Mothers:
How many of you, after reading about the research of Dr. Paul Patterson of Cal Tech according to which women who have the flu during pregnancy are seven times more likely to have a child with “mental illnesses such as autism and schizophrenia,” have been trying to recall if you were sick during the nine months of expecting your autistic child? “A rogue protein, interleukin 6 – produced when a pregnant woman is fighting a viral infection – may help trigger” autism and schizophrenia in a developing fetus, according to Patterson’s research.
I have indeed taken out the journal I kept while expecting Charlie. Anxiousness ebbs as I review those pages, the handwriting neat and in straight lines, the different sections (“buying for baby,” “fetal movement diary”) all carefully, and completely, filled out, and every word full of hope—-same as I felt this afternoon, watching Charlie running back in and out of the waves which were churning in the wind.
[...] do TV, ultrasounds, insufficient vitamin D, air pollution, a mother having the flu while pregnant, mercury, have to do with each [...]
Hi Kristina, he is five and has just started at a special needs school, things are going well, he is a happy boy and everyone loves him, (teaching staff included), I have battled with the ‘why did this happen’ his whole five years, I have exhausted every internet site pertaining to flu/fever in pregnancy, I have sought the opinion of public and private paediatricians and they all agree it is a possibility, Stacey has facial dysmorphology, hypotonia, severe intellectual impairment, severe autism, he is also severely deaf (mondini malformation – deformed cochlear) this is forming at the same time I had the flu and I have information to suggest these problems are brought about if a fever occurs during the 4 – 7 week gestational period, I had the proper flu, I couldn’t move, sit up in bed, or even go to the loo by myself, hot, cold, body sore to touch, etc, sorry Kristina I have gone into great detail, but I would like another baby and am a little scared, I love my son and have learn’t that you don’t stop grieving you just learn to live with it
Thanks for sharing about your son, Katrina. So much has happened in the past 10 years of life with my son that I had completely forgotten that I had a bad cold while expecting him and only discovered this when I looked in my pregnancy journal, as I noted. If I may ask, how old is your son? Hope things are well—-
I believe my sons intellectual and hearing impairment are a result of a severe flu / fever I had when I was six weeks pregnant (he is autistic as well), I lost 3 kg in a week and have never been sicker, he has a inner ear defect which can be bought about by environmental teratogens, I have had a genetic opinion and she thinks it seems like the most likely explanation (more so the fever than the flu itselt), this makes for very interesting reading
Yep, I had the flu with John. Had to go in to the ER for fluids due to dehydtration and I remember getting the shot that helps stop vomitting….what is it?…..pherngan (sp?)
We’ve never had flu shots and never get the flu. I’ve had it once in my life, in 2002, and my oldest (NT) son had it for the first time last spring at nine years old.
Now, a family history of mental illness…that’s a different story. And, my mother’s epileptic.
Flu theory just doesn’t apply here…
Depression, anxiety disorders, substance abuse—–those are present in Charlie’s family line too—-if I may ask, when was Jack’s epilepsy identified? Thank you for sharing about him and your family.
I was teaching in a middle school and an upper school at the time; some student or other was often ill. I had completely forgotten about having the flu until I read the article I referenced in my post and looked in my pregnancy journal. I have to go back and read the rest in light of everyone’s comments!