Child with Cough

My daughter is prone to long lasting coughs..not fun! We use an organic version of vapor rub & put it on her chest and on the bottoms of her feet--then cover with socks...also have to humidifyer going as well. Good luck--that age is sooo tough for remedies!

There are many good suggestions here. My ped says 7-10 days is usually just a cold and over 10 days may be a secondary infection. But if he is this miserable just go to the doctor if you can. There are no longer many OTC cold medicines for babies...but there are some that are by prescription (some doctors will give them and some won't, even in the same practice).

My son is now 12 years old and i haven't had a similar problem in the longest while, but this "treatment" usually worked to ease any night-time stuffiness for him at that age.

Robutussin paediatric night formula

chest rub e.g. Vicks Vapour Rub, on the neck, chest, shoulders, back & the sole of the feet...

a spot of Eucalyptus oil on the neckline of his jammies and on his pillow...

Hope he gets some relief and the rest of the family some sleep! Nat

O and we NEVER had a humidifier!

I am not a professional or doctor, however, this remedy has been suggested and worked for me when i had lost my ability to speak for 90 days--twice. The remedy is to boil a pinch of both hyssops and add a pinch of coltsfoots together in a glass pot. Strain, but do not use any metals--decreases the strength of all herbs. Drink and watch the cough go away instantly. Tea can be drank cold afterwards if you prefer.

A couple of questions:

1) Has he been to the doctor's to rule out anything that needs medicinal intervention (sinus infection, pertussis, bronchitis, pneumonia, etc.)?

2) How long has the cough been going on?

The cough is probably a result of the nasal discharge going down the back of his throat. If he has it for 10 days or more, it most likely means a sinus infection at that point. It's a secondary infection at that point but antibiotics would probably help. CHECK WITH THE DOCTOR FIRST but ours suggests using nose drops to thin out the nasal mucous.

If he hasn't been looked at by the doctor yet though and it's been going on for 10 days or more, I would absolutely start there.

Best of luck!

Try having him sleep on his tummy. If you like him sleeping on his back, try putting a pillow between mattress & crib sheet to keep him slightly elevated. Both of these will help drain his runny nose & reduce the coughing. FYI...keep sucking the mucus out of his nose with one of those asparators.

rub his feet with vicks. use saline drops just before he goes to bed.
ps make sure it's just a dry cough, nothing in his chest. if it has lasted for quite a long time, then you may ask your pediatrician for a nebulizer.

Please take your child to the pediatrician. That was what my last son had and it turned out he got the swine flu. Exact symptoms. The pediatrician tested him right there at the office and told me it takes about 2 or 3 days to get the results and I got it the very next day. He had chest x-ray but the results were fine. So, now my son is on medication and it's been a tough time because I was up all night with him trying things to help him to calm the cough but nothing worked. He was sooooo exhausted from lack of sleep because of the cough that he was out like a light when he was able to. I noticed it's best for him them sit straight up because lying down made the coughing worst and I tried that with my son but he preferred to sleep lying down. Don't we also? Please take him to the dr's ASAP so he can get it tested. For some time, he'll have to stay in the house to get better, not to pass it to others. It's a tough time, but that is what parenting is all about and he'll get the sleep he needs and you'll get the sleep you need.

hi
i just wanted to put a word out to double check before you use any cough supressants, b/c i remember there being a stink about using them on small children. if it's lasted awhile, call the ped to see what they say. wee ones with a bad cough can be so unsettling, but it's not always something so serious. good luck!

I went through this with my daughter. I would try to elevate him while he is sleeping this worked great for my daughter. If we would lay her on her back flat she would cough so much she would vomit. I kept using the saline drops and a bulb syringe. If it lasts more than 3 days I would take him to the doctor. I hope he feels better soon and your family gets some rest.

Hi Y.,

We went through this with our son as well at the same age--see if the pediatrician will give him either a) a prescription for albuterol and a nebulizer or b) an asthma inhaler with an attachment for babies. This definitely helped my son breathe when he was going through this and cleared up his symptoms. If the cough is asthma related, the humidifier can even may the symptoms worse (I know it sounds strange).

My 2-year old son has been through 2 rounds of brochitis and has been diagnosed w/ childhood asthma. It is triggered by colds and mold. He uses his inhaler a couple of times a month and we have his breathing under control.

Good luck and let me know how it works out.

Best,
K.

This is a tough age because there is nothing you can really give them to help. I know my doc when my kids were little would recommend diluting the formula for a few days to help decrease the mucus. Some docs don't believe dairy worsens mucus so I would check with the doc first for suggestions. I do not think that giving extra water will hurt to help with the mucus. Maybe even some diluted juice. Also you can try to elevate his crib slightly. If it is a post nasal drip it may help. If he is coughing only at night that may be the cause. I would also try saline I know they hate it but the more you can thin out the mucus the better he may be able to sleep. Good luck!!

http://www.mamapedia.com/questions/3400402374022463489
Read this thread, about the same issue.
Also I just talked to our ped. about the same issue. As you can see from my answer we had tried everything as well. Our ped. said to try 4 oz. of hot tea mixed with one tablespoon of honey. It has worked like a charm. Three nights in a row, no coughing. Do this about a half hour before bed. I just use a small cup and straw. I do see that your son is nine months and if you are worried about the concerns that come with giving him honey before 12 mon. weigh your options. Don't give him unprocessed/unpasteurized honey. Nothing pure, straight from the bee kind of honey. Is he healthy otherwise, had all of his shots, ect. Its up to you.

Hi there, this sounds just like my daughter. OK, first thing- turn off that humidifier. My daughter's pulminologist says that they build up mold spores. We gave ours to good will, probably should have just recycled it. Second, find a pulminologist. We have a wonderful pulminologist in Stamford, Connecticut, Dr. Sadeghi. I would not just go by your regular doctor, because for 2 years he kept just telling us to give her Benaedryl. Finally, my husband said it sounded more like a lung issue and it was. Our daughter has asthma. We had to find a new owner for our dog. The runny nose has a lot to do with allergies. It is probably not a cold. I am not a doctor, but this sounds just like my Julia. All the best!

Could it be your child may have asthma ? my 6 year old son suffers from asthma especially in the winter and during the night time it acts up even worse than during the day. Talk to your doctor and have him checked for asthma, maybe a nebulizer machine at home can help him. I pray he gets better.

Vicks infant vapor rub on the feet...not sure if anyone suggested this. Just this past year I heard about it a couple of times then found that a few women I work with who have older children did this. Just rub some on the bottom of the feet and put on footy pj's or thick socks. Propping the crib helps too. My sons crib has been propped almost constanty for 2.5 yrs!. Let me ask, is it that deep barking cough? Croupe? If so when he goes into the coughing fit it helps to sit him up, hold him up and bring him into the shower with the hot water running. When my son was young and had this I serioulsy some night either had him sleep on the couch with me - between my legs so that he was barricaded in and was propped so much on me that he was almost sitting up (made for a sleeplness night for me v/c I was pretty much sitting up but it helped him) or I would put him in bed with me (kicked my husband out) and had him propped up with all my pillows and barricaded in so that again, he was practicaly sitting up and again no sleep for me, but I just kept telling myself, I'm the mom, my sick child needs me! LOL. Sounds like a lot of moms are going through this right now. My 2.5 yr old has been pretty sick for a while now too - I hate sickness!!!!!

I would definitely recommend the little noses saline drops for the runny nose. put some in his nose and then use that booger getter to get out whats in his nose. The drops are safe to use whenever. My daughter hater that booger getter though so it might be a bit tough, but it helps. Keep using the humidifier it will help break up the cough and the runny nose. You can buy a liquid additive that you put in the humidifier for his cough. Relion is what I bought, Vicks makes it too. They sell it at wal mart beside the humidifiers. Good luck!

check with the doc to make sure there is nothing going on in his chest. as long as thats ok, i would try a hot steamy bath/bathroom. sit in there with him, put some peppermint/eucalypis oil in the water, or on the floor of the shower and just run the hot shower in there and sit in there with him (not in the water), get steamed for about 15 min before bed.

We use Hylands Cough Syrup which is fine for smaller kids and babies because it is homeopathic and mostly honey. Also, Triaminic Nighttime Cough & Cold - probably 1/2 tsp. for your child depending upon weight.