Hello all,

Chicken pox is going around here, and while I do want my kids to get it, and get this childhood rite of passage over with, I would love to do what I can to help them have mild cases.

The 15 MO nurses still, so that’s good, but my 3yo has weaned.  Can you guys suggest anything I can give him?  Vitamin C and Echinacea?  Is there something else, in addition, or instead?

And should we get it, what can I do to relieve the itch between oatmeal baths?

Hopefully I can be prepared for this- one of my son’s friends already has it….don’t know if he was contagious when we saw him last week though…..I imagine it’ll go through all the school’s though…‘tis the season!

Ok, thanks!

calomnine (sp?) lotion to cover the spots in, and lots of activities for bored itchy children. My DS has when he was two, and it wasnt that bad as mama cuddles and an extra dvd than he was usually allowed did wonders   we watched quite a few episodes of bob the builder that week! x

I found aqeous cream the best as calamine lotion takes ages to apply in comparison & you dont get the itchy feeling like you do once calamine lotion has dried out. Probably best to check the ingredients of both. Putting either in the fridge is also nice and cooling. The worst of chicken pox is the 2 weeks prior, before its evident theyve even got it as they will be under the weather & generally not themselves. Once the spots come out they are almost back to their ‘normal’ selves and will have more energy than you know what to do with lol.

Oh I want mine to catch it before they get too much older! Dd1 had it at 15 months and it was really easy because she just rested and breastfed constantly - I had it at 6 and was a nightmare! Anyone in Devon with it?!

Oatmeal baths sound good - is there something homeopathic that helps with it?

Claire xx

Rhus Tox is the one and only homeopathic remedy you need for Chicken Pox, it often halts it in its tracks and can make for a much milder case than would otherwise have been expected.  Worth having some in the house for when it happens,

Diana

A friend put lots of chamomile tea bags in the bath and that helped her children. Another friend got her children to play ‘join the dots’ with a super spft make up brush and camomile lotion Haven’t had it here yet, a friend said they get vaccinated in America and she said she is shocked how laid back we are over here becuase it’s so dangerous - but I’ve bnever heard of complications unless an adult getsit. Anyone know anything more?>

Thanks Ladies!  I will be searching the Rhus tox, and busting out the calomine lotion (can’t believe I forgot about that!).  I love the connect the dots idea, and am sure our DVD player will be working overtimg- I try to maintain a TV-free house, but DH vegetates in front of it, so it hasn’t disappeared =-(

Yes, in the US, like with every other topic, the vocal people seem to come in two breeds when it comes to vax: all or nothing (I think the quiet ones are the middle of the road, like me), and we do now routinely vaccinate for Chicken Pox.  People do have a choice though, and can say yes or no to the vax they want.  The complications are rare, they say 10,000 were hospitalized and about 100 people died/year from secondary infections pre-vax.  Those numbers aren’t very high in comparison to the 3.7 million they quote as getting the pox.  I just read this in one of my babybooks so it’s fresh in my memory.

The complications are pneumonia and encephalitis, and a strep bacteria that can invade the pustules and happens to be of the flesh-eating sort (all this is from Toddler 411).  None of them sound like much fun.  I feel like I also read somewhere else (on the internet) that the highest risk are infants, then adolescents.

I don’t know why here in Europe things are more ‘laid back’.  Maybe they’re not, but people are just not as up-in-arms about these things and just do their thing. In the US healthcare system the emphasis is on curing diseases, not preventing them (I guess the insurance/drug companies don’t make enough money preventing illnesses?.. sorry I’m a wee bit cynical).  I don’t know how this has changed with Obama….we moved to the UK just as he took office, so I don’t know how Obamacare has evolved. I personally am OK with vaccinations, but don’t want to go overboard, so I wouldn’t have vaccinated for the pox even if we were still in the states.

Isn’t this a joyous topic! 

Ok, I hope you are all well and that your weeks are off to a blissful and happy start!

All three of mine had it last year. The two oldest had it absolutely fine- lots of spots, about a day of being fairly subdued and miserable- but the chicken pox that people laugh off..

Ds3 also had chicken pox- but his wasn’t so laughable - requiring a hospital admisson, IV antibiotics and heading towards PICU with severe sepsis. His chicken pox became infected and settled in his ear- he had swelling around the eyes (peri-orbital oedema) which had the potential to turn into a meningitis- so I agree- chicken pox needs a little more respect!

Normal calamine is horrendous stuff -you need the non drying version- otherwise the spots crust and then crater (scarring +++) OR we used Poxclin which is amazing. It is a little pricey at £11 for the pot but soooo worth it (especially as a lovely mummy on here sent me the end of her pot)- it is a mousse that you keep in the fridge (so is sooo soothing) that contains aloe extracts which work as a mild antiseptic to help prevent spots getting infected (obviously didn’t work too well on that front for DS3- but his infection was beyond mild antiseptic!!!!!). However a year later we have hardly any scars at all- this is despite Ds1 having the most horrendous facial spots I have seen ever in chicken pox (am a childrens nurse so I have seen a lot)- I was in tears over his face as I couldn’t see that it could ever be normal- but it is !!!! The only scars that we have are DS3 ones that were properly infected- but these actually turned into proper wounds…...

Think you can get it from Boots or google POxclin for the full product info

Absoultely has my highest recommendation….

Oooh, soo sorry to hear about DS3, you must have been distraught, I know I would be….  the numbers I quoted in my previous post are small, but I imagine don’t seem so if your child is one that gets the secondary infection.  I am SO glad he came through it OK.

That Poxclin sounds great!  I wonder if it’s available here in France…..  Will be checking for sure.  How long does it last unopened?  If I can’t get it here, a friend from the UK happens to be visiting in 2 weeks…if that’s not too late…..

I’m on ChickenPox infection number three here this spring. DS1 got it 5 weeks ago, DS2 two weeks ago and DS3 came out with it yesterday. Very mild cases so far though so fingers crossed Solly’s stays mild! I haven’t had to treat with anything at all so far other than cuddles and a bit of paraceetamol to keep the winges at bay Oh and Thomas DVDs

I used aloe vera gel on both of my for itching and soothing.  My youngest had it at 11 weeks my oldest was 4.  I also used a homoeopathic remedy Ant Crud I took it for the LO as I was breastfeeding.  I think they had it quite mildly it was all over in a couple of weeks. 

I was told not to come into contact with anyone who was pregnant and had not had chicken pox.

My DD had chicken pox when she was 15 months old. She caught it from her father, who had an unpleasant time of it but fortunately not as bad as it can be in adults. DD herself was covered in spots but hasn’t any scars, possibly because she was too young to scratch accurately! My fairly old-fashioned doctor recommended a mixture of 50:50 calamine lotion and aqueous cream spread liberally over the child. It’s very messy, but seemed very soothing. She also liked tepid baths.