RSV season warning in family chat

[AutumnIsHereAnd]

My SIL has today shared a “warning” in our family group chat to say we are no longer allowed to kiss my nephews (even on the HAND!), because of “RSV season”. The boys are 4 and 15 months. AIBU to think this is absolutely ridiculous, especially given the fact they’re the ones who are always poorly?! She’s said if any of us kiss them we won’t be seeing them for the rest of winter!

I spent hours upon hours with DD5 in hospital, unable to manage her fever or HR. Watching her seizure.
She has no underlying health conditions, she just got very poorly whenever she caught a virus.
I feel exactly the same way about exposing my current baby to any unnecessary germs as a result. Small children can be massively negatively affected by simple viruses.
It's not worth the risk. Don't kiss your nephews, it's no benefit to them at all.

@shuuush I'm so sorry. I hope that your post helps the op reflect💐

I was wondering this. Isn't it airborne rather than spread through contact?
I don't trust NHS on this as they were ignoring ventilation and advocating washing hands even after 2 years of covid.
This doesn't affect the main issue which is that OP refusing to babysit her DNs unless she can kiss them, is bonkers behaviour.

I bet you’re one of those people who think pox parties should still be a thing. There are posters on here telling you that their children died because of RSV and because you clearly dislike your SIL and are unable to maintain a simple boundary, you’ve made yourself look callous and frankly, a bit fucking weird.

Kisses to babies and children can be deadly. My DD ended up in hospital from a kiss as a newborn and it could of been a lot more serious. Babies have died of meningitis due to kisses. Surely you wouldn’t want to be respondible for that.

Was it a respiratory virus? If so how do you know it was a kiss that did it?

My then 14 month old was seriously ill with RSV last year, and it was actually the second time he had caught it. His first episode at 2 months old was also bad but not as bad as when he was 14 months.

Young children can still get ill from it.

She is their mum and whether you think it’s over the top or not it really isn’t your call to make.

RSV is the common cold.

No it isn't @WhereAreMyAirpods . It has been explained many times on this thread what it is.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a major respiratory virus that is common over the winter period, typically November to February. While the symptoms are mild for many, RSV accounts for around 30,000 hospitalisations of children under 5 in the UK annually, and for 20 to 30 infant deaths.
RSV can also be severe in older adults, causing pneumonia and flare-ups of existing lung disease and other long-term conditions. It causes around 9,000 hospitalisations in those aged over 75 in the UK each year.

My daughter was a healthy baby then almost died of RSV. Its a horrible disease.

It is a bit OTT but RSV is extremely scary so don’t blame her to be feeling that way. Maybe keep your kisses to yourself for a few months!

RSV is the single commonest reason for hospital admission in under one’s.

Yet the stubborn obtuse posters who think it is "just a cold" refuse to believe it.

No it’s not 🤷‍♀️

Your SIL sounds bonkers and rude - but it’s really easy just not to kiss children to be fair.

Thanks it happened in 1998 so many years ago.❤️
i just don’t understand why the OP doesn’t just respect the mums wishes.

If an adult said don't kiss them, are they bonkers and rude?

Wow, how childish.

RSV is no joke and I personally don’t blame her for sending that message after my baby being hospitalised with it twice !

You sound ridiculous OP. You may feel it’s OTT, it may well be, it may not be logical, maybe she’s overly anxious, but she is just doing something because she wants to try to protect her children, whereas you are just someone that can’t be told and is now having a strop. All you had to do was not kiss them, that’s all. She isn’t asking for anything extra from you, she isn’t creating work or extra tasks. Just don’t kiss them. Thats literally it.

I have a feeling from your attitude on this thread, that you no longer seeing them won’t be much of a loss, and maybe a positive thing. You should try to deal with situations more maturely in future. Presuming you love and care for your nephews, you have now just lost them. Well done. 🙄

I’m so sorry.

What does it matter to you? There are campaigns every year by the NHS warning everyone not to kiss babies. She is just a mum doing her best for her family.
Are you a parent?

Maybe she is being overly cautious. However, I'm someone who has never kissed other people's children, including family, so it would be easy enough to avoid doing. Is it really that necessary to kiss them while babysitting that you had to start an argument over it? Both of you sound over the top. You're no better than she is.

Some people underplay lots of viruses that hurt children, RSV, covid etc and say they’re just a cold no matter how much data is thrown their way. Yes, they’ll pick stuff up from nursery, but she’s asking for a precaution from the OP. She’s not calling OP a biohazard - asymptomatic spread happens! It would also be perfectly reasonable to ask her to let you know when they have a virus that you don’t want to catch if she doesn’t just volunteer that info - if she said “you can catch it on a train or at work”, that would also be a bit shit. Long covid in kids more than doubled in a year. RSV leads to almost half a million GP appointments a year, along with the other horrible consequences cited on this thread. Hope you and SIL can work something out.

I've never seen someone so obsessed with KISSING someone else's kids. It's bizarre. Do you have children of your own? These kids aren't yours. No one is mentioning no cuddles. You don't need to kiss children to settle them...nursery nurses manage fine.

Do you have a condition like rejection sensitive dysphoria?

Do you generally struggle in life with being told no to things?