My 11yo went on a holiday and came home with chickenpox

“I could bloody scream … How can some people be so bloody selfish?”

A mum is furious after her 11yo became infected with chicken pox after spending time with other kids on holiday. 

It was supposed to be the perfect end to the school holidays; Julie* and her 11-year-old son were staying in a caravan with some other friends and family for five nights, and so far, everything was great. 

The kids loved running around and playing with each other, and Julie was content spending time with the other parents. 

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Julie's son developed chicken pox on his first week of high school. Picture: iStock

“I bloody hope my son isn't going to come down with chickenpox”

However, one the last night of the holiday, she saw one of the kids running around the caravan park without a shirt on, covered head-to-toe in spots. 

“One of the other families asked, and his mum said, ‘Oh, he has chicken pox, but we thought getting away would do him good’,” Julie recounted on Mumsnet.

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This put Julie on the back foot immediately, as her son had never had chicken pox before, and she was worried her son could become infected.

“I said I bloody hoped my son was not going to come down with them,” she told the other parents. In response, another parent scolded the family of the sick kid and argued the family shouldn’t have even taken the child with them. 

The infected child’s parents weren’t too impressed with being told off, so they went inside their caravan “in a huff”; the next day, the families all packed up and left, ready to face the world again. 

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A few days had passed, and soon Julie was prepping her child for the start of the term; it was her 11yo’s first day at high school, so tension was high. Her son was one of the only kids to attend the high school from his primary school, so he’s worried he won’t be able to make friends. 

So you can imagine how horrified Julie was when she woke up her son and discovered him covered in spots. “Now has chicken pox and won’t be in for his first week at high school,” the British mum said, furious. 

“Tonight he is now crying, saying he won’t name any friends now and he won’t know his way around, and no amount of comforting will calm him down,” Julie said. After giving her son’s teacher a call and explaining why he missed this crucial part of the school year, she was reassured that he wouldn’t miss anything too important. 

But it didn’t calm Julie down; in fact, it made her even angrier. “I could bloody scream,” she said. “How can some people be so bloody selfish?”  

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Julie couldn't believe her son picked up the infection during school holidays. Picture: iStock

“Why on earth did they let their kid out?”

People were heartbroken for Julie’s son and shared their fury towards the family who allowed their infected child to spread their nasty little germs at the caravan park. 

“Oh, that is bad. I’m so sorry for your son. Some people have no idea,” a mother wrote. “I had to tell someone who is normally very sensible not to bring their baby with chicken pox to a church service recently.”

“God, that’s awful,” said another. “Why on earth did they let their kid out?” 

“That’s incredibly s**t timing! Poor kid,” a third added. “Poor thing, the timing is a bit miserable. He is, however, still young and getting it out of the way,” said another parent. “I had it as an adult, and it was so bad (I cried every day for at least two weeks).” 

But others weren’t as sympathetic to the frustrated mother, with many arguing it was a good thing her son was infected. 

“The boy’s parents with chicken pox are not selfish,” read a defiant comment. “Everyone is selfish; if that's the case, who leaves the house with a sore throat or a cold or any virus at all.”

“Was the plan for him to avoid it his whole life?” asked another.

“He can still make friends when he goes to school. Are you transferring your anxieties to your child?” read a third comment. 

*Names have been changed

Originally published as My 11yo went on a holiday and came home with chickenpox