No tomatoes please - chicken pox question

[ELaurie]

I really don't want to stir a controversy here - I am sincerely asking for thoughtful advice.

 

We haven't vaxed our ds, 9 and 6 against chicken pox. Our doctor recommends having them vaxed at puberty if they haven't had chicken pox by then. We are undecided about that, but feel we can cross that bridge when we come to it.

 

In the meantime, a friend's ds has been exposed to chicken pox, and we have an opportunity to expose our dc to the live virus, if we choose to do so.

 

I am really wrestling with this; for one thing, I've always protected my dc from exposure to illness, never deliberately putting them in harm's way, so to speak. OTOH, from what I understand, chicken pox is often much worse when contracted by adults, and carriers pose a risk to pregnant mothers.

 

I'm also concerned about what to tell my dc (or not) if I take them to play with a friend who is covered in spots. Needless to say, doing so would raise questions. I don't want them to feel betrayed, or like I blindsiding them.

 

A third issue, and this is probably the one I am most concerned about, is that we attend a home church with a number of other HSing families. One family has 10 children who have not been vaxed.

 

In another family, the mother is pregnant, and due in two weeks. I have been asked to attend as a support person when she gives birth at home.

 

I would feel terrible about exposing them to our dc during a period of time when they might be incubating the virus, but still asymptomatic. To avoid exposing them, we might need to keep our dc away from the congregation for as much as 4-6 weeks, from what I understand about the incubation period.

 

Primarily due to concerns about the pregnant mom, and her newborn baby, as well as my potential role as a support person, I have essentially talked myself out of the idea of exposing them.

 

But . . . what else should I be considering?

[Jennifer in MI]

Well, that mother with 10 children may be looking for the live virus and may welcome the exposure! Ask her about it before you get together with them just in case.

 

The pregnant mom would only be at risk if she didn't have chicken pox. If she had them as a child, it wouldn't be a harm to her or her unborn child. Of course, if she didn't have them, getting them while pregnant can be very dangerous.

 

I think the incubation period is 10 - 21 days (I didn't look it up again - but I did when one of mine was exposed 4 weeks before our cruise!). So, at the long end, you'd need to stay away from them for those 11 days and again IF your kids get sick. So, 3, maybe 4 weeks, tops. Now, if only one of your kids gets it, you'd have to wait for the other to get it and then it'd be longer.

 

Sounds like this is actually quite a good time to expose your kids! I'm looking to expose mine too! Wanna' come over? Good luck.

[Tree House Academy]

I would let this opportunity pass you by since you plan to be at the birth of a newborn baby in the coming weeks. I wouldn't take the risk.

 

My youngest ds had the vaccine at 18 mos, but has yet to get the booster. We are hoping he gets the chicken pox before he has to get the booster...but, like you, if he has not had them by the time he hits 11 or 12, we are going to have to get the booster. You definitely don't want your kids to have the chicken pox in their teen years or as adults.

 

P.S. I hate the chicken pox vaccine! LOL

[Cindy in FL.]

No tomatoes here! As someone who had Chicken Pox as an adult, I will say that it can be a very serious disease for older folks (I know it can also be for children, etc.). If my dc hadn't been vaccinated, I would want them to get it as a child instead of an adult.

 

Best wishes to you!

 

Cindy

[Blue Hen]

I did expose my kids on purpose to the chicken pox. Well, my oldest was in day care and so I really didn't have much choice. It was prior to the vaccine and the pox ran through the center with 50 kids. He was in the same classroom in late November when the first case happened. All the kids around him came down with the pox, except him. Throughout December and January case after case of pox popped up at the center. The center kept track of who had the pox and who didn't --- 50 kids and DS was kid #49 to come down with it in late February just prior to us leaving for our trip to Disney. Point being, it might take more than one exposure to get the pox.

 

DS #2 was taken to kids homes where they had the pox, exposed on purpose. I did tell him why we were going to Tyler's home or Stephen's home and he was ok with it. He never came down with the pox and finally at age 12 received the vaccine.

 

Two weekends ago my boys were at their skate meet and during the meet I sat and talked with a mom whose deaf daughter had just joined our team. Turns out her older brother had the pox when she was 8 months old, she caught the pox, spiked a high fever of 106 resulting in her deafness. Talk about stopping one in ones track. I was not an advocate of the vaccine before but now I'm thinking twice. I certainly would not want to accidentally expose a baby to the pox and could a child be the carrier of the virus without having the symptoms? I don't have the answer to that question.

[dirty ethel rackham]

We just got over our month-long chicken-pox odessy. My son just came out of quarantine yesterday.

 

I am really wrestling with this; for one thing, I've always protected my dc from exposure to illness, never deliberately putting them in harm's way, so to speak. OTOH, from what I understand, chicken pox is often much worse when contracted by adults, and carriers pose a risk to pregnant mothers.

 

I hear you on this. I was really reluctant to intentionally expose my kids to illness, but, since the wild chicken pox is more difficult to encounter, I had to rethink this decision. My oldest never contracted CP, nor did he develop immunities despite 5 unintentional exposures. We ended up vax-ing him 2 years ago because I was getting concerned (and a long Boy Scout trip was coming up.) My youngest came down with them about 3 weeks ago and my middle child just finished his course.

 

I'm also concerned about what to tell my dc (or not) if I take them to play with a friend who is covered in spots. Needless to say, doing so would raise questions. I don't want them to feel betrayed, or like I blindsiding them.

 

In the many times that I had contemplated an intentional exposure, I had conversations with my kids about why I was considering it (and why I eventually decided against it - timing.)

 

A third issue, and this is probably the one I am most concerned about, is that we attend a home church with a number of other HSing families. One family has 10 children who have not been vaxed.

 

<snip>

 

I would feel terrible about exposing them to our dc during a period of time when they might be incubating the virus, but still asymptomatic. To avoid exposing them, we might need to keep our dc away from the congregation for as much as 4-6 weeks, from what I understand about the incubation period.

 

 

I would definitely talk with these other families about how they feel about it. Perhaps they would actually be open to getting CP and getting it over with. Otherwise, I would simply avoid seeing other people when I felt my kids might be contageous (10 days after exposure until 3 weeks.) With my daughter, her case was a surprise - we weren't aware of anyone who had it. She started getting body aches and lethargic at science club. When she broke out in spots, I called everyone she had been around within the 2 days before to give them a heads up. So far, the only person to get a case has been my son - right on time - 2 weeks after first exposure. We did take precautions with him to avoid people from 10 days after exposure until he scabbed over with no new spots (which was yesterday.)

 

If your children did develop chicken pox, you might be avoiding church members for that long anyway.

 

In another family, the mother is pregnant, and due in two weeks. I have been asked to attend as a support person when she gives birth at home.

 

<snip>

 

Primarily due to concerns about the pregnant mom, and her newborn baby, as well as my potential role as a support person, I have essentially talked myself out of the idea of exposing them.

 

But . . . what else should I be considering?

 

This is a tougher call. Are you immune? If so, acccording to my research, if so, you will not be a carrier of the virus and will not infect people who are not immune. The exception is if you have an active case of shingles.

 

Good luck with your decision. Sometimes, nature has a way of making the decision for you:).

[TeacherZee]

My mother had chicken pox when my sister and I had it. I was only 5 but I can remember how incredibly sick she was. She had spots EVERYWHERE, inside of her eyelids, her throat and up her female parts. She still talks about it as one of her worst experiences.

 

That said if I were you I would probably not expose the children now, if for no other reason that if you are attending the birth and your own children were sick you might have problems focusing no matter where you chose to be at the time.

[LadyR]

Our pediatrician says never, never, never purposefully expose children to diseases. He had one mother who exposed her baby to chicken pox and the baby died. (This was a baby - not an older child.) Deaths are rare, but still. I wouldn't do it.

[Matryoshka]

I exposed my kids three times before they finally got it (I felt progressively less guilty each time - get it already!) By that time they were old enough to know what was up - I was open and honest with them that this was an annoying sickness, but it was dangerous to adults and this was the sure-fire way not to get it then. It helped that they had other friends who shared the pox party.

 

Each time, even the ones they didn't get it, I kept them home and away from everyone from 7- 21 days after exposure (the longest incubation period from what I read - the first week after exposure they shouldn't be contagious yet even if they're going to get it, if I remember correctly, but check my dates). If I was going to expose them knowingly, I felt I had to then know enough not to possibly expose others who might not feel as I did or who might be vulnerable. It was especially annoying the first two times when they didn't get it and I'd kept them home for "nothing". I even kept them home from a really cool religous ed workshop at church that I had planned and put together - everyone's kids got to go but mine!

 

Since I had chicken pox as a child, I could not be a carrier, so I still went out if I could leave the kids at home (like, I still ran the above workshop and dh stayed with the kids). And definitely not around a baby - I had to stay with friends when my baby brother was born, as that's exactly when I got them! (what a good friend my mother had). If you've already had the pox, you should be able to be around other people, but I wouldn't bring your kids.

 

But you can invite others over for pox parties - when they actually got it, I wasn't lonely anymore! :tongue_smilie:

[mktyler]

I was against the vaccine until my kids got it.

 

My dd6 contracted chicken pox from somewhere and it went through my family. My asthmatic son got antiviral and that helped. The possible complications for those with asthma can be severe. My oldest, who had already had the vaccine (when she was one) and chicken pox from the vaccine, got it twice, which means she could have exposed others. She also had strep throat at the time so she got the antiviral as well

 

My dd6 was lethargic for several days. Wouldn't eat, wouldn't move, just cried. She now has several very large scars on her face - hopefully they will heal in time.

 

Frankly, I would get the vaccine and the boosters. What is so different about putting the virus in their bodies via a syringe or exposing them to the disease via contact? The complications can be severe, either for your children or someone else's children.

 

Best of luck!

 

Melissa

Minnesota

Reading Program Junkie

dd(10) dd(6) ds(5) ds(1)

[WagsWife]

My mother had chicken pox when my sister and I had it. I was only 5 but I can remember how incredibly sick she was. She had spots EVERYWHERE, inside of her eyelids, her throat and up her female parts. She still talks about it as one of her worst experiences.

 

That said if I were you I would probably not expose the children now, if for no other reason that if you are attending the birth and your own children were sick you might have problems focusing no matter where you chose to be at the time.

 

This is how I had them in about 5th grade! I was out of school for a month. I had them on on my scalp, in my female parts, down my throat, and on the bottoms of my feet.

 

If we ever have another baby, I will not be so quick to trust ALL the vaccines the doctor wants to give...but I will not hesitate to give the chicken pox vac.

[ELaurie]

for your very thoughtful and respectful replies about this difficult question - one more reason why I appreciate this forum so very much :001_smile: