My daughter has just turned 1 and we live in UK. she has never been abroad yet. My husbands family all live in Pakistan and she hasnt met any of them yet. We wanted to take her when she was 6 months but there was a dengue outbreak then. Therefore we postponed it and decided to go this March…after she had all her vaccinations (MMR etc.) However, now there is a Measles outbreak in Pakistan. We are therefore in 2 minds about going in March.
Reasons for going in March:
-She is still on formula milk and can continue until we come back (she wont have problem with milk intolerance etc in pak)
-We are planning our next baby…so can get pakistan over and done with…and can start planning soon as we come back (wont be too much age gap between both of the children
-Weather is good
Problems with March:
-Measles epidemic
-We can only go for 4 weeks due to work etc.
**other option is to go in September:
**
Benefits of going in September:
-Measles epidemic will hopefully be finished
-Can stay for longer (2 months)
Problems with going in September
-Will have to wait a year to plan next child
-Dont know whether some other disease will start at that time (after all this is Pakistan!)
Please advise will be very much appreciated
and also mention what YOU would do in this situation…as im very much confused.
Re: Measles in Pakistan -scared to take 1 year old
Pakistan is gonna be risky any time you plan, if not measles or dengue, then the worsening political and security situation. Long power breakdowns in summers. I was very concerned about measles too but there was a peadiatrician on tv who said that the chances of measles spreading from contact with unvaccinated kids is higher. So if your kid isn’t gonna be in contact with unvaccinated kids she should be ok. Otherwise discuss with her paediatrician. Weigh the pros and cons and decide.
Re: Measles in Pakistan -scared to take 1 year old
^when we go out she is likely to be in contact with unvaccinated children. they hasnt been anything shown in the news in the past few days so not sure what the exact situation is…have there been any new cases recently?
ps. what a co-incidence…her name is the same as yours
Re: Measles in Pakistan -scared to take 1 year old
Measles are measles. You can even get them in UK.
I don’t know how bad the outbreak is. If you want to protect her then don’t go.
Traveling with kids to Pakistan in any age under 6 is hard. I took my daughter for a week and she got sick. It’s a change of food, scenery, weather, climate. Nothing you can do to ensur 100% that she won’t get sick.
Re: Measles in Pakistan -scared to take 1 year old
Your right but measles is different as its life threatening…so different from other minor sicknesses.
The chance of getting in pakistan is a million times higher as most kids are not vaccinated and there is an epidemic at the moment.
Before my daughter was born we used to go pakistan without even thinking all this…but now its different…don’t want her to suffer etc…can’t see her in pain or illness.
Re: Measles in Pakistan -scared to take 1 year old
aren’t the elections coming up soon? i would avoid pakistan until the elections are well over. i’d honestly be more concerned with the safety situation there than measles, esp if your daughter has gotten/will be getting the MMR vaccine before you go.
How effective is MMR vaccine? More than 95% of the people who receive a single dose of MMR will develop immunity to all 3 viruses. A second vaccine dose gives immunity to almost all of those who did not respond to the first dose.
as for the next baby, there is no knowing if you will conceive by september, even if you go and come back in march, so i don’t know if you should plan your trip around that. plus, waiting a year might not be so bad because kids really get to be a lot of fun as they head towards year 2. my son is 20 months and he’s learning and discovering new things all the time masha’Allah, and i know i couldn’t handle being tired and pregnant, and give him all the attention he deserves. i had to look after him and a friend’s 5 month old the other day and i almost lost my mind. but that’s me
will be very much appreciated 
