Hand foot and mouth disease- optimism please!

[poppyflower1803]

My daughter got HFAM last Friday, she is luckily clear but I have received a whopping dose of it.

Started Tuesday with a bit of a sore throat, then continued Wednesday into fever and sore throat. The blisters started yesterday in my mouth, hands, up my nose , on my nose and they are getting unbearable! Feels like pins and needles all over my feet and hands and mouth feels like glass. The blisters have affected all my eczema point and piercing points. I don't actually feel too unwell until the night/evening, but the symptoms are just so awful.

For any adults that have had this, what was your progression like, how long did this last?

Thanks in advance

my mouth blisters hurt so much I asked my boyfriend to knock me out! (He didn’t).

i think after 2 or 3 days the blisters were much better.

@Verbena87

They are just brutal and seem to be getting worse! I'm thinking of asking the same from my boyfriend 🤣 Cannot wait for them to settle down.

Sending sympathy, it's utterly miserable as an adult. I had it for 2 weeks. It was 4 years ago and I still feel traumatised. Sorry I couldn't give you better news

I had it too, horrendous. Took about a week to go. Hands were the worst, on fire, couldn't stop scratching. Really felt rough, DD was awful too, almost hospitalized.

Nails fell off about a month later.

Oh goodness! That sounds absolutely horrid. I've never quite had anything like this in my adult life before. Had chickenpox when younger but can't remember that!

@mackthepony was that one week starting from the point of being unwell or from when the blisters began? Or did that happen at the same time for you?

I'm thankful DD got off fairly mildly- she had a lot of spots all over but was in general herself most of the time. Sorry to hear yourself and DD had a hard time :(

I got some relief rinsing my mouth with neat single malt. Although I suspect it just made me drunk enough to sleep, really. I was camping somewhere really remote (boat required to get to a pharmacist) so didn’t really get any help. I reckon if you go and see a pharmacist they might be able to help. Bonjela or anbesol maybe?

@Verbena87 oh gosh- not my idea of the best camping experience 😅!

I'm currently breastfeeding, so alcohol is mainly off limits sadly! Will ask my partner to pop to the pharmacy tomorrow. I know you can get some local anaesthetic throat spray, but whether I can get it over the counter while breastfeeding or not I'm not sure.

Currently my symptoms have developed more and I have the most intense pins and needles itchy rash on my hands, with more red spots coming up on the palms of my hands and going up my arms. Day 3 is almost done and dusted, bring on the next one 🤣

Yoghurt. Plain Yoghurt, cold from the fridge. Smear it over your hands and feet and anywhere else with the blisters. It was the only thing that worked for me! You have my sympathy, genuinely the most horrific disease I've ever had!!!

@Giveaschitt this disease seems like something straight out of the Middle Ages! Cannot believe it's a common illness amongst children, they seem to fare much better than us.

I have got some ice cream etc but will try the yogurt trick!

What's frustrating about it is every few hours some new symptom or new blister appears!

I was rough for a week in total. Headache, mouth ulcers, then the hands itching and blisters. Really bad.

I read malt vinegar as malt whisky😅

I'm sure yogurt will help

I cannot believe there isn't a vaccine against it, it's very debilitating

I still shudder when I think about my bout with HFM! Like you I caught it from my toddler son who breezed through it. I genuinely don't think I have EVER felt as ill as I did with HFM and I've had pneumonia, a whopping case of covid etc. it's the blisters, those awful blisters that mean you can't eat! And I was pregnant as well so that probably exacerbated everything!

I managed cold drinks. Milkshakes and smoothies in an attempt to get some nutrients into me. I can't remember how long it lasted but I think it was about a week. I'm useless with things like bonjela they just slide off whenever I apply them.

The best thing you can do is look up some remedies tonight (seem to remember there's one to do with gargling something like bicarb of soda and vinegar or something weird like that?!) Also Eurax cream is AMAZING for itching so might be useful for skin blisters or at least dial down the pain a bit. Then, once you've got some stuff that looks like it could help from your googling take a look at the Breastfeeding Network's website. She's a specialist breastfeeding pharmacist and has a massive list of medications and whether they are or aren't ok for breastfeeding and the reasons why (as opposed to the blanket 'no' you'll usually get from the packaging or the person behind the counter) If what you want isn't listed on there you can email her she's really helpful.

Obviously still get your husband to go and get them and say they're for him, if they see it's for you they won't sell them!

Oh and gargling with alcohol is fine when breastfeeding. Even drinking it is ok. Because of how much actually goes into the milk you'd have to be completely blotto before it reached harmful levels for your baby that is of course entirely your personal choice though and never drink if your co-sleeping.

Good luck and be prepared for some nails to fall off in the next few weeks. Mine were all fine but I got a nasty surprise when I took off my son's sleep suit and his entire big toenail came with it 🤢

I was ill with it for 3 or 4 days from memory. It was a few years ago though.

They definitely need a vaccine! Ended up waking up even worse..this is horrific

Thank you so much for all the lovely advice here ♥️ such a mission sourcing medication while pregnant/breastfeeding so that resource is really helpful.

My nail Beds are sore on my fingers, that makes me a bit worried for the next couple weeks!

A boy at nursery came in with it yesterday and spent the whole day amongst everyone. Surely he should have been kept at home, it sounds horrible and I don't want it in my family! Hope you're better soon OP

I caught it off my son years ago it was awful, he just had a few blisters. I didn't get any in my mouth thank god but my face and hands were covered, I couldn't hold a knife and fork and warm water felt like it was scorching hot. I lathered sudocreme everywhere but I'm not sure if that's right or not, it dried them out. My nails peeled off a few weeks later. It's a very nasty illness

It's a tricky one as nhs guidance is to keep child off if they are unwell but they can return as soon as they are feeling better, symptomatic or not. We had to keep DD off nursery until her skin healed and she was better though due to nursery policy.

Personally I think children should be excluded for the course of the illness but they are infectious before and after symptoms for a period of time so who knows whether it would help.

Luckily I don't have many in my mouth, just a couple and a sore throat so I can just about still swallow and eat softer foods. But like you my hands are covered in water blisters and sore itchy tingly red dots...

What's worst is my nose! I have blisters on and in my nose, I also have a nose piercing which is taking a battering along with my ear piercings and all over my eczema, very uncomfortable!

My son has this at the moment, bless him

Hes out of sorts but only has maybe 2 blisters that I could see

No sign of me or DH catching it yet, no idea if we had it as children ourselves or not

NHS advice is that if they feel well they can just go about their business, nursery etc. We’ve been told he can attend as normal (he caught it there anyway)
Unless pregnant I don’t think it’s considered an issue though from what I see here it sounds awful!

On top of the norovirus we also all just had I’ve just about had enough this week and it was literally his FIRST week there

Hope you feel better soon OP, hugs

I caught it off ds, ended up in A & E to be given steroids & antihistamines. I lost most of the skin on my hands & soles of my feet & my bum was covered in a rash I can only compare with really bad chicken pox.

@FurnitureDisease I sympathise, DD also recently just started nursery at beginning of October and has been permanently unwell the whole time, then passing the bugs onto us! It does get very draining the constant sickness.

Hope your son is ok and it doesn't get worse, some children seem to get off quite lightly with it.

I had it as a child but since 2012 apparently a new strain has been doing the rounds! And I think I have been floored with it. Apparently adults don't catch it easily, I think my immune system is very low atm due to lack of sleep and going back to university all at once.

Fingers crossed for you all ♥️

@Nat6999 oh gosh! I can see this disease being quite severe given half the chance, so sorry that happened to you ♥️

@poppyflower1803

isn’t it the worst! They say it’s good for immune system, but floors the parents as well!

its surprising the damage lack of sleep can do as well.

I was ready to end it all last night with all that and 3 days no sleep… 1 night good sleep and I’m so much better… until the next thing he brings home.

Oh a new strain doesn’t sound good! Why do these things exist that’s what I want to know, serving their misery upon us

Good luck with Uni and hope your feeling better soon ❤️

@FurnitureDisease

Totally feel your pain, DD is only 7 1/2 months and sleep has never been her strong suit, so when coupled with illness it's virtually non existent! Hello waking every hour 🤣!

Hopefully they get through this winter quickly, then have a virus free summer 🙏 or is that a bit too optimistic??

Good luck to you guys and thanks for the well wishes ♥️