As the thermometer drops outside and the bare trees begin to collect snow, I take a deep breath. Despite the beautiful winter landscape, the first thing that comes to my mind is that we are officially in cold and flu season. A little over three years ago, I gave birth to our daughter, who was more than 17 weeks premature.Our surviving triplet spent nearly four months in the neonatal intensive care unit, and when she finally came home, on oxygen, we avoided germs like it was our job.
Being a micro-preemie, our daughter is more susceptible to getting sick, so we spent the first few years of her life avoiding illnesses. Giant bottles of hand sanitizer and a sign that our daughter is more susceptible to illnesses greeted guests when they entered our home, we kindly said no to friends who were not vaccinated, and our daughter only left the house for doctor appointments. The doctors had warned us that a simple cold or the flu could land my daughter in the hospital or, even worse, could kill her. After essentially living in a bubble for more than three years, our daughter started preschool this past fall.
The days of isolation suddenly turned into a jam-packed adventure filled with recess, music, and crafts. But with the excitement came fear, on my part the school setting is a cesspool of germs. I could no longer shelter my daughter.
It was a learning curve for this first-time mom. But rather than be a paranoid parent, I decided to be proactive. I realized that the classroom setting, coupled with coughing kids, would create a cycle of illnesses. Once my daughter came down with a virus, it would most likely pass over to me, then to my husband. Once we all felt 100% healthy, the next virus would soon plague our family and start the whole cycle all over again.
After a few weeks of never-ending sickness, I learned my lesson and took action.
1/2