Tips for being ill with a baby 😭

[rickandmorts]

Feeling very sorry for myself, started vomiting at around 12 last night and have been up every hour to be sick again. I'm at the point I'm so thirsty but every time I sip water I heave it back up. Haven't had a wink of sleep. Laid in bed currently panicking as dp will be getting up for work at 6.30am and then we're on our own. DD is 6 months and very lively. Any tips for surviving until 5pm tonight when he's home? I'm also really worried being so dehydrated will affect my milk supply!

Laughing over here as a single parent - how do you think we cope 😳

I was a single parent with small children for eight years and I'm not laughing. I can remember crawling around with a spiking fever, trying to care for two toddlers. It was utterly miserable and I wouldn't wish it in anyone. If there is a partner available, he needs to come home if she can't cope.

Hope you feel better soon OP x

But she’s not a single parent 🤷‍♀️

Hats off to you for being one and managing where you have no other choice but inflicting those standards onto someone who is supposed to have an equal partner in the mix creates an unhealthy narrative that a SAHP has to just ‘get on with it’ and not expect equality or the basic rights the WOTH parent would take for-granted. If there is a partner in the mix they should be pulling their weight.

Unfortunately comments like yours really back peddle the fight for equality within relationships because your situations are simply not comparable. You don’t have a partner, she does and she should not feel like she’s being spoilt, needy and unreasonable to expect help from him. Regardless of whether you manage alone or not xx

No but at least if he goes in with the view he's coming home then he can hand over some jobs and leave them in a better position. Not that he should have to of course but he's a workaholic and they're stupidly reliant on him 😵

He needs to take the day off.

That is a really good point and yes that's how I felt asking him to stay home. Like I should just be getting on with it because DD is my 'job' currently. If I didn't feel so poorly I'd be more pissed off but honestly just trying to keep everyone (myself included) alive currently. Hoping she'll fall asleep so I can have a little nap and then will reassess

Water down the apple juice, give your baby sips of cooked boiled water if it's warm where you are.

Any sugary drink eg the apple juice plus something salty like crackers works for rehydration

Well put.

That's great thank you. It's pretty cool where we are so think the baby is fine without water. Just worried about my supply dropping due to dehydration

I can remember a day when we were each being sick in a different bathroom, each with a mobile baby. We tried being in the same one but one person throwing up set off the other. Lots of toys on the floor, shut the door so the baby can’t leave when you are being sick. If the bathtub is dry you can let her play in there. Hopefully the acute phase passes soon.
A different episode I threw up more than 40 times in a day and my milk was still fine.

Bouncer, YouTube baby channels, toys, play mat or jumperoo.. you lay on sofa with a blanket/bucket and glass of water. 6 months is a fairly easy age.. they stay where you put them and can't destroy things or get into bother when your back is turned. Can he go to boots before work? Travel sickness tablets might help or these buccastem which have anti emetics in. You don't want her to get anything from you but if she does at least you should be over the worse and able to deal with it.

I had norovirus when my eldest was 6 months and my husband was in Brazil. You have my
sympathy! Keep breastfeeding- then lie on the sofa, put toys out and cbeebies on- don’t do any more than that. Shes not
mobile, just thank the stars she’s not a toddler- you will be fine x

Ok we've never taken the day off when the other one has been ill. I've basically just laid on the sofa and put shit on the tv for them. I used to alternate when they were really little an hour of telly then I'd force myself off the sofa and play with them for as long as I could manage then back to peppa pig and the sofa on repeat.

Have you got someone (or ask your husband) to drop off some dioralyte. I had norovirus when my 2nd was 4 months it was awful. The dioralyte helps massively.

Thanks guys, making me feel better. Ive been sick again but DD has just fed to sleep so going to try get a little nap in and try forget about the bowl of dark green bile in the next to me cot. Will deal with that later 😂

Oh poor you so horrible.
One very memorable time we had 3 DC under 5 years old, youngest was about 8 months. DH and I both had norovirus as did the 2 eldest. It was awful. We took it in turns to look after them in 15 minute slots. Basically cleaning up vomit and diarrhoea. The next day was worse as they all recovered and we were still vomiting. It was just survival of meeting basic needs. The baby was BFeeding fine though. I drank lots of vile dioralite (vomited up lots of it too!)
Hope your DH can help and doesn't get sick too.

I'm surprised at this.

I'd personally consider a surgeon as one of those who really "couldn't" take time off for his sick spouse? It really is 'one of those jobs' IMO.

How many times has he cancelled whole surgery lists for you being ill? 😳

OP you don't need to give your sixth month old EBF baby water if shes not started weaning yet. Your milk supply will be fine, just keep latching her on when you feel well enough. When I'm poorly I find crunching ice cubes helps better than sips of water. I'd get her favourite things out and lie down on the floor with her.

Sorry you've got this op. It's gone right though our entire household over the last few weeks and it's awful.

Agree there was only one time DH stayed home from work because I was sick when we had a baby / toddler and it was when I had a vomiting bug. If he had it himself he'd be able to take the day off and they wouldn't want him in. They will cope without him for a day. DH and I both work ft and it isn't great missing work as then you have to catch up but that's life. I've had to miss work when DH has been ill and then DCs were ill too recently. DH has had to WFH this week when he wasn't meant to as well. Has to be done

Hope you feel ok soon

If he has to take the day off to look after his DC as his DW is sick fair enough but he can't really take time off to prevent spreading a sickness bug he doesn't have.

It say this as an emetephobe (I wish people who live in close proximity WOULD stay home but its not necessary)

Not everyone catches every bug. My own experience of 3 DC is they've never has the same tummy bug and I've only ever caught one from one DC - it was just two of five of us and DC who had the bug was sick once. I was the most ill over ever been.

Anyway OP I'm sorry I've digressed.

I hope you feel better soon and I hope your DH comes home to take over.

Honestly I get so sad how many crap 'D'Hs there are, of course he should be at home caring for your baby and you resting. It's clear from what you've written 'workaholic' that he could be at home but is prioritizing work. My DH would move heaven and earth work wise to ensure the needs of his family were prioritised in these circumstances. Don't feel guilty just call him, you are unwell and you are more important.

Hi, I had the same sort of bug when my baby was about 5 months old. I remember breast feeding her and shoving her on to my husband while I went to be sick and then coming back and continuing to feed. I never lost my milk and didn’t give her a bottle. The human body is an amazing thing. Husband went to work too - and I had a toddler. It’s a man’s world that’s for sure. Baby didn’t get it btw.

@Crunchymum I agree that it's not necessary but, if it's possible, I think it's better to do than risk it. When DS had noro, for example, both DH and I stayed home rather than risk giving it to colleagues before we knew we had it.

Why would you be surprised?
If he’s sick or has Diarrhoea he can’t go back into the hospital for 48 hours. Therefore the hospital have a duty to ensure they can cover lists. Obviously doctors do get poorly and the NHS have very stringent rules about infection control.

If they have the measures in place to cover doctors who are poorly then by default they have the measures in place cover doctors who have to be off for childcare reasons. It’s the NHS’s responsibility to cover those lists in the event doctors are off.

fwiw we know quite a few surgeons who are married to other surgeons, so who In that situation is off when the kids are poorly? Either way there really is no profession that stops you being a person first. There’s no profession that stops you needing to be off of you, your spouse or your kids are poorly.

Luckily I’m not ‘that’ unwell very frequently, maybe 2/3 times a year he’s covered me. That being said our 3yo is disabled and hubby has had to take time off several times when he’s needed to be in hospital and the hospital won’t let me have our 2yo with me also.

So it’s added up, but unavoidable.

As I say I wish people would but since having children I've realised that it's not a given we'll all catch every bug. I know the same can't be said for everyone of course (my SIL has 5 kids and they rarely get ill but when the do get a sickness bug they all get it regardless of any precautions taken)

We've had numerous sickness bugs not transferred between family members [one landed DC1 in hospital with dehydration and we were put in isolation to prevent the spread despite me being fine.... this I 100% understand!]. We've also had Covid not transferred, this was back when you had to test if a family member had it so I knew DC1 had it and the rest of us didn't]. Thus is despite DC1 staring a room etc.

Only thing DC have caught from each other is chicken pox!! Which I've never had, but didn't catch!!