My daughter is 17 months old and she just started daycare. We have been struggling with a cold for about two weeks now. She had gotten better for a few days than it came back again. We have tried everything that the doctor suggested. Elevating the head of her crib, kept a humidifier running, suctioned her nose and gave her childrens motrin every 6 hours. She has gotten a little better but she still can't seem to shake of her cough. Is there something else that I need to be doing?
Did her DR test her for RSV? If not, might be a good idea. It's viral and has to run it's course but is very contagious and easily caught in a daycare setting. If that has been ruled out then how about allergies? It is tree pollen time and can get the best of anyone, even little kids!! Or she could be allergic to something in the room that she is breathing in. Cleaners, air freshners or even a poor ventilation system can cause a constant runny nose.
Just some thought!!
Sharie
There are several different herbs that you can give her. But what you could do is give her an extract called Kid-E-Well from www.herbsfirst.com. You could go to your local health food store and tell them what the problem is and they can direct you to something on their shelves. She obviously needs something to boost her immune system so her body can fight. (GNC is NOT a health food store...just thought I'd add that in there.)
My 13 mth old grandbaby has the same problem. I took her for the weekend and now she is better. This might help you. Make sure she has clean clothes on at all times,even after you take her outside because the season is changing.What ever toys she puts in her mouth makes sure you wash them all the time. If you have tables make sure they are wiped down all the time. Keep all floors clean. Give her Tylanol Cold & Allergery every four to five hours and lots of Oj, because of Vita C. Vita C fights colds. Milk is probably making her more congested. Feed her items that have vitamins in them, which will help to build her system up to fight colds. Hope this helps, it did for me.
Sincerely
LAM
My kids eat garlic like candy and I give them vitamin C everyday. Garlic is great for the immune system. Get the gel capsules. See if she will chew them up, if not pop a small hole in them and squeeze them into her mouth. My kids love the Odorless kind and do not like the regular. My kids rarely get sick and when they do get sick, it doesn't last long. They also go to the chiropractor on a regular basis. I have 3 kids under the age of 5. The youngest turning 2 this month.
Usually it is a weak immune system which could be for so many reasons! I would remove all toxic cleaners from the home and go with green ones! You would not believe what a difference that can make. I have a friend with two children who had constantly sick kids. It took several months but after removing ALL the cleaners especially laundry products that remain on them 24/7. She gave them supplements to strengthen the immune system and stayed away from the doctors office as much as possible. She gave them a multi, extra C, and probiotics to get the healthy bacteria back in balance since the kids had been on antibiotics a lot and that kills he good and bad bacteria in your system. I am the mom of 11 children from 21 to 2 and I have used a similar routine with mine and had very healthy children even though both my hubby and I were very sick children. If you want to talk or get more specific about what I or my friend do/did e-mail me.
To he health of you and your child!
Karen
I'm writing because I feel like I'm going through the same thing with my five year old. He's been coughing for about a month now. I think he actually had two cold back to back because his symptoms got better and then he got all stuffy again before he was totally over the first one. I finally took him to the doctor earlier this week and they found nothing wrong. Even sent us for a chest x-ray since he'd been coughing so long. All clear. So she advised giving him claritin daily for a week and see if that helps clear up the lingering cough. Now, I don't know if you can give claritin to a 17 mo. old, but maybe the doctor would recommend something else? Basically sounds like you are doing all you can. Spring is coming, hopefully the germs will slow down.
Hi Kimberly, sorry your little girl isn't feeling well. I don't know what to tell you as there could be any number of reasons she is still sick: Allergies, virus, bacterial infection. You just never know. Viruses usually only last about 72 hours. Sometimes, if they don't go away on their own, they can turn bacterial. Don't be scared, that's not as bad as it sounds. She may just need a regimen of antibiotics. Ask the doctor to test her T-cells, if they are elevated, she is fighting off an infection.
However, if her mucus is clear and the cough is only superficial, I wouldn't worry too much. Could just be allergies. 'Tis the season for running noses, watery eyes, and constant hacking.
Oh, and one more thing. If you find that her mucus is clear, but she has a deep barking cough, do get that checked out also. A good rule of thumb for the future: If she hasn't improved within a week, it's usually a good idea to see the doctor. Good luck ladies. Hope she feels better soon!
Hi Kimberly,
First of all, tis the season. I know a lot of people suffering this year. Are you sure it is a cold and not allergies? Have you tried a cough syrup or antihistamine. Motrin is really for fevers and aches, but you want to tackle the mucus! My son is 2 1/2 and he has had to take this stuff on and off since he was an infant because of allergies and sinuses. Does she have anything besides a cough?
Hope she feels better.
Shari
First, just a reminder that any advice you get especially about medicine should be approved by your doctor!
Okay, Hi! I'm Susan and mother to a six year old and a four year old. So, the latest research is that babies and children should not get cough medicine or cold medicine. Look it up on aap.org!
Also, I would be careful about giving Motrin every 6 hours. If there's no fever, I'm not sure I would give it. If my babies had a fever, I would give a dose of Motrin followed by Tylenol six hours later and flip flop like that to keep the fever down.
Running a humidifier is GREAT! I do it constantly all fall and winter long and well into the spring.
Something I keep on hand ALWAYS is saline nose drops. Little Noses makes them. They have decongestant and regular. I recommend just the regular kind. I use it for me and my girls. It's amazing stuff. Just put a couple of drops in the nostril and it really clears up little noses (thus the name, I suppose) and helps them breathe. They don't like drops of water in their noses but I hold them down and put two or three in each side. It really works!
I would avoid any foods that produce mucus...orange juice, milk, etc. I like Dr. Sears or Dr. Weil (both have websites) for advice on these things.
I just want to say that this season is producing some CRAZY bad bugs! My mother was sick for five weeks then got it again.
Finally, YOU are the best judge of your daughter's health. If you feel it's more than just a cold, keep taking her back to the doctor, ask for a specialist, etc. YOU are your child's advocate! Don't be shy about asking for another opinion etc. If you feel it's a cold she's not shaking, give it another week...I would take colds 14 days at a time because that's the length of the cycle.
Keep her hydrated, both of you get plenty of rest, and take care of YOU too!
Hello,your Daughter could have allergies.I know my daughter was going through all that and I took her to a allerge doctor who told me alot.The first thing you can do is go to wal-mart or k-mart and get a the name has went from my head but it cleans the air in the room.At wal-mart it is located near the paints area.It is not costly at all get a small tower for her room(40.00)Keep it running and in about two days you will notice a big change.I did with my daughter.She started sleeping better also.I know have a large one in the living room and in the other childrens room.Daycares also are not that clean and the children there are going to past the grems around.I hope this works for you.
Hi Kimberly,
I have a couple suggestions. I use a herbal vapor rub on my 2 year old and swear by it! It works like a charm. I rub it on her chest/back and in between her toes, this really works and uses reflexology trigger points. I have a natural product, the vicks has ingredients you dont want to put on your child! A cough can last 2-3 weeks, normal. My daughter had similar episodes at that age, may be allergies or a result of the change in weather. The other suggestion is vitamins. I have another product (my business is natural health products and I have an excellent children's line). My daughter has not missed a day of preschool all year, knock on wood, since taking my new vitamins. It is a powder that you put in water or I put it in her milk. It is filled with vitamins/minerals and a superfood component that has 28 fruits and veggies. This boosts their immune system. My products are vegan certified and the vitamins are according to USP standards. You have to be careful with kids vitamins, some gummies were found to have lead in them! Also, you want to make sure your system is absorbing them, a lot don't absorb because they have so many fillers in them so they aren't effective.
Let me know if you want more information. The vitamins are recommended at age 2, so not sure your daughter could take but something to think about when she turns 2. I highly recommend them!
Hi Kimberly!
We placed our daughter in daycare for a brief time around 6 months or so after having too many nannies that were kind of "flaky" in a row. We were not prepared for paying for daycare and paying for emergency nannies when my daughter repeatedly got sick. It was one cold after another!
We too, just suffered from a cold in our home, our daughter's colds usually run two to three weeks and they go through the runny nose stage and then to the cough and other stuff.....until it is done.
I will tell you that after our daughter was coughing for four nights with no relief, her pedi. did call in some antibiotics to help her kick it.
I think these colds go quickly to bacterial with the sinus stuff and the meds to help them get rid of it.
Our entire family was on Z Packs. And we don't even like or advocate antibiotics but believe me, we could not get out of bed.
Hi Kimberly
I have twin 16mth olds and when we get colds...everyone gets them. Our doctor told us to elevate their heads at night. She suggested putting a towel or small blanket under their crib mattress where their heads are. AND IT WORKS!! It allows for the mucus to drain rather than just lying flat at night and they would breathe sooo much better at night. I also use a hot mist humidifier. I put menthol oil in it for that extra boost. That combination has saved us during this cold season. Our kids would get a cold, but it never developed into anything more, thank goodness. Also, there was a time frame where they had something for over 2 weeks! It was just a lingering cold that all of our friends' kids got as well and for the same length of time. I hope this helps!
I don't have anything new to add to the advice - just want to echo several that have worked for us:
SALINE NOSE DROPS - 3 drops, 3 times per day, for 3 days. This is the "magic formula" that our ped. advises. If she's congested, get the Little Noses congestion drops, otherwise use regular Little Noses saline drops. The sniffing action (versus blowing the nose) also helps to drain any fluid from the ears. Use the mild (1/8%) concentration - order it through the local pharmacy if they don't carry it. They can usually have it the next day.
AVOID MUCUS-CAUSING FOOD/DRINK - this just adds to the coughing problem. If you're not sure, ask your doctor, he/she will be able to give you a list of such foods. (Milk is a major culprit but I know it's hard to keep them from drinking it if they really like it.)
ELEVATED SLEEPING - this does work. When our son had RSV we had to let him sleep between us in the bed to keep him up on the pillows, but after a few nights he was much better.
VITAMINS - this will help her immune system strengthen itself so that she will be able to fight off future infections sooner. Check with your local health food store for a safe supplement - they make vitamin drops that you can add to her drink and she won't even notice it's in there.
REMEMBER - as several of the other moms have stated, YOU are the expert on your daughter, and you have instincts for a reason. Children under 2 have a much harder time fighting illness because their immune systems are "naive"; they have to be exposed to something to be able to build the antibodies they need to be immune to it next time. So just try to think about this as her body's learning period. It will get better.
Good Luck!
My son was in daycare around this age and seemed to have a continuous ear infection. We treated him with all different kinds of antibiotics and it just wouldn't go away. When I quit work and stayed home with my second baby, I finally got it to clear up. I think the kids just keep passing these things around over and over. At any rate, have you had her checked for an ear infection? Sometimes they manifest with a cough instead of ear pain. Also, we are dealing with a cough with my six year old that has been going on it seems for months if not a year. The most recent diagnosis was asthma that manifests as coughing. He's on steroids and a couple of different inhalers, which seemed to work for a little while but now don't seem to be working as well. Maybe this could be it too? I would take her back to the pediatrician and tell them that she's had a relapse and see what they say.
Kimberly,
Hugs to you and your little one. I know this is a hard thing to deal with because she's so little and you just want to fix it. Unfortuantely, colds are persistent and tough to get a handle on before they end up with secondary infections like sinusitis or brochitis. Also, what your daughter is experiencing is something that happens to many children when they enter school, whether pre-school or elementary school. Suddenly, they are exposed to many more germs than they ever have before. Although tough now, her immunity system will build up over time.
How long has the cold been going on? When was the last time she saw the pediatrician? If the advice you were given is not working, call their office and ask them how long you should keep up the recommended regimen before returning for a follow up visit.
To me, it sounds like she has a lot of sinus drainage in her throat which is causing the coughing. I think I would ask the doctor for his or her opinion on a saline nasal spray and a product like Mucinex which thins the mucus. Zicam is another great over-the-counter product to use at the onset of a cold. The nasal swabs work best and the active ingredient is zinc. All of these things work very well for our family but we have teenagers and I don't know if this will work for a 17 month baby. Hope this helps, Sandra
You are doing all the right things. The saline drops should help - even if you don't suction it helps with congestion. My DD has had the same thing. The bug that is going around is really nasty (DH and I got it too) the cough can linger for 2-3 weeks. It stinks, and it really stinks to see your LO sick. As long as she is breathing well I wouldn't worry.
Daycare can be tough with all of the kids- but as some of my more experienced mom friends and my ped has said: it is sick now or sick later. I really hope they are right and that they are building up their immune systems and will be healthier later on.
It could be a sinus infection. My pediatrician said they consider it a sinus infection if the runny nose doesn't go away in 10-12 days. My daughter (also 17 months) gets sinus infections after almost every cold. I can always tell it's a sinus infection because she'll go from having a runny nose (clear, moving fluid) to a green, sticky nose. The other telltale sign for us is that her breath smells very funny (a result of the backed up mucus in her sinuses). I hope this helps.
Our pediatrician said he has seen these colds lasting for 3-4 weeks this season! My 10 month old son doesn't even go to daycare and had a cold the whole month of January (it really did last almost 4 weeks!). I would just keep suctioning and using the humidifier, like you are doing. Just monitor her and if she gets worse, then take her back in. Otherwise, you just have to wait it out! Sounds like you are doing a great job!