Do shots hurt babies?

haileygrishy · July 2012

Do shots hurt babies, like hurt hurt, or do they cry just because they weren't expecting it?

anonsouthernbell · July 2012

some hurt, hurt like Pc & MMR

tokenhoser · July 2012

My doctors says some are worse than others. Some do burn a bit.

But know what else hurts? Getting tetanus. Or whooping cough. Or chicken pox.

00jennifer00 · July 2012

You don't have to blast her for asking a question.

Anytime you penetrate the skin, it's going to hurt. They say that babies might have even more nerve endings than we do.

hey_little_bird · July 2012

i'm going to judge by my daughter's reaction that it hurts a lot.

i know when i got the TDap, my arm was sore for several days, like someone punched me. however, in the days following her 2-month shots she didn't act like her legs were sore, so maybe it wasn't so bad after the fact.

kkfeb04 · July 2012

hey_little_bird:
i'm going to judge by my daughter's reaction that it hurts a lot.
i know when i got the TDap, my arm was sore for several days, like someone punched me. however, in the days following her 2-month shots she didn't act like her legs were sore, so maybe it wasn't so bad after the fact.

My daughter didn't cry at her shots. So if I use her, I would say no they don't hurt. My son screams bloody murder though. The benefits of the shots far outweigh the risks of not getting them. The minute of pain is well worth it.

haileygrishy · July 2012

I know, i was just wondering whether there have been studies on whether it actually hurts them or not. does anybody know what can make then not hurt / hurt less?

erniebufflo · July 2012

Have you never had an injection? They feel like we feel. The needle going in is a pinch, but often the medicine being injected really burns, and you can be sore after. Many moms BF after injections, but recent studies also show the 5 S's (swaddling, swinging/swaying, shushing, sucking, and side-lying) are very effective at relieving infant pain related to vaccines, and could be used with or without nursing.

00jennifer00 · July 2012

We vax'd our oldest for the first 2y, and when we did, aside from the first time, I demanded to hold and nurse him during the shots. Some nurses would absolutely flip out, but after a while, they knew just to schedule us with the only nurse in the place that thought it was a good idea. It seemed to help him a lot.

haileygrishy · July 2012

erniebufflo:
Have you never had an injection? They feel like we feel. The needle going in is a pinch, but often the medicine being injected really burns, and you can be sore after. Many moms BF after injections, but recent studies also show the 5 S's (swaddling, swinging/swaying, shushing, sucking, and side-lying) are very effective at relieving infant pain related to vaccines, and could be used with or without nursing.

thank you for that link!

nosoup4u · July 2012

Our old docor's office let me hold DS1 during shots, but he was teeny. I think we moved him to the examination table by the time he was six months or so. I've always nursed them the second they're done with them. Some shots leave sore spots for a few days, too.

The worst part of parenting is knowing your kid is in pain, I totally get it. But the pain of shots doesn't last forever, luckily. hth

kacelle · July 2012

At DD's first couple of appointments, she screamed her little head off when she got shots (although the heel pricks were way worse). Then I started holding her during vaccinations (starting at 4 months) and distracting her, and it was no big deal. We switched to another doctor in the practice and he brings her books and rattles and things to play with and take home that keep her preoccupied!

TiffanyBerry · July 2012

At 2yrs, i still hold my daughter when she gets shots. I offer to nurse, but she doesn't always go for it.

easjer05 · July 2012

Yeah, some more than others (tetanus can leave you sore for a few days). I will say that DD got 5 shots (instead of the 2 we expected, because the office was out of the combined vax), and the nurse was great at getting through it quickly. I thought she was going to be a wreck with 5 sticks, but she cried more for her heel prick with the newborn test than the shots. She cried her loud 'I am VERY upset with this situation' cry, and we snuggled her and she stopped. She got a bottle as soon as we got to the car and she was fine.

katiewhompus · July 2012

I would imagine they do. I still haven't felt a shot as painful as Rhogam though. It makes me want to be one and done.

Jena503 · July 2012

They certainly seem to hurt my kids. I nursed them immediately afterwards. DS seems less sensitive to them than DD was. We also go pay the bill while the nurse gets the shots ready so we can leave immediately. That means they also get their lollipop and sticker before the shots, which has been a very good distraction as they've gotten older.

My MIL (a nurse), told me she had read a study about sugar and other distractions during shots help lessen the kids' reactions to the shots (reactions = cyring and screaming, not a physical reaction to the medication). Pretty sure the study was on older kids and the distraction they used was video games.

Wow, I never knew that some doctor's don't let you hold your baby during shots. I have never considered my pedi to be AP-friendly or crunchy at all, but none of my kids have had a shot except in my lap - and that includes DD's 4yo shots. They don't sit on the exam table either for a typical exam either, only if she's looking at a diaper rash or some such. All well child exams have been done in my arms until the kid wants to climb up on the exam table.

kllrbnny · July 2012

haileygrishy:
I know, i was just wondering whether there have been studies on whether it actually hurts them or not. does anybody know what can make then not hurt / hurt less?

My doc has always said to give them a bit of baby tylenol just prior to the appointment. My little ones were always ok a minute. I make sure to pick them up immediately and comfort them in my arms.

CalinsBride · July 2012

Yes, they hurt. Just like getting an immunization hurts us (both on contact and with muscle soreness later), they hurt.

ETA: I'm pretty sure there's something you can get over the counter from the pharmacy to numb the area beforehand.

Teneniel · July 2012

I'm sure they do, but at least babies don't have the emotional distress of seeing it coming on top of it. I'm more worried about when she gets older and she knows what's going to happen.

kdjudd · July 2012

Babies feel pain just as we do. I think they cry because it is a combination of the pain and because they aren't expecting it.

tokenhoser · July 2012

My clinic allows me to hold my child, and when he was small we could nurse through the shots.

I don't think I blasted anyone. Being a parent means sometimes you choose a bit of short term pain because it's best for your kid. That's what makes you an adult.

I don't think the numbing patches are approved for babies.

desdemona39 · July 2012

kllrbnny:
haileygrishy:
I know, i was just wondering whether there have been studies on whether it actually hurts them or not. does anybody know what can make then not hurt / hurt less?

My doc has always said to give them a bit of baby tylenol just prior to the appointment. My little ones were always ok a minute. I make sure to pick them up immediately and comfort them in my arms.

This is no longer recommended as it can decrease the efficacy of the immunizations.

OP, yes, it hurts. Not horribly, but babies can feel too. As a pediatric nurse, I always recommended nursing through the shots or at least holding the baby.

duffmaker · July 2012

I think the shots more startle DD then physically hurt her. But some of them, I don't remember which ones, are said to burn a little bit. DD has only ever cried for a minute though, she calms down as soon as I pick her up and start to nurse.

RunningGal900 · July 2012

Shots hurt me, so I'm guessing they hurt DS.

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