About the Varicella Series

Through these studies, I am chronicling the incubation of the virus in the human body. Each day, the virus grows until it finally becomes contagious.

Many of us can remember a point in our childhood where we contracted a virus: Chicken pox. It lasted a few weeks, gave us a slight fever, and left crusty blisters in its wake. And it itched like crazy.

Once you have it, you’re granted immunity for life. Unlike many infections, the earlier you were infected, the less severe. For those adults who never had it, it can be deadly.

This shared experience of childhood is now disappearing, as more parents vaccinate their children with the chicken pox vaccine. Varicella Zoster Virus (chicken pox), a nuisance virus, is now so well extinguished by a vaccine that parents must go through great lengths to naturally expose their children.

In a world of seemingly limitless medical technology, we struggle to cure every illness before it arises. Until 1995, Varicella was the only major childhood illness to not have a vaccination. The vaccination lasts 7 years and requires a booster, which many people avoid- unwittingly making them susceptible to a more severe case later in life.

With the growing number of vaccines administered to young children, some parents are seeking other ways to gain natural immunity to the virus. While some parents hold “Chicken Pox Parties” to gain exposure, others are going to greater extremes: sending saliva soaked lollipops with from their sick children to help infect others.

My sisters and I caught chicken pox during the same time period – a modern day “pox party,” perhaps. We itched our blisters and my mother covered our skin with calamine lotion. We curled up in bed, into mountains of soft pillows, and enjoyed the week off of school.