For the "Stay home you've got a cold" gang...

[Jean in Wisc]

At what point do you say a person can go back out in public? If the worst of the cold is over, you are no longer blowing and coughing all the time, you are feeling normal again, but it isn't "completely all gone" because you still keep a kerchief with you and once in a while you still cough (into your sleeve or kleenex, of course) is that enough? or...?

 

Just curious.

 

Would you expect college kids to skip all their classes while they waited for a cold to run its course? What if they knew it would affect grades and could cost them their 4-year scholarship?

 

???

 

No easy answers here. I suppose we would have to change the cultural expectations big-time to stop the passing on viruses. My Asian ESL kids always wore masks to school when they had a cold--they still came, but they wore the masks. I thought this was good and we should do more of this.

 

Also--if people expected me to stay home until I quit coughing, I'd never leave the home due to allergies. My hairdresser was upset that I come to have my hair cut when I was coughing. I had cleaned the garden off and was fall cleaning the basement--my lungs were very irritated! I'm finishing the basement while wearing a mask. I'M NOT SICK even if it sounds like it.

 

Sigh.

 

???

Jean

[LaxMom]

In the case of allergies, I've always found that a preemptive "please forgive me, I've been out gardening / cleaning the basement / the pollen count is astronomical..." makes people feel better, without feeling like I'm on the defensive about their being upset. Obviously, that doesn't work in a lecture hall.

 

Sniffles and sneezes and the last dregs of a cold don't bother me. It's when people look like death warmed over, are traveling around with a box of tissues, and sound like they need an iron lung that I wonder about why they're out sharing the love with the rest of us.

 

And, frankly, given that H1N1 can travel, airborne, about 10 feet, I would think there would be a greater understanding of missed classes due to illness this season.

[Jean in Newcastle]

If you are coughing or sneezing due to allergies, just tell them that it is due to allergies and is not catching. But do cough or sneeze into your elbow and wash your hands anyway.

 

Re. the other part, we've never had colds last longer than a week or possibly a few days longer than a week.

 

And even then, I am religious on my whole family taking extra vitamin C during the "cold and flu season" and we usually only get one or two colds a year. Of course, now that I've typed that, you realize that you've doomed me to one cold after another in this house! Oh, and we like "Airborne" or other preparations of that sort for boosting our own immunity.

Edited October 19, 2009 by Jean in Newcastle

[joannqn]

I hate it when people infect others by going out sick but at the same time, there is a point at which you aren't completely better but you aren't contagious anymore. I don't know if there is a clear cut rule for that, though.

 

If I stayed home until we weren't coughing/sniffling anymore, we wouldn't have left the house for the past 6 weeks. I kept him home for the first week or so.

 

I'm sniffling and hacking up post nasal drip from September to March every year. I sound sick but that's just the way I am 6-7 months of the year...so I know what you mean about people thinking you're sick when you aren't.

[Carrie12345]

I hate it when people infect others by going out sick but at the same time, there is a point at which you aren't completely better but you aren't contagious anymore. I don't know if there is a clear cut rule for that, though.

 

If I stayed home until we weren't coughing/sniffling anymore, we wouldn't have left the house for the past 6 weeks. I kept him home for the first week or so.

 

I'm sniffling and hacking up post nasal drip from September to March every year. I sound sick but that's just the way I am 6-7 months of the year...so I know what you mean about people thinking you're sick when you aren't.

 

I am more than happy to stay home indefinitely :D, but sometimes you've got to do what you've got to do.

 

My kids refuse to have colds simultaneously. And their colds tend to run a week long course. And they each get at least two colds each winter. That would be 8 weeks of never leaving the house, and that's just not doable!

 

I always do my best to stay in for the first two days.

[melissel]

I hate it when people infect others by going out sick but at the same time, there is a point at which you aren't completely better but you aren't contagious anymore. I don't know if there is a clear cut rule for that, though.

 

If I stayed home until we weren't coughing/sniffling anymore, we wouldn't have left the house for the past 6 weeks. I kept him home for the first week or so.

 

I'm sniffling and hacking up post nasal drip from September to March every year. I sound sick but that's just the way I am 6-7 months of the year...so I know what you mean about people thinking you're sick when you aren't.

 

ITA. DD4 is constantly snuffly and has something minor coming or going. I'm never sure what to do with her. I also have a snarfly nose and post-nasal drip most of the year. I'm contemplating giving up dairy. But in the meantime, I sound sick all the time. I'll be :lurk5: for others' opinions.

[Tree House Academy]

For the kids, *my* rule is 5 days after the last one becomes ill unless it never involved a fever. In that case, I wait until the nose clears and couging is at least minimal.

 

For myself, I just make sure I dont' have a fever and I am really careful not to touch people, sneeze on anyone, and I had sanitize a lot.

 

In the case of the flu, if we are flat on our backs, then we aren't going anywhere!

[joannqn]

I also have a snarfly nose and post-nasal drip most of the year. I'm contemplating giving up dairy.

 

Since I've been mostly dairy free for most of two months, I can say that mine isn't entirely due to dairy...my nose is still overproducing mucus.

[melissel]

Since I've been mostly dairy free for most of two months, I can say that mine isn't entirely due to dairy...my nose is still overproducing mucus.

 

Darn! I was really hoping that might be the key (though I really didn't want to give up dairy). I wish I knew what it was! Maybe dust...

[joannqn]

Darn! I was really hoping that might be the key (though I really didn't want to give up dairy). I wish I knew what it was! Maybe dust...

 

Hey, it may be dairy for you. I think mine is mold since it happens during our wet season. I can almost tell if it is raining by how my nose feels in the morning. Though I do react to dust, too, but usually in dry climates.

[Supertechmom]

It would be beyond great if this country learned to wear masks when sick. One of mine has year round allergies. The difference is color of snot. :tongue_smilie: (yea I know way too much about snot and poop) Allergies should remain clear and liquid. Anything thick or green or yellow is not a good sign and needs to stay home. More than a few days and a dr needs to treat. We do 5 days after the last of fever. Snot should be clearing up or clear at that point. And a good dr can tell by the color of snot, the thickness, and the soft or hard (GOD I am making myself throw up here!) as to whether it is allergies, cold, pneumonia, bronchitis or other because they all produce different mucus. YUCK! We deal so much with lung infections that I can call with a description and they can determine over the phone whether we need xrays before we even bother to come in.

 

I have 3 soon to be 4 kids and yea, I get stuck in the house for several weeks at a time. It bites.

[hornblower]

At what point do you say a person can go back out in public?

 

I posted this in another thread:

 

my rule of thumb:

 

bad (phlegmy, gurgly or, heaven forbid, productive) coughs

 

OR

 

sneezing/dripping nose/needing to blow nose frequently (more than once an hour)

 

= stay home

 

A dry, irritated throat cough is different & that can linger after an illness because the area is, well, irritated..... That's more OK to go out with, though I usually dispense throat lozenges to keep the coughing in public to a minimum.

[HiddenJewel]

We stay in if there is a fever, non-clear nose drainage, heavy cough, or if the child has that sick look in his/her eyes.

 

This year, having seen how easy and fast the H1N1 spreads, I am being more careful than usual. And I am not one to buy into all the media hype. But 20 people from our church got the flu on basically the same day after being exposed. It hit fast and hung on long.

[Lovedtodeath]

Great S/O Jean. I have colds that linger. People keep saying 1-2 days and I am sick for 2 weeks with most colds.

[8circles]

It would be beyond great if this country learned to wear masks when sick. One of mine has year round allergies. The difference is color of snot. :tongue_smilie: (yea I know way too much about snot and poop) Allergies should remain clear and liquid. Anything thick or green or yellow is not a good sign and needs to stay home. More than a few days and a dr needs to treat. We do 5 days after the last of fever. Snot should be clearing up or clear at that point. And a good dr can tell by the color of snot, the thickness, and the soft or hard (GOD I am making myself throw up here!) as to whether it is allergies, cold, pneumonia, bronchitis or other because they all produce different mucus. YUCK! We deal so much with lung infections that I can call with a description and they can determine over the phone whether we need xrays before we even bother to come in.

 

I have 3 soon to be 4 kids and yea, I get stuck in the house for several weeks at a time. It bites.

 

This isn't true. My dad's a ped & he says that clear discharge can be viral/bacterial/allergies. Thick/green/yellow can also be viral/bacterial/allergies. The only way to know for sure would be to test it. Right now we all (except DH) have possible H1N1 - some of us have clear, some not. There might be generalities but they are just that. It isn't a hard & fast rule.

[DarlaS]

Great S/O Jean. I have colds that linger. People keep saying 1-2 days and I am sick for 2 weeks with most colds.

 

Me too. I did have one that was really short lived in September (It lasted a matter of hours--no kidding.).

 

Oh, and has anyone actually been to a store lately with no sick employees? I sure haven't. :glare:

[joannqn]

One of mine has year round allergies. The difference is color of snot. :tongue_smilie: (yea I know way too much about snot and poop) Allergies should remain clear and liquid. Anything thick or green or yellow is not a good sign and needs to stay home.

 

I would argue that this isn't necessarily true. I have always thick, sometimes clear, sometimes yellow, sometimes green snot from September through March EVERY year. It's yellow or green for most of that time. So, unless there's a bug that lasts 7 months, I assume I'm not contagious.

[sbgrace]

Anything but asthma hang on cough (so nothing productive in the least) is a stay at home for us. That includes sneezing. I've never known a sneeze to be the last symptom to go with a cough or flu.

 

My son has allergies spring through fall. I always tell people up front that he's not contagious but it's peak allergy season for him.

[Starr]

College students go to class if they can drag themselves. I don't think being the only one in the dorm will change the world of illness there.

[Barb_]

...Not to mention it is sometimes hard to judge in a kid that they in the process of coming down with something. I kept my 13yo home from school on Friday. She just didn't look right and seemed out of sorts. She was recently diagnosed with sleep apnea, so I thought she may have been working on a sleep debt and since it was a half day Friday I thought I'd just let her sleep in. By midday she began to run a fever and it was obvious there was something else going on. In hindsight, she said she'd been really tired and had a splitting headache and a little bit of an upset stomach since Wed, but thought it might just be sleep deprivation and didn't want to complain. By Sat she was running a 103.5 fever with all the classic H1N1 symptoms.

 

All my kids were invited to a birthday party down the block. Knowing that Em was sick, I took temperatures and anyone with a fever wasn't allowed to go. Collin was also running a high temperature with no other symptoms but crankiness. But I sent the two who seemed fine and had no fevers because I didn't want my friend to think we were just blowing off the birthday party (and 5 no-shows are hard to make up). By the next morning, it was obvious they were also sick. Now I have all five barking and sleeping and sweating and who knows how many people we exposed before we realized they were contagious.

 

Blech.

 

Barb

[melissel]

...Not to mention it is sometimes hard to judge in a kid that they in the process of coming down with something. I kept my 13yo home from school on Friday. She just didn't look right and seemed out of sorts. She was recently diagnosed with sleep apnea, so I thought she may have been working on a sleep debt and since it was a half day Friday I thought I'd just let her sleep in. By midday she began to run a fever and it was obvious there was something else going on. In hindsight, she said she'd been really tired and had a splitting headache and a little bit of an upset stomach since Wed, but thought it might just be sleep deprivation and didn't want to complain. By Sat she was running a 103.5 fever with all the classic H1N1 symptoms.

 

All my kids were invited to a birthday party down the block. Knowing that Em was sick, I took temperatures and anyone with a fever wasn't allowed to go. Collin was also running a high temperature with no other symptoms but crankiness. But I sent the two who seemed fine and had no fevers because I didn't want my friend to think we were just blowing off the birthday party (and 5 no-shows are hard to make up). By the next morning, it was obvious they were also sick. Now I have all five barking and sleeping and sweating and who knows how many people we exposed before we realized they were contagious.

 

Blech.

 

Barb

 

Oh Barb, don't you hate that? That's happened to me so many times with my DD4! I actually sent her to camp the week that we all got so horribly sick in August because she'd had a fever over the weekend that only lasted a few hours, and then was gone. She'd been coughing a bit for a week, but not producing anything, and the whole state was in "ragweed pollen is at record levels!" mode, so I sent her to camp on Monday. On Tuesday morning we were all hit with the hammer of misery, and I felt SO BAD that I'd sent her in, knowing she was coughing but not knowing that she was actually contagious.

 

Sometimes it's so hard. I wonder how anyone ever gets out of the house!

 

She also had a fever of 100.2 on Sunday morning that lasted for about an hour and then vanished, never to be seen again :confused:

[angelmorris]

For the kids, *my* rule is 5 days after the last one becomes ill unless it never involved a fever. In that case, I wait until the nose clears and couging is at least minimal.

 

For myself, I just make sure I dont' have a fever and I am really careful not to touch people, sneeze on anyone, and I had sanitize a lot.

 

In the case of the flu, if we are flat on our backs, then we aren't going anywhere!

:iagree: It really bothers me when people go out when just "part" of their family is sick. If part of your family is sick chances are the rest are carriers.

[Barb_]

:iagree: It really bothers me when people go out when just "part" of their family is sick. If part of your family is sick chances are the rest are carriers.

 

Oh please, that is completely unreasonable. Sometimes it takes two months for something less contagious to work its way through the entire family when you have a lot of kids. You have six; I'm surprised to hear you think that way.

 

Barb

[SheWillFly]

:iagree: It really bothers me when people go out when just "part" of their family is sick. If part of your family is sick chances are the rest are carriers.

SO what are you supposed to do then when you run out of laundry detergent to wash all the dirty sheets, towels and handkerchiefs from someone being sick or you find you need to get a prescription filled? I'm not being snarky or anything. I'm genuinely curious what the solution is. I'd love to stay home entirely but lately I've been on my own with my husband traveling. I've had all three of my kids find some kind of sickness for the past two weeks. I have to go. I don't have any other option. :sad:

[chaik76]

Oh please, that is completely unreasonable. Sometimes it takes two months for something less contagious to work its way through the entire family when you have a lot of kids.

 

Barb

Agreeing with this.

[hornblower]

SO what are you supposed to do then when you run out of laundry detergent to wash all the dirty sheets, towels and handkerchiefs from someone being sick or you find you need to get a prescription filled? I'm not being snarky or anything. I'm genuinely curious what the solution is. I'd love to stay home entirely but lately I've been on my own with my husband traveling. I've had all three of my kids find some kind of sickness for the past two weeks. I have to go. I don't have any other option. :sad:

 

I thought I replied to this yesterday but I guess it fell into internet lalaland....

 

I'm not being snarky back. And the answer won't help you today. But there is an answer & it's: prepare.

 

Comprehensive 30 day prep list.

There are many other lists out there to help you stock up. Once you've stocked, you shop as normal & just put your new things in the back of the pantry so you're always rotating through the perishables.

 

I live in an earthquake zone. Between natural disasters and disease, I think it's a good idea to be able to be self sufficient for a short period of time.

 

For the prescription, off the top of my head here are some possible solutions. Which you'd use depends on how sick you are/the danger of the disease to others.....

 

1) use a pharmacy where you can park your car & have it in your line of sight & leave the kids inside (do not do this anywhere near the WTM members who will call 911 immediately :tongue_smilie: - that was a big discussion here a while back for those who missed it. ) Wear a mask to go into the pharmacy. Stay 6 feet away from everyone.

 

2) use a pharmacy which delivers; some taxis & couriers also do this

 

3) ask a friend to get your meds and leave them on the doorstep. (btw, having a 'flu friend' is one of the pandemic planning recommendations. You and your flu friend check up on each other by phone & if necessary, go pick up each other's prescriptions for antivirals. In serious pandemic outbreaks, we don't want sick people wandering around for their meds)

 

4) everyone go but go at the quietest time of day; keep 6 feet away from everyone. Masks on anyone sniffling. Kids must keep hands in pockets except to cover sneeze & cough. Get in & out as fast as you can.

[Caitilin]

I thought I replied to this yesterday but I guess it fell into internet lalaland....

 

I'm not being snarky back. And the answer won't help you today. But there is an answer & it's: prepare.

 

Comprehensive 30 day prep list.

There are many other lists out there to help you stock up. Once you've stocked, you shop as normal & just put your new things in the back of the pantry so you're always rotating through the perishables.

 

I live in an earthquake zone. Between natural disasters and disease, I think it's a good idea to be able to be self sufficient for a short period of time.

 

For the prescription, off the top of my head here are some possible solutions. Which you'd use depends on how sick you are/the danger of the disease to others.....

 

1) use a pharmacy where you can park your car & have it in your line of sight & leave the kids inside (do not do this anywhere near the WTM members who will call 911 immediately :tongue_smilie: - that was a big discussion here a while back for those who missed it. ) Wear a mask to go into the pharmacy. Stay 6 feet away from everyone.

 

2) use a pharmacy which delivers; some taxis & couriers also do this

 

3) ask a friend to get your meds and leave them on the doorstep. (btw, having a 'flu friend' is one of the pandemic planning recommendations. You and your flu friend check up on each other by phone & if necessary, go pick up each other's prescriptions for antivirals. In serious pandemic outbreaks, we don't want sick people wandering around for their meds)

 

4) everyone go but go at the quietest time of day; keep 6 feet away from everyone. Masks on anyone sniffling. Kids must keep hands in pockets except to cover sneeze & cough. Get in & out as fast as you can.

 

 

 

OK, Hornblower, I can appreciate this, although I don't do it. But seriously, I have 6 kids--I shouldn't leave the house, for an indefinite period of time, until absolutely NO ONE in the house is sniffling, etc? None of us should? I really think that someone in my house would end up dead--and NOT of the flu! ;) At what point do we get to consider our own needs, for adult companionship, for friends-time for kids, for space, dh's work, whatever, and not live in fear of infecting someone else?

 

I read in that other thread about people who have immuno-suppressed family members, etc., and while I do feel sorry for and sympathetic toward them, I don't think it's fair to my children to say, "no, we can't go anywhere in public b/c we might cause (an indeterminate) someone to get ill, even though all you have is a runny nose." I just can't decide what the "right" thing to do is.

 

My own first duty is to my family, and to put their lives on hold on the possibility that we might hurt someone else is just...too vague. On that argument we oughtn't ever to drive, as we might cause an accident, or almost anything else.

 

I have been struggling with this idea for several days, and haven't really come to any conclusions. Just frustrated!

[hornblower]

Hi Caitilin,

 

I appreciate the difficulties this causes. I don't see it as black and white at all. I do think it's very difficult to maintain public health in a highly industrialized society. We have contact with so many people each day! We have viruses and bacteria hop on planes & come around the globe. I suspect our bodies are not evolved to deal with this yet.

 

We have been doing well in the last 50 years because of antibiotics and a sophisticated medical system which has allowed those of us who live in affluent areas to live what is, I suspect, a very risky lifestyle (& no, I'm not talking about sex or drugs. I'm talking about living in large metropolitan areas & having contact with so many people each day). My speculation is that as our medical resources are depleted, and as antibiotic resistant bacteria make a come-back, we will begin seeing the effects of this & it won't be pretty at all. But this is futuristic speculation.....

 

For today, and for you what I'd say is this:

 

Improve your baseline health so you're not getting sick. You shouldn't be getting colds all the time.

 

When you do get a cold or another viral infection, consider where you're going and whether you need to be going. Of course you'll need to balance things out. You'd make a different decision in a regular flu year. You may make different decisions based on whether you're going to an open air event or for ex. a small lab where people will be taking turns looking at specimens under microscopes & getting their faces near each other & sharing equipment. You might go to a painting class but not to visit your friend in the hospital. See what I mean? Think and consider how bad are things, how important is it to go, who will be there, what are the risks? Many people don't even pause to think - I think that's the biggest problem.

 

And btw, mass vaccinations are one way of helping us with this but with the anti-vax backlash now we're seeing a slip back & we will start seeing the effects in our towns and cities.

 

And with your driving analogy - funny, I was just thinking of that. I know people who speed and who don't wear seat belts. They're alive and bragging. But statistically what they're doing is a problem. I even know people who drink and drive. So far they've not killed themselves or anyone else but again, statistically, it's a problem because it's a risky behaviour.

 

I think we need to start considering that going around when you're sick is a risky behaviour, not just for others but also for yourself - when your immune system is already battling something the last thing you should be doing is exposing yourself to more germs so you get even sicker.

 

We all need to evaluate the risks for ourselves but also consider the community as a whole. It's tought & it's even tougher this year because we still don't have that good a handle on the risks of this flu....

Edited October 22, 2009 by hornblower
sorry! spelled yr name wrong!

[chaik76]

I thought I replied to this yesterday but I guess it fell into internet lalaland....

 

I'm not being snarky back. And the answer won't help you today. But there is an answer & it's: prepare.

 

Comprehensive 30 day prep list.

There are many other lists out there to help you stock up. Once you've stocked, you shop as normal & just put your new things in the back of the pantry so you're always rotating through the perishables.

 

I live in an earthquake zone. Between natural disasters and disease, I think it's a good idea to be able to be self sufficient for a short period of time.

 

For the prescription, off the top of my head here are some possible solutions. Which you'd use depends on how sick you are/the danger of the disease to others.....

 

1) use a pharmacy where you can park your car & have it in your line of sight & leave the kids inside (do not do this anywhere near the WTM members who will call 911 immediately :tongue_smilie: - that was a big discussion here a while back for those who missed it. ) Wear a mask to go into the pharmacy. Stay 6 feet away from everyone.

 

2) use a pharmacy which delivers; some taxis & couriers also do this

 

3) ask a friend to get your meds and leave them on the doorstep. (btw, having a 'flu friend' is one of the pandemic planning recommendations. You and your flu friend check up on each other by phone & if necessary, go pick up each other's prescriptions for antivirals. In serious pandemic outbreaks, we don't want sick people wandering around for their meds)

 

4) everyone go but go at the quietest time of day; keep 6 feet away from everyone. Masks on anyone sniffling. Kids must keep hands in pockets except to cover sneeze & cough. Get in & out as fast as you can.

Most of these things are not available in rural areas. And we don't have enough money to get 30 days ahead of things.

 

Plus, honestly? A cold is usually not dangerous. While I won't go to something where people have close contact when my kids have a cold, I have no problem taking them shopping, etc. I know that many disagree, but I'm not spending six months of the year cooped up in my house because others are afraid of germs.

Edited October 22, 2009 by chaik76

[sbgrace]

I don't expect people to stay home when a family member has a cold. That's different, though, than one or more family members have probable flu symptoms including high fevers. You can assume the other family members are likely contagious. I would. And the flu by definition hits fast. So if you've got some sniffles you don't have to wait even a day let alone a week to know whether you're dealing with the flu.

 

Similarly when a person is recovering from the flu and still actively coughing and sneezing and so still likely contagious I don't think it's unreasonable to expect that person to avoid others as much as possible. Both those things seem responsible to me even if inconvenient. Colds are different though I don't send my kids to activities with other kids snotting and sneezing. It's gross and unnecessary. That said, I don't worry about my son catching a cold. I worry about the flu.

 

But I know that others don't see it that way. This is why we are isolated the entire flu season every year.

 

FWIW, my kids are pretty isolated socially during flu outbreaks (they have a metabolic condition) but that doesn't mean they are stuck in the house. They are outside running around right now. They also see friends who I know will cancel if anyone in the family is sick.

 

My very rural area has a drive through pharmacy. But when I go to the pharmacy during flu season I expect I'm going to be exposed to the flu just as I would visiting a doctor at this time of year. I'm the one using the drive through.

Edited October 22, 2009 by sbgrace

[phathui5]

there is a point at which you aren't completely better but you aren't contagious anymore.

 

Of course, with many illnesses, you're already contagious before you know that you're sick.

[Slartibartfast]

Herm.

 

I think there is a difference between allergies and being sick. I have allergies and if it is just allergies then it isn't a big deal.

 

If someone is sick like they are running a fever then yeah, stay home. I don't think a fever is the same thing as the sniffles. A bad cough...someone should stay home.

 

I also think if you have multiple family member with fevers you should probably stay home.

 

I don't mean stay home from LLLIIIFEEE but I don't want to see kids being dosed with fever reducers at playgroup or hear people say things at hs functions like "oh Little Timothy was up all night puking but I thought we needed some fresh air."

 

Of course people aren't talking about sniffles, I think we can all be reasonable.

 

I do have a child with a heart condition and I wouldn't be angry if someone got him sick unless they KNEW their child was sick and brought them around my child. If they did that I would be pretty pissed and I would tell them I was pissed.

 

If someone doesn't care that my child could die if he gets ill then I really don't give a crap of someone has a lot of kids. Sorry. :glare: I am not afraid of germs, I don't use shopping cart covers and that sort of thing. I know being exposed to things can be a part of having a healthy immune system but WOW dismissive!!

Edited October 23, 2009 by Sis

[justamouse]

We have allergies and I know how hard it is, but there's a difference between post nasal drip and someone hacking up a lung on your shoe. Or a allergy nose blow and a three tissue wait there's more stuff up there blow.

 

When we're stuffy from allergies we apologize and say we have allergies. But I don't think that's a fair comparison with, "Gee, Tommy had a 103 fever last night and look at him running those bases now! You'd never know!"

Edited October 23, 2009 by justamouse

[fivetails]

 

I also think if you have multiple family member with fevers you should probably stay home.

 

Do you mean not-sick people too? They stay home as long as others are sick?

 

If a flu is running through a house, that could mean that the whole family should stay home for a couple weeks, waiting while *everyone* gets healthy again. :001_huh:

[BikeBookBread]

We have allergies and I know how hard it is, but there's a difference between post nasal drip and someone hacking up a lung on your shoe.

 

:lol:

 

I feel the need to profusely apologize for my child's allergy-induced nasal drip and subsequent coughing....or else we'll get the {glare} from the Sunday School teacher...

[Slartibartfast]

Do you mean not-sick people too? They stay home as long as others are sick?

 

If a flu is running through a house, that could mean that the whole family should stay home for a couple weeks, waiting while *everyone* gets healthy again. :001_huh:

 

I do actually mean that. If the original sick people are better for a couple days then no...but if people are not quite sick yet then yes.

 

I did specify sick as in hacking up a lung, explosive diarrhea, fever, puking guts up.

 

I also specified playgroup, party or HS function..something where children will be in close proximity with other children for an extended period.

 

In the situation Barb related above I would have been very upset with her if she exposed my child, who has a heart defect to H1N1. It is extremely dangerous for children with heart conditions. :(

 

If you have two kids with a fever and the other kids aren't sick yet then yeah, I would want you to stay home. It would be polite at least to inform everyone else who will be there that there is a possibility of sick.

 

Heck if someone had chicken pox I would probably INVITE you over. :lol: But we do need to be careful. Just letting people know would be nice.

Edited October 23, 2009 by Sis

[fivetails]

Do you mean not-sick people too? They stay home as long as others are sick?

 

If a flu is running through a house, that could mean that the whole family should stay home for a couple weeks, waiting while *everyone* gets healthy again. :001_huh:

 

I do actually mean that.

 

I did specify sick as in hacking up a lung, explosive diarrhea, fever, puking guts up.

 

I also specified playgroup, party or HS function..something where children will be in close proximity with other children for an extended period.

 

So you mean just children & totally optional activities like playgroup then? Because I'm imagining my husband calling his boss to say he won't be coming to work for a while....y'know, while dd12 finishes being sick..and then ds10..and then his wife... even though *he* is healthy....:001_huh:

 

{and that's not even considering the people who MUST go to work when they themselves are sick}

[Slartibartfast]

So you mean just children & totally optional activities like playgroup then? Because I'm imagining my husband calling his boss to say he won't be coming to work for a while....y'know, while dd12 finishes being sick..and then ds10..and then his wife... even though *he* is healthy....:001_huh:

 

{and that's not even considering the people who MUST go to work when they themselves are sick}

 

Oh yeah, I do just mean little kids and optional activities. My husband works with people. If anyone brings something home it will probably be dh. :lol: If someone has sick kid at the grocery that isn't what I mean.

Edited October 23, 2009 by Sis

[Caitilin]

Herm.

 

I think there is a difference between allergies and being sick. I have allergies and if it is just allergies then it isn't a big deal.

 

If someone is sick like they are running a fever then yeah, stay home. I don't think a fever is the same thing as the sniffles. A bad cough...someone should stay home.

 

I also think if you have multiple family member with fevers you should probably stay home.

 

I don't mean stay home from LLLIIIFEEE but I don't want to see kids being dosed with fever reducers at playgroup or hear people say things at hs functions like "oh Little Timothy was up all night puking but I thought we needed some fresh air."

 

Of course people aren't talking about sniffles, I think we can all be reasonable.

 

I do have a child with a heart condition and I wouldn't be angry if someone got him sick unless they KNEW their child was sick and brought them around my child. If they did that I would be pretty pissed and I would tell them I was pissed.

 

If someone doesn't care that my child could die if he gets ill then I really don't give a crap of someone has a lot of kids. Sorry. :glare: I am not afraid of germs, I don't use shopping cart covers and that sort of thing. I know being exposed to things can be a part of having a healthy immune system but WOW dismissive!!

 

Sis,

 

I never said that I didn't care that any child, yours or anyone's, would die if he got sick. What I said was, if no one in my family has anything more than sniffles or residual cough, then I don't think it's fair to our family to stay home until everything is past. I don't regard it as dismissive to say as much. When I know that someone has more fragile health, I make every effort to avoid infecting them with anything. What I was saying was that I can't live my life as if every.single.person. we might possibly come in contact with might be damaged by sniffles. We spent a whole week "off the grid," ie. we didn't go anywhere because various people were running fevers. When everyone had been fever-free for 2 days, we reemerged. I am sorry if you were offended. I never intended to be offensive to anyone--I was frustrated at my inability to come up with a moral absolute for myself. I didn't mean to imply that I was frustrated with other people and their health issues. I apologize that I was unclear, and that I appeared dismissive. Peace? :grouphug:

[Slartibartfast]

Yeah of course :grouphug:

 

I am allergic to the earth so I get the sniffles a lot, that really isn't anything. :001_smile:

 

Those germ avoiding things like shopping cart covers and freaking out about Purell weird me out a little. Germs can be good for you. Of course I whip out the purell for emergencies like poo or airports. :lol:

[Caitilin]

Yeah of course :grouphug:

 

I am allergic to the earth so I get the sniffles a lot, that really isn't anything. :001_smile:

 

My younger sister is allergic to nearly everything--and the only time she's ever been allergy-free was the time we were on an extended visit to my grandparents in Los Angeles. :tongue_smilie: Allergies are a mystery to me. :lol:

 

ETA: Totally agree about the purell--can't see the point, myself. :)