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February 15, 2019 – Ethan Lindenberger of Norwalk, OH, was put in an unusual position. He asks incessant questions from peers who want to know how he rebelled against his mother's anti-vaccine position to get vaccinated against measles and other diseases.
Since his article was first published on February 6 in the non-profit digital magazine undark.org, Lindenberger has been featured in local, national and foreign media outlets, as well as burning news threads. line.
Lindenberger has become an impromptu expert for other teens and young adults who want to follow in his footsteps.
"As for people who want to get vaccinated, I've probably talked to 20 or 30 people privately," he said in an interview with WebMD. "On forums, probably tens or even hundreds, I try to answer as much as I can."
Lindenberger says her mother, Jill Wheeler, has long been against vaccines. The teenager first began to publicly question her decision when she posted on the popular reddit.com news site in November. He asked how an 18-year-old would go to get vaccinated.
As he was beginning to receive various vaccines, media reports about him multiplied, as well as requests for information and advice, questions and comments.
Lindenberger does not say what to do to other unvaccinated adolescents and young adults. Like him, he says, everyone has to make up their own mind.
"I tell them: 'Here are your options, here's what I've done and I wish you good luck,'" he said. "I do not want to say that I am a source of inspiration, and I do not want to seem to be trying to gloat or try to be a hero."
In addition to honest questions, we also received sneaky online comments and special requests. "Some people asked me if I was going to start a subterranean vaccine [effort], "he says. People ask me if I'm going to get them out in the middle of the night [to get vaccinated]"No to both," he told them.
Lindenberger's story caught the eye partly because of the resurgence this year of measles, a life-threatening disease that was once thought to be eliminated in the United States. According to officials, the rise in anti-vaccination sentiment has helped to reduce the return of measles.
Among the people who contacted her was a 20-year-old woman who told her that she had not received a vaccine. And a 17-year-old told Lindenberger that his parents were immigrants who did not believe in vaccination, claiming that they controlled so well that they would not let him drive anywhere without knowing exactly where he was going. .
As the debate unfolded on Reddit, "a lot of people were saying," What's wrong, you're 18, "" said Lindenberger.
But if he had the legal right to control his own health care, he knew that the discussion with his parents would be delicate and risky. He wanted to keep as much family peace as possible.
He is also realistic. "If I got fired," he says, he knew it would be hard to live like a high school student without earning a living.
Slow and steady approach
Even in this perspective, the discussions will inevitably be difficult. "It will not be pretty at first," he says. "The parents are shocked when the kids have the nerve to approach you and say," I do not agree. " "
Lindenberger began by questioning about his mother's position when he realized that he might need a vaccination card to be admitted to college. He also quickly discovered that he was alone among his friends in terms of vaccination.
"I just know it's something I have to do for my own well-being and that of others around me.I do not want to be the reason why an eradicated disease is spreading lol again," said Lindenberger in his original Reddit post.
When the first conversations with his mother started, he recalls, she seemed frightened "and a little irrational by the way she was disrupting the situation." He explains that much of his mother's resistance has been attributed to a 1998 study by Andrew Wakefield linking the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine to the one-year-old woman. autism. The lancet subsequently retracted the study and the link between vaccines and autism has been discredited by many studies.
Finally, Lindenberger says, "She respected my decision and said," Although we can disagree, we still love each other. ""
On February 14, Lindenberger's mother announced on her Facebook page that she would be invited to the radio show Robert Scott Bell. "I will give my version of the story," she said. Bell is an advocate of natural healing. She told undark.org that she felt that not vaccinating her son was "the best way to protect him and keep him safe."
Lindenberger says family discussions have continued and he admits that they can still be "a little heated". His parents divorced, he says, when he was about 8 years old, and although his father is also anti-vaccine, he does not feel so deeply, says Lindenberger.
The 18-year-old's decision affected some of his six siblings. Her youngest brother, 16, has "seen an overwhelming amount of evidence [for vaccinations] and continues to do his own research, "says Lindenberger.
Play catch-up
Adolescents under the age of 18 who decide to be vaccinated can consult the new American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines on when to get vaccinated and the number of doses needed for each vaccine, says Cody Meissner. , MD, professor of pediatrics at Tufts. University School of Medicine and Director of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Tufts Medical Center in Boston.
People over the age of 18 should follow CDC guidelines, he says. Meissner is a consultant on CDC guidelines and consultant for the Infectious Disease Committee of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
When teens tell him that they want to challenge their parents' anti-vaccine stance, Meissner tells them that "the first step is to find out why the parent is opposed to vaccination."
Most unvaccinated adolescents who ask him about vaccination are 18, he says. For those under the age of 18 who wish to be vaccinated when their parents are against it, Meissner suggests talking to their pediatrician first and then informing them of the laws in force in their country. Federal law does not explicitly require parental consent for vaccination and state laws vary.
Lindenberger's progress
In mid-February, "I received five vaccines," said Lindenberger. "I have five more this month." He hopes to have completed all the recommended vaccinations by the end of this year, he said.
He had positive reactions from other teenagers who read his story. One of them told him, "Hey, this story helped me talk to my parents about it."
With all this history in medical research, could Lindenberger consider a career in medicine? Not a chance, he said. "I hope to pursue a career in ministry," he says, "and become a published author." But for the moment, as he recently wrote on Reddit, he is eager to return to a "normal" life. And he's just a little worried about his chemistry score.
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