Nursery illnesses

[ringmybe11]

Just looking for advice really. I started back at work last week and DS started nursery at the same time as unfortunately there was no capacity for him to start earlier. DS had and recovered from a sickness bug before he started nursery last week and on Friday when I picked him up they said they'd sent a couple of children home with a temperature but they didn't know if something was going round/what caused it etc. Fast forward 2 days and DS now has a temperature. The last time he had a temp he was really unwell with some virus and it lasted for 3 days and was one of the worst weeks of parenthood by far. I was prepared for DS catching germs from nursery but didn't actually expect 2 things within the space of 7 days. My question is to other parents of pre school children - are all nursery bugs horrendous, make the child really poorly, contagious for us etc or are some things quite mild and not that big of a deal? I always feel better when I'm prepared for what to expect. TIA

My experience having 2 toddlers recently go through this is if they start on the autumn/winter it's usually about 3 months of on/off bugs

Colds
Temperatures
Viral rashes
D&V

Sorry! It really does suck and for this reason I held onto my holiday racked up during maternity leave

My friend has 2 summer babies which both started may/June 2 years apart. They had an initial couple of weeks of illnesses but then it didn't hit until the colder months when she also had 2/3 months of bugs

Wish I could say it was less but I've also been told to expect the same when they start school 😔

Feel for you. I am in a very similar situation, my little boy started in nursery a month a ago, and I started back at work last week.

So far he has been off one and a half days (he attends 4 days per week), both for temperatures. One was vaccine related, the other lasted 24 hours and then he was back to his normal self (unfortunately this one hit on his first birthday!).

I am aware there is a D&V bug going around too.

I am following with interest as am wondering the same....

My little man started nursery on Tuesday was sent home on the same day with a temp and we ended up in hospital with bronchilitis . Great start hey!

Forgot to say, does your nursery have a policy on temperatures and calpol? Ours will give it with a temperature (with parental permission!). If temperature does down, child is fine to stay, if not, they must go home.

Thanks everyone, really helpful. Hopefully this one is pretty minor and won't derail us this week. Our nursery send straight home with a temp so will be an interesting few months. It doesn't feel right to ask our elderly parents to help much with a sick child so the juggle with work will be real. Luckily we're both able to work from home if needed but that's easier said than done with a small child to look after. Fun times ahead!

Same here OP, we have no family to help us so it is just the two of us, in it together!

On days where my little boy is unwell, if we can, we plan to work from home and split the day between us depending on who has what and when, and make up hours in the evening, if possible. If not possible, a day of AL it is....

My son caught a cold from his 1 hour settling in session!

So yes, expect lots of illness unfortunately. It does get better though.

It gets better but it is a bloody nightmare to start with. We had some horrendous bugs the first 3 months or so, pretty much continuously. This settled to regular low grade bugs for another couple of months and have then eased off completely in that she's only been ill 3 times this year. When I say continuous, it literally was at the start. Sickness bug to Covid to chest infection to another sickness bug to heavy cold to ANOTHER sickness bug, etc etc etc, with barely a few days in between. It will get better eventually but it is really tough. Make sure you're sharing the days off fairly between you from the beginning, regardless of who earns more or thinks their job is more important!

I think it's par for the course, though I know this isn't what you want to hear.

DD's first 4–5 months at nursery were dreadful with colds, bronchiolitis, HF&M, tummy bugs. There was barely a day where either she nor I had one of these lurgies she was picking up. I was just getting to the point where I thought it was absolutely pointless her continuing to go to nursery when we suddenly turned a corner and then she wasn't ill again for months. And FWIW, starting school was nowhere near as bad as DD must have built up enough immunity to the local bugs.

It's thoroughly draining but you just have to muddle through it somehow (I'm extremely fortunate to be self-employed so didn't have an employer to contend with but equally if I don't work I don't have money so it was a stressful time and like you, no way would I have roped in my parents to help with an unwell child).

Sorry to say, but the bugs will be endless at first.

My son started nursery in April and has been ill at least 50% of the time. He has had a runny nose almost constantly for the last 5 months, plus at least one bad virus (including noro) a month.

I was hoping it would have eased by now, but I expect that the winter is going to be horrible for us, too.

It's normal, but still very very depressing. I haven't been in work for a full week for months, between his illnesses and then my illnesses caught from him.

Yup it's never ending to begin with🥺we do half days at work when he's unwell as we have no one to watch him. I normally do till lunch then my husband comes home and takes over. Now he tends to get away with just a snotty nose😅

Also wasn't prepared for him passing it on to me. Never been so unwell since he started nursery🙈I like to think my hand hygiene is spot on too🙃

Hand foot and mouth

Awful

Lots of colds, conjunctivitis, etc. Ear infections.

They usually improve by age 3

Thanks everyone for your replies last time. Just looking for a bit of support and solidarity again! I've now done 7 weeks at work so 7 weeks of nursery and we're in the middle of sickness bug 3 having had a couple of colds and a temp as well in that time. This is so hard!! Forget work, just getting through the illness on its own requires a high level of optimism and strength. I have literally been eating normally for 2 days since I recovered from the D&V bug he brought home last time. Husband is away with work as well - typical so I've been on my own all afternoon with a sick 1 year old. This is so brutal - most of our social plans the last 7 weeks have been cancelled as a result so it very much feels like surviving at the moment. How do people live like this for 6 months, we're only 7 weeks in 😭

Sorry to hear you've had no break!
It is totally brutal! You'll end up getting a good run of afew weeks and then you'll be hit again.
Whilst you'll not believe it right now; it's worth the shit (sometimes literally) once your out the other side!

I hear you. We lost count of the sickness bugs and had Covid and flu thrown in amongst it all as well as general colds. Just hang on, it will get better and as pp said it is worth it. We've not had a sickness bug once this year and only a few colds.

Been there! The first winter is the worst. I was permanently ill from October-March then finished it off with a miscarriage. But I’ve heard you then find they transition to school better plus tend to bounce back a bit quicker as toddlers than they do at school age.