The twins caught the dreaded chickenpox some weeks ago. It happened in the last week of school and it went on for about 2 weeks. We were absolutely shattered. The twins were indoors for over a week and we really didn’t know what to do with ourselves. Thankfully we had a garden to run around when they needed some exercise and fresh air. I have always been worried about the kiddies catching chickenpox from school, but now that it has happened, I am glad I no longer have to worry about it. My worst nightmare of them both being down with chickenpox has come and gone, and we survived!

 

 

 

One thing I noticed o the web was the amount of wrong/misleading information on how to tackle chickenpox. I read all sorts on websites and forums, and the information these people were giving didn’t make any sense. We used a couple of products and medicines to reduce the discomfort of the sickness. I will be reviewing a few of them on here in the next few weeks, but first let me talk about some things you should and shouldn’t do.

 

Treating Chickenpox

There are all sorts of information on the web when it comes to treating chickenpox. I found many of them misleading. Here are some things you need to know –

 

Fever Comes

Chickenpox usually comes along with fever. You can get an accurate reading with a thermometer. The kids had fever on and off and we controlled it with Calpol. That helped massively as they were comfortable throughout the ordeal. We also used Puriton to reduce the itch, which also helped. Ensure you read the leaflet in both medicines and follow the recommended dosage.

 

The Chickenpox Can Appear Almost Everywhere

I was surprised to find that chickenpox can appear everywhere even in the mouth. They appear like mouth ulcers in mouth and can be quite painful. Treating the chickenpox in the mouth was a bit hard but thankfully they got better within about 3 days.

 

Minimal Baths/Showers

Of all the wrong information I saw online, this was the worst of the bunch. When someone has chickenpox, the last thing you want is a damp skin. The skin needs to be as dry as possible to heal quickly. So baths/showers should be minimal. For the first day, there was no bath/shower. I wanted their skin as dry as possible and I didn’t want to disturb the chickenpox too much. From the second day, they had very short showers with no sponge once a day. We use a soap free body wash – Oilatum, and that worked great. I will be reviewing it as well.

On many forums, I read people were having baths and multiple showers a day. They thought this will help get rid of the chickenpox faster, but then they noticed the condition was not getting better. When it comes to treating chickenpox in the early days, the dryer the skin the better. When the chickenpox has crushed over and fallen off, then you can go back to your regular skin routine of showers/baths with sponge and regular moisturisers. However, if your child suffers with dry skin issues already, then you may need to go easy on this tip.

 

 

 

Get Chickenpox Creams

There are all sorts of chickenpox creams and lotions in the market today with great promises. We used a couple of them and I will be reviewing them soon so you know what to expect from each product. It is important to get a cream to use on the spots so your child is as comfortable as possible and to help the spots dry up quicker. My kids didn’t like me applying the creams but I did it anywhere. I know many kids don’t enjoy the cream application but you have to do it. Their skin will thank you for it.

 

No Scratching

With chickenpox, it is important not to scratch. This can be hard to explain to younger kids but the twins understood that bit quickly. I taught them to tap gently instead when needed. I also wore socks on their hands for bedtime so they don’t scratch themselves in their sleep.

 

Change Clothes, Bedding and Towels Daily

Clothes, bedding and towels are to be changed daily. It means endless washing for the next week or so, but it helps keep the skin clean and stops the chicken pox from spreading to other areas on the skin.

 

It Takes Time Sometimes

It takes time for all the spots to appear. They all don’t appear at the same time, so they crust over at different times. This was the case with us so it took just over 2 weeks for all the spots to crust over.

The storm is over and we are happy. I will be writing up posts with product recommendations soon so look out for them. Have you experienced the dreaded chickenpox? How did you deal with it?