One mom has posted a heartbreaking photo of her daughter and the unfortunate way she is celebrating her first birthday. Mom Jilly Moss’ photos of her daughter's body covered in rashes is her way of sending a message to all of the anti-vaccination parents out there. Her daughter Alba contracted measles, a virus she caught because she is still too young to get the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccination.
Moss’ post has so far been shared over 97,000 times on social media, however, she states that her little girl didn’t get the measles shot not because she is against vaccinations. Rather, she was too young for the MMR vaccination, which meant that she had to fight the virus with no immunity. Alba first showed signs of the virus when her temperature was about 104 degrees Fahrenheit. She had to spend her first birthday on April 1 sick and at home before she was admitted to the hospital. Instead of marking the milestone birthday with family and friends at home with a smash cake, she was rushed to the emergency room.
Moss explained in her post, “She has been in the dark, scared with a high fever that lasted for over two weeks. In hospital she has been scanned, X-rayed poked prodded bloods taken, lumbar punctures done, canulars fitted, swabs taken, ECG Eccos, obs done every 20 mins, tube fed, on a drip, oxygen, pumped full of drugs, anti inflammatory pain relief antibiotics you name it she’s had it.”
According to Cafe Mom, like so many other parents who have had to wait on the sidelines and watch their child fight an illness, Moss admits that this has been a very painful experience for her. She says that she has felt helpless while standing by and witnessing her daughter’s treatment.
"All of the tests that were done in hospital were imperative to determine what was wrong with Alba, even though the doctors thought it was measles from the start," Moss wrote. "She deteriorated fast and was extremely poorly. Alba was also showing symptoms of Kawasaki disease, possible meningitis and of course secondary infections amongst other illnesses that come with measles."
Because of this experience, Moss wanted to share her photos of Alba on social media as a way to send a message to parents who refuse to vaccinate their kids. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Protection (CDC), over 600 individual cases of measles have been confirmed in the United States this year alone. Aside from travel, the CDC says that communities with unvaccinated people is one of the main ways that the disease can spread.