Parents these days seem to get bombarded with vaccine injury stories and videos on Facebook.
Is that because vaccines cause so many bad reactions?
Of course not.
It’s because some folks think that everything that happens to their kids is a vaccine injury.
Personal Stories About Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
If you are going to watch those videos and listen to their stories, getting scared in the process, be sure to also listen to the stories of parents who’s kids have suffered through actually getting a vaccine-preventable disease.
While it’s great that these diseases are much less common because most people vaccinate and protect their kids, one side effect of that progress is that we don’t have many reminders of just how terrible these diseases are anymore.Have you ever seen a baby with congenital rubella syndrome?
Or a child with tetanus or diphtheria?
Have you ever even seen photos of these diseases?
Will you read these stories of parents who have lost a child to a vaccine-preventable disease.
“Kimberly Coffey was buried three days before her high school graduation in the prom dress she didn’t get to wear. She didn’t have the opportunity to be vaccinated against Meningitis B.”
Kim’s Meningitis Story
In Kimberly‘s case, the Men B vaccine wasn’t yet available, but in many other cases, parents have shared their stories of unvaccinated children who suffered with a disease that was vaccine preventable at the time.
“From 2010 to 2016, young children continued to be at the greatest risk for influenza-associated pediatric deaths. Children without preexisting medical conditions accounted for half of all deaths. Vaccination coverage was low among influenza-associated pediatric deaths.”
Shang et al. on Influenza-Associated Pediatric Deaths in the United States, 2010–2016
Tragically, there are also many flu stories.
- Scarlet Anne Taylor
- Serifina Madrid
- Maddie Barton
- Brayden Kress Tharp
- Andre Carson
- Alana Yaksich
- Madison Allen
- Brittany Andersen
- Amy Hunt
- Austin Booth
- Maya Cargile
- Chance Chandler
- Chelsea Oliver
- James D’Imperio
- Luke Duvall
- Tony Estlinbaum
- Brandon Gonzales
- Nathaniel Gorenstein
- Nathan H.
- Elijah Henderson
- Joseph Holt
- Marques Jackson
- Amanda Kanowitz
- Emily Lastinger
- Trevor Lin
- Piper Lowery
- Joseph Marotta
- Ayzlee McCarthy
- Martin McGowan
- Christopher McKinley-Rosen
- Caroline Miller
- Ian Moise
- Jacob Nuland
- Breanne Palmer
- Brittney Peters
- Antonio Pisani
- Cayden Gracie Smith
- Noel Smith
- Colton S.
- Jessica Stein
- Ayla Tsoumbakos
- Gianna Wehrkamp
- Shannon Zwanziger
- Vaughn Johnson
But the flu isn’t the only vaccine-preventable disease that still harms children.

There are other diseases. Other stories.
- Charlotte Cleverley Bisman
- Emily Stillman
- Kaliah Jeffery
- Mary Catherine Walther
- Cherice Amanda Cochrane
- Jonathan DeGuzman
- Kyla Winters
- Christopher Aaron Chinnes
- Evan Bozof
- Colin Durkin
- Jacob Newby
- Colin Enderlein
- Leo Wexler-Mann
- Nelyn Baker
- Sarah Archer
- Serena King
- Ryan Hockensmith
- Ryan Milley
- Landon Carter Dube
- Brady Robert Alcaide
- Callie Van Tornhout
- Julieanna Metcalf
- Haleigh Throgmorton
Read these stories.
Listen to these parents.
- Vaccine-Preventable Disease: The Forgotten Story
- Families Fighting Flu Stories
- Real Stories of Meningitis
- Infectious Diseases Real Stories, Real People
- National Meningitis Association Featured Stories
- The Sounds of Pertussis Family Stories
- Vaccine Preventable Disease Story Gallery
- HPV Stories
- Vaccine-Preventable Diseases: Personal Stories
- Stories of Victims of Vaccine-Preventable Disease
- Unprotected People Reports
- Immunisation Foundation of Australia Personal Stories
- Meningitis Angel Dads Tell Their Stories
- Meningitis stories
- Patient stories about measles in Europe
- Immunization Stories
- Northern Rivers Vaccination Supporters Stories
- Protecting Our Tomorrows: Portraits of Meningococcal Disease project
Are the stories supposed to scare you into vaccinating your kids?
Of course not. Just like you shouldn’t let the myths and propaganda from the anti-vaccinate movement scare you away from vaccinating and protecting your kids.
Instead of being motivated by fear, you should make your decision because you understand that the many benefits of vaccines are far greater than their small risks.
What to Know About Vaccine-Preventable Disease Stories
Reading stories of vaccine-preventable diseases are a good reminder that these diseases are not so mild as some folks suggest, and they are instead life-threatening diseases that are best avoided by getting fully vaccinated.
More Vaccine-Preventable Disease Stories
- Light for Riley
- Voices for Vaccines
- Families Fighting Flu
- Fight the Flu Foundation
- Alana’s Foundation
- Meningitis Angels
- Meningitis B Action Project
- The Emily Stillman Foundation
- Kimberly Coffey Foundation
- Cherice Cochrane “Mentoring For Success” Foundation
- National Meningitis Association
- Remembering Evan
- Our Children Are Worth Every Penny
- Shot By Shot Story Gallery
- Personal Stories About Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
- Victims of Vaccine-Preventable Disease
- Infectious Diseases Real Stories, Real People
- Real Stories of Meningitis
- Parents Who Vax
- Faces of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
- These families lost kids to the flu. Now, they’re fighting to prevent more deaths
- How Social Networks Can Influence Flu Vaccination Decisions
- Haunted by memories of the consequences of not vaccinating
- Personal Meningitis Stories
- 106 Degrees: A True Story
- Parents Pack Personal Stories
- National Meningitis Association Get Vaccinated Videos
- Haunted by memories of the consequences of not vaccinating
- Whooping cough: Alice turned her daughter’s brush with death into a positive campaign for better health
- My son has cancer. He can’t go into day care because of unvaccinated children.
- When It’s Not a Choice: Measles and Leukemia
- H1N1 Survivor Advocates for Flu Vaccines after Months in Hospital
- Clallam Co. woman dies of measles
- Boy’s flu death spurs concern in Palm Beach County
- No more cases of meningitis reported following Michigan child’s death
- Why I wish my daughter had been vaccinated
- Young Hockey Player’s Death A Flu Warning
- 6-year-old boy fighting rabies as family hopes for a cure
- 3 Things I’ve Learned Since Losing My Son to Flu
- A Mother’s Plea: Don’t Let Flu Steal Your Healthy Child
- My Polio Story is an Inconvenient Truth to Those Who Refuse Vaccines
- Polio: The Saddest Stories in Our Family
- Why I am sharing my story as a polio survivor
- Two mums, two very different trips to the doctor
- The Vaccine Story the World Needed to Hear
- Before Vaccines
- WHO – Personal Stories
- CDC – 14 Diseases You Almost Forgot About (Thanks to Vaccines)
- CDC – What Would Happen If We Stopped Vaccinations?
- I Used To Be Anti-Vaccine
- I was Duped by the Anti-Vaccine Movement
- Learning the Hard Way: My Journey from #AntiVaxx to Science
- I Didn’t Vaccinate My Child—And I Regret It
- I used to be a vaccine skeptic. Now I’m a believer.
$4 billion in vaccine injury compensation claims awarded in a court of law in USA alone.