Because you live with a professional virus collector: daycare kids average 10 to 12 respiratory infections a year (normal per the AAP), and research confirms childcare raises infection rates for parents and household members too.
Kids shed viruses longer, at higher levels, with worse hygiene, at point-blank range. The arc is reassuring: it peaks in the first two daycare years and eases as their immune library fills. Pymander's escalation routing is built and tested specifically for this class of decision; see the safety architecture working paper .
What to do
Common questions
Why do I get frequent colds from my kids?
Because you are living with a professional virus collector, and the numbers explain everything. Young children in daycare average 10 to 12 respiratory infections a year - considered normal by the American Academy of Pediatrics - and research reviewing childcare and household transmission confirms the second half of the deal: childcare attendance raises infection rates not just for the child but for parents and other household members. Your child's immune system is doing its apprenticeship - meeting and memorizing every circulating virus - and they shed those viruses longer, at higher levels, with worse hygiene, at extremely close range (into your face, onto your food, across your pillow). The reassuring arc: this peaks in the first couple of daycare years and eases as their immune library fills in, and the silver lining research hints at is real - parents' repeated exposures may sharpen their own defenses over time. What actually reduces your share: handwashing after nose-wiping duty, not sharing cups and utensils during a household cold, keeping your own sleep defended (your stress-sleep-immunity chain is the amplifier), and accepting that two winters of this is the tuition, not a sign something is wrong with you.