Cancer mama's... how do you handle the kids being sick?

politicomama

Just curious as to how other mom's with kids in the house handle the sickness while going through chemo?  I am in between AC 3 and 4.  The nine year old is running a fever, and the 15 month old is snotting around.  I have been spraying a lot of lysol, and washing my hands a lot.  

blainejennifer

That's what I do. Keep on washing those hands. I try to get DS in the shower daily to wash off stray germs. He's been told to use soap EVERYWHERE.

I use thick Viva paper towels to police up snot. It doesn't saturate through like tissues do, and seems less abrasive than cheap tissue. Then I run screaming to the sink to have a wash.

Best of luck getting through cold and flu season with a little one. You've got a shot at getting your older one to be germ savvy, but a 15 month old is an adorable petri dish.

Babs37

When my son, who was 4 at the time, got sick with colds while I was on chemo, I wore a mask on my face when I was around him. I kept hand sanitizers near too.And even if it's not always easy to do because a sick child wants his mommy, I tried to stay in my room more and let my husband take care of him. And yes, we all got our flu shots just in case. Good luck.

Blessings2011

Hi, politicomama - I didn't have chemo, but I do have a husband with severe kidney disease and a very compromised immune system due to Prednisone and Cyclosporine. He cannot fight off any infections, and a bad one could be fatal.

We practice universal precautions everywhere we go, but dealing with sick family members is tricky.

We buy our surgical masks by the case, and practically bathe in hand sanitizer.

We try to educate others on how germs are spread, and I found this Youtube video that shows pretty graphically how easily it is to infect another person with your cough...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=-K_boO...

There is also abundant information on the Internet documenting that we are often contagious up to 48 hours before any symptoms occur, and up to 1-2 WEEKS after the last symptom goes away.

DH and I also spray Lysol on the soles of our shoes before we enter the house - especially when we've been to the hospital or clinic or nursing home!!!

In fact, my PCP was the one who told me that I should wear a mask any time I came to Kaiser....that there were lots of sick people there, and that many germs were airborne.

When I'm sick, and trying not to pass it along to DH, I have cannisters of Clorox wipes in every room, and I wipe down everything I touch. I mean EVERYTHING!

Masks, wipes, hand sanitizer, constant hand washing....sometimes you just can't be too careful. At least you KNOW your kids are sick..it's the strangers out there who go everywhere when they're sick that put you in jeopardy!

Hope your little ones feel better soon!!! (And that you dodge the bullet!!!)

TKSit

I agree with what all the ladies above have suggested. I would add that I did not reuse a dish rag to wipe off counters, we used paper towels or antiseptic wipes. Also, we used paper towels to dry hands in both kitchen and bathroom instead of hand towels. Not very "green", but I stayed pretty healthy during chemo!

Moderators

Thanks for the great practical advice for cold and flu season, and really for any time.

More about Understanding Your Immune System, from the main Breastcancer.org site.

• The Mods