Anyone else caught a cold from kids going back to school?

[JamMakingWannaBe]

OMG - my nose has been streaming all night and I'm tucked up in bed today with plenty of lemsip.

The only place I could have caught a cold is from DD - or one of my very socially distanced work colleague's kids - going back to school.

What is a concern is that I've managed to catch one despite all the extra hand washing and alcohol sanitiser precautions so TF it's a cold and not COVID!

Hopefully that's the new classmates shared their germs now!

Yes! I have and its bugging my happiness. Ds is totally fine though whereas im a snotty sniffly mess 🤧🤧

Just about every parent & child I know including myself & DC have the cold. It is just a cold though. Not particularly worried about it being covid as I've had it & it was a million times worse than a cold. Keeping DC off just to try & not spread it any further. Kids have been in isolation so long I'm sure they will catch everything going just now.

DD developed some illness over the weekend. She did have a high temperarure (38.4) but seems more like a cold - no cough or loss of taste/smell. The school guidance here (Edinburgh) is to only get them tested if seems like Covid (mainly cough and loss of smell) but to keep them off for other illnesses until their symptoms clear up. The temperature has gone today but she's still snotty, so no school.

Given that they've not been exposed to normal disease over the past few months I anticipate that it's going to be a disruptive few months as their immune systems remember what they're supposed to do.

If it's a temperature over 37.8 C you're suppose to test or isolate for 14 days regardless of snotty noses or where in Scotland you are.

Ah - thanks callisto. The way the guidance sent out was worded to us made it sound like a cumulative thing and that a temperature alone wouldn't warrant a test. Will order one for her now

@Rhumba it's interesting your school has been so specific about the level of raised temperature and the amount of coughing - I was researching this a lot when deciding if dc needed a test at the weekend and the coughing one was hard to pin down. Bearing in mind children may display reduced symptoms as well. NHS advice doesn't even specify a temp and includes if their tummy feels hot to touch (not everyone has a thermometer - and not every thermometer is equally accurate I suppose.) His cough is not as much as you said but he would be sent home from any school in the country I'm sure!
We got tests, no results yet, all at home. They aren't presenting as normal colds to be fair, so if not Covid 🤞🤞I think it's some other kind of virus more than a cold.

Both kids felt wiped out and sore throats after coming home yesterday. DS just feels a bit snotty and is going in, DD says her throat is sore like tonsilitis and she’s wiped out so taking day off. Conflicted because I listened to Radio 4 programme ‘Inside Science’ that had an interview with Professor Tim Spector of Kings College London who said that under 18s who tested positive presented with the top 5 symptoms of Headache, Fatigue, Fever, Sore throat & skipping meals. So ‘fever’ is the only one of those 5 that would qualify you for a COVID test on the NHS online application. Chances are my DD has just caught one of the many other germs that’s flying around so I’m just going to keep her off while she feels unwell unless advice changes.

Loads of kids at our secondary school have been off with colds - hardly surprising as they haven't been in contact with each other for six months.

However, a snotty nose and sore throat without the cough/temperature/loss of taste is not a symptom. And you DON'T need to be tested.

This is the link to the guidance we were sent via the school messaging system this morning.

www.gov.scot/publications/common-cold-and-covid-19-symptoms-advice-for-parents-and-carers/

Unfortunately the common cold often presents with a cough, so those "it's just a cold" children who coughed persistently still needed a test to determine it was just a cold.

Runny nose and sore throat here but thankfully not a single covid symptom. Bit worrying how quickly it's spread through the school despite all the new measures to prevent infection.

Bettyn that's what I've been noticing. Quite a bit of cognitive dissonance going around.

Also worth noting that all the research papers to date suggest that even if a child is COVID positive they are much more likely to be showing absolutely no symptoms at all.

Yep. All 3 kids snotty. No fevers or coughs.

Now I’ve got a sore throat and feel a bit congested. No covid symptoms though.

@adarkwhisperinthewoodwasheard

A fever means she meets criteria for covid testing. You should arrange a test and isolate as a family until you get the result.

Well that’s my DS back home early after battling through most of school but feeling awful after lunch. Perhaps all our kids‘ immune systems are taking a battering after being isolated and now they’re back in the real world they’re susceptible to everything going? But then again perhaps this will get their systems up and running and ready to fight off the nastier bugs. Just shows that anti-bac and constant hand washing doesn’t do an awful lot once you’ve thrown people together in close proximity.

My DS says there were 9 people off from his class of 30 and it seems to be similar across a lot of classes. DD feels a lot better so she’ll be back in tomorrow with Strepsils

I'm really worried if I'm not supposed to send dc back to school till all the symptoms are gone. They could well be a bit poorly for quite a while (but have tested negative).
Child off means someone's else's children won't be taught as still at an age to need a parent at home.

@Mistressiggi have the school not said? Ours said they can return 48 hours after a negative test if well or 48 hours after symptoms stop if displaying covid symptoms.

*in addition to a negative test for the second one. Think I've made that sound even more complicated.

Thanks Bettyn, I understood!
So I have to literally wait till every symptom of cold has gone, then another 48 hours? So I would just be off work the rest of the week then. Even with a negative test.
I can't believe other parents are going to comply with this tbh.

Having said that, I've just read the letter from the chief medical officer saying they can attend with a cold if fit to do so! All very confusing

They should only be staying at home (assuming they feel well) if they have specific covid symptoms (cough, temp, loss of smell or taste) or if they have been asked to by a track and trace team. Some schools are being over zealous.

Felt one coming on but Vicks First Defence has kept it at bay

Sore throats all round here. No covid symptoms though.

@MadameBlobby

Felt one coming on but Vicks First Defence has kept it at bay

First Defence is great! Many a cold has failed to develop due to using it at the first hint of a sniffle

Ds(16) woke with a cold on Sunday, despite avoiding him, not sharing a bathroom, taking extra care and lots of handwashing I am feeling more and more crap today with a now streaming nose and sore throat.