In the office, we hear so many hilarious details from kids. They really do say the darndest things. And they always tell on you, their parents.
When they come to the office with a runny nose and complaining that they really don’t feel well, we honestly don’t interview them but they inevitably spill the beans.
“I had a fever this morning, but my dad gave me medicine.”
“I threw up this morning but my mom had an important meeting so she needed me to come to school.”
And, of course, we smile with understanding and give you a call. It can be so hard to figure out when they need to stay home and when they are suffering from the universal, ‘woke up feeling like taking an easy day off’ syndrome.
Here are some very basic metrics that you can use to help make that morning time decision about your wee ones on school days.
If they have a fever, they really have to stay home. Fever reducing medicine will lower the fever, but it’s likely their bodies are still actively fighting some sort of infection. That fever reducer will wear off, usually by lunchtime, the body temp will soar again and they are no closer to beating back whatever foreign agent is causing the fever. Be merciful and consider how you feel when you are sick. They don’t have any critical meetings or projects they can’t miss. We know you might, but school is a very hard place to be when you are sick.
If they have thrown up in the last 24 hours...please, have mercy on us! What is more miserable than being somewhere other than home when you launching your lunch? Vomiting is usually an indicator of some virus or another wreaking havoc on the system and we all know how absolutely terrible nausea feels. When they are vomiting, they have to stay home.
Sniffles and sore throats, coughs and sneezing are much harder to gauge. That symptom medley is a constant state for many kids from October through March and could indicate a cold or the dreaded flu. This is where the art of parenting comes in to play. As we all know, there is no rulebook and we are usually just winging it.
We are happy to provide care and consultation to your babies when they come to the office feeling off. We only have one couch for resting, but we have endless compassion for being ill at school. If you do get the call, trust that any details about how their illness has progressed, has likely been shared!