Put not-yet-vaccinated baby in gym daycare?

[omishev]

Please Please Please this is not a debate about whether or not to vaccinate or which schedule to follow. 

We have been going to a gym with childcare for the past year and a half and it has been life-changing. I have always exercised from home and it is so nice to have a longer time span, better equipment, classes and no interruptions! However, we are thinking about having another baby and my first thought was YES it will be so much easier to get back into shape this time. Then the gym sent out a notice that one of the kids in the childcare was diagnosed with whooping cough. Dream shattered. There is no herd. I am really bummed. 

[Pen]

whooping cough was going around in our community last year...   vaccinations didn’t seem to have protected ...  

I’d probably go ahead though with the gym etc.  

 

[Jean in Newcastle]

I would not put a vaccinated baby into a daycare environment even for an hour.  (Same reason I didn't take my unvaccinated puppy to the dog park.) 

[DesertBlossom]

Yeah, the pertussis vaccine isn't very effective at all. First of all, they have found that immunity wanes rather quickly, hence the need for so many boosters. The other thing is, because of the way the vaccine works, it doesn't stop the spread of pertussis at all. The pertussis vaccine protects the recipient from developing symptoms of pertussis, but doesn't actually prevent a person from becoming infected or spreading the bacteria. Look up the baboon pertussis study. 

Other vaccines are more effective. But pertussis outbreaks are primarily blamed on the lack of effectiveness of the vaccine.

[Pen]

I suppose also it could depend on whether you think baby would have immunity from you.

but in our area the bacteria apparently mututated, so possibly neither maternal based immunity nor vaccination would help. 

 

[Katy]

No.  Maybe by the time the baby is 6 months old, but not before.  Especially not if not nursing.  I'm sorry.  I miss my gym too.

[Corraleno]

I agree with Jean — no way would I put a young baby in a daycare situation, vaccinated or not. Even if I wasn't worried about pertussis or other major diseases, even "just" a bad cold really sucks with a young baby, and little kids are constantly wiping and/or picking their noses, touching anything and everything, sneezing and coughing on people, etc. 

Can you get a babysitter for an hour or two a few times a week? Or maybe hire a mother's helper a few evenings per week, who could wrangle the kids and cook dinner while you could work out? If not, then I'd just go back to working out at home until the baby is much older (for me, personally, that would be at least 2 and preferably 3 yrs old).

[Lori D.]

Just me, but I'd look for alternatives:

Does your spouse have a flexible schedule for watching children for  several times/week so you can go to the gym? That may mean YOU need to shift your schedule to fit gym time around spouse's availability -- so, go to the gym very early in the morning before spouse goes to work. Or spouse watches baby during his lunch hour. Or go in the evening when spouse is home from work.

Or, do you have a parent, relative, neighbor, or friend who would love to have baby visit several times a week while you go to the gym -- esp. handy if they live between you and the gym, LOL.

[Bambam]

I wouldn't take a baby either vaccinated or unvaccinated to a gym daycare. I would, and did, take my kids as soon as I could drive all sort of places - church, grocery store, etc - but not any place to leave them. I did not let just anyone hold them or take care of them. 

I agree with the others - find someone to watch the children at home or in their home. It won't be as easy as it is now, but you will figure something out! 

[gardenmom5]

what are the vaccination rates in your area?

does the gym require kids to be vaccinated?  

does the gym require kids with a sniffle to stay home?

does the gym require kids who had a fever to wait at least 24 hours after the fever is gone (without meds) before they can come back?

what are their hygiene practices in the nursery?  how often are toys/surfaces cleaned with a disinfectant?

[Jean in Newcastle]

Just a note that our gym childcare is not a legally licensed daycare so they are not required to check vaccination records etc.  They have a policy that sick children are not allowed to attend but I think we all know how often parents try to get around rules like that. . .

[EmseB]

It depends. I don't think I would do younger than 4-6 months, but the Y I went to had an infant room, toddler room, bigger kids, etc. And the infant room was used by a lot of people. Like you'd see babies in swings, babies being held, babies in saucers, etc. So I don't think infant in gym daycare is as crazy as all that, but it would depend on the facilities and caregivers.

[SKL]

In my experience, those daycare centers don't take very young babies.  By the time your child is old enough and you are personally ready to work out at the gym, chances are she's had at least one or two of the whooping cough shots.

I would probably use the facility if I felt the baby and I were of strong enough health, all things considered.

The baby is likely to be exposed to other germs in the nursery, so honestly, I don't think I'd be in a hurry to go there until she was some months old, personally.

[ktgrok]

No, I wouldn't. Specifically because of whooping cough. It's fairly common in school aged children, and often mild in the vaccinated, so parents think the kid has a minor issue and bring them in. 

Sorry. I'd wait until first vaccines. 

[omishev]

5 hours ago, happysmileylady said:

For myself, I can't imaging being in any mood to be working out before 2 months.  Of course, I don't work out much anyway lol.  

Haha I'm a fitness instructor and seriously obsessed. The only kid I waited the full 6 weeks was when I got mastitis at 1 month.

[omishev]

5 hours ago, Katy said:

No.  Maybe by the time the baby is 6 months old, but not before.  Especially not if not nursing.  I'm sorry.  I miss my gym too.

I nursed my others to around age 2 so barring some physical or developmental abnormality I will definitely be nursing! Can't wait! This is the first time in 8 years I haven't been preggo or nursing 😞

[omishev]

4 hours ago, Lori D. said:

Just me, but I'd look for alternatives:

Does your spouse have a flexible schedule for watching children for  several times/week so you can go to the gym? That may mean YOU need to shift your schedule to fit gym time around spouse's availability -- so, go to the gym very early in the morning before spouse goes to work. Or spouse watches baby during his lunch hour. Or go in the evening when spouse is home from work.

Or, do you have a parent, relative, neighbor, or friend who would love to have baby visit several times a week while you go to the gym -- esp. handy if they live between you and the gym, LOL.

I might be able to bring the big kid and leave the baby with him if he got out a little early a couple times a week. The other days I will probably have to figure it out at home. I don't see myself going very early in the morning. Even once my kids were STTN I preferred to make it work during naptime or even with the kids up rather than go super early in the morning.

[omishev]

3 hours ago, gardenmom5 said:

what are the vaccination rates in your area?

does the gym require kids to be vaccinated?  

does the gym require kids with a sniffle to stay home?

does the gym require kids who had a fever to wait at least 24 hours after the fever is gone (without meds) before they can come back?

what are their hygiene practices in the nursery?  how often are toys/surfaces cleaned with a disinfectant?

Not sure but if facebook is any indication it doesn't look good!

Gym doe not check if kids are vaccinated

Def does not limit kids with colds. Thankfully, otherwise I wouldn't be able to go all winter!

Yes, they do have a 24 hr fever/vomit policy. 

Not sure... the care workers are very loving and attentive but I don't know how often they disinfect. 

[Pen]

Actually I can think of reasons other than illness not to put a few days or weeks old newborn in gym daycare—

but if baby had a travel crib and just slept while mom exercised, with instruction to text mom if baby were to wake it might be okay.

[Ausmumof3]

Might be time to do some body weight resistance type workouts at home for a bit. You want to be gentle for the first six to eight weeks anyway.

[ktgrok]

1 hour ago, omishev said:

Not sure but if facebook is any indication it doesn't look good!

Gym doe not check if kids are vaccinated

Def does not limit kids with colds. Thankfully, otherwise I wouldn't be able to go all winter!

Yes, they do have a 24 hr fever/vomit policy. 

Not sure... the care workers are very loving and attentive but I don't know how often they disinfect. 

Germy kids with snotty noses with a newborn??? NOPE. 

[Tap]

Nope. But I would be just as concerned about RSV as pertussis.  Illnesses that have vaccinations aren't the only thing to worry about when putting an infant in a commercial day care.

[Lady Florida.]

20 hours ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

I would not put a vaccinated baby into a daycare environment even for an hour.  (Same reason I didn't take my unvaccinated puppy to the dog park.) 

^^^This^^^ I know it would be hard but I'd wait until the baby gets vaccinated.

[solascriptura]

I wouldn't risk it.  

[Farrar]

I'd put a healthy vaccinated toddler in a place like that in a heartbeat though. I mean, it's an hour or two. So I think it's really just about finding an interim solution.

[GoodGrief]

With a small baby, I'd be more concerned about RSV in a gym daycare than the illnesses for which one is typically vaccinated.

[omishev]

2 hours ago, Farrar said:

I'd put a healthy vaccinated toddler in a place like that in a heartbeat though. I mean, it's an hour or two. So I think it's really just about finding an interim solution.

Yes, I think I have resigned myself to this. I managed to stay in great shape the first 5.5 years of motherhood (before the gym) by working out every day at home and I know I can do it again. I don't have a problem with motivation and can work with minimal equipment. It is just the stress factor and time constraints. It is stressful when there are constant interruptions and you are worried the baby could wake up any minute. At home I have to limit myself to an hour, can't spend extra time stretching, core etc. But all in all, a small sacrifice for a year or so.

[Pen]

59 minutes ago, Seasider too said:

 

Many of us who got vaccinated way back have learned that the immunity does indeed wear off, thus requiring a booster. So whooping cough is just as likely to be spread by a vaccinated-but-not-updated 50- something childcare worker as by an unvaccinated child. 

 

would gym childcare workers be 50 something? Or 19? 

I can think of a lot of potential dangers for a newborn at a gym, of which whooping cough would probably not top my list...

And even after 2 months of age when baby would have first pertussis vaccination, I can still think of a lot of potential dangers...

 

[Ailaena]

11 minutes ago, Pen said:

 

would gym childcare workers be 50 something? Or 19? 

 

 

I always thought they’d be young, but at our rec center, they’re definitely mid 50s+ With the exception of one lady around 30.  

Every time I brought ds (not until he was nearly 3) it was late at night, and very often there was zero other kids there - maybe you could go very early or very late to avoid many kids?   And I agree with others, there are plenty of different things to catch.

 

[Janeway]

I would not. But it is not because of the vaccination preventable illnesses. RSV, a cold, strep, anything can do real damage to a little baby. There are no shots to prevent those things. As far as vaccine preventable illnesses go, many of those illnesses are not even as bad as the ones that have no vaccinations for a new baby.  The other thing that would bother me is the potential of the type of care my child would get by whatever stranger is being paid minimum wage to watch my baby and whatever number of other kids who show up of all different ages.

[Tap]

1 hour ago, Pen said:

 

would gym childcare workers be 50 something? Or 19? 

I can think of a lot of potential dangers for a newborn at a gym, of which whooping cough would probably not top my list...

And even after 2 months of age when baby would have first pertussis vaccination, I can still think of a lot of potential dangers...

 

I know that when we used to go to a gym, there were regular workers in the daycare. But, if one called in sick, it was just another assigned job some people would get. It could be a 19yo boy, a 23yo girl, or a 60 yo grandparent. Just anyone who knew how to change a diaper and tolerate the kids crying for their parents. I had a friend who kept getting assigned daycare duty and she hated it. She despised kids, but had younger siblings so she knew how to take care of them at least. She finally quit, because she got tired of being stuck in the daycare room. She said she pretty much ignored the kids because if you were nice and playful they would expect you to entertain them. She took care of basic needs, but that was about it. When parents walked in, she flashed a smile and told the parents that they kids were sweet and happy the whole time. That is what her bosses told her to say, so she stuck with the script. 

In our current gym, you can see the glassed in daycare from the lobby. I would feel a bit safer putting a child in there. At least people can see what is going on.

[linders]

Myself? No, because of a wide variety of illnesses. I had no problem taking my babies out in public as early as a week old, but I was with them to keep young children especially away. I also noticed that some moms had no problem dropping Sick Children off - at Sunday church nursery, at the gym childcare - with the comment, "Oh, they get exposed eventually." 😒

[omishev]

So... I am giving this way too much thought but if my other kids are still in contact with the  masses and then are all over the baby, what's the difference? We are doomed!

[ktgrok]

3 hours ago, omishev said:

So... I am giving this way too much thought but if my other kids are still in contact with the  masses and then are all over the baby, what's the difference? We are doomed!

Are the other kids vaccinated? If they are, they likely won't get it and then spread it. 

They also have a more mature immune system, so less likely to get sick. And I assume that if they have snot running down their face you don't let them love all over the baby. Versus in the gym daycare, where you said kids DO go when they are sick and snotty, who may be touching your baby, sneezing directly on them, etc. 

[ktgrok]

You can also ask your own children to wash their hands or use hand sanitizer when leaving a germ place, or arriving home. And older kids don't have their hands in their mouths quite as much as a baby/toddler. 

Edited April 28, 2019 by Ktgrok

[happypamama]

I wouldn't put an unvaccinated baby in a gym daycare, and I wouldn't want to put one in there once the baby was starting to get some shots either.  And not just because of those diseases.  Colds, stomach bugs, etc.  Not knowing who was caring for my baby and whether they were up to date on all current safety recommendations.  And so on.  I'd work out at home for a year.

 

(And newborns don't stay tiny long enough.  I don't even like to share my newborns with my husband, and they're 50% his.  But I also don't like working out very much hahaha, so it wouldn't be a big loss for me.  I'd look into home workouts I could do during naptime or when big kids or Daddy can be in charge of baby or things you can do with the baby.)

[G5052]

My gym doesn't take babies under 3 months. I personally would probably wait longer than that.

At one point I went to the gym very, very early before DH went to work, or I went a few times at 8pm after dinner and such.

Later both gyms I went to were fine with having them sit in the lobby doing schoolwork if they were at least 10 years old.

[Pen]

21 hours ago, omishev said:

So... I am giving this way too much thought but if my other kids are still in contact with the  masses and then are all over the baby, what's the difference? We are doomed!

 

Do you have a reason to think that this baby is far more vulnerable than your other children? 

Or did you keep your prior children away from “contact with the masses”? 

Maybe you need a home gym.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Sounds like the OP is a fitness instructor. And that she really wants validation to put the baby in gym child care. As answered above, I personally would not do this. Tiny babies with a not fully developed immune system are not going to handle exposure to other people’s germs as well as older kids.

But having said that, I do know a lot of people who do put their tiny infants into gym childcare. My daughter takes  care of them. But she also comes home with stories that confirm my own bias against it.   Not where the babies die or get hospitalized or anything extreme but where these babies are exposed to an environment that I personally would not be comfortable with. (Just for comparison of comfort levels- I was never a mom who kept my kids out of all public spaces during that first month or so but this is still my bias when it comes to childcare of such young infants). 

[Pen]

 

On 3/15/2019 at 11:49 AM, omishev said:

We have been going to a gym with childcare for the past year and a half and it has been life-changing. I have always exercised from home and it is so nice to have a longer time span, better equipment, classes and no interruptions! However, we are thinking about having another baby and my first thought was YES it will be so much easier to get back into shape this time. Then the gym sent out a notice that one of the kids in the childcare was diagnosed with whooping cough. Dream shattered. There is no herd. I am really bummed. 

 

9 minutes ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

Sounds like the OP is a fitness instructor.

 

It does?

 

[Jean in Newcastle]

On 3/15/2019 at 5:39 PM, omishev said:

Haha I'm a fitness instructor and seriously obsessed. The only kid I waited the full 6 weeks was when I got mastitis at 1 month.

Yes, it does.

[Pen]

4 minutes ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

Yes, it does.

 

Ah.  I wonder who watched the other children when she went back to work  in that case.

[Xahm]

I'm not the kind of person who leaves their babies with other people normally. I hate to. But I've left this little one in the y childcare since as soon as he was three months old, which is their rule. My husband is deployed and I have three older kids, the oldest being six. It's not ideal, but he's very healthy, I don't leave him if I see they are crowded, and my sanity is important, too. I would rather be able to leave him with my husband, not only because that would mean my husband was home. So if you feel like you need to, you should make that call and don't feel guilty. A less than perfect situation is sometimes the best we have, and that's ok.

[rebcoola]

I did with my 2nd because it was the only way to get break do to life circumstances it wasn't ideal but she was fine.  My newest one stays home with my oldest or dad when I want a trip to the gym.  But I am also not desperate to get out and have a break.

[dsmith]

One of the big measles outbreaks is about 25 minutes away from here, so that would be a no.

[omishev]

On 4/29/2019 at 12:25 PM, Pen said:

 

 

 

It does?

 

I was a fitness instructor before having kids, worked out at home for 6 years then joined the gym last school year. I still do half my workouts at home. I only teach one day a week and that is at 5:30 am so I don't bring the kids. I will not be teaching that early with a new baby so either I will take time off until the baby is sleeping well or switch to a later class.

[omishev]

On 4/29/2019 at 10:06 PM, xahm said:

I'm not the kind of person who leaves their babies with other people normally. I hate to. But I've left this little one in the y childcare since as soon as he was three months old, which is their rule. My husband is deployed and I have three older kids, the oldest being six. It's not ideal, but he's very healthy, I don't leave him if I see they are crowded, and my sanity is important, too. I would rather be able to leave him with my husband, not only because that would mean my husband was home. So if you feel like you need to, you should make that call and don't feel guilty. A less than perfect situation is sometimes the best we have, and that's ok.

Thanks for the encouragement! I wouldn't do it every day. I can tough it out through interruptions etc several days a week but it would be great to get two days at the gym. My husband doesn't do babies. They are pretty much all mine for the first year. But on the weekends he would watch the other kids if I could get the baby down for a nap or took the baby running with me. 

[omishev]

On 4/29/2019 at 12:32 PM, Pen said:

 

Ah.  I wonder who watched the other children when she went back to work  in that case.

I took 6 years off from teaching and just worked out at home. Now I teach at 5:30am (and only once a week) so the kids are still in bed and my husband is home. The other days I bring them or workout at home.

[omishev]

On 4/29/2019 at 12:13 PM, Jean in Newcastle said:

Sounds like the OP is a fitness instructor. And that she really wants validation to put the baby in gym child care. As answered above, I personally would not do this. Tiny babies with a not fully developed immune system are not going to handle exposure to other people’s germs as well as older kids.

But having said that, I do know a lot of people who do put their tiny infants into gym childcare. My daughter takes  care of them. But she also comes home with stories that confirm my own bias against it.   Not where the babies die or get hospitalized or anything extreme but where these babies are exposed to an environment that I personally would not be comfortable with. (Just for comparison of comfort levels- I was never a mom who kept my kids out of all public spaces during that first month or so but this is still my bias when it comes to childcare of such young infants). 

Yeah, pretty much! The gym issue is pretty much the only "con" on my pros/cons list about having another baby. The past several years working at home I either had all kids napping or 1 or 2 at school so at most I had one kid with me while I worked out. Next year we are homeschooling and I don't think any of the older kids will still be napping. I can have them do rest time but that is also my chance to get done all the other things

[Pen]

58 minutes ago, omishev said:

I took 6 years off from teaching and just worked out at home. Now I teach at 5:30am (and only once a week) so the kids are still in bed and my husband is home. The other days I bring them or workout at home.

 

It sounds like u have lots of excellent options available!  Including perhaps if gym is more important to you than homeschooling to keep your older kids in school and put money that would go for curricula to a private sitter in your home for the hours you want to go to gym.  

Homeschool with a newborn may be hard aside from the gym issue.

You are lucky to have choices.  

Edited May 4, 2019 by Pen