Gardasil: It is not all it is cracked up to be

Yesterday while folding laundry a commercial for Gardasil came on and has really lit a fire in me. This sweet looking teen says, because she wants to be one less facing cervical cancer she is going to get the Gardasil vaccine. Here I am taking deep, deep breaths before I continue...I will not rant, I will not babble.

First of all if we are really worried about cervical cancer how about we just don't have sex outside of marriage. 99% of cervical cancer cases comes from sexual intercourse. Now you may say, but I am only sleeping with my girlfriend or boyfriend. Well that may be, but who have they slept with before you? Remember you are never sleeping with just one person you are sleeping with everyone they have slept with. Having sex with one or multiple partners makes you susceptible to HPV. HPV is the leading cause of cervical cancer as I said earlier, 99% of the cases! But wait the heavens have opened, the angels are singing and there is Gardasil.

I can't tell you how many times I have given the abstinence talk and the girls are always quick to point out that STDS are not as bad as I make them out to be, because they have the Gardasil vaccine. Oh I did not realize it protected you from broken hearts, emotional scarring pregnancy, and herpes ...wow what a drug! So what does it do? Well for starters it protects you from 2 types of HPV. There are over 100 strains. You know each year when you get the flu shot and you hope you are getting the right one? Or how many times have you gotten the flu shot or known someone who did but they or you still get the flu? Gardasil claims it can protect you from 70% of the cases; are you willing to risk your life for the other 30%. I am really not a gambler, but 30% seems awfully high to me.

In an article dated June of 2008 http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=68454 I read of the death toll associated with the Gardasil vaccine. Sure 20 deaths and 140 serious complications seems low when you think of how many vaccines have been administered, but 1 death would be too many for me when it comes to giving this to my daughter. What about the side effects? Seizures, blood clots, Bells Palsy and Gullain-Barre Syndrome. Why would I put my daughter at risk for these side effects, when the same if not better results come from good old boring abstinence?

I am sick of hearing that abstinence does not work. That's funny I know for a fact that you will not get pregnant if you are living a life of abstinence. And the odds of you getting cervical cancer are less than one percent. So the next time you see a Gardasil commercial and the cute teenager says she is going to be one less, think of me yelling at my TV, "Sure you can be one less, STOP having sex!"

I hear wedding bells

My six year old, Caroline, has informed me that she has a boyfriend that she intends to marry. Which is not for another 20 years, as she understands the rules of our house. Last night as I was tucking her into bed she looked around her room and decided that the young man would probably like her room when they are married, after all she herself selected the "bath blue" color. She was worried that the room may still be a little too "girly" for him. I took a deep breath and explained that when she is 30 and married it is okay with me for her to get her own house. She thought this was a good idea, although she had slight concerns about our puppy and who would get to keep her. (no, I did not even go there with her)
I did ask her if the young man in question was aware he was her boyfriend. She looked at me and said, "of course not, if he knew then he probably would not be my boyfriend!" How I wish she could stay this innocent forever.

Lucky number 13!

Well it has been 13 days since hurricane Gustave hit Louisiana and today I got my power back! I am overjoyed. I run from room to room turning on lights because I can! We bought a generator the day before the storm (thank God!), we named her Charlene. I don't think we could have survived without Charlene. Without any TV and only local radio talking about where we could get supplies and when we should have power, I was not able to keep up with much national news. However I did get to see Gov. Palin talk at the Republican National Convention. WOW what a person to look up to! When we heard the news that her daughter, Bristol was pregnant my husband asked me what I thought.
I thought how sad that at 17 she has to go through such an adult situation. With the additional complication of having her mother, run for the second highest office in the country. As if her initial humiliation was not enough, now to have the entire country in her business yikes! But here is the part I love. I loved Sarah Palin's response. That she was saddened that her daughter is going to have to rush into adulthood, but that what her daughter needed at this time is her unconditional support and love.
I think when my husband asked me my opinion he was waiting for me to judge her. I thought it is not for me to judge. I didn't stop friendships along the way, because a friend was sexually active. Those are personal choices that people make. My goal is to be there for the younger generation hopefully before they make the difficult choice of having sex, and if I arrive there too late to guide them, then I can help them decide to go back to my way. Get tested for every STD in the book and start living a life with fewer regrets.
Maybe it may seem a little hypocritical of me...I remember one of my first blogs about Jamie Lynn Spears and her baby. I was awfully harsh. But in a society where girls and boys for that matter are pushed to think that sex is no big deal with little consequences I found it predictable that Jamie Lynn would find herself in that position. She is in an industry where "child stars" are unfortunately pushed to grow up too fast. It seems everyone is parenting them except their own parents. In this situation, I feel like Bristol Palin reflects much of what is happening in our "average teenager's" life. Falling in love and having sex well before we are ready, simply because we are not aware of the consequences or that the consequences will never happen to them. All I know is that I if I am ever confronted with this situation I too can remember to show my daughters my unconditional love and support as I would for anyone else.

OHHH Gustav!!!!!!!!!!

Well Gustav has not been kind to Louisiana. Thanks to our good friends, the Thomas' we have escaped to Houston. We don't have power at home and our neighborhood looks like a war zone. We are hearing it could take up to 4 weeks to have power restored! (yuck). I will start blogging regularly as soon as I am able. Until then pray for all of those who have to rebuild after the storm, and Pray that IKE stays out of the Gulf of Mexico!