DS sick, newborn exposed - worried

[Aprilmoon1]

My almost four year old woke up last night with a 102.5 fever. His coughing started yesterday morning.

He has been holding/kissing his little newborn sister (1 1/2 weeks old) the past few days. Both DH and I feel fine (as of now!).

Anyone have their newborn exposed to a sickness like this in the household? Anything I can do besides brestfeed, wash hands, etc?

What should I expect if she does get sick? With DS I didn't go out in public for a month after he was born, so I never really had to worry about this in the early weeks.

I am very worried. Any advice would be appreciated.

[EuroMama]

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[jbaruta]

Breastfeeding and hand washing is the best thing. Remember that little ones get sick around 6-8 times in their first year. Getting sick, I know it sounds crazy, is actually good for them if handled appropriately. We all build immunity by being exposed to viruses, little ones have never been exposed and so they get sick more often. They need to be exposed in order to build immunity so that they will be healthy children and adults. Little ones cope with sickness really well, and usually you don't have too much to worry about besides monitoring fever etc. 

[Dot-to-Dot]

I agree with jbaruta...and yet, when my baby acts ill I kind of panic and forget.  But, I know the above to be true.  If baby does start to get sick, keep an eye on hydration (wet diapers).  A temperature is a sign of the body doing a good job of fighting something off so don't be afraid of a temperature ro treat it prematurely.  Maybe call your doctor (or whomever your go-to professional is) and ask ahead of time what they would consider a high fever so you know what number to look for.  Plenty of skin-to-skin contact and especially nursing will give her an advantage that the rest of the family doesn't have!  Sometimes once they are sick, there is nothing to do but nurse them and wait it out.  The Baby Book has some good ideas as far as how to treat symptoms to make the baby more comfortable and also gives you a guideline as far as when to worry.

Check your stash of herbs and supplements...a tea with healthy minerals (nettle for instance) would be a good thing for you to take (for your breastmilk).  Also maybe a bit higher doses of vitamin C for a week or two until you think the sickness has passed. I'm talking several grams of C.  Try to make sure you're getting enough vitamin A and the B's too.  This might be a good time to roast a chicken and then use the carcass to make a nice big batch of bone broth.  If nobody else gets sick, then great!  But if you freeze the broth and have it on hand, it should be a very nutritious addition to your diet and those wonderful minerals will boost your breastmilk in case baby does happen to get sick later. 

Bottom line, hand washing and breastmilk are key like jbaruta said.  I have a 2yr old who routinely sneezes directly in her baby sisters face and often kisses her.  She's now taken to "tickling" her face to which the baby responds by sucking on the toddlers hand/fingers!  Ack!  I can't seem to wash hands frequently enough to calm my nerves.  At some point you just have to let it be.  But, it's the pits when your baby is sick so I understand your concern for sure.

[mamazee]

yeah, just keep up with the breastfeeding! She'll get immunities you've developed to being exposed to your ds's germs, and if she does get sick, that should help her get through it easily.

[Vermillion]

This thread is a couple months old but perfect timing for me! I have a sick (well, recovering now) 9 year old and a 7week old babe. I've been kind of panicky the last couple of days waiting for him to possibly get sick My oldest didn't get sick for the first time until 2!!! So the thought of having a sick one this little freaks me out!

But like you guys have mentioned, we're doing lots of hands washing and nursing, and I picked up a nosefrida just in case! Hopefully it'll pass the baby over completely though!

[EuroMama]

No one is sick here, but its my biggest fear right now. My 9 y/o getting sick and then the baby getting sick. 9 y/o has a slight runny nose but that is the only symptom but I am so scared he'll get my 1 month old sick.

Also like that you have a 9 y/o and you also have a NB baby just like me. :)

 

Originally Posted by Vermillion 

This thread is a couple months old but perfect timing for me! I have a sick (well, recovering now) 9 year old and a 7week old babe. I've been kind of panicky the last couple of days waiting for him to possibly get sick My oldest didn't get sick for the first time until 2!!! So the thought of having a sick one this little freaks me out!

But like you guys have mentioned, we're doing lots of hands washing and nursing, and I picked up a nosefrida just in case! Hopefully it'll pass the baby over completely though!

[Vermillion]

Originally Posted by EuroMama 

Also like that you have a 9 y/o and you also have a NB baby just like me. :)

 

It's a great spacing, huh?

[EuroMama]

sure is.:)
 

Originally Posted by Vermillion 

It's a great spacing, huh?

[dot1]

My baby had her first cold at 8 weeks, courtesy of 4 yr old big sister!  Then the next week she got the hand, foot and mouth disease (and so did I!!:().  It wasn't that bad...just kept the room humidified, squirted breastmilk in her nose before suctioning.  No fever....just a lot of nursing!