"If I'm curt with you, it's because time is a factor here. I think fast, I talk fast, and I need you guys to act fast if you want to get out of this. So, pretty please, with sugar on top, clean the fucking car."
-- The Wolf, Pulp Fiction
"The only thing that separates us from the animals is our ability to accessorize."
-- Clairee Belcher, Steel Magnolias
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Leah is about to leave for sleepaway camp this coming Sunday. She is enormously excited and has had an awful lot of fun shopping for the necessities of camp -- kleenex, another bathing suit, glow-in-the-dark bracelets... you know, CRITICAL needs.
Late last week we found out her camp had a small outbreak of H1N1 (or the "swine flu"). Needless to say a great "oh, SHIT!" was heard about the land. Many minutes were spent googling "H1N1" and all kinds of big words and scary media stories were found.
Then came the questions. Do we send her? How many kids have it? What are they doing about it? What if she gets it?
After the initial freak out, I knew we needed to take an optimistic "wait and see" approach. Part of that included calling my pediatrician who is, without a doubt, the biggest rockstar of my children's lives. I explained the situation, which he was already aware of because many kids at camp are part of his patient base. His answer?
"Oh, I think it's great. I'd let her get it."
(pause)
(giggle)
"Oh, wait? You were serious."
"Oh, yeah! Let her get it. This year's strain isn't bad and then she'll have great immunity for next year - because they won't have time to get it into the flu shot vaccine and it'll be WAY worse next year. We've had 100 cases in the last two weeks. No big deal. We're not even recommending Tamiflu once it starts because it's really mild. But if you want it, I'll give it to you and she won't get it at all. Your call."
"All righty then... "
So. Just curious. If it were your kid - what would you do?
Have you retired from blogging?
*sniff sniff* ... you are missed by at least one loyal fan.
Posted by: Eric at September 8, 2009 10:59 AM
My peidatrician (in another city) said the exact same thing! And with two older kids at the same camp -- already taking Tamilfu (my pediatrician just sighed, which turned into a grumbling... muttering about the CDC, making it a bigger deal than it really is, something or other...) -- I began asking him direct questions about my youngest, third child, due to be dropped off this weekend, same time as your dd. He said the kids will be fine, unless they are otherwise pretty severely compromised from a health perspective, and even then, building up their immunity naturally is usually the better option.
I got a note home from my daughter that she lost her loose tooth in an apple playing hide and seek on the tennis courts in the middle of the night with flashlights..... There are just so many things wrong with that story --- they are having great fun, but do we really WANT to know all the details??? Admit it, as parents, we have a tendency to freak out!
xoxo
Posted by: Mary at June 23, 2009 11:10 AM