OT: Do hotels make your kids sick?

[Reagan&Co.]

My DS7 gets sick EVERYTIME we go out of town. I am not exaggerating; it's 100% of the time. Usually on the second night of the trip, he will become congested in his head, snore all night, and keep a runny nose/congestion for days afterwards. Even if we stay with friends and not a hotel.

He does not have allergies that we know of. I would think he is just building up his immune system and catching viruses out there, but it is too predictable when we travel. He is staying healthy at school this year.

But every vacation ends like this...
Anyone else have this happen? I am wondering about those hypoallergenic pillowcases and if they would be helpful. Any other ideas or suggestions?
Thank you!

 

[dsneybride]

Ya, till dd7 was about 4 or 5 every time we would go to DW she would come home sick! Boy am I glad she out grew that one!

 

[EKW]

Take the plastic pillow protectors. Request hypoallergenic pillows for everyone in your room. Give him benadryl every night before bed (assuming it must be the motel, not the trip itself making him sick). For daytime, take claritin and dimetapp...something with guaifenesin in it.

He might not have allergies...he might have vasorhinitis (hayfever) that is triggered by something at the motels.

I do the pillow thing. I also know that my family's sinus issues will act up if the hotel uses scented detergents, room fresheners, etc.

Try treating it as a case of hayfever and see if it helps! Don't wait for the symptoms to start...begin the meds on your first day there before they get a chance to get rolling!

 

[princessmom29]

Sounds like an allergy attack to me, rather than getting sick form some kind of germ. We all tend to do it when we travel because of the different allergens we are exposed to. We strat antihistimines a few days before we travel and it usually prevents a major incident.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Could your kiddo be allergic to the detergent the hotels use?

I get stuffy a day or so into a trip. It's the sheets.

 

[princessmom29]

Take the plastic pillow protectors. Request hypoallergenic pillows for everyone in your room. Give him benadryl every night before bed (assuming it must be the motel, not the trip itself making him sick). For daytime, take claritin and dimetapp...something with guaifenesin in it.

He might not have allergies...he might have vasorhinitis (hayfever) that is triggered by something at the motels.

I do the pillow thing. I also know that my family's sinus issues will act up if the hotel uses scented detergents, room fresheners, etc.

Try treating it as a case of hayfever and see if it helps! Don't wait for the symptoms to start...begin the meds on your first day there before they get a chance to get rolling!

If you are using benedryl to treat and it actually helps it is almost certianly some kind of allergen. Benedryl is an antihistimine. Hay fever is an allergic reaction to something in the environent, traditionally hay, hence the name. Your body produces a histimine response to foreign matter, and the antihistamine calms the symptoms. textbook allergy. Hay fever is medically classified as allergic rhinitus. vso rhinitus is inflammation of the mucus membranes of the nose not caused by an allergen. Decongestants can actually make it worse, but it does not react to benedryl, because histamines didn't cause the infalmmatory process.

 

[taximomfor4]

Not my kids, but this exact thing happens to me, OP. I take the GOOD sudaphed (the one you have to get from the pharmacist these days) every time I am going to a hotel. I don't have any allergies I am aware of, but it's definitely sinus issues. And the sudaphed works perfectly for it. I guess it might just be the different fibers/dust/moisture or whatever in the air.

 

[ncmickeyluvr]

I always get very stuffy when staying in hotels and I've always assumed it was the heating/cooling system. I always bring my pillow from home, so I know that's not it.

 

[Disneyadore]

Sounds exactly what we experienced with our son. Never sick but when he slept some were else the same problems you describe.
We also thought he had no problems but after a test he was allergic to house mites. I don't think that is the word you use but I hope you understand what I mean.

 

[saradela]

are you flying to get to Disney? My daughter ALWAYS got sick, and it was the ears, and since the nose is conected to de Throat and to the ears......

 

[happymommy]

It does sound like some sort of allergy, maybe even mold (it is humid lots of places, especially Florida).

My DS has allergies (he's just in the middle of antibiotics for a sinus infection) as well as asthma, and hotel rooms do bother him frequently! On our Disney cruise, even though we requested the VIP cleaning of our staterooms, he even ended up with a super bad case of bronchitis (wheezing, very high fever, it was really bad).

I leaned that at Disney, you can request a VIP cleaning of your resort room. I highly recommend this for your family!!!! Last time we went to a Disney resort, the BWI, I requested this. The room wasn't ready until a little bit later in the day, as it must have taken them hours to clean it. They did the carpet, changed out the comforters and pillow shams, super cleaned the bathroom, dusted well, changed the air filter in the air conditioner, I don't know what else.

It was the first time at Disney where my DS hardly needed his portable nebulizer. The VIP cleaning made such a huge difference for him! He woke up breathing so much better every morning that trip, so I do think they did a great job!

At other hotels, like the Swan and Dolphin, I've called and had them change the air filter to the air conditioner right when we get to the room. You wouldn't believe how dirty those can get! I also used to have them take out the fuse to the motion sensor, so the air conditioner could run without needing it. I don't know (guess I never asked) if other hotels do a VIP clean, but definitely think next time you go to Disney, you should request it.

 

[Reagan&Co.]

Thank you for all the hints and suggestions! I guess we have some experimenting to do...

This occurs anywhere away from home. At Disney, on our cruise, at the beach, any hotel, his grandparents house....that's why it is hard to pin down on one type of detergent or cooling system.

I am going to try the special pillowcases and possibly check for dust mite allergies (you would think we would have those at our house, too, though....) and experiment with some Benadryl next time we travel.
Meanwhile, I guess he is home sick for the day....no mall for me!

 

[PinkRhombus]

It does sound like some sort of allergy, maybe even mold (it is humid lots of places, especially Florida).

I'm sensitive to molds and a lot of my issues come from the heating and air systems.

 

[camlace]

Thank you for all the hints and suggestions! I guess we have some experimenting to do...

This occurs anywhere away from home. At Disney, on our cruise, at the beach, any hotel, his grandparents house....that's why it is hard to pin down on one type of detergent or cooling system.

I am going to try the special pillowcases and possibly check for dust mite allergies (you would think we would have those at our house, too, though....) and experiment with some Benadryl next time we travel.
Meanwhile, I guess he is home sick for the day....no mall for me!

I always get sick when traveling...anywhere, any mode of transportation. It has been that way since I was a child...I am 37 now. My thoughts...Your body gets used to the environment you live in, then when you leave the environment and go someplace else your body can respond as if it is having an allergic reaction. It looks at the new environment as an invader and tries to block the intrusion. As others have said try allergy meds prior to and while on your trip. It helps me some, but I still get sick just about every trip. My body even reacts by breaking out in hives...not fun!

 

[Leajess99]

You may want to try requesting feather free rooms and see if your child has an allergy to the feathers. My youngest cannot sleep on down bedding or pillows as she gets very congested. Our worst hotel illness came our first trip to Disney when we stopped for the night at a hotel a friend we were traveling with picked out. There was actually mold in the bathroom but by that point we stayed. I regretted it the next morning but at least she still had a blast after I dosed her up with her allergy meds.

 

[Reagan&Co.]

Hello, again! Thought I'd provide an update and pick your brain again, if you don't mind!

I took DS7 to the doctor, and confirmed an allergy. He seemed to feel it was DS reacting to the environmental change, vs. something specific IN the environment. He prescribed Singulair.

Does anyone take Singulair? Do you take it before an allergen exposure? If you take it AFTER your allergies are already triggered, does it make your symptoms go away? (I have been giving it to DS but have seen no improvement. His ears and head are full of fluid/congestion...I guess I thought maybe it would dry him up?)

Thank you! Allergies are a new thing for us, and I know everyone is different, but I am trying to think of what else to try.

 

[ekatiel]

I'm glad you figured out it was an allergy. My 5yo is allergic to many things (he has food, seasonal, and environmental allergies). He is a mess when we take him anywhere. When it isn't tree or weed season, we keep him on just zyrtec and nasonex. When it's tree or weed season we add in singular. If we go on vacation, we do zyrtec, nasonex, singulair, and we usually end up giving albuterol at the first sign of congestion b/c we know that wheezing is the next step. We also bring him a hypo-allergenic pillocase cover, which does help some. Zyrtec, Nasonex and Singulair really seem to be the perfect tri-fecta for my little man. If the symptoms are mainly nasal-based, I might ask for nasonex or something like it that will help right at the source. I hope you get it all figured out, and he gets to feeling better!

It does sound like some sort of allergy, maybe even mold (it is humid lots of places, especially Florida).

My DS has allergies (he's just in the middle of antibiotics for a sinus infection) as well as asthma, and hotel rooms do bother him frequently! On our Disney cruise, even though we requested the VIP cleaning of our staterooms, he even ended up with a super bad case of bronchitis (wheezing, very high fever, it was really bad).

I leaned that at Disney, you can request a VIP cleaning of your resort room. I highly recommend this for your family!!!! Last time we went to a Disney resort, the BWI, I requested this. The room wasn't ready until a little bit later in the day, as it must have taken them hours to clean it. They did the carpet, changed out the comforters and pillow shams, super cleaned the bathroom, dusted well, changed the air filter in the air conditioner, I don't know what else.

It was the first time at Disney where my DS hardly needed his portable nebulizer. The VIP cleaning made such a huge difference for him! He woke up breathing so much better every morning that trip, so I do think they did a great job!

At other hotels, like the Swan and Dolphin, I've called and had them change the air filter to the air conditioner right when we get to the room. You wouldn't believe how dirty those can get! I also used to have them take out the fuse to the motion sensor, so the air conditioner could run without needing it. I don't know (guess I never asked) if other hotels do a VIP clean, but definitely think next time you go to Disney, you should request it.

This is great to know. I am definitely mentally filing this away. We will ask for a VIP cleaing the next time we visit!! Thanks for the info! --Katie