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AIBU?

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Original poster

Going out with chicken pox

57 replies

Rosebel · 05/04/2022 10:02

Would you take your child out if you needed to go shopping?
Just moved so no friends or family to ask and at the moment can't afford the £4.50 delivery charge.
Would you risk it or am I being unreasonable (I rather suspect I am but not sure what else to do, so any suggestions welcome).

OP posts:
pollymere · 06/04/2022 11:28

Chicken pox causes miscarriage if you're not immune. Guess how my friend found out? Every time you're tempted to take your child out, just think of some poor woman losing her baby because of your actions.

Tainging99 · 06/04/2022 11:30

Exposure is risky for immunocompromised and unborn baby for pregnant women (if they haven’t had chickenpox). So totally awful to go out if the spots aren’t yet healed

YouHaveYourFathersBreasts · 06/04/2022 12:20

I don’t know about all supermarkets but Iceland do free next day delivery on orders over £35. Used to be £25 but if you need a big(ger) shop…

Hope your child is better soon but I’d be really upset if my partner who is very vulnerable caught chicken pox from someone out and about with their infectious kid.

PrincessNutella · 06/04/2022 12:39

Nobody should be having chicken pox in this era. You most certainly can avoid killing someone for the price of 4 pounds and fifty pence. Get the shopping delivered, get Amazon, don't infect anyone else. FFS.

MatildaTheCat · 06/04/2022 12:46

@PrincessNutella

Nobody should be having chicken pox in this era. You most certainly can avoid killing someone for the price of 4 pounds and fifty pence. Get the shopping delivered, get Amazon, don't infect anyone else. FFS.
In the U.K. the vaccine for chicken pox isn’t freely available so it’s extremely common especially at this time of year.
Chely · 06/04/2022 12:59

I had to go out with pox covered kids, twins had it followed by baby and had older kids to get to school and feed while dh deployed away.

DockOTheBay · 06/04/2022 13:02

What about click and collect? Thats usually free or only costs 50p, and the kid can stay in the car (assuming you drive).

Volhhg · 06/04/2022 13:03

Have his spots scabbed over if so it's fine to go out. Chicken pox is most contagious two days before symptoms start and whilst spots are still blistered. Which is why it won't be eradicated, people will be unknowingly spreading it all the time. People went to shops with chicken pox kids all the time before online deliveries. If you can't avoid it and don't have the money for delivery just go to the shop.

Horst · 06/04/2022 13:10

Push comes to shove. Stick a face mask on the child, full length trousers, full length shirt, gloves and hat. Don’t let them touch anything.

Yes in a ideal perfect world all pox infected would stay inside back to real life and your more infectious before you know you have it anyway and people don’t always have someone that can come and take a sibling to school or fetch their shopping or pay for delivery of shopping. Maybe ops money is a £20 note and only 10p in the bank. Her partner is working to feed the family so isn’t home before shops shut or whatever.

Horst · 06/04/2022 13:11

If she was asking if she could take him to the park because his bored id be with those saying no stay inside but food is food.

WilsonMilson · 06/04/2022 13:12

No I certainly wouldn’t. It’s irresponsible and dangerous, pregnant women and immune compromised people can be badly affected.

Thebig3 · 06/04/2022 13:20

I would go out if I really had to, in your case I would. I would put my child in a pram and not take them out, I would use the self serve till and keep my distance from people.

People on here are acting like the chicken pox is spread by you just walking past someone with it, it isn't.

"Chickenpox infection is caused by the varicella-zoster virus. It can spread through direct contact with the rash. It can also spread when a person with the chickenpox coughs or sneezes and you inhale the air droplets"

Unless someone comes and strokes your child you'll be fine!

fiftiesmum · 06/04/2022 13:26

How do pregnant women who have never had chickenpox cope if they already have small children?

chesirecat99 · 06/04/2022 13:38

I wouldn't do it unless I really had to but it just confuse me that going out with covid is now fine, going out with chicken pox is highly irresponsible.

Chicken pox is more easily transmissible than COVID.

Another difference is it is a childhood illness (because it is so infectious you are likely to catch it at a young age and also you usually have lifelong immunity after infection so most adults are immune). The NHS recommends isolating until the spots have scabbed over (around 5 days). It's far easier for a child to isolate than an adult, they don't have any responsibilities. It's a pain but most people should be able to avoid taking their child out while they are infectious with some planning.

Going out with COVID isn't really "fine" but we are at the point where the situation isn't going to get any better than this. The number of people who are ill with COVID and too ill to work is already causing chaos without everyone who is infected but feeling well staying at home.

OP, if you have Amazon Prime, you can get free delivery from Deliveroo. Uber Eats has an offer for 50% off groceries currently. There are lots of delivery start ups that have new customer offers for £10/£20 off like Gorillas, Go Puff, Zapp. See if they are in your area. Also check out the supermarket 1/2 hour delivery apps like Sainsbury's ChopChop, Tesco Whoosh, Co op to see if they are in your neighbourhood. The Co op only charge £1.99 and the others usually have offers for free or half price delivery on your first order.

Horst · 06/04/2022 13:41

Everyone telling op to order online is missing the point that she may not have cash in the bank to order online.

chesirecat99 · 06/04/2022 13:45

People on here are acting like the chicken pox is spread by you just walking past someone with it, it isn't.

Well, yes it can be, @Thebig3. It's largely transmitted by droplet transmission rather than direct contact with the rash. It is more infectious than COVID, it has a basic R number of 10-12 (remember R numbers?).

Thebig3 · 06/04/2022 13:52

@chesirecat99

People on here are acting like the chicken pox is spread by you just walking past someone with it, it isn't.

Well, yes it can be, @Thebig3. It's largely transmitted by droplet transmission rather than direct contact with the rash. It is more infectious than COVID, it has a basic R number of 10-12 (remember R numbers?).

Chickenpox infection is caused by the varicella-zoster virus. It can spread through direct contact with the rash. It can also spread when a person with the chickenpox coughs or sneezes and you inhale the air droplets

Like I said you have to inhale the droplets which would mean the infected child has to sneeze or cough where that person is then they would have to inhale it. If the op child was in a pram with the hood up for example the likelihood of someone catching it would be so minimal. Someone would have to go up to the pram and look in. This could easily be avoided.

For the sake of feeding your family then just do it. All these suggestions of using different options for delivery are ridiculous, the op clearly hasn't got the fund for this or they would have chosen to do it.

Volhhg · 06/04/2022 14:12

Omicron (which is what covid is now) is supposedly more infectious than chicken pox but less so than measles still

chesirecat99 · 06/04/2022 14:46

The virus can remain airborne for several hours, @Thebig3. You can be infected by being in a room where an infectious person has been present, you don't need to have direct contact. About 90% of people without immunity who are in close contact with an infectious person will develop chicken pox.

Off the top of my head, even household transmission for COVID is only about 40%.

ddl1 · 06/04/2022 14:47

Sorry, but I think that would be a bad idea. Chickenpox is very infectious to people who aren't immune to it, and can be quite dangerous to the immunocompromised, and to pregnant women.

ddl1 · 06/04/2022 14:51

Chickenpox is actually more contagious than Covid.

NeverDropYourMooncup · 06/04/2022 14:59

@fiftiesmum

How do pregnant women who have never had chickenpox cope if they already have small children?
Dumped her on another school Mum who I knew had Chickenpox previously (as both our children had it at the same time 3 years before and we'd spoken about it in between debates upon the relative merits of calamine vs oat bath vs Eurax - no, I don't know how I hadn't caught it then, either) and headed for A&E.
MossyBottom · 06/04/2022 15:16

It's exactly the same as covid.
Relatively mild for most people, more serious for others and deadly for some.
Difference is that if you had covid you could wear an ffp2 mask to protect others. Would your child be able to wear a mask?

RafaIstheKingofClay · 06/04/2022 16:08

@chesirecat99

People on here are acting like the chicken pox is spread by you just walking past someone with it, it isn't.

Well, yes it can be, @Thebig3. It's largely transmitted by droplet transmission rather than direct contact with the rash. It is more infectious than COVID, it has a basic R number of 10-12 (remember R numbers?).

R number for BA.2 is thought to be around 12. So they are currently pretty similar.
fiftiesmum · 06/04/2022 19:11

The r value plummets to about - 0.0001 when you are trying to get a child to have chickenpox while it is young fit and healthy and you have no holidays booked