Anti-vaxxer mom changes mind when 3 kids fall ill

CHICAGO — A Chicago area mother and teacher  is speaking out after her anti-vaccination stance led to her three children becoming severely ill.

WLS-TV reported that Kristen O'Meara was once a believer in anti-vaccination research, but when her children got rotavirus, she changed her mind.

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"It was awful, and it didn't have to happen, because I could have had them vaccinated," O'Meara told WLS-TV. "I felt guilty. I felt really guilty."

O'Meara and her husband also got sick.

O'Meara said after reading materials that said why vaccines could be harmful, she became convinced they were harmful and decided not to have her children vaccinated.

"I put my kids at risk," she told WLS-TV. "I wish that I had taken more time to research from both sides before my children were born."

Although there are  parents who believe in anti-vaccination because of concern over autism links, the American Academy of Pediatrics said it has routinely been disproven.

Her children, a 5-year old and 3-year-old twins, underwent an aggressive regimen to catch up on missed vaccines and are doing well.

WLS-TV reported that had O'Meara stuck to her anti-vaccination stance, her children could have died.

"I'm here because I wanted to share my personal story," O'Meara told WLS-TV. "If it does help someone change their mind, then that's great."

Cox Media Group