For the last 4 nights, Kai has been up coughing. Usually he would cough for half an hour or so and then go back to sleep for a while. Last night, however, he didn't even fall asleep until 4:30 AM !!! I got desperate around 2:45 am and called the pediatrician's emergency line. A nurse called me back and said, "So your child has a cough." -------I could just HEAR her rolling her eyes.------
As always, she was not very sympathetic to the fact that he hasn't been sleeping AND along with the cough, usually comes mucus vomit.
She informed me quickly that medicine will not help and it's been all over the news that doctors are trying not to prescribe cough medicine to kids under 6 yrs. anymore. "Haven't you seen the reports? It's been all over the news.", she said. My reply was, "Uh, no. I don't have time to watch the news." Which is partially true. Usually when our TV is on, a kids show is playing. When I DO get a chance to watch..... I'm not going to waste my time listening to weather forecasts and reports about traffic or who was killed in downtown Phoenix last night. Sorry, not my first choice.
Anyway, her advice was to give Kai plenty of fluids, use a vaporizer (which we have been -- no help), or if possible, sit in a steamy bathroom for 15 minutes or so. At that point I was willing to try ANYTHING. So I turned the shower on and sat on the toilet with Kai kicking away the whole time. I don't think we even made it to 15 minutes because.......... THE FIRE ALARM WENT OFF!!!! Yeah, that's what I said, "WHAT!!??" The steam from the shower had set it off which then set off all the other alarms in the house. Not a good night.
I was just wondering..........with all the advances in medical science today, are you telling me that NO ONE can come up with a cough medicine that actually works and is NOT dangerous!! Come on.
7 comments:
I feel your pain. Have you tried the children's mucinex? It helps a little.
So sad.
Are cough drops bad for babies? I give little pieces of cough drops to Mason... It seems to work. He just chews them up and I think it helps numb his throat at least a little bit.
Or wait, they actually have things for kids- those little melting strips. Maybe they would help.
Ok, never mind. I just looked up those little Triaminic strips and they have the same stuff in them that you aren't supposed to give kids under 6... Sorry.
Now I am worried about the cough drops I've been giving Mason...
Well, my friend, Wendy, told me about some stuff she uses with her kids. It's Triaminic Long Acting Cough. There is a dosage for kids 2-6, so we are trying it out tonight. I'll let you know how it goes.
Jennifer -- I wouldn't worry about little pieces of cough drops, I used to cut those Triaminic strips in half for my kids (who are not age 6 and over).
Okay, it sounds weird, but it works: Try rubbing vapor rub on the bottom of his feet - really slathor it on, then put socks on. Its associated with the meridans that run in the feet and they are supposedy connected somehow to respiratory health. I don't know if I'm explaining that right, but it worked for my kids who have had this night time cough. Also, I use an inhaler when it gets really bad or last for a long time. Good luck!
Bummer, Carolyn. My idea of torture is sick kids. They look so sad and pathetic and I always feel so helpless!
If he's not better yet, you should call my Dad. They just got back from Florida last night.
Hope you and Jeff had a chance to celebrate V day, despite the craziness!
Thanks for the info friends. The Triaminic Long Acting Cough (berry flavored dye free) worked incredibly well for my kids.
Alisa, I HAVE heard of the vapor-rub solution, but I thought it was only for babies. But if you've used it on your older kids, I'll give it a try.
Jennica -- I was close..... SO close to calling your dad, but I never know if he'll care or not. I'm sure he gets WAY too many calls from non-patients as it is.
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