Congestion - Blue Springs,MO

Hiya! I saw this response below from Sara, but I wanted to second it. When my girls were babies their pediatrician told me to get one of those Vicks Vaposteam Humidifiers (about $10 @ Walmart). You can buy Vicks Vaposteam to put in the humidifier and it puts the vapors out with the steam. Worked like a charm for my girls.

My best friend's mother swears by putting the vapo-rub on a bandaid and attaching the bandaid to the inside of their jammies so they can't pull it off. I've never tried this personally though.

Good luck...hope you find something that works(and get some sleep soon)!
~M

Sounds like Sara gave you the same advice that I would have. The only thing is that when my second child was born she was SO congested. She literally slept in her bouncer for the first 6 months of life. It kept her from getting so congested. The docs even suggested it.
Best of luck. I totally understand where you are coming from.

I agree with Mendi. You need to go back to the doctor with the congestion and ask them about pneumonia. My daughter had pneumonia when she was a baby and its sometimes really difficult to diagnose unless they do a chest x-ray. It caused vomiting and stomach upset which is what they focused on first and sent me home. It wasn't until 3am when her fever spiked and she could barely breathe that I called 911 only to find she had pneumonia and it had gotten really bad. PLEASE get this checked out!

Hi T.---

I am actually partnered with a wellness company and know exactly what would work well for you as other moms use it and it works wonders and it is safer for you and your family as well. Getting the toxins out of the home from current products you are using will make the difference. If you want more info., let me know. Or you can visit www.livetotalwellness.com/cindygeoff

this sounds crazy, but rub vicks on his little feet and put socks on them... It works within 15 min of putting it on and he wont rub it with his hands with the socks on... I was sceptical at first, but it works cuz of the way your blood circulates from your feet... My friend swears by it... i have only tried it one time... My son said it did help... Just a suggestion... If not you can always rub it on his chest... That helps with congestion...

Humidifier for sure! You can get a shower as hot as it will go and let it steam up your smallest bathroom for a little while. Then take your baby and sit in there (not the actual shower)with her for as long as you can stand it before you put her to bed. I would cup your hand and briskly pat her back to break everything up while sitting in the bathroom. The steam should loosen up some of the congestion so it will run out (you may need to suck some out). If all this continues I would for sure go back to the doc!

My little guy had a cold the past couple of weeks too. He didn't have the stomach virus but the congestion was a major issue. Our doctor told us we could give him 0.8 ml Robutussin and suggested we get a humidifier. THe humidifier has worked great and I actually think the hum it makes helps put him to sleep. I have also heard of using saline drops but we never tried that. I hope this helps, it was no fun to know he wasn't able to breathe...sleep...eat, etc.

I am pretty against using over the counter medicines unless absolutely necessary, especially since all the recent recalls of baby medicine! Go to this website and check it out.. I SWEAR by it!!!!!

http://www.nosefrida.com/

GOOD LUCK!!

T. - I went through this recently with my 9 month old. The things that worked the best for him were - the Johnson's Vapor Bath (FYI generic brand at Walmart works just as well), putting Johnson's Baby Vapor Lotion on his chest & a vaporizer with Vicks in it in his room. He slept so good using these things. Also, for his nose, use saline drops and the nose sucker (don't know what it's really called!). That worked well, although they hate it. Hope your little one gets better soon. I know EXACTLY how you feel! :) S.

I'd recommend using a humidifier and saline drops in your baby's nose. Good luck, it sounds really rough.

I was recently told about putting Vicks on the bottom of the feet before bed(make sure you put socks on). My 3 year old has had a cold and was awake most of the night coughing. I tried the Vicks and he has been sleeping through the night since starting this on Monday.

Good luck!

This is going to sound like a really mean thing to do to your sweet little baby, but it worked for me. My doctor told me to make a saline solution. It is better to make your own 1. because of the temperature of the water (making it more comfortable for baby) 2. because of no preservatives which could irritate the lining of the mucous membranes, and 3. because it is way cheaper than buying saline. This is a link that I found to make the normal saline: http://www.seattlechildrens.org/child_health_safety/pdf/f.... I am not a mom who worries extremely about things. We took regular salt 1/4 tsp and mixed it with a cup of water that is body temperature. My doctor told me to have it body temperature by dipping my finger in the water, then feeling my lip. When it feels about the same temp, you've got it. Dissolve the salt in the water. Then cup your hand and pour a little solution into it. Take a clean nasal aspirator and suck the water into, then squirt it up the baby's nose. The baby will probably cough or choke a little, but when I did it, all kinds of gross stuff came out the other side of his nose. I did this as many times as it took to clear him out. It is pretty miserable for them, but they will not be congested for a while and can breathe and sleep for a while. My baby was not hardly able to sleep at all before we did this and I was always afraid he would stop breathing or something he was so congested. Also, he cried really hard when we did this to him and it loosened up more junk and he also tired out so he slept for a while. Hope this helps.

maybe try a humidifer or Vicks vapor rub.

My daughter had RSV when she was two weeks old, and for about four months, she would wake up with congestion really bad. I would follow up with your doctor, as everyone suggested, but in the meantime, try propping him up with body pillow. I had a really long pillow that I could wrap all the way around my daughter about three times that held her pretty much upright, kept her completely swaddled, and didn't at all touch her face, and it worked really well to keep her asleep!
Good luck

I would say that the best thing you can do is make sure he is staying hydrated...get some pedialyte and offer that to him.
I would also have a talk with your pharmacist...I work in a pharmacy..and they are so good about coming up with things to help in situations that other people havent been able to come up with something to help. If your pharmacist isnt willing to talk to you...you are at the wrong pharmacy!!! lol Try elevating the head of your little one's crib...put something under the mattress to raise part of it up....to help with the drainage and maybe he will sleep a bit better. Of course..if your little one is anything like mine were...they move around so much that they end up with their FEET elevated instead of their head before the night is over!!
Just tell yourself that "this too shall pass"...it wont go on forever it just SEEMS that way!!
R. Ann

Mine congested too, no throwing up, but for the congestion and coughing, my son and I sit in the bathroom, door closed, shower running on pure hot and add a "Shower Soothers" made by Vicks.

Also here's I nice little grandma trick that I SWEAR works. Coat the bottom of their feet with Vicks Vapor rub and put socks on. Don't ask me how, but it works. I second the Saline, it's painful and the little ones HATE it, but well worth the sleep they get afterwards. (you too)

When my son was just a little bit older than yours he did the same thing. My doctor said he had pneumonia. I thought he was kidding- vomiting as a pnuemonia symptom? He said it isn't common, but it IS a symptom. He did a chest x-ray to be sure, and there it was. My son has had pneumonia several times since, and it is ALWAYS accompanied by stomach issues. I would ask your doctor for a chest x-ray.
BTW, we moved across town last year and tried to find a new doctor over here, but we ended up with our son (now 4 years old) sick for 6 weeks. The doctors at the new office didn't listen to me about the pneumonia, so they never did an x-ray. At one point they gave him anti-biotics for bronchitis, but they happened to pick the one that doesn't work on pneumonia. When that still didn't help, we decided to make the long drive to our old doctor. He took one look at our son and said, "He has pneumonia." One chest x-ray later, and we found out that he had the worst case of it that he's ever had- because it took so long to find it. I guess what I'm saying here is, don't be afraid to stand up to your doctor. Demand the x-ray if you feel it's needed. I didn't do that this summer, and my son suffered because of it.