[MacKinnon]

After reading countless website articles on Chicken Pox, I'm no closer to deciding what's up with DD! FWIW, she is not vaccinated against Chicken Pox.

She woke up Saturday morning with 5 or so red spots on her face and three on one arm. They looked JUST like mosquito bites. They are out now, and we had played outside Friday afternoon and slept with the window open, forgetting about a hole in the screen. She only had them on her face. Thinking nothing about it, we went about our day and she was fine. However, she woke up this morning with another 5 or so more, and two more on her lower arm, and one on an ankle. She slept in long sleeve/long pant PJ's, so only her wrists, ankles and face were exposed, and that is where she is bit. She has been a little crabbier and more tired then normal, and actually slept this afternoon, which is highly unusual.

DH is SURE they are pox, I am about equally sure they are not. They aren't blistering yet, it's been about 36 hours since we noticed the first bites. She had extremely sensitve skin and un-diagnosed environmental allergies that cause a rash from April to September. The rash just came back on Thursday last week, and it's bad. But it's a fine, eczema type rash, mostly on her elbows, lower arms and ankles.

Anyway... if you've lived through the pox with your kids, when did you decide it really was the pox? Are the "clear fluid filled blisters" that obvious? Will they really appear after 24 hours? And if it's not the Chicken Pox, what's going on? I'm sure there weren't more mosquitoes in last night, although we were out during the day again. They are in child care, and I have until Tuesday to decide if they are going. It's a mandatory two week exclusion for exposed non-vaccinated kids, so DS can't go even if he seems healthy. Ack!

 

[Jes'sBeth]

dealing with the pox right now!

We had 3-4 spots when we woke yesterday then 10ish more when she woke up frome a late morning nap. By this morning she was COVERED (older sister wasn't so spotty) and she had the blisters (yes, they are blistery but pretty small) fever started today. older DD spiked the fever first. by now she has a few crusting over.

that's a weird policy. you can get them anywhere from 7 to 21 days (though most get them 14-21 days later.)

 

[MacKinnon]

I'm thinking we'll know by morning, both because it will have been 48 hours since the first spots, and because she had 19 spots when I counted at bed time

DH might have been right... She has 9 on her face and 10 total on her arms and one leg. Not one on her torso, which is part of the reason I keep insisting this isn't the pox! They are NOT blistery, just red bumps, just like mosquito bites. And they are still only on her face, lower arms and wrists, and lower portion of one leg. If the first ones don't blister by tomrorow, I'm assuming it's not the chicken pox and we'll head into our (non-vax friendly) doctor.

I'm thinking it's Michigan law, two weeks out with exposure in a non-vaxed child, because I've had friends dealing with this. It makes it hard, truthfully, to have a non-vaxed child when you work. I don't quite know how we'll get through DD's pox, followed by DS's some time in the near future, we could be looking at 3 or 4 weeks total out of child care! Yikes!

 

[KarlaC]

Hmm when I lived in Michigan dd2 was vaxxed & still came down with pox(way more than the less than 50 they promised too...just shy of 500), no one ever said anything about a time limit, just that they had to be scabbed over.

Maybe they've changed the laws since then, I keep forgetting how old I am now