I had never considered anything along the lines of “must have tech when your kids are sick”. It never even crossed my mind. We have what we have, and that’s the end of it. Well, after more than two years, it happened. Someone in my house came down with COVID. My seven-year-old got sick at school, thankfully very mildly, but the recommendation is to keep him away from everyone else, especially his two-year-old sister.
With two kids in a two bedroom home, isolation has been chaos, but it got me thinking, how did people get through these kinds of things before we were drowning in tablets, TVs, and handheld video game systems? I often take for granted everything we have access to, and the number of ways our children can keep themselves entertained when they are on their own. Mind you, he was still bored with nothing to do all day every day if you ask him.
So there is my little guy, spending five days in his room, surrounded by all the toys in the world. Luckily for me, he has been well enough to play with them—though the disinfecting later is going to be a nightmare. But if he happened to be too sick to play, or, in our case, just can’t leave his room, I wanted to share a list of must have tech for when your kids are sick.
An Air Purifier
Strangely enough, I had just picked up the Dreo Macro Pro True HEPA Air Purifier for a review. It was actually still in the box when I found out my son was sick. I ripped that box open so fast, like it was a miracle cure. To be clear, an air purifier is not going to stop you from getting sick, but it did give me peace of mind.
I have always been hesitant about air purifiers. They were never must have tech for me since you can’t actually SEE what they are doing. The Dreo Macro Pro True HEPA Air Purifier has impressed me so far though, even without visual proof that it is helping.The device is whisper quiet, and even has a sleep mode, so all the lights are turned off, and it continues working overnight at its lowest setting. I’ve noticed a big difference in the house, even with it just running in my son’s room.
Normally, this time of year, the windows are wide open, and between spring and my two cats, I’m sniffling, sneezing, and coughing due to allergies. This hasn’t been the case since we started using an air purifier. What’s more, is that my seven-year-old has been holed up in his room, doors closed, and usually it is very stuffy…and sometimes smelly. So far, so good, on that front too. I’d highly recommend an air purifier regularly, but it is definitely must have tech if your children are sick. Even if it can help even the tiniest amount.
A Television and/or Tablet
We have talked before about kids and YouTube. Nothing seems to keep their attention the way other people playing with toys does. I can’t explain it, but it works. I can hear the TV from the living room, thankfully, because I don’t love the idea of unmonitored YouTube for a seven-year-old. Though we usually limit the amount he can watch each day, screen time limits have gone out the window this week. For the first time since we got it, his TV has been a piece of must have tech.
YouTube can be watched on his tablet, or his Roku TV, both also provide him with Netflix and Disney+. It’s not like when we were kids, home sick and stuck watching mom’s soap operas. He can watch the shows he loves at his convenience, and as many times as he wants. Disney+ gives us access to the all powerful Encanto that has been watched on repeat this week. Life is good.
The tablet, on the other hand, is a lifesaver for so many other reasons. Yes, your kids can watch what they want at their leisure, that’s a given. But with my son in isolation, which can happen for other illnesses as well, it gave us the chance to eat dinner as a family, or have daily check-ins with Grandma, through the Messenger Kids app. My kiddo could call me just to say hey, send cute text messages, draw pictures and just let me know he was thinking about me, and vise versa. It really came in handy.
A Video Game Console
Of course, tablets can handle the odd game or two, like Minecraft and Roblox, some can even take Fortnite on pretty well. That being said, our Nintendo Switch has temporarily moved into my son’s room. My nephew was sick at the same time, so the Nintendo Switch became a lifeline for the best buddies who couldn’t hang out. It was nice to hear my son laughing and playing with his cousin, and helped him feel less alone.
The Switch also kept him entertained, especially with the new release of LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga releasing last week, never mind the countless other games he has on there. At night, I would sit at the end of our long hall, and have him sit in a chair by his doorway, so we could log on to Fortnite and play together. It gave us common ground, even though we couldn’t be in the same room. Gotta leave it to Nintendo for bringing families together.
The same could apply to gaming laptops, the Xbox Series X|S or PlayStation 5, but he is seven after all, the Nintendo Switch is definitely his go-to.
When your kids are sick, the goal is to keep them calm, cool, and clean. I’m sure there are plenty of other more serious must have tech items when your kids are sick—like a thermometer perhaps—but these are the ones that kept us sane this week.
If you have any tech tricks when your kids are sick, share them below!
