I hate kids....

[GregD]

Ugh, sailing on Liberty on the 16th, and just got a call from the school about my kid who has a fever.....this will be me for the next week. 

[Baked Alaska]

Give your kiddo a hug and hope they feel better soon. Also, starting taking your Airborne Vitamin C NOW!

[WAAAYTOOO]

Just now, Baked Alaska said:

Give your kiddo a hug and hope they feel better soon. Also, starting taking your Airborne Vitamin C NOW!

NO WAY !  Quarantine that little germ factory !

[Baked Alaska]

Just now, WAAAYTOOO said:

NO WAY !  Quarantine that little germ factory !

Well, that, too!!

[Momof4crazytocruise]

I myself am on quarantine right now! We sail the 21st.

[Baked Alaska]

Oh Man! I substitute teach and am judging a middle school science fair today. I take massive amounts of vitamin C from Nov through April every year. Don't want those little buggers buggering up my vacays!

[VACruiser]

I am on the Oasis of the Seas in 32 days, 8 March, and I would like to self-quarantine myself from my oh-so-sick co-workers. Hacking and coughing everywhere...oh the humanity! I am sure they got it from their booger pickers anyways. 

[Ogilthorpe]

We are on the Oasis on March 8 also. My wife has many clients in preschool settings.  I think our hand sanitizer bill leading up to the trip may rival the cruise fare!

[VACruiser]

3 minutes ago, Ogilthorpe said:

We are on the Oasis on March 8 also. My wife has many clients in preschool settings.  I think our hand sanitizer bill leading up to the trip may rival the cruise fare!

I work in a facility that you have to key punch to gain access to the work spaces. That is a virtual hot-zone of sickness so I have started wearing gloves when I have to punch in. Yes, everyone laughs at me but I feel like the picture above...don't mess with my cruise with your sickness. Germ-X is going fast at my desk  - is it good as a mouthwash  

[GregD]

Well, the child tested positive for the flu. She has been quarantined to the shed in our back yard. Food/drink will be sent via sling shot.......Just kidding.....sorta. She does have the flu, she has started Tamiflu and scripts have been sent to the pharmacy for the rest of us just in case. Currently disinfecting the entire house and stocking up on OJ etc. We have all been taking immunity boosting vitamins so hopefully the rest of us will be spared.

[WAAAYTOOO]

Really, really sorry to hear it.  The good news is, you likely have time for it to run its course.

[RickinSTL]

Send them to their grandparents!

 

[JimnKathy]

We love our grandkids...but we'll probably just FaceTime them the two weeks prior to our September cruise on Symphony!

[teddy]

Tamiflu can work wonders.  

I hope it's as successful for her as it was for me.

 

I got back to Maine last Saturday night and all of a sudden I felt like a truck hit me.  I tested positive for Influenza B Sunday morning and was prescribed Tamiflu.   With my doctor's blessing, I went to work today. Tamiflu really lessened the blow.

The worst part was the fever and body aches.  Controlling those were key for me Sun-Tues.  

I hope she isn't too miserable.

[GregD]

2 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Really, really sorry to hear it.  The good news is, you likely have time for it to run its course.

That's what we are hoping. If the rest of us can avoid catching it, we will be good.

2 hours ago, RickinSTL said:

Send them to their grandparents!

 

Even better, I am sending her to New Jersey for the weekend! She is supposed to compete in a cheer leading competition on Saturday. So she and her Mother, who is the coach, are taking off for New Jersey tomorrow morning with the hopes that she is well enough by Saturday afternoon for their time slot to compete. The whole team has been passing the flu around to each other for the past few weeks, and she is one of the last to come down with it. 

1 hour ago, teddy said:

Tamiflu can work wonders.  

I hope it's as successful for her as it was for me.

I hope she isn't too miserable.

Yes, we know the wonders of Tamiflu and have used it in the past. She did get her flu shot, which does help lessen the blow if you do get the flu, and so far she actually is in good spirits. She had a little bit of fever earlier, obviously since that prompted the call from the school nurse, but has been fever free since her MD appointment. Hopefully this will be a really mild case for her.

 

In the mean time, we have stocked up and are prepared!

[MikeK]

21 hours ago, Tim B. said:

I work in a facility that you have to key punch to gain access to the work spaces. That is a virtual hot-zone of sickness so I have started wearing gloves when I have to punch in. Yes, everyone laughs at me but I feel like the picture above...don't mess with my cruise with your sickness. Germ-X is going fast at my desk  - is it good as a mouthwash  

Use your knuckles instead of the tips of your fingers. to key punch

[GregD]

Update:

Typhoid Mary has been banished to another state with her mother for the cheerleading competition. She has been fever free and acting her usual self since about 3pm yesterday so hopefully the Tamiflu keeps working it’s wonders. We are optimistic that we will all be healthy and ready for a well earned and desired vacation. It’s currently snowing hard enough here in NY that I just lost power.....yay

[JLMoran]

5 hours ago, emsff02 said:

Update:

Typhoid Mary has been banished to another state with her mother for the cheerleading competition. She has been fever free and acting her usual self since about 3pm yesterday so hopefully the Tamiflu keeps working it’s wonders. We are optimistic that we will all be healthy and ready for a well earned and desired vacation. It’s currently snowing hard enough here in NY that I just lost power.....yay

I wanted to simultaneously give reactions for love (child showing great improvement), sad (lost power) and laugh (typhoid Mary reference). Had to average it out to just "Like".

[GregD]

1 hour ago, JLMoran said:

I wanted to simultaneously give reactions for love (child showing great improvement), sad (lost power) and laugh (typhoid Mary reference). Had to average it out to just "Like".

I know how you feel. It’s been an interesting day. The power came back on WAY sooner than National Greed said it would so it’s time for this...

[Baked Alaska]

7 minutes ago, emsff02 said:

I know how you feel. It’s been an interesting day. The power came back on WAY sooner than National Greed said it would so it’s time for this...

Good for snow days and cure for the "flu".

[sk8erguy1978]

47 minutes ago, emsff02 said:

I know how you feel. It’s been an interesting day. The power came back on WAY sooner than National Greed said it would so it’s time for this...

Whiskey, Zicam, DayQuil and NyQuil, knocked out a small cold in about 3 days.

As far as your kid, sounds like it's time they learn to live on their own 

[IRMO12HD]

My granny used to say:  honey, whiskey and lemon juice; adjust proportions as appropriate :-)

[Mljstr]

I truly hope she is completely well before your cruise. If you read the latest RCCL travel restrictions the following is included.

"Any guest presenting with fever or low blood oximetry in the specialized health screening will be denied boarding."

 

[Curt From Canada]

The last thing I want to do is start a debate/discussion/argument on healthcare.  This is not my intent.  This is genuine question:

Please forgive my ignorance, but are Flu shots not paid for in the United States?

I think children can receive them very early on (not sure, but potentially after they are over the age of 1).

My Father-in-law lives with us (90 years young) and we (me, my soulmate and even our children who have flown the nest) always get one.  We assume it is the best way to defend against the Flu

Curt from Canada

[SpeedNoodles]

6 minutes ago, Curt From Canada said:

The last thing I want to do is start a debate/discussion/argument on healthcare.  This is not my intent.  This is genuine question:

Please forgive my ignorance, but are Flu shots not paid for in the United States?

I think children can receive them very early on (not sure, but potentially after they are over the age of 1).

My Father-in-law lives with us (90 years young) and we (me, my soulmate and even our children who have flown the nest) always get one.  We assume it is the best way to defend against the Flu

Curt from Canada

Most insurance will cover flu shots. Not everyone has insurance. 

[Curt From Canada]

1 minute ago, SpeedNoodles said:

Most insurance will cover flu shots. Not everyone has insurance. 

Got it ... Thanks

[Lovetocruise2002]

1 hour ago, SpeedNoodles said:

Most insurance will cover flu shots. Not everyone has insurance. 

Yay!  +1 for Canada! lol

[teddy]

Flu shots are also voluntary for the majority of people in the US. 
 

 

[GregD]

2 hours ago, Curt From Canada said:

The last thing I want to do is start a debate/discussion/argument on healthcare.  This is not my intent.  This is genuine question:

Please forgive my ignorance, but are Flu shots not paid for in the United States?

I think children can receive them very early on (not sure, but potentially after they are over the age of 1).

My Father-in-law lives with us (90 years young) and we (me, my soulmate and even our children who have flown the nest) always get one.  We assume it is the best way to defend against the Flu

Curt from Canada

Yup, we all got flu shots. The unfortunate thing about the flu shot is this. There are many different strains of flu virus that cause flu A and B. The vaccine manufacturers have to guess which ones they feel will be most prevalent throughout the year and make the vaccine based off that educated guess. Sometime they get it right, and sometimes they get it wrong. This year was a wrong year. The good thing though is they find that for most people that do get the vaccine, but still come down with the flu they have a much more mild case. This definitely seems to be the case for my daughter. She has tested positive for the flu, but only has had a few hours of mild fever and a mild cough. She seems to be rebounding well and is only mildly symptomatic. 

[Curt From Canada]

1 hour ago, emsff02 said:

Yup, we all got flu shots. The unfortunate thing about the flu shot is this. There are many different strains of flu virus that cause flu A and B. The vaccine manufacturers have to guess which ones they feel will be most prevalent throughout the year and make the vaccine based off that educated guess. Sometime they get it right, and sometimes they get it wrong. This year was a wrong year. The good thing though is they find that for most people that do get the vaccine, but still come down with the flu they have a much more mild case. This definitely seems to be the case for my daughter. She has tested positive for the flu, but only has had a few hours of mild fever and a mild cough. She seems to be rebounding well and is only mildly symptomatic. 

100% ... the Flu shot choice each year is a very interesting process.  Not perfect, just a lot better than the "good 'ol days" when we had nothing.

Glad to hear your daughter is bouncing back.  Children are "human petri dishes" that can grow lots of stuff.  They also have fantastic recuperative powers.

Curt from Canada

[JLMoran]

1 hour ago, emsff02 said:

Yup, we all got flu shots. The unfortunate thing about the flu shot is this. There are many different strains of flu virus that cause flu A and B. The vaccine manufacturers have to guess which ones they feel will be most prevalent throughout the year and make the vaccine based off that educated guess. Sometime they get it right, and sometimes they get it wrong. This year was a wrong year. The good thing though is they find that for most people that do get the vaccine, but still come down with the flu they have a much more mild case. This definitely seems to be the case for my daughter. She has tested positive for the flu, but only has had a few hours of mild fever and a mild cough. She seems to be rebounding well and is only mildly symptomatic. 

To add on a bit to this, at least in the US we have two different forms of the vaccine. Most people get what @emsff02 described above, where they have made their best guess and have a vaccine for that one strain.

BUT...

There is also a fairly limited supply of what's called a "quadrivalent" vaccine. Instead of being manufactured for just the one strain they think is most likely to be the worst in that year, this version of the vaccine protects against four strains. It's specifically reserved for 3 high-risk population groups -- infants and toddlers with still-developing immune systems; the elderly, whose immune systems just aren't what they used to be and who are physically less able to hold up to the symptoms; and asthmatics, whose respiratory systems get hammered by the common cold and would be much worse off with a full-blown flu infection.

Besides being in limited supply, insurance only covers the cost of this option if you fall into one of those three groups. So even if you go to a CVS Pharmacy or Walgreens or other place that just gives out the vaccine to anyone who requests it at the pharmacy counter, they won't give you the quadrivalent without documented proof (in the case of asthma) or if it's just blatantly obvious (age).

[USCG Teacher]

3 hours ago, JLMoran said:

There is also a fairly limited supply of what's called a "quadrivalent" vaccine. Instead of being manufactured for just the one strain they think is most likely to be the worst in that year, this version of the vaccine protects against four strains. It's specifically reserved for 3 high-risk population groups -- infants and toddlers with still-developing immune systems; the elderly, whose immune systems just aren't what they used to be and who are physically less able to hold up to the symptoms; and asthmatics, whose respiratory systems get hammered by the common cold and would be much worse off with a full-blown flu infection.

Both of my parents got the quadrivalent version (or as they like to call it, the Superflu Shot) this year.  My mom is currently recuperating from the flu right now, it really knocked it out of her for a week.  But like she keeps saying, "imagine how much worse this would be if I hadn't gotten the shot!"  She's right of course.

[teddy]

When I was at my doctor's getting the wooden q-tip shoved up my nose, they told me that they are seeing a lot of people testing positive this season, despite having had the shot last fall.

In the nurse's words,  "It's been that kind of month"

[deep1]

Now see... This is why I eat far too many donuts and hot dogs and other stuff for my own good,  I look at all you "healthy people" getting sick. I seldom do.  Might it be that diseases can't thrive in a a junk food environment? Maybe its that I'm just lucky? Even if I do get sick I had a fun diet until it happens...  On a serious note, I wish everyone smooth sailing through the choppy waters of flu season...

 

[USCG Teacher]

8 minutes ago, deep1 said:

This is why I eat far too many donuts and hot dogs and other stuff for my own good,  I look at all you "healthy people" getting sick. I seldom do.  Might it be that diseases can't thrive in a a junk food environment? Maybe its that I'm just lucky?

Sounds like you may have Three Stooges Syndrome.  I've only ever heard of one other case.  

 

[deep1]

I prefer to think of it as Entenmanns Ebola blocker... 

[JLMoran]

1 hour ago, deep1 said:

Now see... This is why I eat far too many donuts and hot dogs and other stuff for my own good...

1 hour ago, USCG Teacher said:

Sounds like you may have Three Stooges Syndrome.  I've only ever heard of one other case.

See, I subscribe to The Andromeda Theory approach to disease prevention. Drink so much wine and beer that my blood pH is too far off base to support bacterial / viral life.