duffer

Time for a vaccination tomorrow morning, young son is 3 and a half years old now. It's the Prevenar 13. When he was younger we didn't have to tell him what we were doing and I could hold him down for the jab. That will be difficult now. I haven't told him, the plan was just to take him there and deal with any issues on the spot.

Does it hurt? Should I tell him in advance? Or just tomorrow morning outside the place? The mother will also be there but she won't be much help as she usually feints at the sight of needles!

Any advice welcomed.

Lorna at Vicenza

Give him a bit of advance warning about what is going to happen. Make a game of it tonight.
I don't think it really hurts, especially if the peadiatrician is quick and fast.
You could always give him a lollypop or something to suck on - they only get a sticker here.
My kids didn't cry but Alex did flinch a little and blinked his eyes a few times. He forgot about it all straight afterwards.
They tell you to wait for 10 minutes afterwards before going home and hopefully there'll be a few toys and books in the waiting area.
Don't forget to take his vaccine card and libretto sanitario.

Some kids scream their heads off but I think some mothers pass their tension and anxiety to their kids. The more matter of fact you are, the more the kid is likely to be.

HADENOUGHPIZZA

I am ashamed to say that I feel faint at the sight of needles too .. its getting worse as I get older to the point where I got my husband to take one of ours in for a tetanus booster . I would say to tell him when you get there , say it will be over quickly and not too pianful and praise his courage to the skies when its over. He may not be as anxious as you are

37100

Yes, you tell him. Don't tell him you are going to the doctors. If you haven't already, start taking him to the dentist with you.

Lorna at Vicenza

Unless you're shit scared of the dentist. You don't want to pass that fear onto Brando.
Luckily I'm not scared of needles or dentists and neither are my kids - which is a good thing considering that Alex has been at the dentist every 15 days or so to get that brace/wire thing tightened.

37100

Not if. If it was anyone else I'd say that he'll just have to suck it up, but I'm not saying that to Duffer. How many times have we lied through our teeth at our kids in order to get their co-operation?

duffer

OK, thanks. So I might tell him tonight maybe, using the toy syringe from his doctor's kit.

He hasn't yet been to the dentist but knows about it from watching Peppa Pig and Mr Bean (the episode where Mr Bean accidently stabs the dentist with his own needle).

Stellina

What is the Prevenar 13 jab? I'm pretty sure it's not on the list of vaccinations we got from the ASL here in Florence.

duffer

I don't have the letter at hand but it's something in addition to a vaccine that children have had when they were younger. The 13 indicates that it covers 13 different things instead of 7 that the earlier vaccine covered. I'll try and advise once I've found the letter.

The OH is saying she doesn't want to tell Brando tonight about the injection on the basis that he gets upset whenever we mention he needs to go to hospitals and doctors. He's not a sick kid at all, just whenever a visit to his pediatra is required, he starts screaming. Hence the reason I got him a play doctors medical kit.

Stellina

Thanks Duffer, I'd be interested to know what the vaccine is. We were told that after the vaccines of the 1st year they don't need anything until 6.
I don't tell my little boy that we're going to the drs, I just say we have to go and visit Mr M in his office. He knows about doctors, what they do etc. just doesn't know that Mr M is one

duffer

I don't know this Mr M.

This tells you a little about the vaccine -
http://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/medi...n/#PRODUCTINFO

Stellina

Mr Mannori is our doctor! Thanks for the link.

LivingHere

I always told my children where we were going. The nurse was always so fast that by the time it had registered that it hurt she was done. Until the MMR booster (aged about 6) I always had the child on my knee so that they were cuddled all the way through.
They will probably want to inject him in the arm rather than the leg.

duffer

So far we haven't mentioned it to him but will do so tomorrow morning before departing for the ULSS centre because he'll know something is up anyway as everything will be different to his normal routine.

It should be in his arm, so at least I can place him on my lap and prevent him from seeing the needle stab him.

Twinkle Canelli

I had to take my daughter for a vaccination for the first time since she was tiny - and for the first time in Italy. I faint at the sight of needles and blood (and at the dentists) and have done since I was 18 months old, but have done my best not to pass it on to my children. Having said that, she was worried sick for days before, and I starting feeling woozy as soon as we got there. Then just as the doc was about to give her the jab and I thought I was going to faint my daughter started screaming loudly and saying she wasn't having it. Both the doctor and myself pinned her down on the couch and he gave it to her really quickly.... and when it was all over she told me that she wasn't really worried about it at all, but thought I would feel better if I felt I had to do something to help her! Sometimes I wonder who is the adult and who is the child!!!!