congestion help

littleheaven

hi

so, dd seems to always be congested, but the last few days have been rough...she'll get to coughing at night real bad to the point where it causes her to vomit

we use the humidifier, the saline drops, the boogie wipes, keeping her head propped up....even tried to give her benadryl last night....(on a side note, any clever ideas on how to give meds to a baby who won't take them that doesn't involve brute force?) she likes milk before bed, so instead of whole, i gave her skim just to cut down on the extra phlegm that might come with the whole....

the last couple of nights were rough...the other night she fell asleep no problem after the coughing/spit up...last night though it was constant coughing and discomfort for her...

i'm at a loss...there really isn't much else to do, right? any ideas? the coughing is the worst at night...no so much during the day (well, that i know of....the time between getting home and bed time it's not bad)

jjdillie

I've used this honey cough syrup a few times and it seems to help.

gagirl2004

The zarbees all natural honey cough syrup really helped Jacey when she was coughing so bad. It tastes good so she took it. I have a medicine hater also and have no advice. Giving Jacey medice is like fighting a pit bull to hold her down. I know they have zarbees at Walgreens and CVS.

littleheaven

thanks everyone...i failed to mention we use the vicks too

we have zarbees...i used it once and she had no problem taking it, but it was awhile ago...i'll give it a try again tonight.....i've tried syringes for medicine, a cup, a spoon...nothing....i hate fighting her for it...i have found chewable tylenol that she'll take no problem, but that won't help here...

last night every time she coughed i ran her to the bathroom in case she spit up...the last few times she spit up i was holding her when she coughed it up, so i'm done being covered in spit up...

and i thought formula puke was bad...milk might be worse! ugh!

BabyHope2013

DS was really congested a few weeks ago and we took him into the ped. They became concerned that he was coughing so bad that he was making himself vomit. Turned out he had a respiratory infection and an ear infection---so onto antibiotics he went. 

Could you try to make medicine "fun"? Not so much fun she wants it all the time. But with DS we make it seem like a sorta treat. We ask in a positive voice, "do you want some medicine". We never call it treat or candy, just medicine. But he will follow us and then I tell him to sit down and he plops on the floor and gets excited to have some. 

Hope she feels better!

littleheaven

she's always been congested since she started day care...and i've brought up to the peds before about her coughing so much she would vomit....every time we go to the dr for a fever or anything, her ears and lungs check out and they chalk it up to "day care"

i've tried to make giving her meds a positive thing, but she knows better....try to put it in the spoon or cup without her seeing so she does't see the bottle...but she knows...

jjdillie

ClaryPax said:

littleheaven said:

she's always been congested since she started day care...and i've brought up to the peds before about her coughing so much she would vomit....every time we go to the dr for a fever or anything, her ears and lungs check out and they chalk it up to "day care"

i've tried to make giving her meds a positive thing, but she knows better....try to put it in the spoon or cup without her seeing so she does't see the bottle...but she knows...

I would push them on it or get a second opinion.  She might not need a nebulizer, but I would ask about it and want them to tell me she doesn't need it and why.  My doctors are all about the nebulizer- not for congestion but for cough.  I just don't like the well its just daycare attitude.  Yes it is, but it is no longer cold and flu season so the DC kids are better. 

I agree with this.  DS has used a nebulizer since he was 6 months, I think. Sometimes I think it helps and sometimes I don't think it does anything. But it is definitely worth a shot. Our pedi sent us to an ENT just to make sure there were no issues with his adenoids, even though he's never had an ear infection. The ENT said everything looked good and it made me feel better. DS's issues are mostly allergy/asthma related.

spainy17

There is chewable Benadryl too!

SWOG31

I hate coughs and generally take my kid in when she starts coughing really bad because she's had RSV before. However, like pp said, that season is now over and most congestion during this time is sinus/allergy related. I just experienced this because DH took DD in to the pedi because she started coughing really bad at night for 4-5 days straight. Since she had been dealing with nasal congestion the week prior, I wanted to make sure it didn't turn in to something serious. The pedi said she was fine, and that the coughing was most likely because her sinuses were draining. Seasonal allergies are just as bad as colds IMO.

littleheaven

we tried Claritin last night....no luck
i had put a call into the dr yesterday morning and when he finally called he said it might be reflux related but to bring her in tomorrow but of course he waited so long to call back that the offices were closed....the office opens after i get to work....so we're going to send her to dc (she's fine during the day- they haven't reported anything) and I'll have to call and make an apt....which sucks bc i work at least 45 mins from her dc...the dr is near there...but i could plan my day better if i already knew when her apt will be...
i digress....i hope the dr can help....can't take another night of being covered in puke...however after the coughing/vomit last night she slept peacefully unlike the other night where she coughed thru the night