Positive covid test - should I isolate from my toddler?

The first time we had COVID (with unvaccinated kids at the time) we tried to isolate the members testing positive from those testing negative for the full ten days and then a week later the other half got it anyhow. The second time it started with a kid (we think the first time may have been a false positive b/c symptoms were worse the second time) and we just resigned ourselves - two of the remaining family members had asymptomatic cases and the other never tested positive. I know there's some alarming data out there on long COVID, and that may be reason to attempt the isolation, but in our experience it prolongs the collective family experience of COVID isolation and delays the overwhelming likelihood your kid will see SARS-CoV-2 it in their lifetime. (Obviously if your kiddo/spouse have specific medical vulnerabilities that changes the calculus!) 

I recently had covid that manifested as mild cold symptoms. I did not strictly isolate from the rest of my family, but my partner slept on the couch, and I did wear an N95 mask at home whenever I was in the same room as anyone else. My partner and kids mostly did not mask. We ran our air purifiers constantly and generally tried to keep windows open. I had symptoms for 3-4 days, tested positive for 8 days. No one else in my family caught it. But again, my symptoms were mild. I was not coughing much, so I think the risk of spread was lower than if I had been coughing and sneezing a lot.

Hope you feel better quickly!

I would isolate yourself from your wife and toddler - either at home (this is really hard and not really considered "isolated", even if you stay in your own bedroom/bathroom, but some accomplish it) or by leaving the house altogether and going to a hotel. Risks to their health are not nil. Fingers crossed for the 3 of you to get through this with minimal issues. 

If you set up your space with good air flow and you mask in an N95 or better, it should make it less likely that you infect your family. If they can also mask in quality masks, that will reduce the chance they get it considerably. Air purifiers in common areas and open windows will go a long way to keep the virus from hanging around your house.

Isolating is the best way to keep Covid from getting to everyone, but it's hard to solo parent a toddler for that long. Good luck to you and your family!

If she hasn't been vaccinated, and contracts Covid, she could potentially be a significant risk to the younger siblings and pregnant mothers. So it is reasonable to keep her home until you you and she are both definitively negative.

I have several friends who successfully avoided passing COVID through their household by isolating the people who are positive. One parent or a parent+child combo positive, with one parent or parent+child combo still negative. (IMO it's not worth isolating if both parents are positive, or if all children are positive with only one parent negative.) It is indeed easier if you have a basement or a second floor.

I'm not a doctor nor infectious disease expert, but I worked on COVID guidance for SF in 2020/2021. My advice is if it's really impossible for you to physically isolate and especially since your child is not vaccinated, you should wear an N-95 mask around your family. If you have air filters, use them. Open windows if possible. Get air moving. 

It's also worth trying to get Paxlovid for yourself. CA Dept of Public Health was advising everyone to try getting it, even if you weren't obviously eligible on paper. There's no shortage of it, and it will help lessen your viral load.

But quite honestly, if your return from work travel was more than a few days ago, it's probable you've exposed them both already. Most young kids get through COVID ok, but some don't. Since your child is not vaccinated, it's still worth trying to prevent them from getting it. At least if/until they start feeling sick too, in which case isolation doesn't matter anymore.

Best of luck, and rest if you can! 

We went through this recently. The pediatrician said ideally yes but almost no one can do that realistically (and my husband and I were both positive so not even an option). Next best thing is to mask around your kid, ideally with an N95 (best) or KN95. We wore N95s for the full 10 days and our baby never got it - and we tested her many many times, poor thing. Very uncomfortable but worth it for us.

Good luck! 

These were our recent experiences. Maybe they will be helpful to you…
 

My husband recently had COVID again and he did isolate from me and our 2 toddlers as much as he could. He slept downstairs away from us and when we did all hang out together he was masked at all times and we spent a lot of time outdoors. He had a mild case and luckily he did not infect us. But my kids were still allowed to attend daycare/preschool as long as they were testing negative (we tested daily) so they did have less exposure to him overall.

Last summer we all got COVID from him and he masked and tried to isolate from us as much as is possible in a small house but we had to all stay home due to the regulations in place back then. So we all got it. He also got decently sick so maybe he was more infectious too. 
either way I do think isolating helps! I know it’s really hard to do with little ones but you should at the minimum mask and try limit contact at least for the first 5 days.

good luck and hope you are all soon!
 

When I got covid from traveling, I wore an n95 mask at all times around my family and while caring for my toddler. I did not sleep with a mask on. Thankfully, no one else in my family got sick.

Thanks everyone!! Super helpful responses all around.

I did get Paxlovid and am feeling pretty much all better now. Hearing these responses I'm inclined to make sure my wife is taken care of and come out of isolation, she's starting to feel sick (no positive Covid tests) and we're theoretically preparing for a trip to London for a wedding next week. 

My only concern really is the potential for long covid symptoms in any of us, but perhaps that's just not very likely, especially if we can keep the viral load low?