It gets a lot better. My son just turned 2. He was sick a bunch his first winter in daycare. We’re in his 2nd winter now though, and he hasn’t been sick yet. He hasn’t missed daycare due to sickness in 9 months. It gets SO much easier after that first winter.
We started our first at daycare when he was around 15 months old. He ended up sick for 2 weeks straight.
Our second started at 13 months and has fared a bit better.
It’s our first winter in daycare and we just ended a round of “who gets sick next?!” with me getting food poisoning. I’m done.
Oran said:
It’s our first winter in daycare and we just ended a round of “who gets sick next?!” with me getting food poisoning. I’m done.
This just happened to me too! I don’t know how much more my body can take, woof.
We decided to keep our son home until the new baby gets her first vaccine to reduce how sick she might get. I have been sick quite a few times this pregnancy, and I think it has been aggravating my high-risk condition as well. But at the moment, we don’t have a choice.
After a year in daycare and ear tube surgery done, we were doing a lot better for a while. But after the most recent bout of pneumonia, we are done. The sick season doesn’t really end at daycare until the kids get old enough to be a little better with handwashing and hygiene, which I don’t have any expectations for until age 4+ at the earliest.
Those first few months are incredibly rough. It’s just constant. For us, it also lined up in the winter so that was a bonus. I will say this is our second winter and touch wood, we’ve only gotten one nasty cold. It put me in the hospital for five days 
after the initial acclimation it gets so much better.
OMG, all the hugs… it’ll be okay. Mine had a cold that lasted like 6 weeks (but I think it was just back-to-back different colds) but luckily no fever. But yeah, that diaper rash is real. I do preventative Aquaphor so there’s a little barrier between their super sensitive booty and their sick poos.
Literally we’re getting sick every 9-10 business days. We didn’t realize how bad it would be.
Did anyone start childcare in Summer instead? Was it better?
It’s so nasty! LO has been sick for 7 weeks straight since he started daycare with no end in sight. (Flu, cold, pink eye, RSV, ear infection, and now something new TBD) I’ve gotten every single thing plus extra and my mental health is really starting to suffer as a result. Sleep is nonexistent. Not sure what the solution is, but you are definitely not alone.
I’m sorry.
My son started daycare in September. In the last three months, he has had:
- RSV
- Hand, Foot, and Mouth
- Flu B
- Flu A
- A regular cold
- Hand, Foot, and Mouth again
- Thrush (doc confirmed it stuck around because his body was unable to fight this off)
WE ARE TIRED.
I’m looking forward to year two at daycare. Things do get easier. This was what happened with my oldest and now that child barely gets sick lol.
This is exactly what happened to us with our 6-month-old. I wish we could just pay to voluntarily inoculate him and not pretend that they’re providing us care. He’s never in daycare because he’s sick!
Just here to say that a fever shouldn’t last 2 weeks… if a fever persists for more than 5 days it usually means something bigger is going on and they need intervention (like antibiotics likely). But yes, you will be sick every 2 weeks for about a year. Then every 4 weeks after that.
Keep in mind the winter is the season EVERYONE gets sick so that doesn’t help.
Currently typing this as I hold my sick baby 
we started daycare in September, and she’s been sick on and off since. I’m so sorry you’re going through this, but in a way I’m relieved because I thought I was doing something wrong with her being sick all the time. My husband and I are at the point where we may have to get a nanny because the amount of work I’ve had to miss is insane. I’m really hoping it gets better soon!!
9 times is extremely optimistic, I’m sorry to say.
Started daycare August 19th. He has had a cough and stuffy nose ever since. My ped said daycare babies catch a new virus on average every 2 weeks for the first year. It’s been right so far. He and I just keep passing it back and forth.
Get the tub of Aquaphor and a little butt spatula and paint some on every night, rain or shine. It’ll make the occasional fever-diaper rash significantly less bad.
And yeah, daycare is a petri dish. Wash your hands, and don’t let your kids feed you anymore. Breaks and holidays are the worst, and be ready for the inevitable hand, foot, and mouth outbreak.
For future reference:
CLEANING:
- Can use a spray bottle or warm running water with soft washcloth or flannel wipes to clean.
- If necessary, use fragrance and preservative free wet wipes (e.g. Seventh Generation or Pampers Sensitive Brands)
BARRIER METHODS:
- Use a thick layer (“like icing on a cake”) of Vaseline or Aquaphor with each diaper change OR
- Use a thick layer (“like frosting on a cake”) of extra strength Desitin (40% zinc oxide). When changing the diaper, do NOT remove the “frosting.” Just pat dry and put more frosting on. The only time the baby’s skin on the bottom should be seen is after a bowel movement or after bathing.
@Tatum
Also, you can ask your ped for Cholestyramine & Nystatin ointments. Mix them and apply to the area overnight.