when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

what do you do as far as taking care of your DC?
DH is getting sick and he is scared to get our DD sick...he thinks he should just avoid her, not even breath on her, feed her etc...

Is this a good rule of thumb, or should he just make sure his hands are washed and just not be kissing her.

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

Well I was just sick with a really bad head cold and I still cared for both kids. I wish I could say its best they don't come near me, but that's not realistic in my house.

I say just try not to cough/sneeze on the baby, wash hands and limit kissing.

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

The last few times DH and I felt like we were getting sick we tried to avoid taking care of DS. If it was a weekend, then I avoided DS and DH took care of DS. But during the week, there really isn't a choice, so I had to take care of DS so I just made sure I washed my hands even more than usual and I didn't kiss or get close if I could.

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

You're most contagious before you show signs, so if DD is going to catch anything, it's already too late. We just try to avoid obvious germ-spreading practices. No kissing near the face, containing coughing and sneezing, washing hands often. You can't totally avoid DC when someone is sick, otherwise you wouldn't see them all winter! Plus, they need to get sick once in a while to build up their immune system and make them healthier in the long run.

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

Mommy isn't allowed to get sick But when DH does...it's the END of the world
So no matter what...I'm taking care of BOTH babies

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

The game plan in our house...

Whoever is not sick takes lead on caring for DS. Since he's in daycare...that would mean getting him ready in the morning and then getting him ready for bed at night (bath and story). I take him to and from daycare regardless...with the exception of my being sick in bed...then DH takes him and picks him up. But the sick parent still is involved...lots of hand washing.

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

For a regular cold/stomach virus we just follow the usual protocol - we made sure they had their vitamins, gave them an extra shot of OJ and are extra cautiour regarding sanitary issues when anyone is sick. This means regular hand washing and common courtesy (covering your mouth and nose when a sneeze or cough comes on). We don't go nuts because generally when anyone gets it, we know the whole family will probably get it to varying degrees.

But things get a little more cautious when there is a serious contagious illness around. My husband currently has pneumonia. The doctor advised that as a rule of thumb we should take extra precautions with being 'too close' within 24 hours of having a fever. After a full day on antibiotics the risk is minimized. He said pneumonia is not particuarly contagious - but it is very serious in young children. We are taking them to the doctor today just to be on the safe side.

That said - Rob is a SAHD and he simply can't not be around them. When I had pneumonia I had a similar issue. We just try to avoid close range face time and super cuddles until the risk has minimized.

ETA: And whichever parent is NOT sick absolutely takes on the bulk of the work. Gotta make sure the other gets enough rest to get well!

Message edited 11/13/2008 9:06:55 AM.

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

I was just sick (because DH never gets so much as a sniffle) and I am her primary caretaker (SAHM). I just avoided getting in her face and washed my hands very, very frequently. GL!

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

Posted by chelle

Mommy isn't allowed to get sick But when DH does...it's the END of the world
So no matter what...I'm taking care of BOTH babies

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

We have both been sick and we still have to handle baby--we wash hands more often and dont kiss as much--but it is inevitable

my aunt sugguested we buy those masks for our face when we are sick as to lessen the chances of passing it around

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

DH, DS, and I are all sick right now, so avoiding him isn't an option! I did actually wear one of those masks a couple days ago when I kept coughing and couldn't hold it in at times (only while feeding him though), though I figure he probably has whatever we do.

It's hard to avoid--you can wash your hands, but good chance you guys will get sick. Unless someone has the flu, it's not a big deal. Babies need to catch bugs to build strong immune systems.

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

For us, it's pretty much an unavoidable situation. I work days while DH is home with DD and then when I get home from work DH goes to work & I have DD. Basically, we all end up sick!

Re: when mommy or daddy is getting sick?

Since most men s u c k at proper hand washing I tell DH to stay away from ds when he is sick. He insisted he just had a sinus infection and they are not contagous. So dh got ds sick. And if that wasn't bad enough it was right before dh left for a business trip. SO ds used me as the human tissue and got me sick. So dh is living it up in Vegas while I was home alone sick while taking care of sick ds. Now if dh gets so much as a sniffle he is not permitted anywhere near ds It only happened a couple weeks ago so I am still really bitter about it.