DS (11 months) has pretty much been sick nonstop since he started DC 7 weeks ago. First it was the stomach flu, then cold, then the flu, now another cold. So DH and I have been sick pretty much nonstop too. I'm exhausted. With the latest fever/cold, DS refuses to drink anything. So we've resorted to using a syringe to get water into him every few hours, and the pinning him down, struggles, worrying is getting totally exhausted!
I know all kids get sick when they start DC, but someone please tell me that we are closing on the end?!
Re: How long can DC sickness last?? (mostly a vent)
Well, the summertime should help things let up a bit, but I would expect the pattern to continue in the fall. The first couple of cold/flu seasons are brutal for little ones who are in daycare. DS has been sick pretty much constantly since September. I remember going through the same thing with DD and starting to wonder if something was wrong with her because she was ALWAYS sick...and just about the time I started to really freak out about it, it got better.
My pedi says that the early toddler years (age 1-2) is kind of the peak of it, because with mobility they are getting their hands (and mouths) on so much stuff and there is really no way to prevent it. Hang in there!
Wish I could tell you it magically stops, but we've given it almost 18 months and we're throwing in the towel and switching to a nanny.
I would say we've averaged one sick day per week (between the two kids) over that span of time.
DD1 was sick the 1st yr often; at least 1 wk a month she had a cold or something. She had a 3 wk virus in June and then she was not sick again for 10 months. Summer time does help and ear tubes.
DD2 was sick zero times her first yr. You read that right zero times. In her two yrs of life I think she's only had one EI as far as illnesses.
In summary, it depends on the child. In my household and a pattern amongst my multiple kid mommys-the first child bears the worse of illnesses.
Yeah, no good news for you here. DS got sick constantly for his whole first year. He missed at least a day of school per week. It was down to 1-2 days/month for his second, third and fourth years. He is home today with strep throat.
I am crossing my fingers that DD is a little hardier. She hasn't gotten sick from most of the stuff DS had this year.
I have a Daughter born 2/26/2013. She is pretty much amazing!
The bumpie formerly known as First Time in MI
Wish I had better news for you. Since having our second we've had sick kids since last October. For about three months there wasn't a full week that went by that me or one of my kids wasn't sick. I ended up getting put on steroids for a sinus infection that wouldn't leave after two months, that helped for a couple months. We had a reprieve for about a month and then this month we've had strep and the stomach flu already!
My pedi swears to me that this too shall pass and it's perfectly normal. I had planned on maybe having another kid, but this is brutal, I can't imagine how it would be with three passing things around!
When DS1 first started daycare, my GP cautioned me to expect him to be sick the first 2 weeks of the month and also the last 2 weeks of the month for about 6 months.
He was right.
Now the kid is never sick. (He's 6).
Give it a few months.
This
For us, the 2nd year has been far worse than the first. He was in the baby room the first year, and the kids didn't interact much. Now, they all share germs.
That being said, it feels worse than it really is. He CONSTANTLY has a cold, but illnesses that require him to stay home from daycare are much less common. I think he's had to stay home from daycare 4 days in 2013 so far.