If I can change my mind about long-held beliefs, anyone can! My kids just received their first vaccines ever (MMR and Tdap) at the ages of 19 and 20. Why? Because when they were born, the anti-vax movement was gaining momentum and nearly every person in my world at that time was convinced that vaccines were more harmful than beneficial.

People I trusted gave me books to read about the dangers of vaccines and, being the reader I am, I gladly accepted them. As a result, I chose not to vaccinate my kids. I’m grateful that my kids grew up with relatively few sick days and zero ear infections. I even traveled to Peru with them when they were young and they were lucky to not catch anything.

A few years ago, I began to re-examine many of the things I’ve believed throughout my life. One of those things was vaccinations. After many months of learning and contemplation, I came to the conclusion that my kids needed some vaccines. There will be a few more to come, but I’m glad we got started.

I share this because it’s important for all of us to self-reflect and question or challenge our own beliefs from time to time. We might find that we’re still operating on misinformation and that it’s time to update our worldview or perspective.

It’s never too late to vaccinate. A big shout-out to the folks at the pharmacy in Safeway for helping us get this done. They were helpful, caring and informative.