Hi Moms!
Let me first say, we are so very blessed that our 5 year old daughter has made it this far without really getting badly ill. She's never been on an antibiotic and usually she bounces back from a cold or fever fairly quickly. That said, she was in bad shape yesterday. She ran a fever all day, her throat hurt, she was coughing, sneezing, and didn't want to eat. I kept her home from preschool (of course) and let her lay around and watch movies all day, took her temp periodically, gave her lots of fluids and just let her be a lump. Happily, she's much better today. Temp is normal, she still has a little cough, but she's eating and she says she feels much better.
My question is, what should I do with her today? Since her fever hasn't been gone for 24 hours, I know not to take her out into public or expose her to other kids, but should I let her be a lump another day? Usually, she gets 1-2 hours of TV time per day and that's it, so it goes against my natural instinct to let her just watch the tube all day. Should I just let that go and let her laze for another day? Or should I try to engage her like usual with puzzles, coloring, games, etc? Let her take the lead? (though, she'd lay around and watch the tube all day if I gave her the option again.)
What would you do/ what do you do on the day after your kid's been really sick?
Thanks,
Hilary
I'd let her rest, but try and balance the tube with something else. I don't think coloring or playdoh is stressful. Maybe leave it up to her and say "If you're up to it, Mommy left some coloring books and Playdoh! out." Or we say that the TV needs to rest, too.
I'd give her another day off to rest. A few hours of TV and then a break for coloring or a puzzle or reading and then more rest with TV time.
Let her have another lazy day.
The reason being: she's not quite back to her healthy self and you want
to make sure she's still in recovery-mode.
She's not quite recovered in this short amount of time.
Better to not have a setback than to just allow her another day of low-key
lazing around! Hope she's feeling much better soon!
REST!!!
Movies, napping, more movies, soup, movies, napping, a sitting videogame (no kinnect),, movies.
Push fluids
High calorie super processed foods (like soup or fast food)
_________
The immune system is on the opposite circuit board as the adrenergic system. When we're active, our immune system shuts off. Converselu, that's why we feel so SLOW/tired when sick.. Our immune system in full swing shuts off our motor control & digestion. Which use over 80% of our available energy. That energy instead goes to the immune system.
Getting active right after being sick risks a relapse, as we feel
"Better" BEFORE the virus/bacteria invasion is snuffed out. Once its "manageable" we get limited use of ourselves back. But if we overdo, our immune system shuts off, the microbes breed like crazy, and we're sick "again" (still). Similarly, the fastest way to GET sick is to go work out when we feel like we're fighting something off (but not sick, yet).
REST
Antibidies are MOSTLY fat, with just a little protein thrown in for structure. If you want to support the immune system, a high fat diet is key when one is ill. However, you don't want to turn off the immune system by cranking up the digestive system. So things that require minimal digestion (soups, white bread, low fiber/high fat) are HEALTH food. When you're sick. The rest of the time, they're junk. But they're exactly what sick bodies need.
Let the poor thing have another lazy day.
my kids were always allowed to lump for a day or so when they got sick (which, like yours, is rare.) i'd read to 'em a lot, but i tended to do that anyway. but i'd have no problem with a recovering kid having a tv day.
khairete
S.
Let her rest up.
We've had a nasty bug going around here.
My son was down with a temp of up to 102 for about 5 days (would go down a bit with Tylenol but would shoot right back up again when it wore off).
Fortunately some of that was over a weekend so he didn't have too much homework to make up (and he did his best to keep up with homework assigned on Edline while he was out in between sleeping).
Try to play with her a little bit, but soon as she's tired, let her take a nap.
Illness trumps the TV rules. Resting means recovering. So you let her be a lump. Trying to engage someone who is still tired from being sick is not a good idea. She'll get grumpy.
Funny you should ask this. Our daughter was sent home yesterday with a fever of 100.2, the schools limit is 100.4 but the nurse was being a little proactive. So today she woke up and her temp was 100. I elected to keep her home one more day.
Anyway, to answer your question.... she is laying on the couch watching t.v at this very moment. And that is all her day will consist of.
Let her be a lump. Let her body and mind heal without the stress of having to do puzzles, coloring and games, unless, of course, she wants to. When my kids are sick, they get a free pass. Pajamas all day, being total couch potatoes. It's ok. Once they're better, they can start their go-go-go schedules again.
We go back and forth when they are feeling better. They definitely get more TV than usual, but we also play board games or play with toys that don't require a lot of action.
start to wean her off the tv but i wouldn't turn it off completely unless i knew she wouldn't drive me batty for attention.
It's times like these that i like to have a few toys or books tucked away something new to distract them,
maybe you could make homemade playdough together just google the reciipe as long as you have cream of tatar you will be all set and i bet she plays with it all afternoon.
Our bodies heal when we are at rest. That's why we sleep more when we don't feel good. Our body uses our energy while we're awake to run our body. Keep up thinking and breathing and circulation at it's peak. When we sleep our higher body functions rest so the body can wage war on germs and disease.
So the more you let her rest the better she'll heal. I let the kids have the TV on all the time. They don't sit in front of it and watch all day. The all occasionally sit down and focus totally on the TV set but mostly they just look over at it every now and then.
My friends kids that get limited TV time will sit almost with their tongues hanging out when the come over. I think it's because it's so restricted they just sort of binge when they have it around. So it won't hurt your child to lay around to day and watch TV.
Engage her some but allow her to rest if she needs to. Still push the fluids.
Since school started, my son has been sick a lot. He is 6 years old.
There has been the Flu going around (which he did not get) and stomach viruses and bad virus colds going around.
Anyway, when he is home sick or home recovering... I don't worry about "what should I do with him today" kind of thing.
I just go about my day, and depending on how he is feeling, we either just stay home all day, or not. But if we go out it is because I could not avoid it and have to do a certain errand run.
There are people out in public, everywhere everyday, who are sick. They don't worry about if they are getting others sick or being exposed to "their" germs. I don't worry about that. BUT per our own common sense, if my kid is sick I don't let him stand next to a baby.... while he is sneezing etc. For example.
When my son is home sick, he usually just ONLY wants to stay home, anyway. It is not about entertaining him or keeping active... he is, sick. He needs to rest and do restful things. And he usually naps when he is sick.
I go about doing my chores and house stuff. He entertains himself really well. If he wants to watch TV, fine. I don't harp on how long he does or not. If a kid is sick and fatigued, I see nothing wrong... with letting them laze around all day.
When *I* am sick, I AM lazy. I do NOT want to do anything. Not even wash the dishes in the sink. So what.
If my kid is sick, I don't push or try to engage my son, in something... I go according to HIS, cues. And well being.
I don't micromanage his time, when he is sick.
If and when I am sick... the LAST thing I'd want, is for someone else to tell me what to do, and to tell me to keep active and to tell me I have to do puzzles or games or coloring. I am sick. Just let me be a lump on a log. I want to REST.
It is NOT a usual day with my usual energies. I am sick.
I am sick now in fact. With a cold.
And I am, being lazy.
So what.
I usually am VERY high energy and doing 15 things at one time and power through things fast and hectic ALL day everyday.
For once, when I am sick... I just want to do, NOTHING. And have no one, tell me I have to things.
It is my prerogative to do just, nothing.
That is what people should do, when they are sick.
*And just to let you know, per the symptoms you described your daughter having with her cold: THAT is exactly what is going around in my town... and what my Husband had, what my son had, and what my Daughter had, and me, too. AND for my Husband and Son, it progressed to them developing Bronchitis. And my son had gotten a croupy type cough as well, along with it.
So, since your daughter is sick... just let her, rest.
There is no need to keep her entertained or have her do activities.
This is not, a usual time. She is sick.
And make sure she does not get a relapse.
Your daughter may be feeling better...today... but, she, is, still, sick.
So let, her, rest.
And... Ditto Riley J. Below.
