Share your tips for coping when your children have chickenpox with PoxClin

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Though most children will get it at some stage, chickenpox is an illness that can be difficult for all involved. With that in mind, PoxClin would like to hear the tips you have for when children get chickenpox.

Here’s what PoxClin has to say: “It’s never easy when your children are ill and it’s natural for parents to worry about the itching and discomfort chickenpox can cause. 46% of parents say that stopping children from scratching is the most important thing for them when their child has chickenpox and 34% also worry about longer-term effects like scarring. These issues, combined with children being at home and unable to attend school or nursery until the spots have crusted over can put everyone to the test, with children being restless and parents feeling anxious and stressed from juggling work and unexpected childcare. It’s at times like this that support and advice from other parents can be so valuable. So, if you have some amazing parenting “hacks” to share, we want to hear from you!”

Do you have any tips for dealing with being housebound while your child is contagious? Perhaps you know of remedies that help with relieving the itching and scratching that accompanies chickenpox? Maybe you have tips for dealing with more than one child getting chickenpox at the same time?

All who post below sharing their tips will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher for the store of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

Insight Terms and Conditions apply

*An online survey was conducted by Atomik Research among 1,300 UK adults aged 18+. The research fieldwork took place on 8th – 12th April 2019. Atomik Research is an independent creative market research agency that employs MRS-certified researchers and abides to MRS code

PoxClin was great for us, and making sure they wore long light clothing so that they weren't scratching. Educating them about the effects of scratching, without scaring them was a big help. My wife getting it ridiculously badly at the same time didn't help matters though.

My son had it quite young and so didn’t miss any school. We used calamine lotion on him but unfortunately he has been left with a few scars.

I don't know whether this is an established way of doing things, but we put our children in contact with others with chickenpox early on. That way, it's out of the way early. I treated it with calamine lotion and lots of attention!

Soft clothes, soft cotton gloves at night to prevent scratching in their sleep, old fashioned Calamine lotion can call and soothe. As with any illness plenty of fluids, nutritious food and lots of cuddles and distractions.

Try bathing using Head and Shoulders anti dandruff shampoo! it works to help reduce the spots.

If you can afford it cotton bedding is also better as its cooler and smoother to sleep on. Try to use cotton PJs.

lots of fluids, a good DVD to watch to take their mind off it all and plenty of sleep.

and please.... dont send your kids back to school until its all gone please dont spread the misery!

Oat baths, calamine lotion and antihistamines.

Lots of films, puzzle books and colouring, my friend gave me some ointment which really helped, we were advised not to use Calamine lotion as it stops the spots from scabbing. Other than that make them as comfortable as possible.

Cool baths and plenty of calamine lotion. I found that keeping my daughter in cotton clothing helped a lot as well

Bathing in colloidal oatmeal is the best natural remedy

I used Poxclin when my children had chicken pox. Though the best thing for me with regard to coping was that my friends daughter had chicken pox too so we could get together.

Oat baths, Calamine Lotion and Calpol. Also used an anti itching lotion at bed time called Eurax. And a bit of Sunshine and play to keep their minds off it.

A cool bath, less clothes the better to get air to the skin and calamine lotion

Getting the vaccine, my lo did still got the virus but it was so mild it caused very little upset. Luckily.

We've just got through a bout of this ourselves. The youngest got it first and she wasn't too bad, lots of lotion and resting with movies but it was more trouble with the eldest. She isn't very good when she is ill, she slept alot, we also gave her antihistamines to help with the itching.

lukewarm baths and oats to soothe things

i ran the bath tub with a few ea bags of canomile tea in it and they rubbed them over with the tea bags as for some reason the eldest absolutely refuses to have any sort of cream put on her!

piriton helped alot when my kids had chicken pox never knew about it till someone at school mentioned it helping

Mine both had it really young and it was just a case of soothing lotions

I have 3 children and last summer all 3 got chicken pox each 2 weeks apart. We covered them in calonmine lotion and to be honest just got on with life. Thankfully they all coped really well and as it was summer holidays they never missed any school.

luckily mine did not suffer overly with theirs but were very sleepy so lots of snuggle up time and movies with ice lollies!

My 3 boys all had it at the same time, aged 3 months, 3 years, and 4 years, I remember it well haha. Cool flannels on them and piriton helped a treat, but to be honest they weren't that bad, they just all stayed in a pair of shorts or nappy for the baby and they were over it within the week.

When DS caught chicken pox there was an epidemic and no calamine to be had in the shops. The chemist advised me to use Sudocrem instead as it's base is of zinc oxide and it worked so well. He was already used to Sudocrem and so didn't worry about it and as it was a cream rather than a liquid it was easier to apply and stay in the right place.

My son sailed through it, but my daughter was really quite ill. Cool baths, cotton clothes and gloves at night, Calpol and Calamine lotion helped a bit.

Cool baths and calomine lotion for the skin and lots of toys and games to relieve the boredom and take their mind off the itching.

They never had it