Hi everyone, I recently started a job as a teacher at a daycare center while I am going through school for elementary education. Anyway, I have been there for just over a month and have already gotten sick 3 times! One sinus infection, a bad head cold with fever, and now a stomach flu. Many of the teachers there have told me that for the first year, I will constantly be sick. I take a daily vitamin, vitamin C supplements, wash my hands 100 times a day and carry anti-bacterial gel with me everywhere. Do any of you experienced teachers have any suggestions/tips/stories on how to stop getting sick?! Thanks Brit
Welcome to the wonderful work of being ALLERGIC TO KIDS!! LOL That's me! It takes about 8 years to sorta build an immunity to them and still there's no sure way of know if the next batch will be one of those rare strains that can't be treated... LOL They make this stuff called AIRBORNE that a teacher invented to prevent colds and such from snot-nosed sick young'uns. After the kids leave, spray Lysol or some other air sanitizer around the room and something suitable to spray on the toys and such. I used to get a sinus infection monthly... at most could go 6 weeks without an infections. I finally went to an ENT - he could not diagnose an allergy to kids though... haha. I did have other allergies. So my zyrtec and allergy shots to mold helped. (My room had its fair share of hidden mold. Probably the reason some of my kiddos were getting sick, too. Who knows.) Good luck getting well!
I spray my classroom down with Lysol before and after school everyday. I spray EVERYTHING, desks, chairs, door handles, pencil sharpener, hangers... I also use Clorox to wipe down everything. Needless to say I manage to stay healthy.
Thanks for your ideas! It's hard because (since its a daycare) it is open 18 hours a day and there is never a time when no kids are there. Each room gets cleaned but we have to do it while the kids are there and I'm sure they don't all get cleaned as well as they should be. I'm going to give Airborne a try!!!
I swore by those cold ease lozenges this year. Also do not touch the trash cans, or anything the kids cough on w/o gloves (ex toys, crayons etc). I also lysol like a crazy person! Computers (esp the mouse!) door handles, cabinet handles)
One thing you can do is train yourself to not touch your face - at all! If you have to wipe your nose, rub your eye, etc... wash your hands very well before and after. Also be careful of eating anything or putting anything in your mouth without washing your hands first. Food is easy to remember, but gum, tic tacs, and peppermints sneak by : ) If your class naps, spend that time every day cleaning a few sets of toys. In Texas we have to sterilize with a bleach and water solution for anything that is submersible. I used to make a batch in the sink and dump the bins of toys in it. Anything else can be either wiped down with a washcloth in bleach mixture or sprayed with lysol. Spray anything that is fabric at the beginning or end of the day if possible. One good thing is to have the kids wash their hands frequently. Most do it before eating and after restroom, but you can also call kids during free choice time to come and wash up again.
Clean! Clean! Clean! That's all I can say. Last year was my first year with a regular class but I didn't really get sick. I guess I build up my immunity through substituting and teaching SPE Inclusion. However last summer I got married and my husband stayed sick ALL year! Anything the kids got, he got--even pink-eye!!
Move the student’s wastebasket away from your desk. Keep a small one under your desk for you to use. Crack a window a tiny bit for fresh air. Plants are wonderful. Philodendron, Spider Plants and Wondering Jew are easy to grow. There are plants that were tested by NASSAU for their ability to filter and clean indoor air of pollutants such as cigarette smoke and chemicals from off-gassing of new carpeting and furniture, as well as others. Ferns, peace plant, spider plant, mother-in-law's tongue (snake plant), corn plant, etc, are just a few. Wash your hands often. Use anti-bacterial wipes or spray on the door knobs and wipe down student's desk everyday. Be sure and wipe their pencils. Put a bit of spray on their desk and give them a paper towel and let them clean before leaving each day. Never use student’s pencils. Don't let students use your pencils or scissors. Teach them to cough in their elbows, not on their hands. Spray the room with Lysol. Drink orange juice and green tea. Get a flu shot. Keep tissue box away from your desk. Never use tissue from the box that the students use.
I also experienced getting very sick from my students. I found this immune system diet and it's worked wonders! Not only am I rarely sick, but the occasional cold is much less intense. Here's the link: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/article/0,6176,s1-2-62-93-1,00.html
I know you said you wash your hands about 100 times per day. This is great! Just make sure you're washing them the right way. Here are some guidelines: Wet hands with water, apply soap, rub hands together for at least 15 seconds (about as long as it takes you to sing the ABCs) Rinse and dry with disposable towel Use towel to turn off faucet Avoid wearing artificial nails and keep natural nails less than 1/4" long
I have found that the Sharper Image Germicidal Air Purifier works to great to clean the room. It really works to cuts down on the number of times the teacher and students get sick. Sharper Image products are little pricey but you might be able to find a company who makes something similar at a lower price. To me not getting sick is well worth the price the unit costs.
Thank you SO MUCH to everyone!!! I have been doing a little better, but seem to have a continuous cold (but its better than the stomach flu!) I am so much more concious now of what I touch around the classrooms. It is so hard with the toddlers who seem to have a constant stream running out of their noses. I am becoming a cleaning freak (if I wasnt already) during their naps, which is the only time their germy little hands arent all over everything!
When you wipe a toddler's nose, make sure to use several kleenex, not just one. Of course, keep washing your hands!
Dare I say, I must gross everyone out with the obvious...RINGWORM! I have tried to forget about this hideous condition. But I was at the makeup counter tonight, and this lovely lady told me she could sell me something to fade out those 'dark spots' on my face. I thought about it, and said, "I've tried everything. Actually, I am glad it is dried out, and I don't want to mess with it because it was ringworm." That sales clerk stepped back so fast, she tripped over her feet! "Oh, I know how you feel", I said She said, uh, I was just moving to get something. (yeah right!) I said, I have tried everything, doctors just blow you off, say it's acne! I know it isn't and it makes me so mad, because I can get it anywhere else, but I just want to die when it gets on my face. She says, Have you tried vitamins, are you drinking water? I have some cream... What a piece of work! If she said, try bleach or tea bags, I would have actually listened to her! The only thing that works is Lotrisone, and too much on your face is not good! So I have learned to spot it a mile away, and grab my gloves, and shove that little kid in the office. They always tell me to call home, and the folks are never there, and are in denial when I do reach them, or don't show up until it's almost time to go home. By then the poor kid has infected the whole room. Then they come back the next day with a bandaid on. that just makes it worst! now it can't breathe so it spreads! I know it is too late to be freaking everyone out but if anyone has any legal, safe and quick cure...please let me know!
You have ringworm on your face? That is odd. It usually only grows in warm, dark areas (meaning under clothes). Like thighs, armpits, etc... I've never had it, but someone I worked with did. The doctor should have given you some kind of cream. No idea what kind though, sorry!
Not too sure about the tea bags but if it was me I would go to the health food store and buy some neen cream for it.
yeah, I work in the inner city and ringworm gets passed around. I only got it once, tho. And the office doesn't really care, either. I used to get sick a lot but then I got really serious about cleaning my room and handwashing. It really does work. I work in a daycare setting that's open from 7-6. So I know it's hard but I squeeze it in somehow. I use that clorox any surface stuff a lot too.
This probably won't apply to a daycare setting, but never let the students answer the classroom phone. I know plenty of teachers allow students to answer the phone when they are busy or as a classroom job. Think about all the germs that get transmitted by something that gets so close to a person's mouth, not to mention the germs on their hands.
As soon as I read the original post, I immediately thought of AIRBORNE. that stuff is a miracle! I take it whenever I'm going to be traveling on a plane, in a bus, and a couple times a week at school. Also, pop a zinc tab or lozenge each morning. Helps boost the immune system. The lysol ideas have been great too. For the ringworm, and also what I use for my pregnancy related acne, is good old, all natural APPLE CIDER VINEGAR!!! That stuff is a miracle! Put some on a cotton ball and I use it to remove my makeup at night. It won't hurt my baby, and it does wonders for ringworm. I learned that method working in a pet store. Actually Apple Cider Vinegar is a miracle for a lot of things. Google it!!!!
You all are amazing! You have given me so many suggestions and ideas. I have managed to go almost an entire month without getting sick (knock on wood). I take a vitamin C tablet every morning and use Airborne a few times a week (which I LOVE!) Again - THANK YOU!!!
One more thing to add that really helps is to make sure the kids are washing their hands too (washing them properly of course with soap and not just putting thier hand under running water for 5 seconds!). I work in a Keystone Stars facility and under their guidelines the kids have to was their hands: when arriving at school for the day when arriving into your classroom if they were in a different classroom (so if they're in one classroom from 7 to 8 pm until their regular classroom opens up, they'd wash when entering their regular classroom) before snack and lunch after snack and lunch after coming in from the playground before and after water play or play doh after blowing their nose any time a teacher catched them with fingers in their mouths Yup, we do a lot of handwashing! But no, it does not take up the entire day, it just sounds like it LOL! The major benefit here is that the kids stay waaaayyyyy healthier and so do the teachers. In my classroom I seriously cannot remember the last time an illness spread from one child to another. It's been at least a year. Seriouly. Even when we've sent home a kid with diarrhea or vomiting not one other single child has gotten it. And we bleach like maniacs too! We mix a new water/bleach solution daily and use it generously. Kids only eat off tables that have been cleaned as well as sanitized (solution must sit on table for 2 minutes). And after eating we clean and sanitize again so that the toys are placed on clean tables. So anyway, sounds like you're doing better as far as not getting sick but thought I'd offer this up as a way to keep everybody healthier.
Airborne is amazing! They have generic, cheaper kinds too (Target, CVS, etc). I plan on taking 1-2 a week when I start teaching. When I start to feel sick I have 1 or 2, and it typically goes away.
play dectective doctor.. kid has ringworm in hair. kid comes up and gives me hug my face touches his head as we hug or they usually have it on their arm I lean over and give some direct instruction...letter writing they reach out, and hug me no, it does not have to be in warm dark places...it grows in hair and anywhere on skin..
we work hard on self-help skills. we teach our toddlers to blow their own noses, toss the tissue, and wash their hands...all three steps, over and over and over....all day
They have a store here in downtown Chicago. I used to think it was just executive, corporate stuff. sounds like a good find!!
and don't forget the lotion. I have it everywhere! little travel size tubes in the car, bottom of every tote bag, etc. Don't put it on your desk, more germs!! EVERYBODY will start using it! sanitizing tables with bleach solution was just ruining my skin. and constantly washing your hands also dries them out, and especially your nails. So whenever you wash, be sure to moisturize!
yes 6ertchr, how many thousands of people use the secretary's phone in the office! what is the first thing they do when a kid is sick? call home! and what do they do next? they drag that poor kid down to the office, and then the parent has the nerve to say, "Put him on the phone"! so your sick kid picks up the phone and says, "Yes, I'm sick, please come get me." Like the parents don't believe him or you???? I know the secretary has a case of sanitzing wipes!!
and.... before and after going to the water table before and after going to the sand table before and after going to the art easel anytime a teacher catches them with a toy in their mouths the toy goes in the sink too! btw the helpers for lunch must watch their hands first, and you must watch them viligiantly. By habit, they will put there fingers all kinds of places eek: ). As soon as you see this, you must tell them to wash their hands again! Afterawhile, this becomes annoying, and you will catch them self-correcting themselves. a finger goes towards the nose, and they quickly bring it down, and somehow, rub an itchy nose on their friends coat in a cubby instead! uh...that's another story...but at least they didn't stick their finger up their nose!
