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Children's health

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Original poster

majorca in 12 days, dd2 just broke out in chicken pox last night

33 replies

blackmonday · 15/08/2009 16:39

We have a much longed for holiday in majorca booked. we will be going on 27th Aug. Tried to avoid swine flu and worried about ETA bombs and now this! She got her first spot yesterday and has loads now. I know she will not be contageous by the time we fly but dd1 has not had it yet and is not showing any signs of having it at the moment. Wondered if anyone had any advice as to when dd1 will show signs if she has caught it or whether there's a chance she might escape? kids REALLY looking forward to this holiday and we will all be gutted if we can't go We are only going for a week btw

OP posts:

donnie · 15/08/2009 16:43

oh gosh - my sympathies. This happened to a friend of mine and they had to cancel their holiday. It is very likely that your other dd will get it - unfortunately. Normally siblings get it within a couple of weeks of eachother - my dds did. You will have to make a decision - if your other dd gets it - about what to do. Are you insured?

donnie · 15/08/2009 16:44

some peopel do fly anyway and hide their dc's spots etc - but this is hazardous and if you are caught you wouldn't be able to get the money back on insurance. The airline can turn people off the plane if they want!

traceybath · 15/08/2009 16:47

My two boys have just had it. DS2 came out in spots 2 weeks exactly after DS1 had first spot.

Your DD1 will have been contagious for a couple of days before the spots came out and until the last one scabs over. The incubation period can be up to 21 days.

As Donnie says unfortunately your youngest is very likely to get it as its highly contagious.

Much sympathy - my ds2 was contagious when i had dc3 so was very bad timing for us too.

Stinkyfeet · 15/08/2009 16:48

My ds's came down with chicken pox within days of each other. So if dd1 starts getting spots in the next day or 2, there is a reasonable chance she will not be infectious by the 27th. You may need to get a note from your GP to confirm they are both OK to fly.

Original poster

blackmonday · 16/08/2009 09:22

thanks for replies. dd1 still has no spots. has anyone had siblings where one has caught chicken pox but the other doesn't get it? what are the chances?

OP posts:

wb · 16/08/2009 09:38

How long are you planning on going for?

Ds2 (then 13 mo) came out in spots 21 days after ds1. We were on holiday at the time but luckily in this country. Just make sure you have a plan for what to do if your other dc comes out in spots whilst you are away as then they won't be allowed to fly back until scabbed over.

I do know families where 1 child has had it and not the other but these are a minority ~(sorry).

Original poster

blackmonday · 16/08/2009 10:30

we are going for a week. i've been doing some research and noticed there is a medicine called aciclover which could help prevent dd1 from catching it. has anyone any experience of this and would my doctor give me a prescription for this as she is otherwise healthy? thanks. (i know its only a holiday but we would all be devasted to not be able to go and we got a really cheap deal. Even with insurance money we wouldn't have enough to book another one!)

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snickersnack · 16/08/2009 12:17

Acyclovir won't stop her catching it - it reduces the length and severity of symptoms. Your GP might, i suppose, be prepared to prescribe it but prob only once she's got it. You need to start taking it pretty much straight away and it does have side effects. My nephew took it when he developed chicken pox - he has a compromised immune system so they wanted to keep it under control.

Sorry - fingers crossed you get your holiday

Original poster

blackmonday · 20/08/2009 19:22

well,we're 7 days away and dd1 still showing no signs of chicken pox. i've heard that if she's incubating the virus she will be feeling a little bit under the weather but she is feeling perfectly fine atm. Does anyone have any experience of dcs being poorly before the rash appearing?

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girlsyearapart · 20/08/2009 19:30

Hi my dds caught it exactly 2 weeks apart. My sister recently went to Greece after her ds had the pox and had finished being contagious. A few days into the holiday her two dds caught it and they couldn't fly home. They were on a Mark Warner holiday and couldn't join in on much and only went in the pool when all the other kids were in kids club.
The insurance company would not allow both parents to stay so they had to pay for my sisters partner to stay out there as my sister understandably didn't want to stay out in Greece with two chicken poxed kids (6 mo and 2.5)
When dd1 had it her little friend had seen her pretty much everyday and also saw dd2 in her contagious time and she never caught it and I also know of other people whose children didn't both catch it.
We are off to majorca 1st sep and if you're anything like me you're really looking forward to it so I'm v sorry for you if you have to cancel x

girlsyearapart · 20/08/2009 19:32

Just read your latest yes dd1 was definitely under the weather before spots. Off her food and whingy no chicken pox anywhere else so I just thought she was being a pain ..

Original poster

blackmonday · 20/08/2009 19:56

thanks! yes, we are all really looking forward to going. It's horrible because if we knew for sure whether she was going to get it we could get our heads round that. As it stands we are checking her every day and holding off getting bits for the holiday/ changing money up etc. the children would be really devasted if we had to cancel. It's good to hear of situations where siblings haven't caught it. We're going on Thursday and i've got a feeling the first spots will probably appear once i've packed!!

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girlsyearapart · 21/08/2009 09:34

Any spots yet??

Original poster

blackmonday · 21/08/2009 11:34

no spots yet and no signs that she might be coming down with anything! think i'm starting to get foolishly optimistic now.

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SoupDragon · 21/08/2009 12:40

DS2 went down with it 1 week after DS1 was spot free.

"some peopel do fly anyway and hide their dc's spots etc - but this is hazardous and if you are caught you wouldn't be able to get the money back on insurance. The airline can turn people off the plane if they want!"

It's not only "hazardous" it's utterly irresponsible.

Original poster

blackmonday · 21/08/2009 15:28

i've got no intention of flying if she's infectious. i'm just hoping she doesn't catch it now.

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Pinkjenny · 21/08/2009 15:36

Keeping my fingers crossed that you get your holiday. My dd was not unwell at all before she came out in cp, and for the first three days after the spots came out she was fine also.

She also managed to infect my 22 year old cousin, who came out in spots two weeks after dd.

girlsyearapart · 22/08/2009 08:18

If she is well and has no spots then go. It's not irresponsible to fly in that case or you'd never go anywhere in case someone was harbouring some kind of illness!
Which resort you going to? We are going to can picafort. Cannot wait!

Tambajam · 22/08/2009 08:38

Incubation is normally 10-15 days. Can be up to 21 days though. If your second child catches it from the first you wouldn't see any sign until likely a couple of weeks after your first child broke out. I'm afraid feeling optimistic only 6-7 days after your first child broke out isn't very realistic. But you can hope!
If a child is going to break out they may feel ropey around 24-48 hours before spots (when they are also infectious) but not always. My DD and DS were both in good spirits and then suddenly got spotty.

I would be prepared for your second child to still break out and even when you have arrived on holiday. You may want to pack a few things like calamine (in a tube rather than in a bottle) and puriton for the itching. And some activities you can do indoors if she has to stay in. Hope things work out.

Original poster

blackmonday · 22/08/2009 09:03

thanks for your messages. we're staying in sa coma and have been looking forward to it for months!hope you enjoy your holiday, girlsyearapart. I know it's a bit early to be optimistic and i also know there is a big chance she'll get it while we're out there. I doubt the insurance company would pay out if we cancelled and she is symptom free. I have got a fitness to fly letter for dd2 who still has marks but is no longer infectious. My doctor has said sometimes children can get a mild case and the parents aren't aware they've had it. He said it is possible dd1 has had it in the past. She has been in contact with it once before that I know of and has not caught it. clutching at straws but who knows. She is getting very fed up with being checked for spots every five minutes tho

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paddingtonbear1 · 22/08/2009 09:23

hi blackmonday, fingers crossed for you!
dd was exposed to chicken pox twice that I know of - both fairly close contact. The first time she didn't get it, although other friends she played with at the time did. The second time was at nursery and she did get it - it was around her birthday and she missed her party (which was a joint one with another friend). She was too young to realise though, fortunately. I hope you manage to go on holiday!

Original poster

blackmonday · 22/08/2009 16:55

threw caution to the wind today and bought sun cream and toiletries! Might be tempting fate but so far so good!

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plonker · 22/08/2009 17:04

My 3 dd's caught it within 2 weeks of each other, as in dd2 caught it, then 2 weeks later dd1 and dd3 caught it.

BUT, my sis caught it as a child and I didn't. My mum always took me to the houses of children who had it and I just didn't catch it off them. I eventually caught it when I was in my mid-teens.

Your dd1 may be like me and may not catch it till she's much older.

Good luck and happy hols

Original poster

blackmonday · 22/08/2009 18:34

thanks for that, plonker (love the name btw!). It's rare you hear of siblings not catching it from eachother. On the one hand that would be great as it means we get our holiday but on the other hand i've heard it's worse as you get older. Did you suffer a lot when you finally caught it?

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plonker · 22/08/2009 21:35

Unfortunately the name suits me

To answer your q though, yes, I did suffer when I caught it. Was really quite poorly. Would have still chosen to be poorly later and have a hol in majorca though

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