Is adult chicken pox as bad as they say?
Seriously, he needs to get the exact dates and figure out of the kids – ANY of the kids – are contagious. He does not want to get this as an adult. He may begrudge missing this one weekend, but if he doesn’t and ends up with pox, the chances are very high that he’ll miss at least one, different weekend anyway. Oh, and a ton of work days, too.
I had it when I was thirty. He needs to avoid it at all costs. What generally is a mild illness in a child (my kids had it and gave it to me) is worse than the flu for a grownup. And it really is true that adults are more prone to have complications with it (thankfully I didn’t but it was certainly bad enough.) Have him give his doc a call.
Nthing “he doesn’t want to get it”. I had it at 19 and I was in bed for a week, terrified it would get into my eyes and I’d go blind. At 39 I still show some scars. It’s worth his missing some parenting time to keep from getting sick. The kids have been taken to a chicken pox party by his separated wife, so should all have chicken pox by now. If she did this without his knowledge/consent, she can damn well care for them until this has passed.
Thank you everybody for your information and experiences!! I’ve been passing on the information, and I think he’s getting the message. On another note, I do want to impress that this WASN’T due to a chicken pox party like I had thought and put in the addendum. Just being around other kids who happened to have chicken pox normally. Either way, it sounds like he should avoid it to be sure.
