One of the things I really take for granted is the super mild and agreeable temper of my baby girl, Lauren. It takes just a few days of her extreme crankiness and irritability to get me down on my knees and thank God for blessing me with the sweetest baby ever. So when Lauren was down with Roseola, I knew never to take her for granted again![space]
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Roseola Symptoms – What You Can Expect
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See, the last week had us up every hour after 12 midnight, soothing and calming down an irate feverish goblin, that kicked, scratched and headbutt us each time she jolted from her slumber.[space]
When she was awake, she’d want nobody, nobody but me. If anyone dared or attempted to take her away from me, she’d be so enraged she’d tear down the house with the sheer power of her screams. Our neighbours came by to see if we were torturing her.[space]
And since it’s the 7th month, Ghost Festival, I even wondered if she saw things she shouldn’t have and got spooked. I sang prayer hymns and she screamed even louder.[space]
High Fever of 40.1 Degrees Celcius
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On Thursday night, she hit 40.1 degrees celcius, and her arms and legs had mottling which totally freaked me out so we rushed her to KKH children’s ER. They did a blood test and it turned out it was a viral infection. No idea what exact virus caused it though, it was too early to tell.[space]
Treatment? Sorry No Treatment
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Verdict? No cure, just let her battle it out, we were told.[space]
So after 4 days of high fever where paracetemol was totally useless, her fever miraculously went away. And on the 5th day, a rash appeared all of a sudden. Ah hah![space]
Rash Appears After Fever Breaks
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This is the demon of a virus that transformed my lovely sweet cheeks into the frenzied, incensed terror that had us totally clueless what to do. The only thing that worked to calm her down, was for ME to carry her and bounce on the gym ball until she dozed off.[space]
If I so much as move her, she’d arch her back, wince and let out her war cry so shrill it’d pierce through our hearts and make us bleed through our eyes.[space]
She refused to eat more than a morsel and only wanted to breastfeed non-stop. Looking back, she hardly walked the entire 4 days cos she had to be carried 24/7 and had her face buried deep into my boobs.[space]
So yep. For more than half a week, I couldn’t brush my teeth, eat breakfast, take a shower or function as a human being because I had a berserker baby on the loose, strapped to me.[space]
The consolation? Babies usually only get Roseola once. Usually is the key word.[space]
In any case, when Lauren grows up, I’d get her to nickname her enemies Roseola.[space]
Update 02 OCT 2017 – Joshie Becomes a Cranky Baby
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It happened again! ARGH! Not to Lauren but to Joshie![space]
This time, it was the classic case of Roseola. Joshie was a chirpy bird by day, and without any warning, transformed into destroyer-of-peace by evening time. There were no telltale signs at all, and after dinner, he was sporting a 40+ fever. Yup. No other symptoms apart from the obscenely high fever and an inconsolable meltdown.[space]
Joshie’s fever spiked so high during the nights, I felt as though I was sleeping next to a furnace. Sigh. And similar to what happened to Lauren, Joshie jolted every 15 minutes while sleeping. Not sure why, but it seems like the Roseola fever has the tendency to cause kids to jolt in their sleep, and cause them to be livid about it.[space]
After enduring 3 full days of whining and whining and non-stop whining, his fever suddenly broke. And then, his whole body was covered in rashes. I didn’t get any photos of Lauren’s roseola rash the last time, so here’s Joshie taking one for the team. And for the record,[space]
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95 Comments
Rosanna
Thanks for this info. I’ve only just realised this is what my son has had as the rash was kind of mild only significant bits were on his buttocks and its been very hot so i thought it was heat rash or a bit of mild nappy rash. Anyway, my son who’s 20 months only had a temp for about a day and a half but he did have a febrile convulsion which was scary. Then he’d be fine on and off but having terrible tantrums and ‘nothing is right’ meltdowns. Really hard. It’s on the way out but it has been very hard with lots of disturbed sleep and breastfeeding most of the night.
Jolene Liow
Hang in there Rosanna! Hope your son is well already!
sandra
thanks for the post ! the pictures of your babies face were very helpful. do you have any tips to alleviate the rash ?
Jolene Liow
Hi Sandra, glad it helped! It’s a viral infection, so there’s no medication that can help in any way. The roseola rash is not itchy and does not cause any discomfort, so don’t worry about it! But if you notice your child feeling discomfort, do bring him/her to the doctor as soon as possible. Hope this helps!
Jimmy
How does little one recover my son is going thru same as he had two days fever now appearing these body rashes any tips
Would be appreciated thank you.
Jolene Liow
Roseola, like HFMD and chickenpox, is a viral infection. There is no medication to speed up recovery, the virus has to run its course and your son will recover on his own.
Kristina M Looney
I am just getting through it with #3 and it is my 3rd time dealing with it as well. He just turned 17 months and his rash started appearing yesterday. Fever started Tuesday morning and broke finally on Friday.
Jolene Liow
Hi Kristina! My #3 just got it recently! And she’s turning 9 months in a few days’ time. Fever broke after 1 day though, thank God!
Erin C.
I just went through it for the 4th time…once with each of my 4 kids all around 15 months. However, the fever was not nearly as high with my UNvaxxed 15 month old (99.5 – 100 degrees Fahrenheit) as it was with my other three kids (the traditional 103ish probably), but the fever lasted for 3 days and then suddenly disappeared last evening and the rash appeared this morning. Once you have roseola however, you have lifelong immunity.
Jolene Liow
4 times! Oh dear! Hugs to you and your LO!
Jennifer
Interesting. Same thing here. Higher fever and more vivid rash with my vaccinated child. Lower fever and milder rash with my unvaccinated child. Both had a febrile seizure, though.
Jennifer
I did see some information that said HHV-6 causes a higher fever than HHV-7, which is another consideration.
Jolene Liow
Hope all is well! Take care!