Lane said:
@Bret
The winter season does suck for illnesses! FWIW. This will happen at some point in your child’s life. You will just be delaying the inevitable.
I’m not sure? When I was a kid, I stayed home until I was about 4 and then went to preschool. I was hardly ever sick to that extent in my childhood.
I will say, even for the daycare ick, it sounds like your little one was hit HARD, harder than most stories I’ve seen. Sending solidarity as you care for her and hope it gets better soon!
I think they don’t because honestly, most parents don’t have a choice and it would just make them feel bad. Most can’t afford to stay home or hire a nanny, so they will send their baby anyway even if they are sick, as long as it’s not so much/so visible they will be sent home - or sometimes even at the risk that they will. I have even heard some just dose their kids up or, when they’re older, tell them to hide symptoms and then send them. It’s a big part of the reason so much illness goes around daycares and is wrong to do, but I also understand why parents do it and sympathize with them. They need to keep working, can’t afford anything else, and don’t have family to help out.
It’s a big part of the reason that I decided to be a SAHM until my kid is older, but I know we are lucky to be in a position where I could make that choice and they will eventually have to start school and face the barrage of illnesses then.
@Laurance
Yeah, this is what I don’t understand. We need childcare because we can’t afford to live on one income, but if any of us are sick, we can’t exactly afford to stay home every time. Husband and I could work from home, but baby still needs to go to daycare. Or we spend MORE money on a babysitter?
This is nonsensical and unfair. It’s just life, I guess?
It isn’t just daycare, I had the luxury with my first to keep her home until kindergarten. Omg, it was so much worse because she had no immunity built up like her classmates who were in daycare. She went 8 times to the dr in the first school year, and it was causing so many issues they were discussing removing her tonsils because of the constant strep throat incidents. She almost had to repeat the first year from all the time out.
@Denver
Oh no, that sounds like a nightmare. So there’s no way out of this T____T.
Remy said:
@Denver
Oh no, that sounds like a nightmare. So there’s no way out of this T____T.
Basically, you have the time off now and they have a great immune system by the time they’re in elementary or you keep them home and do it all during their first year.
@Denver
What you’re alluding to here is called the hygiene hypothesis, and it’s actually disproven. See Is the Hygiene Hypothesis True? | Johns Hopkins | Bloomberg School of Public Health
Sky said:
@Denver
What you’re alluding to here is called the hygiene hypothesis, and it’s actually disproven. See Is the Hygiene Hypothesis True? | Johns Hopkins | Bloomberg School of Public Health
So in the article, it talks about secondary exposures like animal feces and introduction into bacterial exposure. A lot of children who live in cities will never be exposed to that daily. Also, most homes, including mine, were and are cleaned with antibacterial cleaners such as Clorox wipes, Lysol spray, etc. So outside bacteria such as in schools don’t get introduced for long periods of time. As someone who spent 22 years in the medical field, I can tell you that viral and bacterial introductions will spread amongst people. While the hygiene hypothesis has flaws, it also doesn’t explain why herpes spreads when we kiss or how Typhoid Mary infected hundreds with bacterial introduction into food.
OMG! That’s a lot. We do have a nanny and will have her until March 31st, but your posts are scaring me into not starting daycare until later. He would be 1 year and 1 month by April 1st, but this is scary. I just hope your baby feels better soon and that she recovers fully. This winter season sucks.
@Bret
It’ll be better starting in spring/summer. We started daycare at 12 months in early summer and had a few mild colds but nothing too bad. We had one awful weekend of norovirus in the fall, and now in winter the respiratory viruses are hitting hard. I’m glad we got to ease into it a little.
@Larkin
Yeah, that’s one of the main reasons why we decided to start in the spring.
@Bret
We live in northern FL, a few hours from the panhandle, but the director at our center said their worst sick season is from November to March. I’m sure it’s similar elsewhere, give or take a month or two.
Build their immunity up a bit if you can before sending them, or it could be similar since he hasn’t had that immunity being built at daycare.
@Bret
The winter season does suck for illnesses! FWIW. This will happen at some point in your child’s life. You will just be delaying the inevitable.
@Darwin
By the time you’re 4 years old, you have the ability to go to the bathroom and wash your hands. Most children in diapers don’t know the importance of handwashing and are constantly putting anything and everything in their mouths.
@Lane
Also, your ear tubes, etc. are longer, better at draining, etc.
@Lane
True, and the daycare workers don’t have time to keep them clean or watch what they do I’d imagine.
Lane said:
@Bret
The winter season does suck for illnesses! FWIW. This will happen at some point in your child’s life. You will just be delaying the inevitable.
Yeah, baby already got one cold, what a hell of a week. I am mostly concerned about my job not allowing a lot of flexibility if baby gets sick. That’s all/most of my concern. He also gets along great with his nanny so I am comfortable doing this. But yes, this will happen; I just need to have some PTO/sick days so I can be around when he’s sick since daycare won’t accept him like that.
@Bret
Oh, I would have that same concern about time off from work too. I am so thankful I have a manager who is understanding and also the luxury of “unlimited” PTO.