Mumsnet users share their tips for helping their child through chickenpox with PoxClin

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It may not be front of mind for many parents right now, but chickenpox is an illness most children will get, making it almost a rite of passage. Despite this, having a child who doesn’t feel well - whether that’s with chickenpox or anything else - can be something that’s difficult to deal with. With children at home (along with almost everyone else at the moment) and feeling restless, as well as parents feeling stressed from juggling work and unexpected childcare, it can make the situation even more challenging. With that in mind, PoxClin Cool Mousse would like to hear your tips for helping your child and the family cope with chickenpox.

Here’s what PoxClin Cool Mousse has to say: “It is natural for parents to feel concerned about itching and scarring, in fact, 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. It’s at times like this that support and advice from other parents can be invaluable. So, if you have some amazing parenting “hacks” to share, we want to hear from you!”

Do you have tips for helping to relieve their itching and scratching? Perhaps you have practical tips for keeping their mind off of it and making them feel cared for? Maybe you’ve picked up tips for helping your child when they have been poorly with something else that could be just as helpful if they came down with chickenpox?

Whatever your tips for dealing with chickenpox, share with PoxClin Cool Mousse below to 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

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I paid £40/dose for the chicken pox vaccine (so £80 in total for 2 doses) at my local NHS doctors’ surgery where a nurse happily did it for us. Do shop around for prices.

I found letting them have lots of time in the garden helped, I think it kept them cooler and was also a distraction.

We also had scratchsleeves because my two had eczema anyway, and they were fabulous for stopping them from being able to scratch

Wow what a difference in price, the £170 was at a private travel clinic, I've not heard of NHS places doing them (for a fee) round here but good that some do! Shows it pays to shop around!

While traditional remedies such as calamine lotion have long been the go-to home treatment for chickenpox, there are newer mousse products available on the market that can help. These can be easier to use than creams or lotions as they are less messy and don’t require rubbing in to sensitive rash-covered skin and often provide additional benefits.

My daughter has just had it and I used Calamine lotion.

I didn't realise she had a very mild dose! My poor son has a really severe bout. A friend lent me their poxclin mousse which had a small amount left in, I've since bought another bottle. It's so easy to apply and has soothed my son. He is so upset that I wouldn't be able to dab calamine lotion on him, this is less messy and easy to cover large areas.

I've found lukewarm showers and plenty of drinks have helped to make him better too.

We used this and he didn't scratch at all. And its absorbed really quickly. Also didn't use all of it so it lasts. Less mess and more soothing for my son. Really rate it.

We used poxclin thanks to a recommendation and lots of parts bath. One had chicken pox on the sole of a foot and had to be carried everywhere, only thing we found to help that was the poxclin. The other had a few spots in her mouth, she cried when she ate so we made lots of frozen food into small lollipops and let her eat them as and when.

Poxclin was good for the start and end of the day. For getting through the day a warm bath with oats in a sock was basically how she spent most of the afternoon.

Calamine dabbed on the most itchy ones also helped.

Also paid for the vaccine.

I let my dds run around wearing only a layer of calamine lotion. Bathing in luke warm water and running the water through oats also helped.

We used soothing gel and also encouraged or DD to rub rather than scratch her spots. It was really hard though and I would happily tried anything to make her feel better.

Also totally recommend the vaccination. Look at all the unnecessary suffering above that could have been avoided (not to mention the worse complications that can occur).

Calamine lotion, and we did games, painting, jigsaws and crafts to take her mind off it.

Agree re the vaccine these days as in hindsight my DD was so uncomfortable it broke my heart :(

I did everything- calamine lotion, bicarbonate of soda in the bath, Calpol regularly, I do think the oat baths helped though.

I was more worried about scarring initially but then as the scratching worsened that became my main concern.

I would've tried this product had I know about it. I would've tried anything really!

My 4 yr old got chicken pox just before lockdown! Our amazing local independent pharmacy were brilliant and sorted out the following cocktail
Piriton for soothing the itch from the inside
PoxClin foam for most of her body
ViraSoothe gel for the ones in her hair
Camomile mixed with zinc oxide cream for her genitals
And told us to make her baths with a porridge and bicarbonate of soda mix

We were so lucky- only half a dozen bad spots which still have marks a month later, and hardly any itching on the rest of them.

I used Poxclin when both of mine had chicken pox. Far better than Calamine. Non drying, non sticky, easy to apply and cooling. It definitely helped.

Other measures were antihistamine, Aveeno bath sachets (could just use oats), no ibuprofen, some new toys, sticker books, magazines for distraction. One particularly loved the sprinkler as it was during a heat wave.

My tips would be an antihistamine for the itching, ice pop smoothies for hydration and vitamins, and lashings of PoxClin foam, let it dry and dress in loose cotton clothing. Reassurance that this won't last, and the promise of a new toy or game at the end of it for being brave - the focus of a much wished for item seemed to focus my 7 year olds mind.

Put oats in an old pair of tights, tie to tap and run a luke warm bath to help relieve itching naturally

DO NOT USE IBUPROFEN

I used Poxclin on my children, along with paracetamol for pain and an antihistamine but the poxclin meant the spots dried up very quickly, the redness reduced quickly and they didn’t actually scratch or want to scratch except when it was at its peak. I have recommended poxclin to loads of friends who have also found it has helped a lot.

Help! 8 week old baby bedtime routine???

Ok so my baby girl is 8 weeks old on thursday (2 days)

She wakes around 5.30am has a little feed then goes back off till about 7.30-8.
She then wakes and has 6oz, some awake and stimulation from daddy before he leaves work.
She will then fall asleep around 9am and sleep for about 3 hours!!

(Just read today that having a long morning nap isnt good for getting a bedtime routine established)

Anyway ... she will then have little cat naps for the rest of the day, but still no matter what, doesn't fall asleep at night time till 9.30 10pm

Now am I wrong in thinking (or wanting) this should be earlier, my first child has been in bed asleep by 7.30pm ever since I can remember and hes now 6.

Iv completely forgot what to expect from a newborn.
Is she too young for a routine?
Will she fall into one herself and fall asleep earlier?
I know some that are in bed by 6.30.

It would just be nice to have some time with my partner instead of not having any time alone till gone 10pm.

I'm just hoping she will eventually get to bed earlier xx

I used this with both of mine and it was brilliant , I put it in the fridge so it had a cooling effect on the skin. Both of my kids never got one scar off their chicken pocs. I did think it was a bit expensive when I first tried it over 10 years ago, but when my 2nd child got the chicken pocs I went abd bought it straight away as remembered how good it had been. I always recommend it

Oat baths worked really well, particularly putting the oats in the toe of a pair of tights, putting a knot in that and then putting it under the tap, so that I didn't have to clean the bath out of wet oats.

My two didn't get it that badly though.

Funny I was just thinking about this the other day. Toilet training and chicken pox have been the only other times we have self isolated. Tho 14 days tops! I was really lucky. Both of mine were young and bar a few miserable days not too bothered with it. With ds we were recommended poxclin and it seemed to work well, though his was a mild case. We did oatmeal and bicarb baths and calpol NOT ibuprofen.
If ds hadnt got it by aged 3 I was going to look into chicken pox vax. DD2 is just 7months and the more I look into it the more I think the vaccination might be a good idea. I was unaware how serious it could be for some kids and the fact we are one of the few european countries that doesn't already recommend it or have a programme for it.

I used to always put the callomine lotion in the fridge so when I applied it to their skin it was lovely and cool.
I used to also do a reward jar for when they didnt pick the scabs off and it worked a treat

DS managed to get lockdown Chickenpox! Couldn't believe our luck however I was WFH so able to look after him and it's not like we were planning on going anywhere so no plans to cancel!

We gave calpol and Piriton timed to fit the dosages and smothered him I Poxcillin at the first signs of itching. We dressed him in loose fitting clothes and encouraged him to drink as much as possible. Even though he was covered in spots, particularly on the head and neck he was mostly his usual self thanks to the Piriton a d poxcillin more then the calpol I imagine the only difference was he slept longer for his naps.