Oh no! Chicken Pox!!**Post #11 update

[siouxi31]

My 10 year old daughter woke up yesterday with the chicken pox!
I'm freaking out because I've never had them.
She was sick last Monday and Tuesday with a cold. On Friday, she went to the doctor because her ear hurt. Being prone to ear infections, my husband took her to get antibiotics. She had a sinus and ear infection.
The next day, she broke out in the pox. I called the doctor to find out if she should still take the antibiotic. He said to bring her in so that he could diagnose her. So, back to the doctor it was. He said to stop the antibiotic and begin chickenpox treatment (benadryl, caladryl, oatmeal bath and motrin for pain).
This morning, she wakes up with what appears to be pink eye and is having a hard time taking deep breaths. I just read that people with chicken pox can develop viral pneumonia so right now, she's taking a bath in oatmeal, and we'll call the doctor again to have him take a look at her once more for the breathing.
I can't believe a kid can have all this stuff at once. The poor thing.
Also, I'm leaving on Thursday for my 40th bday solo trip to WDW. Yes, I'm having 2nd thoughts about going. For 15 years I knew that I wanted to turn 40 at WDW. It suddenly doesn't seem so important.

 

[Mackey Mouse]

Try not to worry about your never having them. I had three children, two had them and one did not. I have never had them and I took care of the two that did.. Hopefully by this time you have developed immunities to this childhood disease. I still have not figured out how the one child did not get them.....

 

[alliecats]

Oh, no, that sucks! I hope you don't get them.

I think you had several typos in your OP, by the way. Didn't you mean to say "30"????

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

Your poor DD! I hope she feels better soon!

I know when I get sick I tend to get a string of totally separate ailments one after another. Not fun!

DS had chicken pox 2 years ago. He was vaccinated, but he still got them. Broke out on Easter Sunday, so this is the time of year for them! In his case he was the only child in a school of 900 who caught them! To the best of our knowledge DH has never had them. I came down with them when I was 21 but DH didn't catch them. When DS broke out we thought DH might catch them from him, but he didn't.

Chicken pox takes 14-21 days to incubate, so if your DD feels better you should be fine to go on your trip. You won't break out until after you get home IF you end up catching them.

I hope you have a happy birthday!

 

[jajuan]

My DS12 broke out in a rash on the last day of our cruise...we all though he got sand fleas or some kind of bites at the beach. I sent him to school for two days before I took him to the doctor and found out it was chicken pox. He had tons of them, but they didn't look like chicken pox when I had them (twice) so I never considered that they could be chicken pox. The doctor said they weren't as bad because DS had vaccine. I felt so bad...by the time he was diagnosed, he only had to miss one day of school because they were already finished with the contagious stage...lol. He liked taking baking soda baths the best. Good luck and Happy Birthday.

 

[Virgo10]

Oh dear! My daughter had a terrible case of the chicken pox when she was 5 AND tonsillitis at the same time. She too was having trouble breathing but it was because her tonsils were so big that they were occluding her airway. There haven't been many times that I've been as scared as I was when I found her asleep and gasping for air.

BTW, the tonsils came out as soon as she recovered from the pox.

Here's hoping that your daughter is feeling better very, very soon and that hers is the only case in your house.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

If she has an ear infection I don't understand why the dr would have her stop taking the antibiotic just because she has chicken pox. Maybe there is a reason, but I've never heard that.

I'm sure that your DH can handle her when you're at WDW. She'll need to still be home from school, but she probably will be past the miserable stage and you can have the house stocked up with food and supplies. I'm sure that you've looked forward to this trip and she will likely be fine. At least you are home for the beginning of her illness, which is usually when they are the most miserable.

And like was already mentioned, if you are going to get the pox, it will be at least 10-14 days (or more) after exposure, which is a day before she broke out. How long is your solo trip?

 

[Wonderlandmom]

You can still get the shot!

Will post-exposure use of the vaccine prevent or modify varicella?

Yes, the vaccine may prevent or modify illness when administered within 3 to 5 days after exposure. The ACIP now recommends vaccination of susceptible persons who are eligible for vaccination as soon as possible after exposure--ideally within 3 days but possibly up to 5 days of an exposure--to prevent illness or modify disease severity. If a person has already been infected, and the vaccine is given soon enough, disease may be modified or prevented. If the person was infected >5 days prior to vaccination, there is unlikely to be any benefit from vaccination but vaccination is not known to be harmful. Finally, exposure even in a household setting does not result in transmission 100% of the time. So, if the exposed person has not been infected, vaccination will confer protection against subsequent exposures.

For further information, visit the following site:
http://www.cdc.gov/epo/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr4806a1.htm

http://www.cdc.gov/nip/vaccine/varicella/faqs-clinic-vaccine.htm#6-epidemiology

This is also interesting:

However, if an adult has a negative or uncertain history of varicella, testing is likely to be more accurate than relying on history alone, since 70% to 90% of adults who do not have a reliable history of varicella are actually immune.

Perhaps you are actually immune!
Good luck!

 

[LisaNJ25]

i hope she feels better soon. I also hope yo dont get them. My hubby had them as an adult and it wasnt good. It was crazy, my 3 younger sibling got them.. that my son was 1 at the time and than hubby who was 24. I didnt think it would even go away.

 

[Lanshark]

Several years ago I got the chicken pox vaccine. They insisted on running a blood test first to see if I had ever had the chicken pox. They said that about 90% of adults who did not think they had ever had the CP actually did have them at one point. It could have been a mild case. My test showed that I did not have them and after they ran a pregnancy test (I told them I wasn't pregnant either) I got the vaccination. Both of my kids got the vaccination also.

Hopefully you're in the percentage who had a mild case and never knew it.

 

[siouxi31]

We spent a couple of hours at the emergency room today.
She said it hurt when she breathes and I didn't know if it was because she had the chicken pox in her lungs or if she was getting pneumonia. Luckily she's OK. No encephalitis and no pneumonia. The doctor also gave her a prescription for something that decreases the severity of the pox.
I've spent all weekend spraying Lysol, washing blankets, pillows, towels, clothes, disinfecting counters, floors, bathrooms, etc. I'm tired.
I told my husband that I think I'll still be going on the trip. He doesn't mind. He's accustomed to me travelling for work so to be gone for 3 nights is no problem. I also told him that if I happen to break out with them while I'm there, I'll just have to drive over to my uncle's house in St. Augustine and stay with them
By the way, no typo. I'm turning 40 and not 30. Thanks for the compliment!

 

[MinnieM3]

Oh I'm so sorry for your DD! Chicken pox are so miserable!

 

[golfgal]

I would save the trip for another time. You have already been exposed to them, especially since you have been doing all that laundry, cleaning, etc. If you are going to get them, you will get them, going on a trip now isn't going to help, sorry.

 

[amid chaos]

Go on your trip...Your DD will be feeling much better by then and it will be AT LEAST 2 weeks since she first came down with them till you get them, if you do get them. Go, and have a wonderful celebration.

We had chicken pox at my house last month. I thought both my younger kids had them so we didn't immunize but didn't get the titer either.
DD aged 11 came down with them 2 weeks from the day we visited her great grandmother in a nursing home. The Dr thinks she got them from some one with shingles. We were leaving on a family cruise with a group of friends the next day. DH stayed with DD, got a clear health check 3 days later and joined us in Curacao the next day. She still had 4 days of the cruise to enjoy.
DS aged 15 got them exactly 2 weeks to the day after DD got them and the DR said it was the worst case she had ever seen. He was put on antibiotics because some of the pox looked pretty nasty and she doubled the dose of Benedryl since the regular dose was making a dent in his discomfort. He was so sick for more than a week and was totally covered. He didn't sleep and couldnt swallow for several days.

Oh and quit doing the laundry...it's airborn and highly contagious. The Dr had us come at the end of the day, we were told to wait in the car until the office emptied and then we went in. They didn't even want us in the office with others.

I hope your DD feels better real soon.