We Said No to More Vaccines. Our Pediatrician Said Goodbye.

Hi everyone, one of our readers no longer has a pediatrician since her son's six-month checkup (the U5, one of the routine well-baby exams German kids get). She doesn't want to keep vaccinating him, and the practice doesn't want to keep treating them. We asked her how she sees vaccines for herself and for society as a whole, and why she decided to stop.

(Editor's note: The answers below are the personal views of one mom whose doctor wasn't willing to go down this road with her. Our own kids are vaccinated. But we're interested in what moves someone who sees it differently, what decisions like this are based on, and how a family deals with the fallout.)

Yesterday you took your son to his six-month checkup and were basically asked to leave the practice. What happened?

Yes, we had the checkup yesterday. I was honestly really looking forward to it. I was curious what they'd do and what the doctor would tell me about how he's developing, and so on. So we went, and once again we had a long wait in the waiting room. Well, you just accept that (although I still have the feeling we get treated differently).

A medical assistant, who by the way was very nice, came to get us for weighing and measuring. She also asked if I wanted an eye screening, which would cost 30 euros. Of course I said yes. Up to that point, everything was great.

And then?

Then the doctor came in, sat down, typed on her keyboard, and asked me right away why I'm behind on vaccines...

I answered: My husband and I have decided not to vaccinate our son any further, because it's just too much for us. Our son is super healthy, we're unvaccinated ourselves, and we don't want that. The only thing we'd like him to get is the chickenpox/rubella vaccine.

How did the doctor react?

She didn't agree, and her whole attitude changed immediately. She said my child could get life-threatening diseases, that they have a lot of patients in the practice, including cancer patients and infants, and that they couldn't justify my unvaccinated child possibly infecting the others. She said if I'm not going to vaccinate my son anymore, we shouldn't come back and would have to find another doctor, because she couldn't keep treating him. She said she'd give me some time to think it over.

The doctor said she couldn't justify my unvaccinated child infecting other people in the practice.

How did that feel?

I was angry, but at the same time I felt pity, and I thought it was ridiculous. I think a doctor should never say something like that. My gut tells me this isn't about the well-being of the child.

How did you react in the moment?

I just said: Then that's how it is. He's not getting vaccinated! Then she took one look at my son, at his belly and his genital area, turned him to the side, up and down, and that was it.

I still wanted to ask something about his bowel movements. She said: Pull up the photo, and I'll come back. Done. I got my answer... and she was gone. I stood there feeling like an idiot. I'd thought she might tell me a bit more about nutrition or teething..., but nothing came, and that's how the checkup ended. We were just brushed off, and they made sure we felt it. We're looking for a new doctor now. We'll see how it goes there.

Until now, had you felt well taken care of at the practice?

At first we thought: great practice, everyone's nice, and no long waits. Then vaccines came up, and they asked me four times, and every time I said no. At every visit after that, I could almost always count on waiting at least an hour, and the exams were short and over quickly. From the day we said we didn't want any more vaccines, we were treated differently right away. They only did the bare minimum.

How are the people around you reacting?

Some people are shocked that we got kicked out and think the way we do. The others side with the doctor.

Which vaccines did you hold off on?

My son got the six-in-one vaccine once back then, and the oral vaccine twice. Afterward he struggled with stomach pain, and that's when we knew: no more vaccines.
Now they wanted to give him the six-in-one two more times, plus two doses of pneumococcal, two of meningococcal B, and the RSV shot.

Why did you decide against these vaccines for your child? What did you base that decision on for yourself and your family?

We decided against them because it's simply way too much for us. We have a healthy child, his immune system is great. My husband and I were sick with the flu this winter and our son didn't even get a sniffle. Why should I vaccinate a healthy child so much? And then there were his stomach pains after the first vaccines. That's when I knew: No, absolutely no more. I don't believe in getting vaccinated against everything.

Are you rethinking it now, or are you officially Team Absolutely Not?

NO, there's nothing to reconsider.

Are you vaccinated yourself? Against what, and against what not?

Unfortunately, we both got one COVID shot, but otherwise we're completely unvaccinated. Back then it was coercion, and sadly we went along with it once. That won't happen to us again, and definitely not with our child.

Is there anything you'd like to add?

Everyone should decide for themselves what they do and don't do. I think it's an absolute outrage to try to force people to do something here. How can my child be such a danger to other people when they're all vaccinated a hundred times over? Yesterday I was reminded once again how much pressure there is from doctors, society, and politics.

How can it be that a doctor stops treating a mom and her child if they don't go along with everything? My gut feeling is that they use methods like this because they want to make a profit and earn money. Otherwise they'd handle it differently.

With vaccines, it really is about herd immunity. Vaccines help keep bigger outbreaks from happening, and you said yourself: How is my child supposed to catch anything when so many others are vaccinated? But that wouldn't be the case if everyone decided like you. How do you deal with the responsibility we all share as a society?

It's my opinion, like I said: Everyone has to decide for themselves. A human body should be able to build a good immune system, and that's important. It has to finally stop, the way unvaccinated people get shut out and pigeonholed. That can't be allowed. It doesn't make us bad people.
I've always rubbed people the wrong way, in school, at work, everywhere. I'm used to it. But what just happened is something I can't simply accept. I found it inhumane.