chicken pox healing?

[elcarim]

My DD has chicken pox, she is nearly 4. They started on Sunday 5/7 and it has been a really bad dose resulting in antibiotics from the GP & various trips to out of hours.

She is covered in these awful spots, most of them are the very deep ones which are now beginning to scab. Unfortunately a lot of them are on her face. She has so far been extremely good at not picking the scabs & I have been bathing her twice a day in oatmeal, deep sea mineral salts, bicarb of soda & then plastering her with coconut oil to reduce the itch. My bathroom smells like a spa!

I know I shouldn't worry about the resulting scars as they are meant to fade but from what I've seen online some look pretty bad on the face especially as there are so many of them.

Does anybody have any tips to help avoid the scars? I feel like I am on her constantly reminding her not to touch them (am trying not to associate the word scar with something negative as with the amount she has it is inevitable there will be some scarring) so am just saying the Doctor said we mustn't touch them or it will really hurt if she scratches them.

We are also due to fly to Italy shortly - I've read that the sun can permanently damage new scars and make them more prominent. Any suggestions for complete sunblock ?

Any advice appreciated. Many thanks

[mewkins]

My ds (only a year) had chicken pox a month ago. Badly and mostly face and head and horrible large spots. His face looks pretty clear now with one or two marks but they fade more by the day. No tips, except for don't be tempted to pick them.

[smokeybandit]

Can't give any advice for sun cream but my dd had very bad chicken pox about month and a half ago, every single one of them ended up getting infected and needed antibiotics (she has a little eczema which apparently makes it worse) with a huge spot in the middle of her forehead. It was deep and took so long to heal properly she called it meatball! Would try not to let the sun dry it out so the skin can heal slowly and well, what about a wide brimmed hat to keep her shaded without having to smother in cream?

[elcarim]

Thanks for your comments :) DD is now pretty much one big crust as most of the spots have scabbed over. Now I'm really worried about trying to keep the scabs on for long enough for the skin to heal underneath.

Is it best for the scabs to be wet (ie moisturised) as much as possible or should I let them dry out now & naturally fall off? Am still trying to minimise scarring as much as poss.

[Ktmummy1]

I can completely empathise. Just gone through this only 3 months ahead. I'd be happy for you to pm me. My DD had hundreds of spots on her face, she has been left with 30 pitted marks on her but the good new is, within 3 months they have gradually improved. Although still quite pink and pitted, every day they improve a little bit more. Bi have gone through so much upset over the marks and they do still upset me But I feel hopeful that they will continue to improve with time. X

[Reekypear]

You want them to dry out.p, and shrink. I think you will make them worse keeping them wet.

[elcarim]

Thanks for your message Ktmummy1, I think I've just been so shocked as to how this could have affected DD so badly when my DS had about 50 spots in total & only has one scar! I know they are all individuals ;) I was just oblivious to how horrible it can actually be.

Can I ask how you treated the bumps/blisters/scabs? Particularly on your DD's face? DD has so many I know it's inevitable some will scar but I can't find anywhere online that gives the "official line" of how to help them heal in the best way. I think I was hoping to find some kind of chicken pox survivors club that would give me the benefit of their experiences! ;)

Thanks for the hope though, you don't know how good it is to hear from someone who's been there.

[elcarim]

Thanks Reekypear, I'm just so confused as to what to do for the best, there are so many conflicting lines of thought out there!

[smokeybandit]

I agree with Reekypear, it's just a fine line, you don't want them so dry they pull the skin around it but not soaked so they come off prematurely. I had to do a dab of antibiotic cream on my dd's twice a day because they came up like craters and they seemed to do ok I just made sure they dried between each application. Weeks after the scabs have come off they're still visible but a light pink and healing nicely.

[Ktmummy1]

I tried to use poxclin but she's only 2.5 but she would not let me and would wriggle around as I tried to apply making it worse and potentially knocking scabs off. My dd spots dried out and came off in bed. Some of her craters are quite deep, especially the first crops of spots. I have done loads of research since. I read somewhere to put Vaseline on them to allow them to heal better. On reflection I wish I'd put something on them eg Vaseline or antibiotic cream. When the scabs initially come off its very upsetting but In 3 months there has been a good improvement and I'm told it takes 6-18 months for scars to fully heal. X

[Twinkie1]

We used bio oil on DS. He had it 3 times, the first 2 really bad and we tried not to wet him as drying him knocked the scabs off.

[Ktmummy1]

how's your LO doing ?