blessed with it often have to say “because I just know.”

We are each on our own journey and the appropriate and kind thing to do is to respect each other’s beliefs and decisions. While I may make completely different choices for myself and my family, what you choose to do is your own business. In my world, the one exception here is if your choices are having a direct negative or disruptive impact on someone else (like me or the general population– think Monsanto, enough said).

What’s not OK is to play judge and jury, condemning others over their often-agonizing decisions to do what they believe is best, particularly when those choices aren’t in alignment with our own. A very clear of example of this surfaced a couple of days ago.

A television star was being interviewed and the subject of her pregnancy came up in conversation. The interviewer made a snide remark about mothers who choose not to immunize their children. Then the mother-to-be mentioned that she and her husband, also concerned about the possible safety and negative side effects of what has become a very aggressive vaccination schedule, had made a similar choice.

Whoa! What a radical idea. Suddenly this woman, who had made her decision based on a great deal of research and reflection, became a pariah. Quickly, social media was ablaze with name-calling and vile comments by those who held an opposing point of view. The polarization was clearly apparent.

This is a topic of interest to me personally, which is why it undoubtedly caught my attention. While I don’t oppose the idea of vaccines in theory, the current system and schedule does not, in my opinion, serve the masses. The vaccines contain things like mercury, formaldehyde, aluminum, adjuvants and a variety of unsavory ingredients which have a tendency to build up in the developing body of a child. Add to that the excessive number of shots given in a concentrated period of time and I’m not surprised that some parents would be concerned or question the status quo. According to the official CDC website (http://www.cdc.gov), the recommended schedule of vaccinations calls for a baby to receive at least 18 shots before their 7th month of life. The schedule requires administration of six different vaccines in one doctor visit at the age of 2 months! That’s a lot more than we received when we were growing up, and starting at a much earlier age.

One of my concerns is the lack of adequate oversight of this profit-driven industry. As we have seen many times before, it is all too easy for those in power to establish rules self-serving to their interests, and to put safety at too low a priority. In this case, in the US we actually do have a mechanism set up for reporting vaccine-related injuries and for receiving compensation. The reporting system is called “Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System” (VAERS) with remedies made available through the “National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.” Unfortunately, in many cases, the damage is irreversible and no amount of money can be enough. You might ask yourself why these programs would even be in existence if vaccines really were as safe as they are claimed to be.

Legal liability for damages due to negligence can help keep programs safe, but in the case of vaccines, the pharmaceutical companies have lobbied their way into an exemption from liability. Their power over the legal system is alarming.

I can share with you heartbreaking stories of family and friends whose loved ones have been adversely affected by adhering to the status quo and following the government’s vaccination protocol. Does a developing baby really need ALL those shots? The body is a miraculous creation. And when it is given the raw material (nutrients) it needs, it has the ability to support health and balance. That’s how Mother Nature designed us.

Having said that, all I’m really suggesting is that everyone should think carefully about their actions. Don’t believe anything anyone tells you, including me. Do your own research.

So why do people attack others simply for expressing their opinions? Can’t we accept that views and beliefs differ and that that’s really a good thing? Can’t we stop the name-calling and acknowledge that we are all doing the best we can with the information we have? I pray that we will.