case of the chicken pox HELP !!!!!!

[genia]

some one please help !!!!!

i have already posted this on the american board but i thought i shoul also post it on here just incase anyone from this board doesnt read the other one !!! last wednesday my cousin bought her 2.5 yr old round to play with my son, they didnt really play with each other just in the same room for about half an hour then i had to go out ........... on saturday night i saw my cousin at the pub and she said that her son had chicken pox (and i assume the spots came up on saturday) now i am so worried as we leave in 10 days and i just know that my son is going to end up with them !!!! does anyone know of kids not contracting them whilst being around another child with it ??? some one please help i dont want to cancel the holiday that we have been looking forward to for so long and i definetly dont want my son to get ill !!!! thanks alot !!

 

[Byrne family]

Chicken pox usually take at least 14 days to appear from first exposure, however they can appear up to 21 days later. When my girls got chicken pox they got it separately 14 days apart, but my son who was 4months at the time didn't get it. I think this was because i was breastfeeding him and he got my antibodies.
To be honest its not that bad, they may feel off colour for a day or so but if you can keep their mind off the itch they'll more or less be normal. I wouldn't cancel my holiday, just see what happens

 

[signtalker]

I was under the assumption that if youre child has chicken pox, the airline will not let you fly(sorry to put a dampner on things), the spots have an incubation period of 10 days, before you will problay see anything, which is when they are most contagous(sp)

Jules

 

[RUSHBURY]

Hopefully you'll be lucky - I have 3 children and all 3 of mine had chicken pox at different times - years apart - 2 of them even shared the same bedroom, bunk beds. Their best friends had them etc etc - so fingers crossed that you're son doesn't get them this time and that you have a great holiday.

 

[Found Nemo]

One note of warning, if you turn up for your flight and the airline check-in staff notice that your son has chicken pox, they will not allow him to fly.

It seems a little unfair, particularly with an excited child who isn't feeling particularly under the weather, but the airline has to consider the other 300+ people on the flight, and the fact that they don't want angry letters from passengers who've contracted chicken pox- or worse, shingles- from a child who was allowed on with visible symptoms of the illness.

If he does get it, perhaps you could ask your doctor for a note stating that the contagious period is over (assuming it is) and that he is fit to fly.

Hope the rest of your family don't suffer either!

 

[gilld]

Chicken Pox is contagious until the all the spots have dried and crusted. Travelling with it isn't allowed and for good reason, I know an adult who became permanently deaf in one ear after catching it so although it would be disappointing for you all, with the recycled air on board an aircraft it would be putting everyone at risk. Keep your fingers crossed that you all avoid it. Good luck.

 

[snookhams]

I will keep my fingers crossed for you and your son. With regards to catching shingles from someone with chicken pox - this is not now how they think you get it - I had shingles about 18mnths ago - on my legs of all places, very painful, apparantly the virus lays dorment in you once you have had chicken pox and they don't know what triggers it, they think it might be stress/nerve related, and it triggers itself from inside you - you can't catch it from anyone and can only pass it on in the form of chicken pox if someone comes into contact with the liquid inside the blisters! I will be thinking of your family and hope you are OK to go ahead with your holiday.

 

[xsred]

Just found this link to a post by someone with similar circumstances, hope it helps and fingers crossed!!

http://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/showthread/t-18160.html

 

[jubileegirl]

I teach 4 and 5 year olds. About 12 weeks ago a little girl in my class was off with chickenpox but nobody else got it at all. Now a second child has just had it but so far nobody else! A few years back if one child had it you could count on a mass outbreak 14 days later. Perhaps the strain of chickenpox around at the moment is different from a few years ago. Certainly it doesn't seem to be anything like as infectious, so good luck. You may be fine!!

 

[TraceyL]

My DD was in contact with a couple of friends who had chicken pox about 2 weeks before we went to WDW in October last year. I checked her frantically about 6 times a day until we went on holiday - but no spots.

She eventually came out in spots on Christmas Eve - and I have no idea who she caught it from !!

 

[Belfastgirl]

The reason airlines don't let people with chickenpox onboard is because it can be really dangerous for some people, particularly those who have been immunosupressed for whatever reason, it can be lifethreatening to them.

Angela

 

[Hilary]

If your child is in the incubation period (when the disease is at its most contagious), is there any way of knowing - not just suspecting?

There must be cases where parents have bene unaware that their child has been in contact with chicken pox and therefore not taken any precautions about cancelling flights, etc.

I'm not advocating putting anyone at risk intentionally, just wondering whether there's a way of finding out if someone is about to break out in spots once they've had known contact with an infected person.

 

[TracyK]

I can really sympathise with you. Two years ago the exact same thing happened to my DS two weeks before we were due to go to Orlando. I was prepared to cancel if necessary but he hadn't broken out in spots when we left so I thought we were in the clear. Unfortunately two days into the holiday, spots started to appear. I had gone forearmed with info about treatments etc and we just had to make the most of it. We spent a few days in the hotel room and out on the balcony (the sun helped dry up the spots).
I'm no expert but I don't think you are contagious until the day before the spots appear.
Fingers crossed for you.
Tracy

 

[genia]

well at the moment there arent any signs of any spots !!!! but then i suppose there wouldnt be !!! we are still waiting patiently tho !! thanks alot for everyones comments and support !!

still keeping my fingers crossed even while i pack our suitcase this week !!!

bye for now i will keep you all updated

 

[jubileegirl]

...often before the spots appear there will be a day or two of feeling 'off colour', maybe a temperature and acting a bit grouchy. So that's something to watch for too! No symptoms like that might be another way to reassure yourself!

 

[SCOOBERT]

When we went to Orlando in 2000 our daughter Stephanie got the dreaded spots 4 days before we were due to fly.The day before we got a letter from our doctor saying she was no longer contagious.Although they noticed the spots at US immigration(with the help of James our son who said MY SISTER HAS CHICKEN POX YOU KNOW to them despite being told not to say a word) they were more than happy to let us through once they had seen the letter.Good luck

 

[BeverlyJ]

My DD3 caught chicken pox in Feb 2002. The spots appeared on the sunday as we were due to fly on the friday.

Our own GP didn't know what to do, and didn't offer much assistance. We decided to take a second opinion and saw a private doctor. They took advice from the Public Health labs who confirmed that the patient would not be contagious after the fifth day of spots.

The doctor then saw her on the thursday evening and wrote a letter for the airline confirming that she was ok to fly and not contagious. Without the letter, she would not have been able to fly.

I must add that the sunshine and being in WDW certainly seemed to help her feel a bit better!

I wish you lots of luck and pixie dust.

 

[galaxy]

My five yr old son is in Florida t the moment he took chickenpox the day before we were due to fly home and they would not let him fly. Fortunately he is not ill so him and his dad are having another weeks hols.
He had chicken pox 2 yrs ago, we have no idea where he got them from. I suspect someone on the outgoing journey mave have had them(whether they were aware of it or not) because two other families were in the same situation and a baby on a gatwick flight had it also.(we flew from manchester.)

Just waiting to hear if DS is allowed to fly home tomorrow. He was given acyclovir to speed up the outbreak.

Galaxy

 

[genia]

well i have just got him out of the bath and there are a few red spot like things (a bit like spots that are waiting to appear but he is himself !! if he does get it then there isnt anything we can do to stop it i will let you all know though !!

 

[Twinks]

Fingers crossed for you that nothing happens. My girls came into contact with others on many occasions when they were younger and didn't catch chickenpox. But unfortunately the time my youngest did catch it, it was 3 days before we were due to go to Orlando for Easter she said 'look at this mommy' I knew instantly it was chickenpox. We took her to the doctors and he said absolutely no way to flying

I hope things work out ok for you and you all get away.

Twinks