Threadworms - how many have them?

[Mumof3darlings]

Dear All,

I feel like I am going mad!

1 week ago I noticed DS (age 4) scratching his bum a couple of times, I immediately thought he might have worms. Checked that night by looking up his bum with a torch and immediately saw a wriggling little blighter which quite honestly made me feel sick to the stomach! My DS is a clean little boy, ie washes his hands after loo, not always before eating though and we have a very clean home but I try not to be too OTT with the kids about not touching mud/sand etc while we are in garden etc as I feel like they have gotta play/get germs etc!!!

So I gave kids and me and DH medicine... Next day checked DS no 2's nappy whilst changing him and noticed a worm in there too!!!! agggrrr!!! This sent me over the edge tbh as I felt like the medication was my only hope!!!

OK so in last week I have checked DSno 2's nappy probably a dozen times and nothing... Also checked up DS1's bum while he sleeps every night and it's clean as a whistle.. I need to give the medication again after 2 weeks but to be sure I gave us all it again yesterday just in case.

I have a doctor who advises both on natural and mainstream medicines and he advised we could all take an aloe vera drink each morning which is preventative.. so we are taking this (which I feel is more for my mind than anything else)..

I have cleaned bedding, hoovered, washed, towels have been washed after every wash - the amount of washing I have done this week is as much as a busy launderette!!! Poor little DS1 is marched home from school and told to wash his hands immediately... I am watching other kids in his class and noticed one of them scratching his bum the other day - I am thinking about this subject 100% of the time - I honestly feel like I have become obsessed with it!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had threadworms as a child quite a few times and I have had them as an adult too - immediately treating the problem. It always freaks me out everytime but this time seems worse as I noticed it in both my kids... what am I doing wrong???

I think the worst thing about this is that I feel so alone with it as nobody has EVER told me that their kids have this... Do people just not realise? or is it just that we are unlucky and get it more than others... Today I decided (after 1 week) to tell my DS's teacher. I found it so difficult to do as I am so embarrased and feel so guilty about it. I was hopeful she would tell me that she had seen it a hundred times before - she's been a teacher for about 15 years - but she didn't!!!!!!!!!! She was very nice, very understanding but said she had never known of a child having it before - OMG made me feel like a freak!!!

Help me - please tell me either what I am doing wrong or why it is that people don't discuss this????

Thanks for reading!!

x x

[Beveridge]

We got them just before Xmas last year (like there's not enough to do then as it is). I completely freaked, especially after googling and got meds for everybody but DS, who was under a year and couldn't have what we got (name escapes me). Got fed up seeing them in DS's poo so spoke to the HV a few weeks later who prescribed Piperazine for us all (the paralysing one, rather than the killing one!) and that was that. Along with the OCD housework. Sheesh.

However, the HV told us we were only the third case she had come across - ever! Clearly that can't be right, given the other stats and the unofficial straw poll my husband conducted in his works canteen bore this out - the other 2 Dads had both had outbreaks in their houses at some point!

So, I think heaps of people probably have them quite regularly but it's only when it's a big infestation or someone is sensitive to them and is v.itchy/sore that they get rumbled and nuked by meds. I myself have come to terms with this now and to be honest, I don't look too closely at contents of nappies - I feel if it recurs and is a big enough problem to need meds it will reveal itself to us.

Looking back on my childhood, I reckon I must have had them a fair few times (itchy bottom after the loo happened periodically, have since had a lightbulb moment about it!) but my mum dismissed it as just itching due to not wiping my bottom properly. Her first comment about the DC's having them was "Oh you never had that", to which I now think "Aye, right ".

On a positive note, a poster on another MN thread said they had been told by a doctor that regular infestation lessens your chance of getting leukaemia and I have read similiar about it (them?!) lessening your risk of bowel cancer!

[Chandon]

I never knew it was taboo (am foreign, so sometimes not aware of all the social rules here) and am liable to say to other parents "I had to treat the DC for nits AND worms this weekend! How bad is that? Isn't it a nightmare?! haha".

I have not been ostracised (yet). I don't think? I think loads of kids get them.

It is not a big deal, imo, and you take the pills, scrub nails, wash stuff and hope for the best. Youngest DC gets it twice a year or so, oldest Dc never had them.

It is something they pick up at school and not a reflection of your parenting or hygiene, OP. Never had them in the school holidays...

[IneedAsockamnesty]

Mebendazole does kill them, it prevents them absorbing glucose and kills them so ovex will kill them. however it shouldnt usually be used in under 2's.

thats what piperazine is for and thats the one that paralizes them.

op chill out relax and stop freaking out.

a dose of ovex and 2 weeks of damp dusting and megga laundry blitzes, underware at night, good wash of the bum in the morning, trim all nails and stop thumb sucking nail biting or putting hands/fingers in mouth,not sharing flannels or towels then another dose of ovex. should be all you need.

if you think of a reception/nursery class as about 35 kids try and remember that about half the kids will have them at any time. its a normal part of childhood but incidents of infection can be reduced by keeping hands out of mouths.

[nipitinthebud]

I freaked out when my DS (and whole family) got them. I'd never heard of anyone having them and when I told his nursery they'd never heard of them too (but did put up a sign, albeit hastily removed after a day!). We did everything that you've done and I was very OTT about it. I actually rang our HV and she talked some sense into me as I too had been reading on the internet and read the horror stories. But honestly, the Ovex and the additional cleaning will sort it out. We've not had it since (several years later). I told a pharmacist friend of mine, and she said that they sell as many, if not more, bottles of Ovex than nit treatment! So very common!

[fidelma]

Relax it is very normal.If you don't chill you are going to create another problem.
You have delt with it.Now be strong and let it go.

[MrsStomp]

I really feel for you. My kids got them and then I got them when they were around about pre-school age. I became utterly obsessed with getting rid of them and - I'm going to be honest with you - it did take a few goes. I think it was because they were probably mixing with other kids who had them and they were all passing them back and forth. For this reason, asking nursery / school to send a letter home might be a good idea.

Apparently airing rooms and getting plenty of daylight is really good as this can kill the eggs. I took bedtime toys out to the garden for an airing on a bright day. Also gave us all lots of 'clearing out' foods - grated carrot, lentils, etc to help things on their way! I also made sure all of us wore pants at night and put them straight into the laundry in the morning.

I never had them as a child so it was a complete shock to me when we caught them. Here was me thinking lice was the worst! You sound like you are doing all the right things - and you are most certainly not on your own.

[OhGood]

Grew up on a farm, my mum wormed us all regularly. Does seem to horrify some people. Worming meds v effective. No big deal!

[ballstoit]

This year we have had Threadworms twice, nits once, ants in the cavity wall insulation and a wasps nest in the garden....I am sick to death of creepy crawlies who have no purpose in their irritating little lives other than creating stress

[DeWe]

The statistics that used to come with the medication (had slightly unusual medication prescribed at one point) said that around 1/3 of children under 10 have threadworms at any one point in time and that pretty much every child has it at some point.

I will say that some children seem to notice the itching more than others, deep sleepers often aren't disturbed as light sleepers are, so people who say their child hasn't ever had them, may just not have realised.

The first time ds had threadworms I gave him the tablet and explained it to him. He was nearly 3yo. A few days later we were out walking and he saw a worm about 4" long on the footpath.
"What's that?" he said.
"A worm."
"I wonder whose bottom that fell out of."

[loubielou31]

I keep threadworm treatment in the house so that if one of the DCs has worms I can treat it immediately and not have to wait until the next day to get to a pharmacy or to the doctors. It's worth asking for a prescription because it's expensive to buy over the counter.
It's not a very big deal. Certainly no worse than nits.

[booboomonster]

OP my sympathies - I nearly posted about this myself. Like others here, I think that some people just don't realise they have it... I was quite open about it and was pretty much met with shock apart from one person at work (who is the cleanest person in the office, as much as one can tell!) who had had it along with her DCs.

My problem is that I am pregnant so can't take the drugs. DD2 got it first, and so DD1 and DH took meds too as a precaution, and that all seems to have cleared up. But, being preg, I can't take anything (and I do have them, have seen the buggers). The life cycle is supposed to be 6 weeks and I have now had it for that long. It does seem to be fading, but I am dreading finding more as it will tell me that I must have been reinfected. Like others, I have read horror stories on t'internet. Anyway, when I saw my GP he said he had never heard of a pregnant woman having threadworms before and 'good luck with that' to my plan of natural treatment (frequent washing, changing sheets, pants, clothes, bed clothes, separate towels, etc etc). I have now been referred (by a horrified midwife) to a consultant... Has this happened to anyone else? Any advice gratefully received - am seeing consultant on Wednesday and don't really want to take the meds if there is risk to baby (I'm 10 weeks). Honestly, morning sickness, early pregnancy exhaustion, threadworms and excessive cleaning is not a good combination!

[bumhead]

Op please don't feel embarrassed!
When I was little we lived in the countryside and I was constantly plagued with threadworms. I was always grubbing around outside and also would catch them from school.
At the time the only meds seemed to be Pripsen which even now the thought of would make me gak
Nowadays there are tablets and liquid too. Take them once a week for 3 weeks on the same day of the week. That way any live worms are killed and any eggs that hatch will be killed too.
They are so common but no-one talks about them.

[bumhead]

Also add lots of garlic to your diet. It's a powerful anthelmintic (kills worms) raw if poss

[Harrycaitandtedsmummy]

My DS3 has had them again...he's 6, so I believe it's just one of those things..

[bumhead]

Booboomonster yes I had them when pregnant with DD. That GP was so ignorant it beggars belief!!
Worms don't discriminate so if your preg or not you can catch them xxx

[booboomonster]

bumhead did you get rid of it whilst pregnant too or did you have to wait to take treatment after birth?

[bumhead]

I caught them in the last trimester and ate a lot of raw garlic (pleasant I know) and got rid of them that way.
if I hadn't then who knows I think I would prob have waited but I didn't have access to a Consultant so I think it will be good to hear what they say. It may be that the meds are ok to take and it's just a precaution that the manufacturers say not to on the packaging or there may be something else you can take.
You have every sympathy. They are awful things to have (so very common though) xxx

[booboomonster]

Thanks bumhead it's been so depressing being up in the night removing the buggers, as well as frequent loo stops - I am knackered! I can't stomach garlic at the moment, but am just hoping the other methods work. Yes, will see what consultant says but if he/she is shocked/disgusted too I think I might deck him/her.

[bumhead]

There should be absolutely no reason for the Consultant to be shocked/disgusted these are so common I bet just about everyone catches them at some point in their life even if they don't know about it.
Can you take Piperazine as someone else suggested? It paralyses them rather than kills them so they can't lay eggs. You take a few doses a week apart. Might be worth a look.
You will get rid of them I promise you

[withaspongeandarustyspanner]

My lot get them from time to time (particularly the younger ones). I've found a second dose of the tablets after two weeks worked a treat last time. I read that they don't like grated raw carrot. Will try that next time. If there is a next time...

[bumhead]

Booboo get yourself to the Health Food shop or baking aisle of Asda etc and get a bag of Pumpkin seeds.
They apparently contain a natural ingredient that paralyses the little bastards and won't harm you or baby (plus they are delish) so get some and munch away!!

[booboomonster]

thanks - I need to hear that! I think everything is out when in first trimester but there might be something, such as piperazine, available later on... here's hoping. Still slightly worried about risks though, but I guess I'll have to quiz the consultant.

[booboomonster]

will try the pumpkin seeds! thanks

[DoubleDoubleTwigletTrouble]

What freaks me out about them is that the eggs are so light that they can float in the air and you can breathe them in. This is what makes me think that washing bedding frequently is pointless - you can lift a bedsheet off and accidentally flick all the eggs into the air so you have a lovely clean bedsheet but air full of them.

Does anyone have a definitive answer about whether you can give Ovex regularly to prevent ever getting an proper infection, say once a month? I once asked a chemist if we could take it 3 times instead of the prescribed two doses (someone had recommended this to me) and he said no. That made me think that it's not good to take frequently but I've heard of others who do. I would LOVE to dose us all up once a month or so as I HATE the sleepless nights and constant cleaning.

[nipitinthebud]

Doubletwiglet - that's what i freaked out about as it seemed we would forever be plagued by them. But that's why you take the two treatments a week apart.

The life cycle of the worm and the way the treatment kills them should mean that the live ones inside you die, then any eggs remaining that are in you or ingested in the subsequent week are then killed off by the following treatment. Plus, every time you hoovering you're removing more and more. Without adding extra ones, seeing as once you've had the treatment you can't shed eggs anymore.