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.

I had chicken pox for the first time at the age of 35.
Trust me he’s better to have it at this age rather than as an adult. The pain was horrendous and I was plastered in blisters, some have scared in places. Inconvenient at this time though I do agree.

I think it's the bad timing that's so upsetting. The first week of high school is a big deal.

Why would I deliberately try to get my child to catch a disease? I made it to adulthood without getting it and only got the vaccine when TTC so it’s not inevitable that everyone will get it. Might be less serious in childhood, but it’s not zero risk - so that needs to be weighed up against not getting it at all.

Point is, that’s the OP’s decision to make, not some selfish fuckwit’s like the parent who let their pox-ridden child out.

Nope, I had no idea either

My son missed his first week at school due to Covid, much the same he didn’t know a single person going and thought everyone would have made friends by the time he got there. I spent the first day on tenterhooks but I needn’t have worried - he was absolutely fine so try not to worry

Just be glad he'd had chicken pox now instead of as an adult. He will make friends and get over missing a week of school.

Much better to get it as a kid than an adult. Done your son a favour. Dont be so ridiculous!!! Im
pleased my kids had it before their teens. Nothing like natural immunity.

https://www.boots.com/online/pharmacy-services/chickenpox-vaccination-service?srsltid=AfmBOopzR0rRn52ZuMNN8czErS4HcPpj3yjgq52C6bqBuHNqGyRGsvZ_

It really isn't hard to Google before incorrectly correcting people.

@Annipoos these diseases haven’t “suddenly” become dangerous. I was born in 1967 the year before the measles vaccine was introduced. That year 100 children died of measles.

He cant go all his life without catching chicken pox. I wanted my kids to catch it when they were younger, better then, than when they are older. Build up an immune system. He was bound to be exposed to it at some point.

That only 10% of children are vaccinated against CP is truly shocking!

Even more so when you consider that 35% of children received the Covid jab where CP is a much bigger risk to children than Covid is. I understand that some will be unable to afford the £150 for the CP vaccine but surely more than 10% can afford it.

Most people i know have had their children vaccinated against CP but admittedly a large number of those are non UK nationals.

I don't agree-anyone in the supermarket, on a train, on a plane etc could have it... people don't quarantine for most things anymore ;Covid was the nail in that coffin). If it wasn't that little boy who passed it on, it could be anyone else carrying the virus, literally anywhere. I feel sorry for OPs son, but he would have caught it sooner or later.

@StolenChanel

"Am I the only one who didn’t know a chickenpox vaccine even existed…?"

After my eldest was hospitalised with CP aged 3, I made sure my other children were vaccinated.

Interestingly the CP vaccine has existed for 40 years.

What is mean, is having children and not getting them vaccinated - having multiple children unvaccinated means they could all come down with it. Don't be so naive

@Rocksaltrita you still get chicken pox if vaccinated. A milder from. That's the case with most vaccines.

They probably didn’t send an infectious child to nursery knowingly. They are infectious before the spots come out. My daughter caught them from her half sister. She had been with her the week or 2 before the sister got the spots so there was no way of preventing them getting together as no one was expecting them. 3 weeks to the day of my daughter being with her sister and my daughter had them. Her spots came out one evening after she had done her Xmas play at school. Most of the class then had them over the Xmas holidays. But we hadn’t sent her in knowingly. There was no guarantee she hold catch them off her sister and by the time her sister came out in spots my daughter was likely contagious and mixing.

I was allergic to the whooping cough vaccine as a baby so never had the second dose. I did catch whooping cough as a teen and then as an adult I’ve had several nasty county with very similar symptoms.

I agree that the people who spread it to you on this occasion were highly responsible. Mostly it’s passed on unknowingly before symptoms appear such as the spots, and most sensible people follow the rules to quarantine until the last spot has crusted over.

Hopefully your son will settle in quickly when he goes back eventually. I agrees that y7 is full of fluid friendships. My DD just started y8 and the kids she made friends with this time last year aren’t even on her radar anymore. She’s been through quite a few combinations of friends which seems totally natural.

In what way is understanding that not everyone can afford £150 per child for a vaccination, ‘naive’?!

Whenever the subject of chicken pox comes up, I always think of this thread from a few years ago
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/childrens_health/1649084-DS-still-asleep-what-to-do?reply=58406493

Depending on which country he was born in he may have only got one dose (Australia for eg only include one dose on the standard schedule). That's because one dose is enough when you have high levels of vaccination to keep the rate of infection incredibly low. However in country with very low rates of vaccination (ie the UK) they recommend 2 doses.

I had CP for the first time in my life at the age of 30 and I have never felt as ill before or since. It is shit timing for your son but reassure him that having it as an adult is far worse. Covid was a doddle compared to chickenpox.

You are only immune to chicken pox once you’ve had it or had the vaccine. So if you have tested positive for immunity then you have had it and you (or your parents) don’t remember. You can’t be immune to a virus you have never had! Natural immunity means that you have been infected in the past.
How old are you daughters? If my kids hadn’t had it I would be worried as they got into their teens that they would catch it and be very very ill.

Hmm lots of ppl are suggesting why you didn't get your son vaccinated it is not a compulsory vaccine and almost always better that kids are not vaccinated against chickenpox...no?

It's bad timing school wise but at least he's getting it out the way as I think they say 13 onwards is not good. Both mine had it this year, eldest is 9 and she was worst hit.
Surprised so many have jumped in about the vaccine as I don't think it's common to get vaccinated. It wasn't even on my radar.

I know what you mean, I had it at 39, I ended up with a chest infection, was covered in spots and several became infected. I have never felt as ill as I did then. A few months later my brother caught it and was also very ill.