Excessive Thirst at Night

HI S.,
I agree with Mimi. Your son's immune system is so depleted right now that he isn't able to fight off much. At only 14 months, he sure has had a lot for his little system to handlle. Like Mimi said, you certainly have choices... Dont ever forget that as a mom:) Seeing a chiropractor would more than likely eliminate the need for tubes. If you haven't tried this yet, why not start with the least invasive?? Chiropractic care would also help with his allergies and in return it could fix his problems all together. He also needs acidophilus to rebuild his good bacteria that all the antibiotics have destroyed. If this isn't corrected now, he will have a weak immune system for a very lone time. I wish you guys the best. Just dont be afraid to look into alternative care, sometimes it really is that simple!

Hi S.,

The Nasonex and the Zyrtec are dehydrating him. If you read the insert with the medication it is one of the most common side effects. More water doesn't always satisfy the need for water either because the med is working against it. Nasonex is a steroid and will not only break down his immune system but will thin his bones. Osteoperosis is becoming more and more prominent in children these days from all the steroid use. One week of steroid use, even topically, does as much damage as a woman going through menopause.

Also, his allergies and asthma are worse and needing help because the antibiotics are breaking down his immune system also. He is not able to fight off the allergens with his own system. The ear infections will continue to come back if it is not rebuilt.

Antibiotics don't and CAN'T help croup. Sometimes they will help an ear infection if the proper antibiotic is prescribed but it's kind of hit or miss. Croup is a viral infection and antibiotics only assist bacterial infections.

The best thing at this point is try to build his immune system. A good absorbable multivitamin and a probiotic is needed to contradict the antibiotic and my suggestion would be to find an upper cervical chiropractor for his ear infections. My oldest had a series of infections when she was little and the doctor suggested tubes. I went to a good chiropractor and we were able to dodge them altogether. What a lot of people don't understand is that a chiropractor is not someone who fixes backs. A chiropractor assists the spine to allow the neurological system to work properly. When it works properly, the immune system can take care of the rest of the problems.

I wish I had understood all this a long time ago but no one shared the information with me. My mother also gave me a lot of meds as a child that I am paying for now. My mom was a smart women, she just didn't know there were choices. I know this is not mainstream thought, but you have choices. I'll be glad to help more if you like. Please email me if you want to talk.

God bless!

M.

Poor thing. I'm wondering if a cold mist humidifier in the room might help a little. It does sound like he's getting very dehydrated, from the illness or medicine or whatever, so I would continue with the bottles of water. (Someone said make sure it's COLD, but I think he might drink less then. The old "brain freeze", you know? Well, I guess you can figure out what works best easily enough.)

Can you still nurse him? Even if there isn't much milk these days, nursing is very comforting and it helps to regulate their heartbeat, reduce stress levels, and even kills pain, if he's hurting.

S.
I'm so sorry to hear about your night struggles! I wish I had some insight to that, but I do have a question about his ear infections and the tubes. Has anyone ever avised you to get a scratch test for food allergies? The reason I ask is because my daughter was having excessive ear infections as well(asthma problems too) and she was also on an allergy free formula....we didn't want tubes so we opted to start finding out the root of the problem. The scratch test showed she was allergic to corn ( the very first ingredient in her formula) egg and cats. Since then we have had no problem with ear infections...just a thought. I hope he gets better for you all quickly and that you all get some sleep!

Juli Kleine
SAHM of two daughters 4 and 3

I have always heard that excessive thirst may be a sign of diabetees.As for the Croup,My oldest daughter had the croup
so bad that we every timended up in the ER a couple times a month.Every time,I noticed that the trigger was that she
had the runny nose then got too hot.Maybe the heat was turned up to high or I had to many clothes on her.Either way,she always got the croup.Once,she had to stay in the hospital under a croup
tent.My daughter did have her tonsils and adnoids out and tubes in her ears.This helped a great deal with the croup but we had
more trouble with her ear.In fact she cannot hear well out of one ear due to infections.The tube got clogged and stopped working

I am so sorry to hear of the difficult time you are both having. I went through something similar with my daughter (now 10). It may not be exactly the same situation, but I at least hope to encourage you. When my daughter was still nursing, especially following addition of formula then whole milk, she began drinking large amounts at bedtime and even waking up to want something to drink during sleep hours. Even after starting allergy medicine, she would want to drink twice the amount of bottle she should need before going to sleep, sometimes to the point that it caused her to vomit the excess. I came to realize that mucus in her throat and chest caused all of this supposed excessive thirst. What was happening (still happens as well as enlarged tonils more often than not) is that the postnasal drainage is bothersome, causing her to want to drink it down, much as I instinctively feel like eating something dry myself to clear the constant mucus in my throat. We are constantly reacting to things in our environment, right down to the perfumes in our linens or dust from the curtains. I found out that my daughter did best with her maintenance meds for allergies to be taken at night as well as a decongestant and sometimes, when she has more drainage, adding an expectorant (most often guaifenesin is used). The expectorant breaks up mucus and allows the body to dispose of it better, instead of it just sticking to the mucous membranes in the passageways. Many doctors will not suggest an expectorant unless they hear wet cough, but it has worked well for both my daughter and me for many years. We also use quite a bit of saline solution to keep the membranes moist, which are often overly dry from reaction and from the allergy meds; this also helps drainage to occur naturally, reduces reaction to inhaled allergens, and helps prevent mucus from hanging around in the throat. Another suggestion is to keep the child's bed away from drafts or vents and to keep the air moist. It almost seems silly that such simple measures could make such a difference, but in this day and age, we are so over medicated and instinctively think doctors are going to tell us everything that we need to know. I have a disorder called Fibromyalgia, which involves not getting enough deep restorative sleep, so I understand the consequences of not getting adequate sleep. As your child gets better sleep, his immune system will naturally have more strength to fight the common things like environmental allergens. It might take some time, but sleep is the key. I am praying that you both get the sleep you need and find yourselves very healthy soon. God bless your family.
P. Milner

My daughter is the same way. We give her a sippy cup of water each night and let her keep it in the bed. She won't wake us up but I can hear her drinking it through our the night through the monitor. I checked with her doctor and she said it was alright as long as it was not juice or milk because that would cause tooth decay.

Hope this helps.

I'm a working mom of two daughers, 2 years old and 6 weeks.

My thought is just that I wouldn't be surprised if it had more to do with his ears that thirst. Between the adenoids, tonsils, ears, he's sure to be uncomfortable, especially when lying down. I would think that at his age taking a drink would be his attempt at getting back to sleep, although I'm sure the swallowing probably doesn't feel good either. I'd try to follow up with the ENT a.s.a.p. My son had two sets of tubes when he was little. He'd get infections, but the fluid would just never clear and was thick and made him miserable. Just my thoughts... sounds like he has a lot going on and I hope you are able to get to the bottom of it and get some sleep (both of you) soon.

our daughter was 18 mths old with the first set. We are now 7 and on our 5th set of tubes. YES YES YES YES YES YES I completely understand. He tonsils and Addeniods are still borderline in size so we have yet to remove them Hang in there the sleep will come when the discomfort leaves. Mimi is right on the money. keep a sippy cup with COLD COLD juice. It will help with pain. try pain meds too.

My son was 2 when we did the ear tubes and it made a world of difference. Because the drainage would happen when he had an ear infection, we didn't have to give him so many antibiotics. THe procedure took less than 20 minutes. He just went this week for tonsils and adenoids because they too were very big. He is recovering very well and I can't wait to see what this does for him.

Look into a book called "Is This Your Child?" by Doris Rapp, M.D. It sounds like your child has some unrecognized allergies. His behavior problems as well as his physical/medical problems could all be due to some sensitivities that a normal blood and urine test may not detect. If you would like some more info, I would be happy to help you out. I have been dealing with undetected allergies/sensitivities in my children for the past 9 years.

my son was on both these meds. when he was 2 & 3. One side effect of them is dry palett (or dry mouth). We kept a sippy cup of fresh water beside his bed at night. He was the same during the day, he always needed something to drink. He is no longer on the medication (he's now 7), and the excessive thirst went away shortly after discontinuing the medication.

My son doesn't have all the medical issues but he drinks at night as well. He has done is since he was a baby. He is now 3 1/2 years old and he still goes to bed with water in a sippy cup. It is ok to send your child to bed with a drink just as long as you brush their teeth and only give them water. Good luck!

My daughter (now 3) had tubes put in at 18 months, tonsils and adenoids out at 2 years. She is sleeping so much better. She has had 2 ear infections in the last year and a half, but the tubes relieve the pressure and just cause them to run right out of her ear. I didn't want her to have the 2 procedures, but talked to a few other doctors and friends who told me what a difference it would make. It has definitely changed her for the better. Hang in there....allergy season will be over soon and maybe that will help....definitely follow up with the ENT...the procedures sound scary, but really help.

It sounds to me like his throat is hurting and the cold of the drink is soothing his throat. You may need to give him some motrin or tylenol for the sore throat. The ear infection probably spread to his throat, I know when I have an ear infection my throat gets infected from the drainage.