Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are 100% mine. #FightFever #CollectiveBias
There is that time, when a child is sick, between when they're feeling horrible and actually want to just lay around and being completely well again. It's that in-between time where their body still needs to rest and fight off whatever infection they have, but they're raring to get going again. And entertaining the child who it just itching to get up and run around is tricky. The key - distraction!
When Kay got sick as a baby, I used to love how she just wanted to cuddle. (Yes, a part of me loved when my baby was sick!) But the 6-year-old version wants to keep playing, even if she is feverish, even if she can barely hold her head up.
Now she's in school and last year she got sick several times, so this year we're getting ready...just in case. Yep, we've already been to Walgreens for a supply run. No middle of the night drives to the pharmacy this year. I hope!
Now she's in school and last year she got sick several times, so this year we're getting ready...just in case. Yep, we've already been to Walgreens for a supply run. No middle of the night drives to the pharmacy this year. I hope!
So beyond medicine - Children's Advil is our go-to because it comes in flavors Kay will actually take...without an argument! - and lots of liquids, these are some things I offer to keep Kay resting - which makes me happy - and doing something, too - which keeps her satisfied.
Quiet crafts. Nothing elaborate. Maybe coloring or drawing in a special notebook. Bonus points for special markers or gel pens! One day we painted suncatchers from a kit. Very low-key and kind of relaxing, too. Another day she was happy threading packaging peanuts. (We're very outside-the-box kind of people, if you couldn't tell!)
Books. Even though I think she feels she's "too old" for cuddling, she loves to snuggle up together with a book, and perhaps especially so when she doesn't feel well.
Hanging out in a tent...or laundry basket. When just laying on the couch gets boring, we bring out the tent! Kay has this pop-up tent that's apparently a lot more fun to hang out in than just laying around on the couch. No tent? When she was a little shorter she also loved hanging out in the laundry basket. No, really. She would sit in there, a pillow behind her head, and be totally content. Sure, it didn't look very comfortable, but she didn't seem bothered by that minor detail!
Play dough is a great "sick day" activity - it doesn't require a lot of energy and can be very calming. Adding an essential oil or two may even help them feel better more quickly! Other simple sensory activities, like playing with rice, can also be soothing. Depending on your tolerance of spills, it may or may not be as relaxing for you.
When all else fails....yep, we bring in the technology. Movies, tablets, shows. Hey, desperate times, right? Watching too much screen time for a day or two won't melt her brain, but it may just help her body heal a little faster. Then she'll be up and running and going a mile-a-minute once again. (Wait, is that really a good thing?!)
How do you keep little bodies healing when they hate staying still?
