Hand Foot Mouth Disease (HFMD)

These two weeks have been pretty tough for me and the girls. One of the babies I babysat was down with HFM and he passed the virus to my kids. The thing is, you can't really avoid it because usually the virus spreads even before the symptoms show up. So in this case, baby B got it during Raya break and the parent wasn't aware of it. And when he came and we noticed the rashes, it was already too late cos the kids had been playing together the whole morning. So the kids got quarantined from that day onwards until the day they have fully recovered.

What are the symptoms?
- It might or might not start with fever.
- You might notice rashes on the knee (or the back of the knee), elbow, palms, nappy area and around & inside the mouth.
- They lose appetite to drink and eat.

So how did it all start?
Caedy (my 2yo) played with B on Wed & Thurs. We realized that B was infected on Thurs itself. Caedy got the symptoms on Sunday night (that means incubation period was 3-4 days). She managed to eat a little on Sunday, but from Monday to Wednesday, oh boy, it was like hell broke loose. She was crying, screaming, kicking, throwing tantrum, you name it.

Keira, my elder daughter who is 6yo, got it on Friday night (I suppose she got it from the sister, so incubation period was probably around 5 days). I thought she should be easier to handle since she can communicate well. But I was totally wrong! She was whining and crying all the times too. I mean with all those ulcers in the mouth, I would have cried more hysterically! Anyway I thank God there were no blisters on her hands and feet.

What to do when your kids get infected?
First of all, a pain-killer is a MUST (well, at least for me). I dare not let them eat Nurofen kinda pain-killer though. Too many kids got allergic reaction. This is one of the most recent cases: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/doctors-told-give-sick-tot-4030335.
So I gave them Paracetamol for children. If they have fever, you can give up to every 4 hours. If it serves as a painkiller, give every 6 hours.

Start from Day 2 after symptoms appeared, Paracetamol alone wasn't enough. So the pharmacist prescribed Cataflam and Oral Aid. It helped to numb the pain so that they could at least drink.

They survived 2 days with almost no food, only Yogurt, Vitagen, chilled juice and Acerola Cherry which is very high in vit C (or you can also give ice cream / ice popsicles). I also gave Keira extra virgin coconut oil to boost her immune system.

Both started eating again on Day 4 and Caedy started drinking her milk again on Day 7 even though she preferred not to drink (but at least she wasn't so scared of the bottle anymore).

What else can I do, the kids are so miserable?
Well honestly, they won't want you to do anything. I offered them drinks hourly (and usually they just got upset when I did that), and just let them be. Just be sure you are always there when they need you. For my 2yo, she wanted to be carried most of the times, so that was what I did the whole day. Whereas my 6yo just wanted to watch TV and do her own stuff.

When you think you cannot take it anymore?
Give yourself 3 days or probably 5 days max. They are going to be alright. It's heartbreaking that they have to go through it. I know how it feels to see your kids hungry but can't eat, tired but can't sleep, but they will be fine soon. When the kids chase you away, don't take it personally. My 2yo screamed and said "Mommy GO!" but I knew she was just saying "Please don't make me drink anything."

What other things should I take note?
Quarantine your kid(s) for at least a week or until the rashes or ulcers disappear. Notify the daycare / preschool / kindergarten / school about it because their stools still carry the virus for a month and they are still highly contagious. Increase their vitamin and probiotic intake for another week. Do expect a little bit of fever (not more than 3 days) or diarrhea or vomiting upon recovery.

Well, this is definitely the part-and-parcel of parenthood. We just got to do what we've got to do. After all, we are the moms (or dads), we are supposed to be stronger than them. So be strong. You can do it and everything is gonna be fine.