New Babe + Flu Epidemic = Terrified Mama

|| 10 Tips on Avoiding the Flu with a New Babe ||

I have honestly NEVER worried about getting the flu.  I have always been a fairly healthy person, I've never gotten the flu shot, and also have never gotten the flu.  It just wasn't something I concerned myself with.

But then I had a baby.

It's like my dad says, "A baby changes everything."  And while I don't know if I agree with that statement 100%, a baby does change the way we view everything.  For the first time in my life I became scared of the flu... "What if I get the flu and am no longer able to nurse?" "What if Tyler gets the flu and passes it on to Rosie?"  "What if Rosie gets the flu?!"  My mind and heart were overwhelmed with the possibilities and concerns.

I couldn't seem to pull my eyes away from the news stories telling about the infant deaths and tragedies due to the flu this year.  The thought of seeing my sweet babe getting the flu was (and still is) absolutely terrifying to me.

However, I have had to learn to deal with this in a few ways.  1) I have had to learn to trust the Lord with the health of my baby, and 2) I have done everything in my power to ensure that the deadly flu germs do not touch her. So far, our prayers have been answered, and our methods have been successful! We are continuing to pray and hold our baby a little closer - so please don't be offended if I ask you not to touch or kiss my baby ;)

If you're interested, here are a few of the measures we have taken to ensure that Rosie stays healthy!

1. WASH YOUR HANDS.  This is SO important.  Tyler and I began washing our hands literally every time before we touched Rosie.  Often, parents don't think about how important it is to wash their hands before touching their babies, because it's their baby.  But Tyler and I have just as much of an opportunity to share flu germs with Rosie as any other person.  And, at any time we could be carrying the flu germs and just not realize it.  They live on surfaces for like 3 weeks!

2. SANITIZE.  We bought probably 293923864928374 bottles of hand sanitizer.  We have several for Rosie's diaper bag, one in each car, one in my purse, and one in every room of the house.  Tyler even bought massive bottles to place out at church to ensure that others are also able to use sanitizer!

3.  Stay home if possible.  As much as possible, we have kept Rosie at home, or away from indoor places filled with lots of people.  If we did have to go out, we did our best to keep her in a carseat, covered in a carrier, or held by one of us. 

4. When you do go out, keep babe as far from others as possible.  When you absolutely must take babe out into public, just be honest with people that if they want to touch your baby, they must wash their hands and use hand sanitizer.  If they love you and your baby, they won't be offended, but will want what's best for baby.  Who really wants to be to blame for hospitalizing an infant with the flu?  Not me!

5. WASH YOUR HANDS. Just wanted to make sure everyone understands how important it is to wash your hands before touching a baby.  Also, when either Tyler or I would get home, before touching or kissing Rosie we would change all of our clothes, scrub our hands up to our elbows, (and if we wanted to kiss her, even our lips.)  I'll do just about anything to be sure she doesn't get the flu!

6. Nurse if possible.  Breastmilk is the best thing for your baby - so if possible, nurse through the flu period!  Also, do everything you can to increase your immune system.  For me, this meant taking daily vitamins, and being extremely mindful of the food I was putting into my body.

7.  Vitamin D drops.  By the time Rosie was 3 months old, the doctor said it was totally fine to add vitamins to her milk to boost her immune system.  Because I'm nursing, we would use at least one saved bottle of breastmilk a day to add Vitamin D to.  The doctor approved for Rosie to have 1000iu's a day.  We picked this up at Rainbow blossom, but I'm sure you can find it somewhere else!

8. Vitamin C.  The doctor also approved and encouraged for us to put Vitamin C in Rosie's bottle.  There are several different ways this can be found: pill, powder, and liquid.  I was able to find a liquid version at Rainbow Blossom, which was made specifically for children.  Our doctor said to give her 300mg a day. 

9. Elderberry Syrup. Elderberry syrup is a natural way to boost the immune system.  I tried to find this at several stores, but literally EVERYWHERE was sold out.  When I went into Rainbow Blossom (literally the fourth store I tried) they said that their supplier was completely out, but that they would let me know when they found out they would be getting another shipment.  Apparently everyone knows this stuff works wonders, but I hadn't even heard of it until this year!  (Told you I was never worried about the flu. )  Anyway, I found a bottle of children's syrup on Amazon and Rosie definitely loves her juice milk!

10. Lots of rest and fluids.  Again, according to our doctor, one of the best ways to ensure your babe doesn't get the flu is just to ensure that he or she has a super strong immune system.  Which is obviously hard to do when they're so young, but if you can make sure that they are well fed and well rested, then you are on a good track!

PRAY.  Just remember, at the end of the day, the Lord is in control. He is good.  He is the great Healer.  It is so hard as a Mommy to submit your baby to the Lord, but we have no control over it anyway, and pretending like we do is exhausting.  So if you're anything like me, take a deep breath, trust that Jesus will hold your sweet babe in his hands, and be as cautious as possible! 

I hope this info is as beneficial to you as it was to me.

Love,

-Kailey

Photography: Chenoweth Baird Design