I am upset and need help to calm down

[Serena1977]

We are on holiday, fly home tomorrow.

I have discovered this evening that my ASD ds8 has threadworms. He doesn't understand the situation but he knows he is uncomfortable etc.

I am upset and feel like a bad mother.

My mil is dropping the medicine off so it'll be there waiting for us.

Being autistic, he often has his fingers in his mouth etc chews clothes, pens. I guess he got them from school.

What can I do to keep him comfortable from now until approx 6pm when we get home and he takes the medicine and how long does it take to start working?

Not a lot you can do really except keep him clean and the meds will work overnight.

Where are you on holiday ? Can you go to a pharmacy there and get something

Bath with salty water. That kills the little buggers.

Try not to fret, threadworms are harmless and loads of kids get them. It isn't a parenting fail!

The treatment works very effectively within a few hours. Hot wash his bedding and PJs after treatment to get rid of eggs, and perhaps re-treat in a few weeks to be sure you have cleared the infection. The natural state of humans and other mammals is to have a few worms in our intestines. They're probably doing his immune system some good!

I hope he's not in too much discomfort. It will pass very quickly once he's treated. A bath or wash with cool water might help a bit in the meantime to relieve itching, or some sudocreme if you have it.

Sorry for the gross post, but they are generally lively at night. So, if you can get through tonight, tomorrow could be relatively ok. I work in a school and threadworm is as common as nits and is absolutely no reflection on parenting. Knowing a child has them and then doing nothing about it, that's when it's a problem. Good luck, I'm sure it will be ok.