Recovery Time-5 Y/o Boy

I would ask for another opinion. He may actually have walking pneumonia. I wouldn't rely on orange juice and chicken soup if he's still sick after a serious illness. And/or keep him home a few days for rest to see if that helps.

His body is still building his immunity back up so some extra rest and maybe a little extra vitamin C will help him.

The average time for colds and viruses is about 10 to 14 days, lots of rest and a healthy diet are most important.

I forgot to add that sugar and dairy can lower immunity so cut back on those until he is feeling better.

I would not give him any natural remedies to boost his energy. He needs to heal, and to rest when he is tired - which is the opposite of giving him stimulants that wind him up when what he really needs is to rest.

I would be most concerned about the cough at night. I would at least call the doctor now and ask if it's ok for him to take a cough suppressant, like Delsym (what my ped recommends) before bed so that he can sleep. Of course he's tired and run down if he wakes up coughing at night. Anyone would be.

oh no, it sounds to me as if he's exhausted and yeah, his recovery is taking a while. and while i DO get wanting to boost his immune system, that will help prevent future illnesses, not take the place of his current recovery.
and boosting his energy is the exact opposite of what he needs.
it really is taking a long time to clear out. he must have had it pretty bad, poor little fellow. i get how hard it must be for you to see him dragging. and i do think taking him to the doctor is a good idea to make sure there aren't any lingering or secondary issues that need medical treatment.
but beyond that i'd be very leery of trying to rev up his system, in fact i'd do the opposite. plenty of good fresh organic food, and lots and lots of rest.
i hope he feels better soon.
khairete
S.

Sometimes a cold can take quite awhile to get over.
Twice I've had one that hung around for 2 months.
Have his tonsils checked.
If they are obstructing his breathing to the point where he's snorring and not getting quality sleep - have them removed.
Our son had his tonsils and adenoids out right after he turned 4.
They weren't infected but they had swelled up to the point where they were almost an obstruction.
He slept SO MUCH BETTER once they were out.
The dark circles under his eyes that had been there over a year FINALLY went away.
Kids recover so easily from a tonsillectomy and there's no point in dragging it out to remove them later - the older you are the more difficult the recovery.

i would put vicks vapor rub on his feet and cover with socks at night. run a humidifier to help and it should calm the night coughing so he can get decent rest. which will naturally boost his energy.

my son is also asthmatic and gets bronchitis every so often also...not fun....it takes alot out of them... my gut feeling?I would take him in..have pedi listen to his lungs...maybe a chest xray to rule out pneumonia, which makes you wicked tired

hope he feels better

My son and I are prone to bronchitis. We both get it a few times each year. He gets it more often than I do. It starts with our allergies then gets down into our lungs.

It makes it hard to sleep when you can't breathe. So that is probably why he's so tired. Naps after school should help and an earlier bed time. Did he get an inhaler? This helps my son at school. My sons teachers so a little easier on him when they know he isn't feeling 100%. I mean, he can't exactly stay home for weeks because he's coughing so they adjust for that. So maybe talk to his teacher.

My son has been coughing now for probably 5 weeks. It's just hanging in there. I'm on week 3. We just deal with it. If he starts to wheeze then he needs to see the doc. It never hurts to take him anyway since he's so young. Just know that it does take weeks and months sometimes for it to completely go away. Good luck.

His energy being low is his body's way of telling him that he needs more rest. I wouldn't give him anything to boost his energy.

Does he have post nasal drip? My kids were asthmatic after colds - and we used puffers. When they got older, they would get another kind of cough at night. It would clear up temporarily if I gave them a drink of water. Our pediatrician said many kids get post nasal drip (slime running down the back of their throat after a cold, even weeks later, at night when they lay flat. It tickles the back of their throat which makes them cough). It's not that barky kind of cough. It's like clearing the throat. Over and over.
If that's the case, it can keep them up at night and they take a long time to get better. You can get medication to dry this up - ask your doctor about it if he's still coughing by next week.
If he's tired, run down and anemic (again, ask your doctor) you up the iron rich foods. We give children's vitamins throughout the winter - our pediatrician advised this for my kids. Something to ask next week.
I would not give natural supplements myself. We've asked about them - they were never recommended to us. Diet, plenty of rest and fluids have always been the answer.
Someone else mentioned raising the bed head a bit. That will help if it's post nasal drip also. But keep a cup of water next to bed too just in case it's that. Good hope he's feeling better soon :)

When my niece was younger, she had the same. Raising the head of her bed at night definitely helped a bit with breathing and the coughing. I think her mom put the cushions from the couch under the mattress at night to raise it just an inch or two. It does take time, especially with the asthma, to totally go away and for him to feel better. I have to agree that giving him stimulants is not the best way to go. Even natural, it may make it harder for him to get the rest he needs.

Talk with your pharmacist (whomever filled the prescriptions for the antibiotics and steroids). Ask him or or her about the side effects. I hope that the doctor properly instructed that the steroids needed to be gradually tapered, not abruptly stopped.

It can sometimes take awhile for the side effects of steroids to decrease. Your pharmacist may have helpful information.

Definitely let him get lots of rest, and make sure he drinks plenty of water (not sugary juices), eats fresh fruits and vegetables. Perhaps a white noise machine might be helpful for his sleep. If he truly doesn't sleep well, keep a log of his sleep hours and patterns and speak to his doctor about that. Since he has asthma, perhaps he has some sleep disturbances because of that (apnea, or snoring, or other similar issues). Discuss that with whomever treats his asthma and consider getting a sleep test.

Oregano oil has been used for many years to help with colds and such as well as boosting your immune system. We have used oregano oil in lieu of otc medicines.

I wonder if his oxygen intake is low due to stuff in his lungs. I'd get that checked out for sure.

These things sure can take a long time, can't they? I'm sure he's tired because he just doesn't have productive sleep. He's in bed, but if he's coughing or wheezing, he's just not getting a good solid rest. And if you're saying he doesn't sleep well in general, this may just be the thing that pushed him over the edge.

Keep up with the naps. I wouldn't worry about the school work - he's 5. Have the teacher cut him some slack, or get a note from the doctor that your son needs extended time with things if necessary.

There is no one single ingredient that really boosts immunity. So if someone tells you he should take Vitamin C or some mineral or some herb, ignore them. That's not how the body processes nutrients. There are some comprehensive supplements with high absorption rates plus a natural peptide that helps improve things, but it's not overnight. I've worked with many people with asthma and persistent coughs, and I myself used to suffer with chronic bronchitis. But it's a process that takes a while. The typical supermarket multivitamin just doesn't have nearly enough ingredients or enough of a balance in it. Kids often respond sooner than adults, but still, you have to see this is a long-standing problem that really just all came together in this one nasty illness. It's a cumulative effect from having asthma, not sleeping well, and then getting some bug on top of it.

I wouldn't give him an energy booster - I work in food science and there is a very safe, non-caffeine based energy/focus/fatigue drink, but it's not really designed for kids. I'd consider it for a 10 year old and of course for older kids/teens, but I don't think your 5 year old's problem is energy per se. It's the fact that he's been sick for a while. So he needs much more of a nutrition/immune system solution than an energy product.

I agree with propping the head end of the mattress - just put him on a tilt with a folded blanket or a cushion under the entire mattress. If you just put him up on pillows, they can shift and he can roll off. That helps the drainage a little bit and may reduce the coughing. It's not going to make him better but it may make him more comfortable and make his sleep a bit more productive.

Before giving him cough suppressants and decongestants, please get caught up on the newest research about their effectiveness. The whole pediatric medical community has shifted a lot in light of recent trials and data.

He needs some cough medicine. Especially at night. I'd be super grumpy if I coughed all day and night and it kept me from sleeping. Call the Dr and ask which is brand is best since he's under 6. Does he need a nebulizer?

Oh, and the asthma is definitely making his cold last longer.

What kind of doctor has been managing his care? Is it just the ped?

If I were you, I'd investigate finding him a pediatric pulmonologist. Ordinarily, I'd agree with waiting it out. But he has asthma and it's pretty obvious that he is not healthy right now. I'd want to make sure that something else isn't going on that the regular doctor hasn't explored.

I know this isn't what you asked for. But I really think you should do it. Nothing you try for him will matter if there is something else wrong with his lungs.