February 26, 2019 (Tuesday)
Like so many of my friends, I can remember events from my childhood but I forget recent events very easily. Yesterday I wrote about something that happened during my early years, so I thought I might reminisce a while about the diseases that most children contracted as they grew up.
As far as I know, the first vaccination I got was for smallpox and I got that almost immediately upon starting to school. I still remember how we kids compared our scars. Many years later, as an adult, I received the polio vaccine. As an adult I was vaccinated for Pneumonia, I think more than once. And, like many of you, received flu shots. Most childhood illnesses were expected to occur and when they ran their course, those affected were immune and not expected to be bothered again.
I can remember some of those contagious diseases. I’m pretty sure I had most, if not all, of the common childhood diseases. I had Measles, Mumps, Chickenpox, Otitis, Whooping cough, Croup, Impetigo, Hayfever, and Asthma. Fever was treated with Quinine, and Impetigo with Gentian Violet (I remember several of us cousins had purple chins for a while). Colds were treated with lots of Vicks Salve. Bad teeth were pulled. I had bad tonsils and adenoids, and they were surgically removed. The ear problems were persistent and bad spells came often. The first relief I ever got was an Anacin tablet. It really helped. I went to doctors for allergies, but was not helped much; the first real relief I got for Asthma was when a girl in college told me of her “Asthma Nefrin nebulizer.” I bought one immediately and depended on it for relief for years until inhalers came onto the market.
On the day I had the tonsil surgery, my grandfather and I got up early and rode the bus across town, then walked to the clinic. That afternoon, when I was released, we walked to the bus stop and took the bus back across town. What impressed me the most was the Pepsi that they gave me when I became conscious after the surgery.
I never had Influenza as a child, but Wanda, our two children at the time, and I all came down with it at the same time in 1957. We were all terribly ill.
Wanda had several hip surgeries and her parents thought she may have had a light case of polio as a child. As a teen, she did have severe pain from time to time and we thought later it may have been early signs of Ovarian Cancer, for which she had surgery and treatments in 1979.
It was not a contagious disease, but I did break my collarbone (clavicle) at the age of 5. I wore a brace until it healed.
As best as I can recall, all our children received all the vaccinations recommended by the medical establishment. Today, many people oppose this practice. A controversy exists among parents, and will probably continue to exist. I suppose the future will give us more usable data on this matter.