LOL remember when I said to keep your kids at home?

Childcare Forum
1

So I made this post about getting hand foot and mouth disease (HFMD) from students at work as an elementary teacher. My little one ended up getting blisters all over her body and especially on her hands. She also had many mouth sores, which led to her refusing to eat from the bottle because sucking was painful.

Due to the HFMD, she developed another bacterial infection from the sores, which then turned into a staph infection through her infected lymph node. This resulted in basically being sick and dealing with it throughout December, two ER visits, and a drained lymph node (which she screamed bloody murder for as they cut it open). We’ve been on different liquid antibiotics for a month now, which my little one hates.

Currently, we’re on antibiotics and things are improving, but they found necrotic tissue near the lymph nodes, so if it doesn’t heal with antibiotics, she’ll need surgery to remove it because we want to avoid another infection.

I’m praying it heals with the antibiotics so my 8-month-old doesn’t need surgery.

To everyone who said I lack empathy as a teacher, that I should’ve “expected it” as a teacher and that “it comes with the job,” I truly wish the worst for you because I wouldn’t wish this upon you or any other parent.

I understand that this is a bigger issue, especially in the US, where employers don’t do enough to support parents in terms of leave. However, if keeping your kid home while sick is an inconvenience to your job or your “livelihood,” maybe you should’ve thought about that when you had kids. Having children comes with responsibility and anticipating that challenges will come up. Teachers shouldn’t just have to “deal with it.” We’re parents too, and we will do what we can to keep our kids safe. For us, that meant staying home with HFMD and taking leave. Also, for those who said, “well, teachers have the same time off as your kids, you don’t need to take off,” I actually did take off work to take care of my sick child.

This is more of a rant/update that no one asked for, but I firmly believe in keeping your kids home when sick to prevent situations like this from happening.

Edit: Thank you everyone for your kind words and feedback! I’m not trying to be hostile, just sharing my experience and the real consequences of how a sickness that many parents don’t see as a “big deal” can escalate.

2

Yes, I remember your post. I commented about a student giving me chickenpox while I was pregnant, and I was told it didn’t matter because chickenpox is contagious before sores appear. It’s frustrating how some think it’s alright to send sick kids to school.

I’m so sorry you’re having this hard time. I wish people would understand how their actions affect others and their families.

3

@Sage
Oh my gosh, I was in the exact same boat! I caught it at 16 weeks pregnant and was told there was only a 2% chance my little one would be affected. She’s 10 months old now, and I’m still worried about her milestones due to that incident.

4

Exactly! I know you’re not targeting single moms, but the ignorant parents who refuse to take care of their own kids. I had a parent in daycare who always complained that we weren’t open long enough and would leave her kid from 7 am to 6 pm. She was always the last one there and didn’t seem happy to see her kid.

Another parent refused to pick up her son after he had multiple bouts of diarrhea. Some parents don’t take responsibility.

5

I’m so terribly sorry to hear about this. I’m a middle school teacher, so thankfully we don’t have illnesses like HFMD circulating often. But I really empathize with you, and I hope your baby feels better soon. You deserve all the support while navigating your child’s health.

If a kid sneezes or coughs near me, I send them to the nurse to sanitize and clean their desk.

6

I’m so sorry you’re having to deal with this. It sounds horrific! I agree completely. My husband taught a kids’ class at church, and when one of his students was seriously sick, he caught it, leading to our family getting sick. Thankfully, my toddler managed to avoid the worst of it, but it was still rough.

7

Many of my family members are teachers and would agree with you. I hope your little one is okay. It’s so hard as a parent to juggle jobs and kids, but we need to keep our kids home when they’re sick to protect others. Just because it’s part of the job doesn’t mean it should be accepted when it comes to sick kids.

8

I’m a teacher as well, and I completely understand your frustrations.

While I was pregnant, one of my students attended school with a high fever. She looked really sick for two days, and her mom said she couldn’t call in sick because that wasn’t an option. Another student came in with an active pink eye infection, and the mom insisted it wasn’t pink eye!

We don’t have school nurses here, so if a kid is sick and a parent doesn’t come to get them, they have to stay in class.

9

I’m really sorry this has affected your family. As a teacher, I rely on hand sanitizer, which has saved me from getting sick so many times. It’s hard to teach when kids come sick and infect others. With current virus outbreaks, I’m considering masking up again.

10

@Dru
I’m on maternity leave and also caught a cold despite taking precautions. These viruses are serious.

11

@Dru
Sanitizer doesn’t work for norovirus, so keep washing hands and wear your mask!

12

I’m terrified to go back to work tomorrow. I have a 4-month-old who’s just recovering from RSV, and those middle schoolers do not wash their hands.

13

That sounds incredibly tough. I’m a stay-at-home mom and always keep my kid home at the first sign of illness. My mom is a teacher, and we were constantly sick as kids. There’s a risk of passing infections, and fortunately, my mom just had a sinus issue this time.

14

This is exactly why my little nephew, who doesn’t go to school yet, is often sick. His older brother brings home everything he catches, but parents have limited sick days, which makes it hard to keep sick kids at home. I worry for my newborn daughter when the boys go back to school.

15

As a fellow teacher, there’s nothing more frustrating than when parents send sick kids to school. I have family members with chronic illnesses, and I find it disturbing how some don’t think about their actions.

If you’re sick, STAY HOME. I don’t care how ‘fine’ you feel; it’s never okay to expose others.

16

I’m so sorry you’re experiencing this. My little one had surgery in December. We found it helpful to distract him with videos while administering medication. It took us a while to figure it out, but it worked for us. Good luck, and I hope your family recovers quickly.

17

I’m a high school teacher on maternity leave now, and I completely agree with you. I plan to wear a mask when I return to work. Most of my students are vaccinated, and I told my class that was a requirement for any babysitters.

18

I’m so sorry! I didn’t see your original post but will check it out. HFMD is awful. I got it as an adult and had 30 sores in my mouth. It was miserable.

I worked with little kids, and even though I tried to sanitize my hands, I ended up getting sick constantly. I hate that people made you feel bad for your valid opinion. Hoping your family recovers soon!

19

This isn’t just about you and your family; it affects every kids’ class and their families. Who knows how many kids contracted the same sickness just because one parent didn’t keep their child home?

20

That sounds awful. I hope your little one feels better soon.