Fear of flu

[Pulirula]

My baby boy is 6 months old and I’m absolutely terrified of him getting the flu. We have a 8 yr old that goes to school and she comes home and touches him and makes my skin crawl. I am still breastfeeding. My question is if i do get the flu can i still feed him? Does anyone have any advice for me to calm my fears? I keep seeing on the news about kids and healthy adults dying from the flu and i literally want to just cry. My husband had the flu a month ago and it’s a miracle that non of us caught it then. My mom says to relax because the flu was literally in my bed and i didn’t catch it. I just can’t stay calm! And no none of us have had the flu shot because we have never had the flu. Ever. But i think we are going to all get it next year!

 

[Babybum35]

My baby boy is 6 months old and I’m absolutely terrified of him getting the flu. We have a 8 yr old that goes to school and she comes home and touches him and makes my skin crawl. I am still breastfeeding. My question is if i do get the flu can i still feed him? Does anyone have any advice for me to calm my fears? I keep seeing on the news about kids and healthy adults dying from the flu and i literally want to just cry. My husband had the flu a month ago and it’s a miracle that non of us caught it then. My mom says to relax because the flu was literally in my bed and i didn’t catch it. I just can’t stay calm! And no none of us have had the flu shot because we have never had the flu. Ever. But i think we are going to all get it next year!

I can't calm you down any as I'm really scared for my 2 year old too. I think theres really only one thing you can do which is wash hands a lot use lots of hand sanitizer. I've heard a few of the people who died had the vaccine so it's not been super effective. Really just stay aware of the symptoms and make sure you go to the doctor the second you think lo has symptoms. It's bad.

 

[noon_child]

Have you any idea why your mind has anchored on to flu in particular, rather than any other illness? If you get flu you should definitely still feed him as this is the best way to protect him. Research suggests breastmilk can contain anti-bodies to infection in as little as 40minutes after exposure!

 

[LoraLoo]

I'm confused why you think you shouldnt have the flu shot if you haven't had the flu before? The whole idea is to prevent it. I would definitely get it, esoecialky as you are so concerned, no it doesnt protect against all strains but it's better than nothing.
It's also fine to bf if you did get flu.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I don't know anyone who has had the flu. We've all had nasty colds, but not flu. If you stay off news and social media you probably won't see anything about It?

We didn't have jab either x

 

[Zephram]

I'm confused why you think you shouldnt have the flu shot if you haven't had the flu before? The whole idea is to prevent it. I would definitely get it, esoecialky as you are so concerned, no it doesnt protect against all strains but it's better than nothing.
It's also fine to bf if you did get flu.

Agree with this. Ge the flu jab. Even if it only means you’ll have a milder case, it’s better than nothing!

Also, it’s unlikely that you’ve never had the flu before. Pretty much everyone has been exposed to one strain or another of flu throughout their lives. You don’t always get severely sick with it, sometimes it just presents like a bad cold. If you got tested you’d likely show some antibodies to previous strains of flu.

You should definitely continue to breastfeed your baby if you get the flu. The flu antibodies in your breastmilk will help to protect your baby - it is truly the best course of action.

 

[Pulirula]

Well I think it happened. I woke up at 4 covered in sweat and very hot and a headache. It’s 8:15 and my throat is itchy/sore and of mucus. No temp yet. My 8 ur old has a sore throat and s temp of 99. My 7 month oldis still sleeping but when he was up at 4 he was fine. I’m so scared right now. I was just at the pediatrician with him for his shots and I told her how scared I was and she said “yes with all the fatality’s you don’t want him to get it” gee thanks for the reassurance.

 

[misspriss]

I'm confused why you think you shouldnt have the flu shot if you haven't had the flu before? The whole idea is to prevent it. I would definitely get it, esoecialky as you are so concerned, no it doesnt protect against all strains but it's better than nothing.
It's also fine to bf if you did get flu.

My husband used to get the flu shot every year, and then get the flu every year. He quit getting the flu shot, and hasn't had the flu since. We are talking 10 years of flu shot = flu, then 10 years of NO flu.

I have never had the flu, and I choose not to inject the dead or alive version of the virus into my body or sniff it through my nose on purpose.

Breastfeed, it's good for the baby. If you are sick, you will pass the antibodies you are producing to heal yourself onto the baby. If it is the flu (and not some other virus) it is an upper respiratory infection and you will pass it to the baby by breathing/coughing/sneezing, not by nursing specifically.

 

[Pulirula]

It’s 11am and idk what’s wrong with me. I feel better. No fever and the ibuprofen made the headache go away. Now all I have is a runny/stuffy nose and itchy throat. Daughter feels better but I think she may have been faking. Hope I don’t have the flu and it’s just a cold. I really freak out over sickness with a baby around.

 

[misspriss]

It’s 11am and idk what’s wrong with me. I feel better. No fever and the ibuprofen made the headache go away. Now all I have is a runny/stuffy nose and itchy throat. Daughter feels better but I think she may have been faking. Hope I don’t have the flu and it’s just a cold. I really freak out over sickness with a baby around.

Hopefully it's just a garden variety virus, not influenza. Being sick sucks around babies, not only do you feel crap you feel guilty for being sick around them. Just remember as your body heals itself, it protects baby through breastmilk as well.

 

[Pulirula]

Thanks everyone. It’s hard not to be afraid of worst case senario especially when the news keeps saying even healthy children are dying due to the flu. I’m trying hard to stay away from it but it’s everywhere!

 

[noon_child]

Flu tends to make you feel achey/shivery and respiratory symptoms are more in the throat and chest. If your symptoms are very much in the nose then its probably just a cold.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

It won't be flu if you feel better already. X

 

[qiaraau]

Giving your baby probiotics will help him boost his immune system to help fight that flu you are scared of, plus a healthy digestion.

 

[noon_child]

Giving your baby probiotics will help him boost his immune system to help fight that flu you are scared of, plus a healthy digestion.

You selling probiotics or something...!!!!!

 

[qiaraau]

Hi noon_child I am not selling but I am recommending probiotics for a healthier immune system