I know there is no one in particular to blame but I so wish in hindsight I would have held back in putting the boys around other children and people for that matter. It has been so long for us trying to watch the exposure and while there is no way to keep Connor in a bubble forever I need to be more cautious once again as to what exposures we choose and which ones are worth the risk.
My one frustration comes in a way that I never thought I would voice out loud. If you know me from before Connor was diagnosed with JDM I was the first one who would have said that the more exposed the kids are to certain germs the better for them to build up there immune system ... well, you could say I did a complete 180 on this one. So here is my pet peeve for the week:
We all make certain life style decision's and I know there are a lot of people who rely on two incomes to support a certain life style. Then in the same sentence I was told many times that their children come absolutely first in every way. So can you please explain to me why so many of those Parents have no scruples to drop of their kids at school when they are sick? Yes, I get the point of not wanting to miss work or a pay check because your child has a cold but how does this translate in your child coming first? Wouldn't be the first choice be staying home and taking care of your child? and how about being considerate to the next child who might be sitting next to yours that is sneezing and coughing? and we all know how great kids are with hygiene to begin with.
Two weeks ago I was waiting for the boys to finish their reading class which went from 8 am to 8:30 am. Now school starts at 7:45 am and while I sat by the front Office at 8:15 am reading a book, a man came out of a class room carrying his sick looking daughter and said to her that he is sorry she just threw up and that they will go home now so she can rest! You tell me that he or his wife did not see how sick she looked at 7:45 am? 30 minutes earlier?
JDM might be a rare Autoimmune Disease BUT there are many other Autoimmune Diseases out there and when you combine all the numbers you will face a few thousand kids in the USA that have compromised immune systems. So there most likely is a good chance that there is one of those kids in the same school your child goes to. Do you have any consideration what a simple cold can mean to one of those children? If your immune system is compromised a cold could mean a death sentence. Yes that sounds so dramatic but say that to the parent who had a child with JDM and who's diagnosis for dying reads Pneumonia. You think it is dramatic enough for them?
I guess the argument comes down to numbers. There are more 'healthy' kids then kids with an Autoimmune Disease, so I guess it comes back to what I said in the beginning, it is us parents who need to choose what exposure out children should get and school seems not a good choice for me ... now how sad is that? Now for Ron and I it is not a huge hiccup since we have the choice to home school 100% but what about those that don't want to home school or can't.
I have been thinking of another numbers game. You know how you go and buy medicine and you should read all the possible side effects? Or when you go into surgery you have to sign papers that you were informed of the possible risks related to that surgery? Or when you vaccinate you are also informed of the possible side effects they might have?
Well, here is my thought :) If it is printed and you are told to read through it and even sign a paper then that means that someone (and most likely more then one ;) came down with this or even died from it. Now once again the numbers are always in favor to the masses obviously or it wouldn't be approved BUT how much do those numbers mean to you if you get it, or a loved one gets sick from it or even dies from it? I tell you ... for you the target hit 100%!!! because quiet frankly you don't care to hear that this just hardly ever happens, all you care about is your heart breaking because you feel you lost control about your life.
Yes, you can not live in fear about what could happen but please do not ignore those that this happened to.... I am NOT saying you are, I just like you to think of those that made up these statistics....
Here is a little print out about how to recognize a cold from a flu and please notice the part about how long they are contagious. Would you be willing to stay home with your child for 10 days because he or she has a cold?
Your child is sent home sick from school with a runny nose and cough. Is it the cold or flu, and what should you do next?We asked Tina Q. Tan, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics at the Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University and a Pediatric Infectious Diseases Attending at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago. Here are her answers:
Suburban Woman: How do I know if my child has the cold or flu?
Dr. Tina Tan: Children with colds usually have a runny nose, low-grade fever, mild cough and nasal congestion. A child with flu-like illness can have the same type of symptoms except the fever tends to be much higher, and they usually have some nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. If they are older, they may complain of a headache, body aches, tiredness or lack of appetite.
SW: How long are colds and the flu contagious?
Dr. Tan: On average, a cold is contagious five to 10 days and the flu seven days; both are most contagious during the first three days of illness.
Suburban Woman: How do I know if my child has the cold or flu?
Dr. Tina Tan: Children with colds usually have a runny nose, low-grade fever, mild cough and nasal congestion. A child with flu-like illness can have the same type of symptoms except the fever tends to be much higher, and they usually have some nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. If they are older, they may complain of a headache, body aches, tiredness or lack of appetite.
SW: How long are colds and the flu contagious?
Dr. Tan: On average, a cold is contagious five to 10 days and the flu seven days; both are most contagious during the first three days of illness.
Just a thought ....
Hugs,
R A C A
Anke, my heart aches for you as I know how much you were looking forward to joining the reading group.
ReplyDeleteAs far as kids and school w/ colds and such..... it is hard when I would send (my) Connor to school with a cough or cold but for many years, he would not have EVER been in school if I held him out for a cough or cold. We actually had a note from from his pediatrician that if he had a rash or diarrhea w/o any other symptoms that he was to be treated w/ benedryl and immodium and did not need to be excluded (which we later learned this round and round was due to undiagnosed food allergies and a hyper-reactive immune system).
The guidelines I (and most schools per the Academy of Pediatrics) is if he is fever free (without medication), is able to participate in activity w/o difficulty, is not having significant amounts of nasal discharge- he goes to school.
I have had days where (my) Connor looked PERFECTLY normal- no fever, slept great the night before, ate a huge breakfast and I would get a call 3 hours later he would have a fever of 104 and be projectile vomiting? (And is fine again within 3 hours- to which none of his doctors can explain- they call it "atypical migraine"...which I have decided is code for NFI (no freaking idea).
See that's the part that is so tricky for me because there is no blanket statement or case. My main frustration goes towards those parents who know there kids are sick but don't want the inconvenience about missed school or work and they just take a chance. I know they exist because there was a time when I wanted to do something and the boys came down with runny noses and a cough and we would head out the door and I am pretty confident in knowing I was not the only one doing this. Does this make sense? Life just threw us a curve ball and now I feel like needing to readjust so much to keep Connor safe....
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