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View Full Version : Wash your effing hands!!!



neobunny
04-13-2009, 05:24 AM
Or at least use some purell! My DS is about 6 months old and has a cold... again. He had one last one month, and this one is worse. And I caught it both times. Why?? Because, it seems, nobody at the ILs house believes in washing there hands or using purell. MIL doesn't work (always been a SAHM) & takes care of DS while I work. They are always sick and now DS is catching EVERYTHING and passing it on to me! Both DS and I have been up since 3am. I can't breathe thru my nose & dripping like a faucet. And now i have to miss a day of work because of this effing cold.

And what pisses me off the most is that BIL is the one who brings these colds home most of the time. How the he!! does a guy who works in a discount store stocking shelves & working a register get sick WAY MORE than a person (me) who works in a nursing home with dementia patients who are always sick and wear adult diapers! And I wash and change them!!!! And I NEVER get sick from working there!!!! And he'll catch a cold in the middle of a heat wave (I kid you not!).

I usually get a cold maybe once a year in the winter. Winter isn't really over and I've had 2 colds already since I went back to work in Dec. And they came from the ILs house both times.

And to top it all the heater has been acting up & the pilot light went out so no heat when I woke up. (DS has an elec heater in his room so that isn't a prob) Took FOREVER to get the effing thing to turn on again!

WTF!!!!!!!!

MamaMolly
04-13-2009, 08:14 AM
I suspect you are right, handwashing or the lack of it is the cause of your woes. And money is FILTHY dirty, so if BIL is working a register then that is likely where it comes from. DD recently started daycare (hurray, this is her last week!!!) and has been so sick. She didn't get sick all winter, but since starting daycare she's had a vile stomach virus and PNEUMONIA. :( I think the teachers are really good about washing their hands. It's just the parents who send sick kids in to infect everybody else that really pisses me off.

Keep telling yourself that every cold he gets now is one he won't have later. It really does improve their little immune systems, but it is a sucky way of doing it. Baby vaporub and a humidifier might help, too.

Sending you guys lots of 'get well' and 'wash your d@mn hands' vibes!!

hellokitty
04-13-2009, 10:13 AM
Oh gosh, you have just hit on one of my biggest pet peeves. Handwashing! Both my parents and my mil especially are HORRIBLE about it. I would get into it with them when my babies where newborns, b/c I would ask them to wash their hands before they held the baby. My mil would say, "I already washed my hands when I was at home." Um yeah, I can only imagine how FILTHY her car is, esp her steering wheel! She is one of those types of ppl who also contaminates containers of food, b/c she will eat straight out of it or put food back INTO it. I told her she shouldn't do that, b/c her germs contaminated the entire container and she told me, "I don't have any germs in my mouth." Okaaaaay, it's like I'm dealing with a cavewoman mentality. What is weird is that she eats sooo much garlic, which is supposed to be good for your immunity, right? HOWEVER, she is sick ALL of the time and I think it has to do with poor handwashing. She is also one of those ppl who will eat produce (unwashed) at the grocery store, which is gross on more than one level, not to mention dishonest. Anyway, I pretty much a b*tch when it comes to handwashing and anyone holding my babies. Even the ped family member doesn't wash his hands, which pisses me off. WTF am I having to lecture a pediatrician about handwashing?!?!?!

dogmom
04-13-2009, 11:24 AM
Just as a PSA, rotoviruses, which cause most colds, are not killed by the alcohol based hand sanitizers. (like purell) they need to be washed up by friction, ie, just washing your hands for the 15-30 seconds under water with soap and motion.

And this is the problem with relatives being childcare. Between the fact that you are related and you aren't paying them, it gets hard to effect change in behavior. All I can suggest is use the "My pediatrician said..." speech. Good luck.

neobunny
04-13-2009, 11:45 AM
Just as a PSA, rotoviruses, which cause most colds, are not killed by the alcohol based hand sanitizers. (like purell) they need to be washed up by friction, ie, just washing your hands for the 15-30 seconds under water with soap and motion.

And this is the problem with relatives being childcare. Between the fact that you are related and you aren't paying them, it gets hard to effect change in behavior. All I can suggest is use the "My pediatrician said..." speech. Good luck.

I could probably convince my MIL to use purell if I'm the one who provides it, otherwise she won't buy it. My BIL will probably be a lost cause, but I will try to convince him.

Isn't it the rhinovirus that's the cause of most colds?

To be fair this is the only bitch I have about them in the 8 years I've been married to their son. There have been other things that annoy me from time to time but it's all very small stuff in the grand scheme of things, so I don't let it bother me.

gatorsmom
04-13-2009, 03:35 PM
I sympathize. I'm strict about handwashing in our house. Big pet peeve of mine too. Ick.

Not sure if this will help you since your DS is spending a lot of time at your MILs but this is priceless:

http://www.mytinyhands.com/

I can't tell you how many people it has stopeed from touching my children (especially the twins). Wonderful.

hellokitty
04-13-2009, 04:21 PM
I sympathize. I'm strict about handwashing in our house. Big pet peeve of mine too. Ick.

Not sure if this will help you since your DS is spending a lot of time at your MILs but this is priceless:

http://www.mytinyhands.com/

I can't tell you how many people it has stopeed from touching my children (especially the twins). Wonderful.

OMG, I LOVE that sign. I want to hang it in my house too for when ppl come over, lol. I think I will be ordering one for sure for when the baby is in the stroller.

gatorsmom
04-13-2009, 04:29 PM
OMG, I LOVE that sign. .

Of course, I heard of that sign here on the boards. :cheerleader1: Last spring, I was in line at Target with the twins. The twins were in their infant carriers in their Double Snap n Go stroller. I had these signs hanging from the handles and a guy comes up to me and said, "Those signs could put me out of a job. They are fantastic." I asked what he did for a job and he said he was an epidemiologist at the University of Minnesota. He said hospitals should hand those out to new parents. I agree. They were only $5 and saved me hundreds in ped bills!

hellokitty
04-13-2009, 04:36 PM
Of course, I heard of that sign here on the boards. :cheerleader1: Last spring, I was in line at Target with the twins. The twins were in their infant carriers in their Double Snap n Go stroller. I had these signs hanging from the handles and a guy comes up to me and said, "Those signs could put me out of a job. They are fantastic." I asked what he did for a job and he said he was an epidemiologist at the University of Minnesota. He said hospitals should hand those out to new parents. I agree. They were only $5 and saved me hundreds in ped bills!

Yeah, they SHOULD give them to all parents of newborns at hospitals. It sure beats getting the, "fruit tray" at our hospital when you get discharged. The price has gone up on these. They are $7.50 each now. However, I am still going to get one and getting one for my sil too, she is expecting her first the same time I am expecting #3. She might think I am crazy to give her this as part of her baby gift, but I hope that she will thank me later on, lol. Hmm, we need to do a fundraiser for our LLL and now I am wondering if we could sell these as a fundraiser...