Getting Sick…With a Baby!

OK, so maybe the picture above is a little much. Although, my wife and I did worry about as much as you probably would if a person dressed like that was looking at you, but I digress.

Sunday, my wife and I both came down with gastroenteritis, or the stomach flu. Getting sick happens. It sucks, but it's something we've dealt with before. The difference between THIS time and our past sharing-illness-experiences is that WE HAVE AN INFANT to worry about!

My wife is breastfeeding and wondered if she should continue with her illness. We contacted a nurse via a local hospital's help line. The nurse was very nice but also very hesitant to give us a definitive answer.

Through a simple internet search, I found that moms should continue breastfeeding with the stomach flu because the milk actually contains antibodies that protects babies from contracting various illnesses.

The illness came-and-went in less than 48 hours and I feel confident saying that we were able to keep our daughter healthy due in large part to our hand-washing efforts. I seriously washed my hands so much that I had pruned hands for almost two days straight!