Help! My kids are sick at least once a month? Is this normal!?

[pandemicparenting]

Hey,
I need help! My kids, aged 2 and 4 are constantly sick, like at least every month!
Its either a cold, stomach bug, flu and the latest this week is a temperature with a very mild head cold, no other symptoms. Other than the temperature they’re fine. I have a temperature too, My husband and I end up getting whatever they do.
It’s seriously affecting our work and life, we are constantly cancelling things and having to miss work.
I asked my doctor about it last Winter and they said it’s normal for kids to get infections up to 12 times a year so I suppose this works out at once a month.
however it just seems excessive lately. They had a vomiting bug in mid August, a cough cold first week of September and now two weeks later some other virus.
can I ask is it the same for everyone else? Is this normal? They are constantly missing school, and It seems like every second week I’m missing work, which is causing a struggle.

AIBU (no it’s normal) or AINBU (its abnormal)

Childminder also doesn't as long as there's no persistent temperature or something like HFM.

Childminder also doesn't mind I mean!

I feel you. We have a household of sickness as well. At the start of the six week holidays we were all down with some kind of horrendous cold/ sore throat/ chest / ear infection. Now the whole house has a d&v bug. I’ve been cleaning carpets and bedding whilst wretching myself. Really fed up of it all

They do pick up a lot of bugs at that age for sure. Maybe some haliborange or other multi vitamin may help. It can sometimes be difficult for children to eat veggies! Sometimes they may go in if just a sniffle but obv not if hot with a temp or obv unwell

That’s sounds like a lot of time off for sickness than what I’m used to. What we tend to do is treat the symptoms before they become so Ill like for example, both of them has had a sniffle since Saturday when it became cold suddenly but they’ve been using lemon and honey, drinking warmer water, staying warm etc and both fine already this morning. They use multivitamins daily and I make sure they eat their fruits as well. For things that are contagious like d&v, they stay at home obviously but otherwise, we just get on with things.

How much did you shelter your kids during covid? My friends who kept their kids at home a lot really struggle as you do and there is definitely a connection I'm afraid.

It was like that with us when DS3 went back to nursery after lockdown. Just a constant ebb and flow of coughs, snotty noses, vomiting, and temperatures. One day I came down with a 41 degree fever.

He's been at school now for a week and we've already got a new fever and cough.

Having said that it calmed down after a few months. An illness every month after they've acclimatised to a new environment seems excessive.

I never found this with mine when they were younger. They were rarely sick, only a handful of sick days that I can recall.

Yes and mine did have a temperature above 39 degrees , hence why we didn’t send them in! So I don’t know why you’d suggest we should if this is the same advise you follow! A vomiting bug in August (highly contagious) , a cough and cold in early September (potential to spread Covid) and now a high temperature (as per crèche policy to keep them off). All of these reasons are why we don’t send them in! Not to be selfish to spread other illnesses or Covid to other kids … 🤷‍♀️

Not ‘normal’ but not unusual either

Mine had their fair share of illness but this is way over anything we experienced.
My GP told me to bathe them daily, wash hands before eating and to change clothes daily as they pick up all sorts at nursery and school.
In the country Im from childrens hygiene as above is followed strictly to reduce illness.
I think other posters are correct it could be covid has reduced their exposure.

You don't send kids into childcare settings/schools with a temperature unless you're an utter arsehole. I suppose you send them in if they've been sick within the last day "and feel fine". I suppose the excuse you use is that you can't afford to take the time off work - but if you or your partner cannot take time off work with a sick child, don't bloody have them in the first place.

Yes my four year old has his millionth cold this year at the moment and it is just completely ridiculous at this point - every two weeks a new runny nose (followed by temp, sneezing, awful cough). His hearing is affected from all the fluid buildup. I catch every bug as well because I’m pregnant. He eats well, is kept warm, etc…preschool is just a petri dish of germs! And if other kids are sent in sick, then he just catches it. And so it goes, on and on!

Coughs and colds are pretty normal in little kids but to be unwell enough to need to be at home every month seems unusual to me. Particularly frequent sickness bugs. My 10 year old has never had a sickness bug and has only had one day off nursery and school , but I realise that’s unusual.

With little kids in nursery/reception, this is completely normal. Mine are teens but I remember constant illness. My db (before he had his own germy kids!) used to work with someone and wonder why she was constantly ill. That would be her little kids at nursery.

Mine are the same age. Last winter was absolutely brutal, I'm hoping this year won't be as bad.

Last year was particularly bad because of the need to PCR test over every little thing. You might need a little mind shift now that covid rules are relaxed - for us last year it was eldest's nursery school not wanting them in with a cough even with a negative PCR, this year her primary school wanting them in unless they're at death's door.

It's normal if they are at nursery

@pandemicparenting some parents are less considerate of others, so they give them calpol & send them in to pass the bug around 💁🏻‍♀️your kids probably don't get anymore bugs than others, but you considerately keep them home when they're unwell, looking after them and not passing bugs around.

That sounds a lot to me , my ds is 9 now but he has had one stomach bug in his life and gets a cold probably once- twice a year .

It does sound like a lot - and it's a bit odd that you and your DH get anything they've got. Whilst it's not unusual for DC to pick up bugs at school / nursery it's been extremely rare that DH and I have got whatever the kids have. I assume because we've got better immunity having been exposed to more things in our lives. We managed to have covid in the house three times and not transmit it within the household by being careful. DC are older though so easier not to get too close.

Having said that it's likely that everyone's immunity is a little off due to the isolation periods when we weren't mixing as much with others so your DC may just be playing immunity catch up.

Make sure you are all getting a balanced diet, taking exercise, ventilating the house, also take a multi vitamin and make sure your DC know about good hand hygiene / not to stick their fingers in their mouths if possible! Clean taps / toilets and doorknobs / bannisters regularly too. Other than that there really isn't much else you can do - if they aren't seriously unwell every time they pick something up I'd say you are just on the unlucky side if normal.

Sounds totally normal. Mine was off nursery / school at least once a month at that age, it was horrible for her, exhausting for me and very difficult with work but they do eventually grow out of it. By time DD was about 7 or 8 was a lot less frequent. She ate healthily, took multi-vitamins and probiotics :-)

Some kids pick up everything going round, others less so .. luck of the draw I suppose.

ps. avoid soft play, they are guaranteed to pick up a bug!

Sounds about par for the course. It will have been made worse by lockdowns when they were tiny, too. They weren’t exposed to the usual bugs so their immune systems probably aren’t as strong yet as they would have been otherwise.

I'd be more concerned if their illnesses were leading to secondary infections or they were finding it difficult to recover. Do they seem fine/high energy when they are well and are they developing like their peers?
They may be ill more than their peers but it may just be unlucky and nothing more. Annoying for you but hopefully it'll settle down a bit.

Sounds normal here, less than we have had.

Combination of lockdowns, and parents just sending in, give calpol, send them in, get called to collect, spread it by then.

Mine didn't go to nursery but caught up when they started school. Metatone and rosehip Syrup was on hand every winter. The rosehip daily. Metatone during and post illness.

To be honest flying to a hot country would have nixed most things