I’m happy to report that the little man is on the mend. I am going to keep him home for a few more days just to ensure that no complications arise. He has a rather nasty sounding cough I’d just as soon not develop into anything else.
Little did I know exactly how many children were out sick at their school. No one is talking about it and they certainly aren’t using the “f” word to describe the illness for fear of the government swooping down to whisk your child away to be quarantined in one of the local hospitals, a horrifying thought if ever there was one. What better place to pick up a secondary infection than in a hospital full of really sick people? Also, no one wants to give the government the excuse to shut down the schools again, even if this might be an appropriate time to do so.
All this drama reminded me of the winter I was in eighth grade and there was a nasty bug going around. I can’t honestly remember what the bug was because I never caught it, but I do remember that at least a third of the class was absent on any given day for a period of about two weeks. Why didn’t I catch it? Who knows. I can’t imagine that my hand washing habits were so stellar and there were no hand gels back then. My homeroom teacher, a mentally unbalanced nun, had her theory though: she advised no one to play with me because obviously since I hadn’t contracted the virus, I must be the carrier. She didn’t do it on an individual basis either – she made an announcement in front of all three of the eighth grade classes. Fortunately, no one paid her much attention. Everyone knew she was nuts.
Fingers crossed my immunity now is as good as it was back then. It’s no fun being sick when you’re the mom…
Good gawd. (What that nun said.) I’m amazed you haven’t gone postal at a convent due to that treatment!
by Chicken Mama November 18th, 2009 at 10:35 amNow, now……no going postal…..
by Sandy Updyke November 18th, 2009 at 11:54 amI was tempted to write to the school board about her, but doubted they would take my word over hers (or the principal’s!)
Nope, no going postal, but I did what I could to get back her whenever I could
by Jenyfer November 18th, 2009 at 1:25 pmHere the rule is no attendance unless you’ve been fever-free for 24 hours without the help of tylenol, etc…
D’s been home almost a week already. Sigh…
by anny cook November 19th, 2009 at 2:50 pmPretty much the rule here too – unless you are tested and get an official diagnosis for H1N1. The school sent out a long list of the various consequences for a positive diagnosis which mostly boiled down to a mandatory class closure for 15 days and siblings of sick students being kept home as well, even if they were well. In short, we don’t *really* want to know, okay?
My daughter is still asymptomatic and boy has been fever free for several days now so it is back to school next week!
by Jenyfer November 20th, 2009 at 4:44 am