News

Anti-Vax Parents Literally Flip Off Doctors Who Suggested Their Son Get a Tetanus Shot

NewsPublished Nov 5, 2019
By Genny Glassman
Doctor administers vaccineiStock

A Facebook post made by two anti-vax parents is going viral -- and sparking a LOT of heated discussion online -- after they literally gave the finger to their son's doctor, who recommended the boy get a tetanus shot after falling at the playground. The parents clearly took offense to the recommendation, but are now getting dragged by the internet, where most people feel these anti-vax parents need a lesson of their own.

These stories are based on posts found on Reddit. Reddit is a user-generated social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website where registered members submit content to the site and can up- or down-vote the content. The accuracy and authenticity of each story cannot be confirmed by our staff.
The original post shows an image of the parents, who were *ahem* less than thrilled about their doctor's medical recommendation.-placeholder
The original post shows an image of the parents, who were *ahem* less than thrilled about their doctor's medical recommendation.
Reddit

The original post shows an image of the parents, who were *ahem* less than thrilled about their doctor's medical recommendation.

A screen grab of the Facebook post shows the couple wearing hospital gowns and rubber gloves -- as they each give a middle-finger salute to the camera.

"We were questioned about our vaccine choices," the post caption reads. 

After their doctor recommended a tetanus shot to treat their son's injury -- not once, not twice, but three times -- the parents still refused. 

"Six hours into our visit we were 'isolated' in a room with gowns and gloves so we don't 'infect' any of the immunocompromised patients," the caption continued. "[Eyeroll emoji] is our response." 

Oh, brother.

"Our bub is okay, had a little surgery and he is on the mend," the parents continued, added before looking for prayers to help their son's speedy recovery.

The Facebook post was later shared to Reddit, where people were seriously confused by the logic these parents were using.

"So you'll trust doctors for surgery and what not, but you think you know better when it comes to vaccines?" one commenter asked. "How?"

"So lemme get this right, they’ll let their child be anesthetized for surgery but they won’t let it have vaccines?" another person wondered. "Oof, some strong logic here."

But perhaps this person said it best when they asked, "Why even bother going to the hospital if they don't believe in medicine?"

In truth, the science isn't really up for debate -- vaccines save thousands of lives every single year.

And the risks of tetanus in particular aren't anything to ignore, either. The disease is caused by a bacterial toxin that affects your nervous system, leading to painful muscle contractions, particularly of your jaw and neck muscles. In some cases, it can even lead to death.

"Thanks to the tetanus vaccine, cases of tetanus are rare in the United States and other parts of the developed world," the Mayo Clinic reports. "But the disease remains a threat to those who aren't up to date on their vaccinations. It's more common in developing countries."

And the risk of not vaccinating at all not only opens the unvaccinated up for potential illness, but even threatens those who've received their immunizations. In fact, that's largely what's driven the measles epidemic that is spreading across the US.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the US has had 1,250 confirmed cases of measles in 2019 alone across 31 states, making it the largest outbreak since 1992. And the majority of these cases, it should be noted, came from people who were not vaccinated.

It's for this reason that many people on Reddit were straight-up angry with the parents for ignoring science.

"Imagine knowing the symptoms of tetanus and deciding that it's ok and worth the risk ... " one person wrote.

"I’m mom to one of those immunosuppressed kids," another woman wrote. "[expletive] you."

A third person had this to say about the situation: 

"They're actually mad that the doctors don't want their kids getting other people's kids sick just because they had to push their ridiculous beliefs and dangerous beliefs on their children. What a bunch of [expletive] heads. They don't care about their children or anyone else's."

In the end, the anti-vax movement may be alive and well in certain pockets of the US -- but judging by the feedback these parents are getting so far, it's fair to say that science may truly be winning in the end.

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