Please Help!!! - Spokane,WA

Have you tried giving it to her when she's asleep? My son used to fight us as well and we finally gave up trying when he was awake and gave it at naptime, before he woke up in am and after he went to sleep in pm. We also squirted it in his mouth and then blew in his face, that seemed to work as well. It makes the kids suck in and swollow at the same time.

Good luck

I had the same problem when my first child was about the same age. The phamacist recommended putting the medicine in chocolate milk because it masks the flavor pretty well and kids tend to drink ALL of their chocolate milk. We had never even given her chocolate before, but we tried it and it worked.

One thing that worked for my son at that age was chewable antibiotics. He could put it in his mouth himself and he liked the flavor

I would highly suggest you getting Wild Harvest childrens formula ear drops with garlic. Your little girl won't mind the smell of garlic, she'll be asking for the drops they are great. You might have already tried a homeopathic medi, if not this is the one! A.

Research shows that ear infections are a self-limiting problem that do not resolve faster with antibiotics. Breastfeeding *is* medicine--and an effective one at that, because it is a living fluid with components custom-made to fight the infection she's fighting. If your daughter wants to nurse all the time, she's a very wise girl as she will get more of the living medicine she needs: your milk!

Best wishes,

C.

See if your doctor can prescribe a chewable antibiotic. My son wants to do it all himself.

If not, then use a medicine dropper and hold her down, but only put a tiny bit in her cheek at a time. This way, she can't really spit it out, and if she does, not much is wasted. Just brush it back into her mouth with your finger. Do not drop it into the back of her throat, because you will induce the gag reflex. Most importantly, do NOT give in no matter how hard the fight gets, and no matter how uncooperative she was, always praise her ecstatically when she is done.

I too have an extremely strong willed little girl. I know how to get that medicine down her throat....and it may sound aweful, but yes, she still loves me very much.

Lay her down on the ground (you may need your husbands help until you get the hang of it on your own) use a dropper or something easy enough to dispense into her mouth, once you get the medicine in, pinch her cheeks together to make a fish face, natural instinct will make her swallow.

I know this sounds aweful, and actually, I cried after the first time I had to do it. But after some time, she will realize that it's going "in", no matter what, and the fights will lessen. Her pediatrician told me about this technique, and it really does work.

Make sure you have good cuddle and kiss time afterwards...it's kind of a hard thing to do, but it will get the medicine down! :) Hope this helps...

Dear K. A,
I can understand your frustration and your desire to help your daughter with her ear infection. I would like to talk about "listening" to your daughter's wisdom. Isn't it interesting to take a closer look at her reactions as being wise. What if you observe her as showing you what is true and healing for her. When I read your post, I am hearing that she wants to be held, and reassured during this time of ear pain.
Maybe she is asking for an alternative to antibiotics? I have worked with children to clear their ears naturally with craniosacral therapy (CST) for twelve years. Ear infections are the cause of more pediatric doctor visits in the first three years of life than any other medical issue. CST helps relieve pressure so the bone surrounding the ear can move normally. The benefit of this gentle touch therapy is that the Eustachian tubes drain. This is a natural way to support the immune system and improve overall health to prevent future ear infections. It's truely amazing to see immediate results in most cases. You will find more online when searching for osteopathic children treatments. Good luck.

Ok, mom take a deep breath and let it out... It will be ok.
My oldest daughter would hold her breath and turn blue. Some kids are just that way.
Have you tried to mix it with juice? Or how about with a little pudding or ice cream? (I know I am bad..) make a milk shake... LOL
Ok, you can also use some herbal things for the ears.
You can get essential oils at GNC, vitamin world, in Olympia at Radiance and other places.
What you want is Tea Tree Oil and or Lavander Oil.
You NEVER put these directly on the skin. Tea Tree oil will burn.
You take Olive Oil, Almond oil, or Sun flower oil as a base. This can be done in a small container. depending on the size of the bottle you put your oil in. I am going to say you use the size of the medicine cup you get with cough meds. You would put 2 - 4 drops of Tea Tree Oil and or Lavender oil.
You can test the strength of this mix by putting a drop in your ear first. As long as it does not burn it is ok.
You take a Q tip and put it in the mix and use that to drop it into the child ear. Or you can use a cotton ball, or a dropper.
Have the child lay down while during this. I also pull a little on the ear and rub around it to help the oil get in.

I am not a DR nor do I have any medial training.. This is just what I do with my kids, hubby and self when our ears start to hurt.

Between all 4 of my children I have been through 27 ear infections..... Here is what I have learned....

generally, antibiotics do not take care of the problem any better than good old time. Unless your child has signs of an obvious bacterial issue like green mucous cough fever etc... my kids issues were more related to short tubes and fluid in the arsconstantly.

Ask your pediatrician for a prescription for numbing ear drops. and give ibuprofen/tyenol for discomfort. Of all the ear infections i have been through, they resolve themself within 4-5 days.

as far as the medicine goes.... I tried the straddle and hold down the child while pinching their nose method and didnt really enjoy that.... so, i mix the medicine with juice, warm chocolate milk... etc... 7UP is a good one... hadnt tried that before... Dont say anything about medicine... just make it a special treat, make sure that they rink it all (therefore, use nly up to 4oz of whatever liquid you are hiding the medicine in....) If you are worried about sugar consumption etc... chill.... a ew sweet treats to t her to take her meds is not going to rott her teeth out.... I am juss concerned about sugar....
our latest "treat" for medicine is warm chocolate milk.... ask for vanilla flavoring to the medicine (or chocolate).... I mix an once of instant hot cocoa.... (1/2 tsp of powder to an ounce of super hot water.... and then add 3oz of cold whole milk.... makes it just warm enough.... the kids guzzle it.... my 20month old and 2 1/2 year old sometimes get it n bottle instead of a cup if they are feeling particularily bad.....

I would suggest several possibilities. 1) Talk to the doctor - some medicines can have flavorings added by the pharmacist to make them more palatable to the kids. There will be times when you have to give her the medicine whether she likes it or not. My son just got over pneumonia and both of the medicines we had to give him were absolutely vial. It was horrible - you have my sincere sympathy. 2) I would definitely go with natural remedies for the ears - the AMA is actually advising against using antibiotics for ear infections now for several reasons: 1) they are concerned about the development of antibiotic-resistant ear infection strains 2) research has shown that most ear infections clear up on their own or at least not any quicker with antibiotics. This was on the news this fall - I am sure you can find some links if you doubt what I am saying. Just because our doctors here don't do something, or do do something, doesn't mean we can't question them. It's up to you.

OMG Kayla you sound exactly like my husband and me. Our two girls are TERRIBLE at taking medicine...to the point where they usually syke themselves out to the point of throwing up. It is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO frustrating.

So she doesn't eat/drink ANTYHING? besides breastmilk from the breast?! Geesh that's a tough one. I always had luck mixing the white amoxicilian stuff into Nesquick strawberry milk. I would give her a little "mini drink" which had the medicine mixed w/strawberry milk and then I'd let her drink all the rest of the strawberry milk once she finished. With cherry flavored medicine, I'd mix it w/7-up and make a little shirly temple then let her finish the rest of the 7-up once she downed the medicine "mini-drink." I would also try mixing it w/yogurt or applesauce, chocholate pudding, etc. Don't show her you're putting it in there though....

Thank god my older daugther can swallow pills whole now and we just go that route.

Good luck...I completely understand how frustrating it is...

L.

P.S. SAHM to 8 and 5 year old girls.

It's good that she's still nursing. Have you tried shooting some breastmilk in the infected ear? It's supposed to really help take care of the problem. It did with mine once.

I know you've already come upon the solution for your little one, but I wanted to speak more to the "straddle down" method of getting medication into a child who doesn't want to take it.

With my daughter, when she was two and a half, she absolutely had to have the medicine, and spitting it out was not an option. In that case: 1. Very calmly sit on the floor with your kiddo and take them in your arms. Let them know it's time for medicine and it will be over soon. 2. Lie your child down with his/her head between your legs. Gently place each of your legs over each of their arms. (Your legs are so heavy in relationship to their arms, that struggling does nothing.) 3. Very calmly insert a short stack of tongue depressors into your child's mouth and turn them sideways. (This eliminates the need to squeeze his/her cheeks in order to keep the mouth open.) 4. Empty the syringe of medicine into the back of the mouth on one side or the other. Your child has no choice but to swallow. 5. follow up with hugs and kisses, praise, and ice cream or some other yummy treat to get that nasty taste out of the mouth.

With this method there is no thrashing about. The parent takes control, and the whole process never has to take longer than the time it takes to go through the steps.

With the second and/or subsequent doses, you can involve your child in the process. Ask him/her if they feel ready to take their medicine standing up or if they would like to lie down. If lying down is the way to go, ask him/her if they think having your legs over their arms is in order. You'll be surprised at how much your child appreciates you taking control of the situation.

Bottom line: The medicine has got to get in. It doesn't have to be a fight. It can be OVER in a predictable amount of time.

Good luck,
D. T

Hold her cheeks open by squishing them together, insert the syringe with the medicine in it. Place at the back near her cheek, insert just a little bit, and BLOW. The blowing will force her to swallow and just go a little bit at a time till it is done.

We have a 23 month old that needs to make medicine right now. I feel for you-- my husband and I went through the same thing! Check with your pharmacist to see if her medicine can be combined with her food. My son is taking Omoxicylin and it can be mixed into anything.(The pharmacist suggested mixing it with a little 7-up, but I thought that was a little too sweet.) We've found that mixing it with a little orange juice did the trick, however, you have to make sure it is just enough juice to mix and that can be finished right away. Another trick we've tried with success is to have a favorite stuffed animal "take" the medicine with you child. In my son's case, Mickey Mouse helped us. Good luck!

Try getting some ear drop medication.

A paramedic that I know who has eight children said if you have a child who tends to spit the medicine out. Try the little syringe they give for medicine or the dropper. Put it way back oh the side of the cheek and where the jaw closes to line the teeth, where they can't bite down on it and the tongue has no contact. Plus if you administer medicine where the tongue is and in the opening your child can bite their tongue and choke. They will have a gag reflex and who know what what else might happen.

I recently had the same type of issues with my daughter who is now 2 1/2. Being that she was prescribed a liquid antibiotic and there was no tricking her into taking it. I called the pediatrician and asked if he could prescribe a chewable form of the medicine. He did, and I gave the pill a try. She took it once and then wouldn't take it again. I then took a spice grinder and mashed the pill up and put it in a big spoon of yogurt/jelly/ice cream, and she happily ate it! Good luck!

I have a solution, it sounds horrible but it works. It takes two parents - strap your daughter into her high chair or booster seat, one parent hold her arms and press your fingers on either side of her mouth to force her teeth apart and her mouth to open (like pressing her cheeks in) tipping her head back slightly. The other parent, with loaded syringe of medicine quickly plugs your child's nose, inserts the syringe all the way to the back of the tongue and squirts ALL of it quickly. Allow her mouth to close but don't unplug her nose until she swallows. She will! It works like a charm, they have to swallow so they do, and it is over SO fast, so there is much less struggle and stress.

My son was very stubborn about medicine at that age too, we tried everything and nothing worked until another parent told us about this method. I've shared it with other parents and it's always worked great for them too! Good luck, I know the stress you are feeling - it's SO not fun to fight your child over medicine.

It almost sounds like the more of an issue you make it, the more recalcitrant she is. You should probably call your pediatrician. My 17 month old has been sick for several days with RSV and usually she seems to like the ibuprophen, but nothing was going into her mouth but her bottle. I eventually got her to take it, but it took a long time.

try to rub from her ears down to her throat(neck area)_ for a few minutes a few times each day so that the fluid can flow out from the ears. There are also antibiotic shots that the doctor can give at a last resort. My son was the same way and we gave him anitbiotic shots until he took the meds on his own. Plus he healed faster and we didn't need to fight him for 2 weeks on taking meds. Hope this could help

We had one like this and all it took was for us to let her help when getting the medicine ready. Also if it's amoxacillin then it usually taste better when it's cold, but ours didn't like it cold doesn't like anything cold. Try keeping it out on the counter and letting her help get the dosage ready and try a t-spoon instead of a syringe/cup.

Ask your peditrician if they offer a one time antibiotic shot. My daughter, who is 7, is VERY challenging to give any medicine to, so when she had strep and later an ear infection, we had the doctor give her the one time shot. She hated it, but it is over and done with in the office and there is not any medicine to take for 7-10 days.
Good luck, and I feel your frustration.

Have you tried the pacifiers that they suck and the medicine comes out?

greetings! we had a similar dilemna last year with my then one year old boy. We tried two different antibiotics until he could literally stomach one. There are several different kind of antibiotics for ear infections and your child might be sensitive to the one your using now or just dislike the flavor. Try to make the medicine taking experience fun by offering several different ways in a spoon, syringe, mashed into food (ice cream worked well for us) or drink or sneaking in as your breastfeeding. I can't say one method worked for us, but I did let my baby have control over the situation. As you know the more you fight or struggle the more resistance you will meet and your ultimate goal will be thwarted.
I also want to mention, its worth waiting awhile with ear infections because allopathic doctors cannot tell if the infection is viral or bacterial for a few weeks. I know it tends to be a viral infection. If it doesn't go away in two weeks time it might be worth treating as a bacterial infection. I know my son was sick with the same symptoms you describe and his ear was full of mucus and red and I chose to wait and not treat with antibiotics and in 10 days his ears were fine. Of course, using garlic mullein ear drops, hot water bottle, and soothing ear drops all offer comfort to your sick baby. Once you start antibiotics its so important to finish them, as you probably know. Last resort! There are some doctors that offer antibiotic shots to children but usually just in extreme health circumstances. Good luck!

Try giving it to her in some hot cocoa just make sure she drinks it all. That would be the best bet since chocolate is pretty strong in flavor she might not notice, just don't let her see you do it.

You JUST have to be sneaky!

Ask the doctor if they can give her a shot, it will be over quick! :) The other idea is to put it in a medicine syringe and hand it to her to see if she wants to give it to herself!!! Good luck

Unless the ear infection has been present for a long time or seems to be getting worse, she really doesn't need to take antibiotics. There have been some studies done in Denmark recently that show that ear infections go away in the same amount of time with or without medicine. Keep nursing like you're doing! That will keep her getting your antibodies and the antibacterial properties of breastmilk. More and more doctors are not prescribing antibiotics for ear infections. Check with your doc--it may be okay for you to stop giving it to her.

My daughter has had the same problem with her daughter and the doctor told us not to worry so much about the medicine, that ear infections can and do heal without antibiotics. My advise is to talk to your doctor.
Good luck
P.

Can your doctor give her a shot form of the medicine? I would try to alleviate the fighting and drama.

My oldest son got repeated ear infections around that age. The doctors prescribed antibiotics each time. The doctor finally suggest putting a tube in the ear. At that point I started treating them at the first sign with ear drops of: olive oil, st john's wort, and garlic that they sell at the natural food store, once before bed and once in the morning. This prevented the infection and strengthened his immune system. This doesn't work if there is evidence of a burst ear drum.
With my second child I didn't get him the vaccines at a young age and his immune system seemed stronger. I read something about vaccines and lowering your immune and believe there is truth in it. R.

K.,

It sounds to me like the medicine has become a power struggle, and everyone has made it a bigger issue than it should be. When both my kids have had to take medicine, I just explain in a calm voice that this will help them feel better. I've never really had a problem with them taking their medicine. The few times my son has tried to refuse taking medicine we have had to hold his head still and aim the medicine towards the inside and back of his cheek. Even if he doesn't want to take the medicine, he still would swallow it then.

Hope this helps,
Melissa

I"m not sure about natural remedies for ear infections, but I know for a cough, you can rub some castor oil mixed with peppermint oil on her chest and upper back. That should help cough's and chest congestion. If she has sinus congestion, there is a natural remedy for that as well. Before bed, rub her feet and get them really warm, then put cold wet socks on them, and immediately put some dry wool socks over those. Leave them on overnight. This makes their feet really warm and wet all night, basically creating a fever in their feet, and it draws all the congestion out of their sinuses. These are tricks from my daughter's naturopath. And there is always Hyland's Ear Ache tablets. I don't have any advice for getting her to keep her medicine down if she keeps throwing it up, other than to tell her that she can't nurse until she takes it, and then nurse her immediately afterword. Especially if it's before bedtime or naptime, and there is a good chance of her falling asleep while nursing. I'm sure you've already tried that, and it's hard to do that sort of reasoning with a toddler, but worth a shot if you haven't tried it yet! Good luck!
~E.

You may have already tried this, but here goes. We had to this with my son when he was little (younger then your daughter) and actually learned the trick from a nurse.

Squeeze her cheeks together which will force her mouth open. Use this to squirt the medicine to the back and side of her mouth. Hold her cheeks until she has swallowed.

Also a mild ear infection will often clear up without medicine. There are also ear drops that you can get from your doc that cut the pain.

Good luck.

Hi -

I think if your little one is throwing up the medicine after you actually get it down, I think you should speak to your doctor. They do have shots that may be a more effective way to get the medicine she needs.

good luck

Wow, that sounds like a tuffie! I have a strong willed daugher too, and I know what those medicine struggles are like. I think you already figured out that punishing her isn't going to do any one any good. I wish I could give you an answer on how to get her to take it. But I don't have one. I will say a prayer for you though and your little girl that she will get better soon.

Hi. Have you tried putting the medicine in a little bit of apple juice or milk? Only enough liquid to get her to drink it down? YOu do not want a lot of liquid to where she will not drink it all. Also have you tried to have the medicine flavored from the pharmacy? I know that both of these ideas have worked for both of my kids. It is hard trying to make them take medicine and all. And you do not want to make it a bad experience for her. Also try putting a pillow or something under her crib mattress where her head is. My daughter used to get a lot of ear infections and had tubes put into her ears. Even after getting the tubes she still got alot of ear infections. So I put a pillow underneath the head of her crib mattress so that it is slightly elevated and she has not had another ear infection since I did this. That was July of 2007. So it really does work. Do not prop it up to high. Just a little so that her head is elevated some so that her ears and nose can drain while she sleeps. Also see if you can get an injection from the doctors. I had to have my daughter have the shots a couple of times. They also work. Good luck to you. I wish you the best of luck.
Take care,
Laura

There are ways to get a child tricked into taking their meds. In a cup of juice, milk, bottle, food. There is always a way. Just make sure that you do it where she cannot see you adding the meds. That is the key. If this is not working either, you may need to speak to the doctor about an IV, if she is not getting any better, or inable to keep the meds down. May be an allergic reaction.

Does she know what a shot is? Tell her if she doesn't take the medicine like a big girl that the doctor might have to give her a shot...maybe the idea of a hospital stay might encourage her...have you tried the measured scoop style of medicine, with the spoon at the end? Hmmm...Good luck...ask the doctor if there is an alternative like a shot...she must take the medication...maybe the shot will convince her to take the medicine the easy way the next time...

I'm not sure how to get your baby to take her medicine. I used to have to pin my son down, and force the medicine down his throat - and to this day (he is now 20) he will not take cold medicine. He says it makes him want to throw up.

Alternative remedy for Ear infection that has ALWAYS worked for my daughters (now 6 and 8) is a combination of three remedies given to me by a friend of mine and works wonders - Super Suplements has them:
Chamomilla (for pain and irritability)
Pulsatilla (for congestion)
and Hepa Sulph. These are relatively cheap to buy.

The taste like sugar pills. You have to explain to your daughter that she has to hold in her mouth as long as possible. They are supposed to be absorbed under the tongue. Make sure she has no food or drink for at least 1/2 hour before taking homeopathic medicine. Also, if there has been any caffeine or peppermint, it won't work as well. It's most effective first thing in the morning. My daughters have never had antibiotics even though they ahve had ear infections, thanks to this remedy.

I had this problem with my son when he got an ear infection. My doctor gave him a shot instead. I guess the shots are pretty painful but it was either that or he had to give me 3 or 4 times the amount of medication as he would throw up almost every time that we gave it to him. When he got the shot I had to take him in a few days later for the dr. to check his ears because sometimes they need a second shot.

I do agree with the natural remedies for the most part, however, in some cases medicine is appropriate. My son had pneumonia a dozen times before his 3rd birthday and was hospitalized for 4 of them. We finally went to shots - it was tough but there's only so much you can do between 6 nebulizer treatments a day and everything else trying to keep one boy out of the hospital and another out of trouble (he's 8 years older!) You're in my prayers! C.

My son is the same way...I wrapped him up in a blanket, getting him as calm as possible, and then found ONE way to give him medicine. I used a baby dropper, and tucked it between his teeth on one side of his mouth, putting the opening as far back as I could without choking him. Putting it in between his teeth makes it possible for him to swallow, but not spit it out (too much air in his mouth). It wasn't easy, and I had to do it slowly, but eventually I got it in.

Sorry to tell you, but my son is now almost four, and he still hates to take his medicine. Good luck!

With my son, I'd have to wait until he was asleep. Then I'd wake him up and while he was still really groggy, I'd give him the medicine all in one go. He'd cry and fuss a little bit, but I'd give him a sippy cup of juice or nurse him right away and he'd settle right down.