Aibu to send my older DS to nursery when the younger dd has chicken pox?

[Ivyiris]

So my youngest child has chicken pox, she's getting better and scabbing over but still not 100% and a couple not full scabbed she's has been off since her symptoms began and will remain off until guidelines state so.

My oldest ds is in nursery too (a year between them) he has obviously been around dd and has been exposed and is currently showing no symptoms. I kept him off last week too as was getting woken by dd being unsettled. Would it be unreasonable to to send DS when he has been exposed but so far is showing no symptoms and is well?

Is he vaccinated? If yes, then maybe. If no, then no. Also, ch
icken pox can cause encephalitis.

@Spanisheomellletttes not vaccinated most children aren't in the UK it's not included in the childhood vaccine programme.

I think you need to be honest with nursery and ask them. Incubation period for chicken pox is 7-21 days so your DS likely isn’t out of the woods yet. If he does have it, he’ll be contagious before the spots show, so they may say no, but it’s worth checking with them as they may well have a policy for siblings with chickenpox.

Then no, I wouldn't.

I’d send until he has symptoms (being aware that headache, temperature etc are sometimes the first symptoms not spots). Keeping them off for the two week incubation period on top of a week or so for the illness itself is just not realistic.

(And if they’re in the same nursery chances are it’ll go round all of the non immune kids anyway.)

You are completely fine to send him in. You could have a two week gap between her having it and him getting it. Not way you need to keep him home. In Uk it's not something you have to keep him
Home for at all.

A few years ago, ie before the pandemic, no one would have questioned this. No one would keep a child home if they didn’t actually have, or weren’t known to have, an illness.

Exactly! You could end up at home with them for six weeks if you took that approach. My first had it for over a week. Then no sign on my second for two full weeks after first had scabbed up. Then second got it and that lasted over a week. So if I had kept them
Home that's about five weeks.

I’d send him. The incubation period can be as long as 3 weeks and that’s an awfully long time to keep a well child off. Anyone who has chosen not to vaccinate presumably wants their DC to get it at some point, since you really don’t want to get to adulthood without immunity, so I don’t see the big deal.

I would send him without a thought.
If he shows symptoms act then.

It would be unreasonable to send him.
I would keep him home until 14-16 days from the day your other child first had symptoms.

You can send lo in unless showing symptoms ....it's not guaranteed he will get it.

I remember asking my DC's teacher what to do when his two younger siblings had chickenpox and he didn't. She just shrugged and said it wouldn't be right for him to have up to a month off school, and to send him in.

He came down with it exactly two weeks after his siblings. It was already rife in school by then.

Send him in.

And if he's been exposed and is fighting it off, his immune system will be very stretched by anything else going the rounds in the nursery.

Of course you can send him!! He doesn’t have pox your youngest does… unless he has spots himself he can still go in. Those who say otherwise are just being daft.
nursey won’t mind nor care, ours certainly doesn’t; it’s a childhood illness that is best to get when younger. I personally wouldn’t put a 2nd thought into it!

Mine were exactly two weeks apart. I’d send him in as well (and my DS was really ill with it).

No you don't need to keep your other child off nursery. The incubation period is up to 21 days so you cant put your life on hold just in case.