Coughs and colds

[Cappuccino17]

Hi
I have a baby and people visit when they have coughs and colds. I am overcome with anxiety as my baby catches them so easily and struggles in the night which in return makes me a crap mum as i dont get enough sleep. I cant tell people to leave and sometimes people just turn up and theyre all sick. Really frustrating. Even though they may not hold my baby they still leave thier germs all over and i clean up with spray etc.
Anyone in a similar boat?

If you are breastfeeding your baby should get a lot of protection as the body adjusts your milk to protect the baby against viruses it encounters. If not then I guess you could ask plp to hold off visiting if they have a cold , think that’s fair enough if your baby is small. Although babies of older siblings get exposed to illness from crèche , school etc . I can totally understand if your baby is v small though that care is needed.

Sort of. I’ve got older kids who love to share germs. What worked for us was swapping from the bedtime bath to asdas little angels vapour bath. Recalled cleared out her stuffy nose. I’ve seen a sniffle babe brand one in Superdrug but it’s 3x the price of asdas one. Maybe that will help you in the meantime? Even though it’s a vapour bath it’s still no tears

I really think you need to ask these people to stay away until the cough or cold has cleared up.
If you're anything like me with anxiety, to upset someone slightly is much better than your anxiety and the stress it will cause you by not asking them.
Also most people will know not to go near a baby with a cough or cold, or any contagious illness for that matter! It's perfectly reasonable to ask them xx

How old is your baby? I think with newborns most people are quite understanding and considerate but not so much with 6+ months. With my ds I used to open all the windows and doors if I thought anyone had a cold and last year I used COVID as an excuse to always sit in the garden. People will still insist on holding your baby and sneezing all over them but considering I have an older child who brought home every infection going I couldn't really ask people to stay away with a cold. Ds survived so far (his sister's) inspite of all the germs but considering he has been ill non stop since joining nursery I doubt it strengthened his immune system massively (as I was promised when I mentioned how worried I was). Anyway, I know it's annoying but try not to let it get to you. It's just going to get worse over winter.