Hello! I hope you all had a good weekend. My son was unwell and sadly is today too, so will miss school, which I have tried to avoid but kids get sick and so was all systems go this morning and he is sitting on the sofa chilling. He has a tummy bug.
Each week I create a free cheat sheet on various topics and this weeks on is about When kids get sick.
I hope you do find these useful. They are completely free and if you want to share this post then please do, and remember to subscribe so you are alerted everytime I post on this site.
Today my son if off from school due to having a tummy bug and had to collect him from school yesterday, normally he gets the taxi due to distance, and you never know sometimes of what to expect. Today he does seem to be a lot better and kids will get sick.
I am going to start having my son take a multi vitamin which we did before but it was medicine type bottle and didn’t like it, so going to try a different type, as an adult I take supplements and they really do help, and took one as a kid.
Check of course with the pharmacist or doctor, and to know what is okay for your child to take, as some children may have allergies and there is so many on the market so can be hard to know what to buy.
My son can be reluctant to wash his hands so making it a must so he does it without a fuss as it is important and working in nursery I never known a child not have a runny nose and so have tissue to hand and make sure your hands are washed too. I remember when working in a call center and one of other agents after going to the toilet never washed her hands. If we want to have children follow good hygiene practices, then we as adults if you have kids or not, should set an example so it becomes a natural positive habit as germs can be spread easily if we don’t keep ourselves clean.
When going out for the day or going on holiday have a pack like a first aid kit in your hand luggage in case you child has travel sickness, and prescribed medication is packed in their too with the prescription and check with the Airline before you travel, if you are going abroad.
It is often a dilemma when our children get sick because kids do, but knowing how serious it is. Check their temperature, what their pooh looks like and if they have gone to the toilet, have a lack of energy, the colouring of the skin and if you see a rash then test it with a glass and if it doesn’t disappear contact your doctor straight away, or call 111 or go to A&E, which I hate saying because they do get overloaded with many people and children, and was told that by the receptionist of my sons doctors surgery and had to push for an appointment and managed to get one late in the evening. He had tonsilitis, so make that call or visit and tell the A&E staff that you were referred by your GP.
Be careful with food and check with the restaurant if they have food that can cause an allergy, and when I was a young child I became very ill, when I travelled abroad for the first time and missed a lot of days and there are some days of that holiday I can’t remember after being so unwell.
I wasn’t sure if this was heat stroke or something I consumed in terms of water or food, and when I went camping I was sick, so have a travel bag with medicines that can help and use bottle water if you are unsure if it is safe or not to use in a different place or country.
When at home have a cupboard or a box kept away from kids, with medicines your children are okay with and going through the food they’ve eaten. The doctor will ask what they last ate, if they have had diarrhea or vomited. Keep a record or mental note and what you have tried to use to help. Make sure they are away from others for 48 hours.
I found also keeping away from dairy and drink plenty of safe water to help with recovery from sickness if it is a tummy bug and with chicken pox when they start to scab and taken medication it is usually okay to have social interaction, so back to school for example but check with your child’s childcare setting.
Things with measles it is 5 days but check, and if it the flu that they are getting treatment like antibiotics and let the childcare setting of the medication and when it has to be administrated to your child.
So I hope this helps you and please if you have tips then please share.
I am not sure why but my son gets a cough and cold when we reach to the time of the year, Autumn and so gave him some Calpol as we checked his temperature and was a little high and put some Oabis oil on his pillow before he went to bed and put some on his feet too, and you can do the same with vapour Rub (putting it on the bottom of the foot) or the middle of their neck. Only Vapour rub not Oabis oil.
The tricky thing is that because my son has a good body temperature and never feels the cold it is hard to know if he has a temperature, but if they looked flushed on the cheeks, is often a indicator that they may have a temperature that is higher than what it should be.
Often Boots do deals on their cough and cold medicines this time of the year, and I use if my son does have a high temperature Calpol like many parents or Calcough. However if not sure talk to the pharmacist or contact your GP, but in saying that it not always easy to get an appointment at his doctors, and when my son was ill last Spring, I gave them the details to the receptionist of the what was wrong with my son, and told us to go to A&E.
However, by insisting that I need to see the doctor, they gave me an evening appointment with another clinic and found he had Tonsillitis, and needed antibiotics and now it is all done online, so not sure how that will work, but dread contacting them because they at any opportunity push you away, and see why A&E departments are struggling, and so don’t allow them to put you off, and don’t take no for an answer.
It means putting the heating back on, but a lot of families because of utilities costs rising, it is making it tough to heat their homes, but with central heating you can put it on a timer, and set up for when your kids get home from school and in the mornings. We for free got our attic insulated by British Gas, my husband sorted that out, but it has helped with keeping the house warm, and not getting to hot in the summer, and once it reaches the limited temperature, the heating automatically cut off, and keep the thermometer in the room you use the most and will help you see if the heating needs to be turn on or off.
Invest in a blanket, and I bought one from TK Maxx and originally was for a sofa we had, but now it is in on my sons bed in Wimbledon and great for extra warmth and invest in a thick Duvet depending on age, as have a room thermometer as this will help make sure that your child’s room is not too cold or too hot.
If their appetite goes then try making soups and warm breakfasts like porridge with banana, Weetabix or toast, and for lunch or dinner, soups, that aren’t so heavy on their stomachs if they don’t feel like eating, but worried about them being hungry, and that they stay hydrated.
I do get a bit too concerned, so need to work on holding myself back and not making it out to be a big deal as this can make him worry too and say that he is unwell, so try to not go into panic mode and have a medicine in date, in the Winter time, should you child get a cough and cold, and if they are bringing up anything or being sick by coughing a lot, then seek medical help, as it may be a chest infection,which is easily treated.
Kids will have runny noses and working in nurseries, they all can have a runny nose and so use a tissue on each, making sure we wash our heads, and make sure I have tissues to hand and bulk buy.
A nice warm bath can help too and I still use Head to Toe wash from Boots and lasts for a long time and great for their skin and they do a moisturiser too, Boots and great if they suffer with eczema. Also helps clear their noses and their symptoms, along with clean bedding and I make sure that any towels used are washed and that if I have a cold I take medicines and precautions that I don’t pass it on.
So I hope you have had a good half term, and that this blog helps you and many thanks to those who follow me on this blog and if you have tips them please leave the tips in the comment section below.
If you like reading then I have written two The Parenting Adventure books on amazon, under the name, Carrie Challoner.
I have written this type of blog before When our kids are sick and will continue to do so and the one thing that I think should be free or inexpensive to do is first aid, so good for parents because kids will get sick or have accidents and often will be unsure as to what to do.
My son was unwell this week and so not the start to the summer holidays we wanted and getting an appointment for him to see a doctor was not easy but did get seen and turns out his has swollen glands and she thinks it is tonsillitis and needed a doctor, and speaking the receptionist to get an appointment told us to go to A and E.
You can see why A and E departments are struggling and all it needed was for the GP to check him over and was prescribed penicillin and if we had gone to A and E could have been waiting for ages and being that he has ADHD and was a little scared of the appointment would have caused him such distress so advice don’t let the GP Surgeries fog you off keep calling until you can get an appointment.
The main indicator for us was that Henry (my son) appetite had gone and he loves food and had a fever, along with fatigue and was quite red in the cheeks or pale. So look at the colour of their skin.
He was getting upset saying his stomach was hurting and had a high temperature and used Calpol to help, but his temperature kept fluctuating between 37.1 to 39.5 and it is worrying and so it is important that you get medical help. Being a parent we aren’t all doctors or nurses and we rely on our GP surgeries and you can talk to the pharmacy too. who can help but can only give a certain amount of advice and shouldn’t be made to feel guilty in feeling you are wasting the doctor or nurses time.
If they begin to get a rash and they have purple around the lips seek medical help straight away and if they become dehydrated and not weeing get help straight away too, and the other indicator we had for Henry was not being able to pooh easily and so was constipated. Sorry for TMI but want to keep my blogs real and use it as a source to help, should you be unsure and is a real indicator the your child is unwell and needs help by your GP and if, like I say begin to get worse and still unwell after trying everything you can to help your children get better, go back to your doctor. As the Doctor who helped us said to us, if no better to contact her for further advice and help.
As parents we know our kids and if they start to become withdrawn and have lack of energy then it is us parents who should be the dictator of if their child needs medical help or not and shouldn’t have to have a battle when calling the doctors for an appointment, to seek medical help and support.
Today I had to go and pick my son up early from school as he is not very well and so means that I will have to change my plans, but that is okay kids get sick however much we try and avoid it and kids are our main priority. I am never going to put my blogs or writing first over my son, but around him.
Children will get sick however much we try to prevent our kids from being unwell and actually editing this blog was good to take a break from my laptop and took a notebook to make notes for my blogs and books. There is always a way to work around our kids, even if it is for 10 minutes. My son often wants my full attention so I will wait to bed time to write.
When our children get sick it can cause anxiety as a parent as often I fear the worst but that is not a bad thing, because it means you care and makes you to take action, and I did google, which many say you shouldn’t, and I try not to, but the more I was telling myself no, I had to, just to make sure.
I began this blog on the Wednesday and since then touch wood my son is a lot better. I’m not sure of what it was but there are when kids going to school bugs going around and it can be from someone in the street. Often you don’t ever know but get prepared should your kid get sick is the key to helping them to get better.
I do store Calpol and Calcough, with Vapor Rub, and don’t use straight away but have them on hand as they do help. Some may argue and I am never reckless when it comes to medicines but like on Saturday night he had a coughing fit and when Henry my son gets a cold he will instantly get a nasty cough. I also have a thermometer thanks to my mother as I often forget but is a must for me and since he was born I have had one.
I make sure he doesn’t touch any other child when sick and make sure he is fully better, like to day we went to home bargains and he saw a baby girl whilst we waited for my mum and step dad and wanted to touch her sweetly but pulled him away. You can’t cocoon them because my son still wants to be about to get out, but just play in the garden or in the playground we have near by when there is no other kids, but can be tricky especially when you have more than one child.
Do you best that is what I’d say and go by the guidelines like making sure each child when they go to the toilet wash their hands and before they touch food and sneeze using the inside of their elbow.
When it comes to kids being sick you aren’t allowed back to school for 48 hours and so Henry had the rest of the week off. We wondered if it was due to phlegm that he was sick but then he had a bad tummy so not so sure so it is good to take precautions and anything that had sick on do a high temperature wash on clothes or some if not may need to be thrown away and replaced.
Make sure items are washed like baby plates and if your child is under 6 months old and no I am not a doctor so I am not taking place of a medical person who is, but is from what have experienced, that all items like bottles, soothers and breast pumps are sterilised.
Do contact your doctor or health visitor if you are worried, as if there cough continues for more than a week, and they begin to bring up Mucus they may need antibiotics and have an infection of some sort and they not a energetic as they usually are and have a high temperature seek medical attention and do go to A and E, especially if they develop a rash that won’t fade or they have terrible diarrhea.
There are some good indoor activities you can do whilst they are sick. Like me and Henry played Bowls and he has this painting book. where all you need is water and a brush and it changes colour in the image they are painting. We cuddle up on the sofa with a blanket and watched the snooker which I haven’t watched for years and did some reading and learning at home, like my mum bought my son a maths book and did this, this morning.
I hope that I have not scared you, just supporting you because often we can feel if we are doing the right thing when it comes to our kids and are sick, but do what you feel right and chat with other mums, that has helped me a lot.
Thank you for the follows and that you have liked my content on this blog and with the warmer growing near it is time to get outdoors, and make sure you have suncream and stay hydrated.
The parenting adventures 