To hunt down these bastards who exposed my son to chicken pox

[littleredbumblebee]

User name changed as outing

went on a caravan holiday last week for 5 nights and my son who is 11 played with some kids from other families and had a great time- all good

On the last night one of the smaller boys was running around with no shirt on and he has spots, one of the other families asked and his mum said oh he has chicken pox but we though getting away would do him good.

I told her my son had never had chicken pox and said I bloody hoped my son was not going to come down with them. One of the other parents also said they should not have brought the kid. Basically it ended up with them going inside the caravan in a huff. The next day we all left

So today the day before my son is use to start at high school he woke up covered in spots and now has chicken pox and won’t be in for his first week at high school. Tonight he is now crying saying he won’t name any friends now and he won’t know his way around and no amount of comforting will calm him down. Very few kids for his school are going to this high school and he is so upset he will have missed out on making friends.

We have been in touch with his form tutor who has been great and has said they will support him and catch him up but I could bloody scream. How can some people be so bloody selfish.

Most people who are vaccinated with 2 doses of varicella vaccine will be protected for life.

www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/vis-statements/varicella.html

Where I live (EU capital) I have never heard of anyone getting CP because its part of the vaccination schedule.

I personally find the idea that it 'isn't serious, best get it over with' a very outdated viewpoint. Why on earth should anyone suffer when there is a vaccine available. The UK really needs to catch up and stop foisting this disruptive menace of a disease on kids and their families.

I am sorry for your son OP, I have a dc entering year 6 and it is a very big deal for them. Wishing him a speedy recovery.

Why are people bleating on about the vaccine as if that's the point of the post? Whether you can't afford it or just don't get it, it's still out of the ordinary that this family didn't only knowingly take the kid on holiday but also knowingly let him play in close proximity to other children for days. The OP is reasonable to be annoyed by that regardless.

I'm sorry, but your paediatrician is wrong. I don't know when you asked her, but there's now plenty of research that contradicts that. I don't blame the average parent in the UK for not knowing enough about the CP vaccine, but it's really not ok for a paediatrician to give out inaccurate information.

OP, I hope your son has a mild case and a quick recovery. If it's any consolation, one of my DC had appendicitis the night before starting a new school (in a new country) and missed the first two weeks. They were also very upset at the time but did absolutely fine friendwise.

I agree that it's not the point of the thread and that the OP is right to be annoyed, but it's worth correcting incorrect assertions about the vaccine in case it's helpful to someone.

Do you always take everything so literally
of course OP isn’t going to hunt anymore down! Your comment is no help whatsoever Many people are repeating the same thing, so why do you feel the need to join in.

Weird. How could you possibly think that he wasn't going to get it at some point?

Maybe Op did think he would get it at some point.

Hence why she had him vaccinated!!!!!

Sucks because of the timing. However you must have known this was a ticking time bomb? Every year he ages and doesn’t get it, will likely be worse when he does?
What were you thinking, that he would just never get it?

Why is it a ticking time bomb @WhiteLily1 ? Not everyone gets it. I’ve never had CP and neither Have my 2 DDs.

And what did you want her to do. Never leave the house? Or get him infected on purpose? She tried to get him vaccinated, he had a reaction.

Why would she think that @PurpleCheese ?

A question:

If children have the chickenpox vaccine will it prevent them from getting shingles later in life?
As the chickenpox virus lays dormant in your body then can erupt as shingles (which is just horrible, I've had it) will vaccination mean immunity from shingles too?

No, it's a live vaccine so the chicken pox is still in your system after having it.
It was assumed for a while to carry a bigger risk of shingles but that has now been disproved and it's less likely that a vaccinated person will get shingles as opposed to someone who had the wild virus. If they do get shingles, it's likely to be milder.

They can still get shingles but the vaccine greatly reduces the chances as it creates immunity with a much lower viral load, so less virus to lie dormant in the body. If they do get shingles it should be a milder case. My mum is a doctor and was adamant that we have it done for our kids for that reason. Apparently shingles is the most miserable semi-preventable thing she sees. I'm sorry to hear you've had it @Butwhybecause

Yes it is £150 at Boots, but set against that is the cost to you of taking time off work to care for a sick child with CP (which is presumably more than £150) not to mention the health risk to your child.

Incidentally you can get the CP vaccine for £130 at other pharmacies.

Thank you Mummyford, yes, it's miserable.

There are anti-virals available provided you can take them early enough.

The JCVI last year recommended that CP vaccine be included in routine childhood vaccinations. In the US it has been a standard vaccination for nearly 30 years.

www.gov.uk/government/news/jcvi-recommends-chickenpox-vaccine-in-childhood-immunisation-programme

That’s what I’m wondering too. The NHS website says that the vaccine contains a live (but weakened) version of the virus.

This below is from the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“Some people who are vaccinated against chickenpox get shingles (herpes zoster) years later. This is much less common after vaccination than after chickenpox disease.”

https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/vis-statements/varicella.html#:~:text=Some%20people%20who%20are%20vaccinated,after%20medical%20procedures%2C%20including%20vaccination.

So, it appears from this that it is possible to still get shingles if you have been vaccinated against Chickenpox. However, it is much less common than among those who have had actual Chickenpox.

I know that the there was once only a vaccine for Shingles containing a weakened version of the virus (Zostavax), and was not suitable for some people. However, they now have an another form (Shingrix) which is not live and more suitable for people who cannot have live vaccines (albeit weakened).

You and your DD’s have either had it very mildly as babies (and it wasn’t picked up, which is common) or yes, all 3 of you are ticking time bombs (unless you’ve been vaccinated)
The vast vast majority of the population get this virus at some point. It is rare for a person to never have had it. Most who think they haven’t actually have but very mildly as babies or toddlers.
Personally if I was sure my child hadn’t had it and the vaccine was not doable, I would be extremely thankful my child had caught them now (although not for the first week of a new school)
My anxiety would be through the roof every year that went past that they hadn’t caught it.

The incubation period for chicken pox is typically 10-21 days and you were at the caravan site last week, so you cannot rule out the possibility that your child has been exposed to the virus elsewhere in the community.
Having said that caravan parks and holiday destinations usually have in their terms and conditions a line stating that you should not stay if you have an infectious or contagious disease so YANBU.

Sorry you had shingles - I did too and it was a horror leading to IV antivirals and 6 months of exhaustion as well as horrific pain. I still have nerve pain and twinges literally years later. It's why I'd really recommend vaccinating a child against CP when possible.

Sorry, op. Your post raised issues around CP (and Shingles in my case). Maybe the parents should have said that their child was just recovering from CP, so you could have been forewarned. They might have thought the child wasn’t contagious any more. Many people do regard CP as just another childhood thing.

I understand how the timing has robbed your son of those orientation days. And at the beginning of second level (with all the excitement involved) is extra upset on top.

I was tested while pregnant with DD2 as a friend of DD1 had it really badly and I had been exposed. I was told I had “natural immunity” (not sure if that BS - it was 20+ years ago and i have brain fog or if it's a Thing but that is what I was told). DD1 never got it either despite playing solifky for hours with this child over several Days.

So I'm not sure what I could have done differently knowing if I'd had it or not - I certainly wouldn't have “through the roof “ anxiety year after year.

My ex husband caught chickenpox in his thirties and was seriously ill, had hallucinations, was physically unable to get out of bed and I nearly called an ambulance for him. He wished he had caught it as a child.

It did yes, But it also said that if the most cost effective method - including it with the MMR vaccine - was employed it would likely increase the incidence of side effects. Which is why we don’t have it as standard NHS provision in the UK. The single vaccine is available privately and research is ongoing into how best to make it available in the UK.

Sorry but this is not correct. The vaccine is available privately but it’s in two parts, and the two vaccines cost around £450 altogether.