I know, you're not doctors and all of that and I will be making an appointment with the doctor. I'm just curious if anyone has any suggestions on what I should try to have the doctor look for.
My son is 9. For the last couple weeks or so he's been getting severe congestion that sets in just before bed time. The first time it happened we had locked down the house and were all getting into bed and turning off the lights and going to sleep. His nose just started running like a faucet was turned on. We have him a 12 hour Claritin, propped him up on an extra pillow and he went through a ton of tissues before finally going to sleep. We figured he was getting sick. Only, he wasn't, he was fine by morning and didn't need another Claritin. Second night same thing happened. I stripped his entire bed and washed everything, moved furniture and vacuumed everywhere and gutted his room to see if it was allergies. We ran the air purifier and fan. Third night, same thing. And on and on. It doesn't matter what we've done during the day. We could have stayed indoors in the house all day or played outside or gone to someone's house. It happens each and every night.
He was tested for allergies several years ago. They did the blood testing. I think they only did the smaller common allergen one. He came back as being allergic to nothing at all. We do have cats but I don't see how he'd suddenly develop an allergy after 9 years of cats, all of which we've had for years. And, he's not like this during the day around the same cats. Everything is in bloom outside of course, but he didn't test as allergic to anything before.
Could this be a sinus infection? No one else in the house is having issues. He's not running fevers. I am at a loss! Claritin does help a little bit. We only give the 12 hour, where you can take up to 2 a day but he doesn't need that second during the day. He's not sleeping at all because he can't breathe. He is miserable. He's keeping my husband and I up at night. We're miserable.
Thank you for your suggestions!
To answer a couple questions
The cats don't spend much time at all in his room, mostly in the master bedroom and the room downstairs. They do not sleep with him, they sleep with me.
We did strip his room down, wash everything, vacuum everywhere, even moving furniture etc. It didn't help.
It kicks in while sitting in the living room too before bed. It doesn't matter where he is in the house.
We close all windows at night, it's too loud to sleep with them open, but will sometimes have some open during the day. His room has no screen so it is never opened. We need to replace it, it was broken when we accidently locked ourselves out one day.
We all shower in the morning.
Sounds like allergies to me. The good news is that it sounds like claritin works for him, so you know how to treat it.
Everything is blooming outside the house! Think you just hit the jackpot. The night air and the fragrances from the flowers might just have something to do with it. It actually happens to me sometimes and I never figured out why. Just because he was not allergic several years ago, it does not mean
He is not allergic now.
I used to do this every night at his age, too! If we had Claritin then, it would have been great.
Make sure he washes his hair every night be cause it carries allergens that get on his pillow.
You could try giving the Claritin when he gets home from school and see if you get relief at bedtime.
You could switch to a Benadryl at night because that's what I do now. Most of the time I don't have to do anything else during the day. It also helps me sleep but it gives one of my children nightmares. Give it an hour before bedtime. If he can swallow pills, the generic capsule is cheap and easy to swallow and effective.
this happened to me once when I was pregnant, my nose just turned on like a faucet, and my eyes did too. Mine was just a severe allergy attack and I haven't had once since. Could something else be triggering him - like his pillows maybe? Walmart sells allergy pillow protectors, just in case that is the problem. Is there something blooming outside his bedroom window, or outside the living room? There are so many things it could be, hopefully you will figure it out quickly. Maybe you could put a humidifier in his room to help him. Good luck
Well it could be allergies. You should have him tested again for all common allergens. Sometimes as you get older you do develop allergies that you haven't had before. Could it be your laundry detergent? I'm allergic to perfume so I can't use any of the detergents that have fragrance.
In the meantime, I suggest is using Saline Spray. Simply Saline has a kids formula. I use it every day and it really helps with my sinus issues. The saline is harmless - you can use it several times a day. I also give it to my son when he is congested. I also suggest a cold air humidifier at night. It helps keep the sinus from getting stuffed up.
Hope this helps! Good luck!
Updated
Well it could be allergies. You should have him tested again for all common allergens. Sometimes as you get older you do develop allergies that you haven't had before. Could it be your laundry detergent? I'm allergic to perfume so I can't use any of the detergents that have fragrance.
In the meantime, I suggest is using Saline Spray. Simply Saline has a kids formula. I use it every day and it really helps with my sinus issues. The saline is harmless - you can use it several times a day. I also give it to my son when he is congested. I also suggest a cold air humidifier at night. It helps keep the sinus from getting stuffed up.
Hope this helps! Good luck!
What caught my eye is that you said you close the house for the night. Does that mean that you closed windows? If that's not an issue, does he play in his room? If he gets this way after going in his room, I'd consider something to be going on in his room. Do the cats hang out in his room? Maybe their dander is concentrated in his room...
I'd do a thorough cleaning job in his room, washing his bed things in hot water, getting hypoallergenic pillows, and if he has carpet in there, I'd consider pulling it out and putting down a wood floor. And I'd keep the cats out of his room. Sometimes you have to try different things to see what the problem is.
I think it might behoove you to actually ask an allergist if you can become allergic to animals you've lived with, like your child. Just assuming that he can't isn't enough. Get an answer from the horse's mouth.
And of course, get him to the doctor so that they can look in his nose and throat.
Good luck!
Dawn
Allegies can be tricky. What you weren't allergic too can develop into an allergy over time as your body is more and more exposed to it. My mom recently figured out that her breakouts around her mouth are not ezcema, but are allergies to Balsam of Peru, a natural plant extract in foods, and citrus fruits. She never had any problems before the last year and half, and that is why both she and doc thought it was a skin issue.
My brother used Tide laundry soap since he was 8, but now, at 36 he is allergic to it. So, allergies can develop over time.
Your little guy sounds like allergies to me. I found with Claritin that I had to take it everday, I used the 24 hour one, and it didn't start working until the 4th or 5th day, but then it worked great. So, it might have to build up in his system. Maybe just start giving it to him all time time and see if he gets better. But, still see the doc of course. My own sinuses will do exactly what you are describing when the barometric pressure changes; if it goes from rainy to cloudy to sunny and back and forth my head is in pain!
My 10 year old has seasonal allergies.
Zyrtec, Afrin and Flonase are his BFFs.
I think he needs more than just the Atitin if it IS allergies.
Once those membranes are irritated, the Glonase helps with the inflammation, or you just keep getting that rebound effect.
Allergies can develop at any time - so a test done a few years ago doesn't tell you what is going on right now.
I'd try giving him Claritin every 12 hours and see if having him on it round the clock helps.
You might want to give Zyrtec a try, too.
I find one works better for me in the fall while the other works better for me in the spring (different types of pollen are out in different seasons).
You could also try Benedryl at 30 min before bedtime.
It might be worth it to have him rise his nose out with warm saline using a neti pot before bedtime.
It doesn't sound like a sinus infection to me so far.
He'd be stuffed up all day (and night), maybe have a temperature, and he'd feel pressure in his sinuses, ears, below his eyes (sometimes it can make your teeth ache) and/or behind his eyes.
If this goes on for much longer, have him take another allergy test.
There is something that cause my eye to swell and itch terribly when I am down the shore. Drives me nuts. Does not happen during the day. I have no idea what it could possibly be either.
FYI...our body chemistry changes completely every 7 years or so. Therefore, anyone can grow into or out of allergies at anytime in their life. I was 10 yo when I developed a cat allergy. In my 20's cats caused me to have allergic asthmatic attacks. I am in my 40s now and appear to no have an allergy to cats although I am still to scared to touch one. My dog allergy is worse than ever.
Hi Katrina,
Marla's right -- allergies can develop and change over time, although there are other things to consider. One would be a simple vasomotor rhinitis, which can have the symptoms you're describing. Claritin is actually not a very good antihistamine -- it only works for about 25% of the population. You could try switching to Zyrtec before bed, which is a much more effective drug, or Allegra. The best treatment for vasomotor rhinitis, however, is a nasal antihistamine such as Patanase or an inhaled glucocorticoid, such as fluticasone propionate (such as Flonase). It can take a few days to a week before these have a significant effect, however.
Allergies should be ruled out for dust mites and molds. The sensitivity of blood tests for these can vary depending on the manufacturer of the test, so it is possible to have gotten a false-negative test in the past if the test used by the laboratory was a less sensitive one and your son's specific IgE levels weren't as high in the past as they might be now. It is also possible that, given the high pollen count this year, your son has a seasonal allergy that wasn't symptomatic in past years.
Using a neti pot to rinse the nasal passages several times a day isn't a bad idea. This could wash out irritants and allergens that can contribute to night time stuffiness. It certainly won't hurt, and it's worth a try.
I hope your little guy feels better soon!
kids can use netti pots, mine use the squirt bottle kind, i would have him do a rinse after dinner and see if that helps. I would do it earlier rather than later so he isn't layign down with any residual saline in his nasal passages. and I just learned distilled water is best.
