Hand Foot and Mouth Disease

Warning: This is a really long post about our experience with HFMD and what we did to prevent it from spreading to our other family members. Your symptoms may differ slightly from ours as there are different virus strains. Want to say a big thank you to my friends and my fellow mummy bloggers at Singapore Mom Bloggers for their advice!

This past week has been rather tiring because my little one and I caught Hand Foot and Mouth Disease.  I don't know where and when we caught it but I had always assumed that it was an infant / toddler illness.  My son and I are definitely not in any of these categories!  It happened so suddenly:

Blisters - only 1 - 2mm in diameter. Big one with
small ones surrounding it.
They may look small but they itched
like crazy on my son. Didn't want to show the
throat picture - it's too scarey.

1. Monday: High fever close to 40C for son
2. Tuesday: Fever subsides but he complains of a sore throat. It is flaming red so we pop down to see the doctor and she prescribes antibiotics.
3. Wednesday: Son did not sleep well that night and woke up with blisters around the mouth area and palms.  He also had 6 mouth ulcers on his throat and he couldn't eat any solids. He was in pain. Went back down to the doctor who confirmed that it was HFMD and that he had to stay at home.
4. Thursday: Basically more pain for my son and his blisters were really itchy.  I realised that I had probably caught it as I had tingling sensations in my hands and feet.
5. Friday: No improvement in my son, and I end up with a fever as well plus a sore throat. I see ulcers!
6. Saturday:  My blisters on my hands and feet are in fact more painful than my mouth ulcers - completely the opposite of what my son is experiencing! But the pain is such that I can't do much crafty stuff. I can't even do simple things like wring a towel dry!!
7. Sunday: o___o
8. Monday: that's today...... still the same except my son is feeling a lot better

I tried to make sure everything was clean to prevent it from spreading to my hubby and his mum.  Here's what we did:

Yes, you heard me correctly.  Hand towels are vehicles for spreading HFMD. HFMD is spread via body fluids (saliva, mucus, nasal secretions), stools and blister fluid so don't share any towels, any food, utensils either. No hugging or kissing too.  Just show affection by saying "I love you" and gaze into each others eyes:-)

I added 10 drops of tea tree oil, a natural antiseptic, to the soap bottle in the bathroom.

Yes, everyday.  Things that were wiped everyday were door knobs, light switches, table tops, bathroom area, and finally the floor (thanks, hubby). We used vinegar in a spray bottle, Dr Bronner's SAL Suds and lemons.

Most Asians don't wear shoes in the home so my advice is to wear slippers. It's very easy for the HFMD to spread to others from your blisters if you're going bare foot. 

So how did we manage the pain? There's no cure for HFMD, you just have to get through it and ease the pain. Here's what we did:

It goes against mummy logic but when your child cries out in pain when he swallows, these foods are the only things that will numb the pain and give him enough fluids to stay hydrated.  Anyway, it's what the doctor ordered (see end of post!) We also ate fruit sherbet and rice porridge   Stay away from citric fruit lollies though as the acidity will aggravate the pain. 

My mother-in-law made us lots of Chinese herbal teas and soups to remove our bad qi. It definitely helped strengthen their immunity too.

My hubby and his mum also gargled with salt water as a preventive measure. 

I was advised to get Jorubi Aloe Vera gel to soothe the blisters - it was out of stock! So hubby went to GNC and bought this one instead.  Remember to check the ingredients too.  

So that's how it has been since the last Monday! I don't think I would have stayed sane without everyone's help especially hubby who has been able to stay healthy and take care of my son through the night.  Thank you and stay safe!!!  To end this extremely long post, this is part of a conversation I had with my son and the doctor on day 2 and 3.

Son with a sore throat: Did you know that I'm supposed to eat ice-cream and jelly?
Me: No, I don't think so.
Son: Phineas and Ferb told me. [that's his fave cartoon]
Me: Sure

Later at the doctor's....
Dr: It's HMFD.. I'm afraid he can only eat cold things like ice-cream and jelly
Son: Yaaaaayyyy!!!
Me: :-O