To take DS out when he has chicken pox?

[ElphabaTheGreen]

He's 10mo and not at all unwell with it, but definitely still infectious. We normally go to a baby swimming class on a Saturday, so obviously we're staying away from that. As it's a nice day, though, and there's a food festival on in the city, we'd like to go to that with him in his pram, not really coming close to anyone. The only other thing is we may go to lunch and stick him in a highchair.

AIBU to want to do this?

A family member recently took their child to the circus when they were still contagious with chicken pox! When I told them how unreasonable they were being I was told not to be so ridiculous!

I used to have to do the school run with a poxy DS in his buggy with rain cover on. Is that really bad too? I had no help or anyone else to take the older ones to school and wouldve been classed as unauthorised absence if I'd kept the healthy older kids off school. We live too far from the school to walk, its driving only.

I did phone the HV and ask how I could get help to get them to school, she said I had bucklease of getting anything :(

I'm a therapist on inpatient wards in a hospital. When I was pregnant, we had a patient on the ward with shingles. I was told not to touch him, but that is all. I still sat opposite him (i.e. no more than two metres away) and chatted to him. He was not quarantined to a side room and the consultants said the risk to me or anyone else was miniscule. As CP is an airborne illness, I figured going out but giving people a wide berth would not be a problem, nor would sitting him clothed in a chair which I would have wiped down afterwards. That was my reasoning, but I was obviously BU, and we definitely won't be going out. Sorry again

Your ds is 10 months old. You are the one wanting to go out, not him. Stop being selfish.
Previous posters have highlighted why.

Crossed posts. Glad you are staying in and containing the potential spread.

Glad you are staying in. My DS had chicken pox and long story short he now is on methotrexate for the next year at least, has an immuno suppressed disease and needs to have a blood test every month. It is not safe to be around people... In a field perhaps, on an empty beach perhaps but not in town or in a restaurant having lunch!

He looks perfectly well but we spent 2 weeks in great Ormond st and he had a lumber puncture under GA amongst other things so no I don't want to go back there.

According to the NHS website you cannot catch shingles from someone with chicken pox. The shingles virus lies dormant in your system after you have chicken pox which can then appear from being run down, stressed or unwell.

You can however catch chicken pox from someone with shingles, if you actually touch their rash with your own broken skin. This is why you would have been told not to touch the patient with shingles.

Chicken pox is slightly different in that it is airborne and highly contagious. As others have already said, extremely dangerous to certain people. FWIW, I've just spent 3 weeks without going out with my DC. DS had it first, no sooner did his spots crust over when DD came down with it. Yes it's been a PITA, Easter holidays ruined, days out cancelled etc but at least I know we've not knowingly given it to anyone else.

Oh how I wish we could get 'Not Taking DC out with Chicken Pox' a TERM & CONDITION we have to agree to by signing up for Mumsnet.

It'd save these repeated threads.

How on earth is is NOT common knowledge that a child MUST not carry on as normal and must be quarantined?

I agree with the 10m age, this is NetMummy getting bored after a couple of days.

I caught CP aged 30, well before I had DS (from a colleague who's DC had it) it made me feel just awful, I felt like death. I could have sat in my garden if I wanted to, but I didn't want to leave the house, being outside made me dizzy. When my DS caught it some 10+ years later I felt ALL the symptoms again, minus the spots. The pair of us felt dreadful.

It's a common disease, but a hideous and serious one.

I'm glad you've seen sense. It's only a week, you can potter into the garden, but remember that you too are probably carrying it, so until your tiny baby is better, you need to limit BOTH your movements.

This is part of life. This time next week it'll all be done and dusted.

Whose not who's

I've nothing of value to add re: quarantine, but it's important to remember that you don't catch shingles from people with chicken pox. Shingles develops independently in people who have had chicken pox.

I'm a full time working MNer, thanks. Never been near Nethuns. I've not been bored with him at home - the GPs have had that privilege since nursery won't take him. He does love to people watch, though, so I thought a crowd would take his mind off the itching.

But I'm not going out, team! I get the hint!

I'm glad you listened to advice OP, but I am concerned that as a health care professional, you even had to ask.
I don't think it has to be like the 'old days' when I remember being confined to bed till I was better, but why would anyone want to take a clearly poorly child out unless absolutely necessary?

At the risk of sound rude what the bloody hell is wrong with you woman?

You wanted to take a child infectious with CP out for lunch???!!!?

And of course nursery 'won't take him'. He is infectious with an illness which can cause serious consequences for some people who run the risk of being infected by your frankly stupid and thoughtless actions.

You do understand that don't you because I am at a loss as to how someone who works for a healthcare service does not seem to be grasping it.

I caught chickenpox at the ripe old age of 32 from my DF who had shingles. Oh it was bad...

I think the problem with chicken pox is that people dont think it is harmful.

Anyone heard of 'Pox Parties'.

More needs to be done to make people aware that its not like having a cold it can be very fatal.

Guitargirl she already posted that she is staying in.

I am just that the OP openly states later in the thread that she 'didn't think' of pregnant women or immuno-compromised. I just find it difficult to take in that someone who works for a healthcare service can be so, um, I don't know - not with it?

Anyway, like you said, good that OP stayed at home. Am still though.

Please don't do this, its really selfish. Take him for a drive in the car. Safari park is always a good idea in this situation.

Yes, I'm an HCP so I see first hand that stuff isn't nearly as disastrously infective as the general public think it is. CP does actually need pretty close and relatively prolonged contact to be tranmitted, even to the immune compromised, but, to reiterate, WE'RE STAYING HOME!

I'm also pretty sure there's been a lot of pregnant women who have maintained contact with their children who have CP, and the NHS guidance is that if the mother has had CP, there's almost zero risk to the foetus.

But again: IABU. We're having a day in the garden.

I would take country walks and visit deserted beaches for fresh air (but I live somewhere its easy to avoid people, maybe it wouldn't work in the SE or another big city). I think fresh air helps the LO though if its a possibility.

I posted before I read all the thread. Glad your staying in. Hope the day isn't to long for you.

Hapless I would carry on as normal, as he might not get it. I went through an epidemic as a child and didn't catch it, despite freely mixing/playing with children who went don with it soon after.
I would inform school incase any pupils are immune compromised, so they can be informed.