When your baby is under the weather, it can be the absolute worst. You feel utterly helpless, and all you want to do is help your little one.
If the infant has a serious illness, it's even more upsetting. Alecia Rankin, who lives in Tennessee, was really scared when her 7-week-old baby niece was hospitalized for a rare bacterial disease called HIB flu.
According to the CDC, "Haemophilus influenzae is a type of bacteria that can cause infections in people of all ages ranging from mild, such as an ear infection, to severe, such as a bloodstream infection."
They also explain that the disease occurs mostly in babies and children younger than 5.
When baby Aryn came down with HIB, her whole family was terrified for her health. Luckily, she's OK, but her aunt Alecia shared a photo of the tiny girl on Facebook to beg parents to vaccinate their children.
[H/T: Romper]
On December 3, 2017, Alecia shared her message on Facebook, and it immediately got a lot of attention.
Within 10 days, the post had over 9,200 reactions and over 17,000 shares.
Alecia wrote:
Reason #1736493983283763 to vaccinate your kids? My 7 week old niece has HIB flu.
So rare that her doctor hasn’t seen it in her career because this bacteria caused by HIB flu was all but eradicated by vaccines
The first being the one babies get at 2 months, which she hasn’t gotten yet.
So before you decide not to vaccinate your children because “it’s your choice” and “those who are vaccinated won’t be affected” remember that babies can get sick before they have the chance to get their vaccine.
*Tomorrow we will know the results of the spinal tap for meningitis.
Hopefully this was caught early enough for it to be negative.
And although it’s named HIB flu, it’s not a type of influenza.
The HIB virus caused a bacterial infection in her blood.
*Update: Aryn got to go home today and thankfully is doing well.
Our family appreciates the well wishes, thoughts and prayers.
Although her post stirred up some controversy, many people supported Alecia's message.
One woman wrote: "This is literally the exact reason I told you I vaccinate. This crap scares me."
Another woman wrote: "My son got HIB in first grade. Four days in the hospital with pneumonia which is one of the many things HIB can do. Meningitis being another. We had just gotten back from Disney world. Yep! Agree with everything you said. We were so angry."
Another woman wrote: "I hope your little one gets well soon. I made the choice to vaccinate my little one and Thank goodness hes only been sick twice with a congested cold. Thats it. I understand its a personal choice for each individual to do what they think is appropriate for their children but its better to be on the safe side. Best wishes for your family."
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