2 days ago I had to take my 9 week old over to my neighbours house to babysit her 3 children. Today my neighbour told me one of her kids has come down with chicken pox....does that mean my son will get it too? Can anyone tell me what the early signs are?

My enoughbour asks me to babysit all the time now that I'm on maternity leave so she can go to the shops, pick the older kids up from school etc etc etc, I don't mind baby sitting in emergencies/difficult situations etc but now it's happening 2-3 times a week. My son has not yet been vaccinated (appointment in two weeks), I'm worried he could catch something off her 4 children, am I being paranoid? Is it unreasonable to say no to babysitting until he gets his needles?

Always go with your gut feeling and do what you think is best for your baby.

Jackie & Charli (08/11/04)

Chicken pox is contagious for a couple of days before the spots appear, and then until the spots heal over completely. So yes it's possible that your baby has caught it however you won't know for a while because chicken pox has a three week incubation period.

FYI your baby is not going to be able to be immunised against chicken pox until he is 18 months old. Most (but not all) of the diseases he will be immunised against at 2-6m are serious notifiable diseases that are presently quite rare in the community AND if your neighbour's children have been immunised as per the schedule then your baby won't catch any of these diseases from them!

If your neighbour still has a child under 1y old then they won't have been immunised against measles, mumps, rubella or meningococcal and I would be marginally more concerned.

It sounds like the babysitting is becoming a bit of a chore irrespective of the immunisation issue? Either make sure you have other plans, or even up the score by asking her to mind your baby, or say to her that your baby is getting unsettled with all the dragging to and fro and you'd rather only babysit in genuine emergencies. Best to sort it out now before you really get the irrits with her!

Steph
DD Alex (March 04)

My toddler (who I was going to immunise this week, but too late now!) has been exposed at child care recently, we're just waiting to see if she's actually caught it. I also have a 7wk old. Because I breastfeed and have chickenpox immunity, my baby will probably be safe. I hope this works for you too.

Emma
Sophia 10.04.04
Juliet 11.09.05