Getting My Butt Kicked by a Triple-Bacterial Vaccine Is Just the Beginning of Parent Boot Camp

My wife and I have been interviewing pediatricians for the last month as we’re expecting twin girls to be delivered by C-section on February 25th. Our neighbor, (whom we hired as our postpartum doula for two weeks), recommended a particular doctor and Carrie and I liked him quite a bit when we interviewed him in his office 3 days ago.

Before we left his office, he presented us with a flyer for a triple vaccine, which included tetanus, diphtheria, and Pertussis (whooping cough). The doctor explained that whooping cough is also known as “The 100-Day Cough,” very aggravating for adults, but possibly fatal for newborns. He recommended I get the vaccine right there and told Carrie to get one soon after the babies are born.

So I paid $50, rolled up my sleeve, and got the shot. I didn’t even feel the needle. The pediatrician as a nice touch.

However, the next day my left shoulder was in serious pain. Three days later the pain has abated somewhat but it is still discernable.

Worse, I was lethargic for three days and could not workout. Getting a triple dose of bacteria is about as invigorating as being bit and left to die by a gila monster. Today is the first day I’ve felt energetic enough to do my hour-long power yoga.

I’ve had 24-hour reactions to vaccines before, but this one, a cocktail of three bacterial agents, did me in.

Getting this vaccination is just another sign that my life will no longer be about making me number one. Six months ago I already began the transformation by turning my Man Cave into a baby room. What was once a dank office cluttered with radios, books, and my Apple computer is now a nursery with cribs, a diaper table, and toy receptacles painted with butterflies.

I look at the three days of pain and lethargy as service to my daughters.

And my 3-day vaccine reaction is just a bauble compared to what is to come. In twelve days, at the age of 48 my Parent Boot Camp begins. 

Comments

[Ed]

No matter how much you prepare, you can never fully anticipate the reality of parenthood, children, and your new lifestyle and status as a "Dad." Many changes. Good luck.

[Jeffrey McMahon]

I agree. There are many known unknowns.

[Ken K.]

My kids are 26 and 22 and both living at home again after being away at college. Be ready my friend, it never seems to end...

[Jeffrey McMahon]

Ken, in this economy, a lot of adult children are living back at home.

[Tom Welch]

Today, more than ever, adult children are more highly dependent on their parents and living back at home.

This is especially so for young men today.

Please don't get me started on this topic.