Freaking Out.... - Lewisville,NC

Updated on September 26, 2007
H.S. asks from Lewisville, NC
21 answers

My little girl is almost 11 months old and has some respiratory problems recently. She has been in the hospital all weekend with breathing difficulty. She is doing much better now, but the doctor told me that it might be asthma but it's hard to diagnose in babies because they can't perform a breathing test. She is on all kinds of medication- Albuterol and Pulmicort (both steriods given through a nebulizer), Orapred (oral steroid), and Omnicep (antibiotic). She has responded well to all the treatment, but I'm freaking out that she is on all this heavy-duty medication. The doctor also told me that any time she gets a cold or bronchitis, it's likely that this will happen again and we'll have to do the same course of treatment. Anyone else have a child with these problems, and if so, how common is a reaction like that (wheezing, contracting abdominal muscles, lethargy)? It's SO scary and I'm a mess because I'm so stressed out.

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A.W.

answers from Raleigh on

Switch her onto a soy formula, or since she is close to a year, go to rice milk. Also avoid anything with wheat. I went thru the same thing with my son, they also wanted to try and put him on previcid (that's when I drew the line). I started doing some research and milk (even soy) and wheat are high mucus producers, most people think that if you have an allergy it is all in the stomach, but these both cause respiratory problems. Good Luck.

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D.H.

answers from Hickory on

H.,

My grandson lived in military housing, and went to the hospital 5 times before he was a year old. Each time he had pnuemonia, slept a lot and was really congested. I asked my daughter-in-law if they could possibly have mold anywhere. She in turn called the housing management department and said my baby's been sick 5 times this year, could there be mold in this apartment. My son,daughter-in-law and grandson were evacuated immediately, and the apartment was destroyed.

Another 2 year old was banging his head on the floor/walls. The parents had him to the hospital, neurology, doctors, multi tests and lots of medications. They could not figure out what was causing him to do this. A friend said I can't promise anything, but let's try a machine and see if it will help. It did help. What they found out was they had mold and it was causing the baby to have migraine headaches, and he was banging his head on the floor/wall.

I have a piece of equipment that is very effective at killing bacteria's, viruses, mold, reducing particulate, and has helped many many people, especially children. I can't promise it will help your child. People that have allergies and asthma are triggered by what???.... Dustmites, pollens, chemicals, mold spores, and more. These get trapped in filters, carpets, ducts, drawers, beddings and lots of places. Our ActivPure technology takes the solution to the pollution. I will offer a 14 day free trial, no obligation, no charge, to see if it will help. And I will perform abolutely free an IAQ, Indoor Air Quality test to see what is in your air.

To get more information, review websites, or a get a free trial, please call me toll free 866-391-8269.

My daughter moved to Virginia Beach to a new town home, and is expecting her first baby. So Mom/Grandmother To Be of course had to do an IAQ test, especially in the Baby to be room, and guess what??....mold. It is everywhere.

God Bless You! I wish nothing more than the Best of Health to You and Your Daughter Always! D.

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D.D.

answers from Charlotte on

Hi H.,

I have a 3 yr old grandson with asthma since a newborn. He is still using the nebulizer only infrequent as he grows. His doctor has predicted he will outgrow this. Hopefully, will be the same for your little girl.

It is very scary when they are so little. When you here the wheezing you know the neb is needed. Now mine starts with a cough & is on every 4 hrs as needed. Usually, this only occurs during season changes, if then.

I just keep neb & meds with me & daycare only if may be needed.

Good luck to you. Hope this helps in some way~~~

Debbie

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O.S.

answers from Charlotte on

I personally haven't went through this with my son but my little brother who is now 16 has asthma but hasn't had a breakout in 2 years thankgod and a little advise don't let anyone smoke around her and can make matters worse especially when they are so young just so you know my brother was rushed to the hopital not breathing on his first birthday and that day he was dignosed with asthma and some foods can trigur asthma attacks like peanutbutter and it depeds on the child also make your home as dust free and pollen free as possible they sell those air purifers they work really well also vacume alot it will help now when he gets sick he still is a charity case he stays on a breathing machine because hes afraid of ending up back in the hospital good luck and godbless you and your daughter
O.

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F.B.

answers from Kansas City on

My son is just like this. He's two now and they never bothered to perform a breathing test, by now they know it's asthma. My son also went on all these drugs and is doing fine, and the occurance of their use has gone down over time. This is what I learned, as soon as he starts getting symptoms of congestions with slight problems in breathing, he goes right back on the albuterol and pulmicort (pulm twice a day in the neb, albuterol puffs with the inhaler and mask as needed). Ask your doctor about using albuterol in an inhaler when she's not this bad, it's quicker and with the baby mask, easier to do than have the neb on for soo long (when they're really bad then need the neb)!! If you do this and contact the doctor as soon as signs of infection start to get the antibotics if necessary, you may not need oral steroids anymore (this is the one you really want to try to reduce if at all possible). Also, if your child gets a cold and starts any breathing symptoms, start the treatment even though they aren't antibotics for viruses. If the breathing gets bad and they start wheezing, it makes the more susecptable to infection and then the cycle continues. It is very scary for you and hard on them at first. My son still cries if he sees his mask for the inhaler (which helps, one puff/5 breaths and if they are crying they get stronger in breaths, but you have to wait for five big ins). But now he'll sit on the couch and watch Thomas the Train or Dora or Playhouse Disney and hold his neb himself. He'll come up to me and tell me he needs it if he's having a hard time breathing (I always listen for wheezing before administering). Lots of kids grow out of it, hopefully ours will, but some don't, I still have severe asthma and use the neb, we survive. Talk alot with your doctor and maybe about a daily drug like singulair to reduce the flair-ups, it works for us. Best of luck to you and feel free to email me at ____@____.com if you want to talk any further!!

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C.M.

answers from Dothan on

I went thru this with our youngest da who is daughter (who is now 8) when she was about 3. She ha now been fully diagnosed with asthma. Her first episode she ended up with croup and an asthma attack when I rushed her to the hospital. We usaully dont have trouble with hers until cold and flu season starts, other than that she only uses her inhaler a couple of times a month. Hope this helps.

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J.Z.

answers from Norfolk on

Mam-
Have you thought about seeing a holistic Health Practitioner? I only ask because my best friend had leukemia and asthma when she was 2 and her father put her on herbs and vitamins--NEVER used chemotherapy and my friend not only healed but NEVER relapsed! She did use an inhaler for a time butt then grew out of it. There is some great stuff for respiratory problems ... and some people will say you can't know the side affects or benefits but vitamins and herbs have been used for 1,000 of years ... whereas all the drugs the Dr.'s put people on are all experimental, they don't know the side affects either, so either way you are taking a chance. I would trust nature better anyway.
V/R-Jenn

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A.D.

answers from Charlotte on

Our oldest, now 12 went through all that. He does not have full blown asthma, he does carry an inhaler during spring and fall for the pollen outside. While hating having all these meds going at once, it sure does make a difference!! We bought the nebulizer when he was 10 months old, and used it quite often. Everytime he got sick, about every 3-4 months, we would have to use it. He is a very healthy 12 yr old boy and plays sports, goes hiking with his Boy Scouts, can climbs trees in a flash, etc..... So in the end those meds are worth it to me! Good Luck! :)

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T.T.

answers from Norfolk on

I wish I could say something to help you, but when I read your story, my heart opened up to you, I can't even imagine, but I hope all comes out okay for your little angel, and yourself. God Bless.
T.

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C.T.

answers from Norfolk on

Albuterol is a bronchodialator..( opens us up ) not a steriod..I have Cystic Fibrosis (48 yrs old).I'll say a pray she heals quickly! C. ____@____.com

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J.J.

answers from Greenville on

My son had this happend in Feb. of last year. He had just turned 2 years old. He had a pretty bad cold and when I was holding him I noticed he was trying too hard to breath. I took him to his doctor, luckily they were open on Sundays from 12-4, and when we got their they checked his oxygen levels by putting the monitor on his finger and it was pretty low so they started some albuterol treatments in the office and after one his level still were not up so they called us an ambulance to get transported to the hospital. Once we were there he had been on oxygen for a while and his levels were coming up but they still kept him overnight and did chest x-rays. I still don't know exactly what it was but she did say that more than likely anytime he got sick like that again we would have to use the albuterol and flovent nebulizers, which we have to with his bad colds, but not all.

It was a pretty scary experience, but he was fine and now I just know when he gets sick and starts with the heavy coughing and breathing I start the nebulizers and it usually helps it out after the first day of treatment. Good luck with your little girl!

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L.C.

answers from Norfolk on

H.,

I'm no Dr but your daughters symptoms sound alot like my brothers son. He had RSV which he got at 3 weeks and was in intensive care for over a month on all kinds of medication to get his breathing regulated and the fluid out of his lungs. I would ask about RSV, it might be something they can run a test for and that way if they rule it out you can return the asthma diagnosis. I think its hard to accept something they cant definitly tell you about because of her age. Good luck, I know she'll be ok. Babies are so much stronger then we think they are.

L.

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S.H.

answers from Norfolk on

Hi, I grew up with asthma. You need to figure out what cause her to have an asthma attack. For me PE class if I had to run or if I was around someone smoking. The DR was right about when you get sick. My mom told me that you learn to watch out for signs before she gets to far into an attack. Prevention is the best way to deal with it. When I got old enough my mom made me play a wind instrument to help strengthen my lungs, now I only have attacks when i am very sick, the last one was about a year ago. Take care, hope this helped.

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J.F.

answers from Fayetteville on

Okay - first of all, try to stay calm. Our kids can sense when we are stressed and upset and this makes it all the harder for them because they become stressed as well. This does not help the situation. You are doing all the right things by gettin her the treatment she needs. My youngest developed pneumonia three times in his first year of life (he is now two). Each time we went through the same thing you are going through now and each time he gets a cold I hold my breath a little praying that it doesn't turn into it again. Here's the good news - he hasn't had episode in almost a year now. He's had a few colds but none have turned so bad that he needed meds to get over them. Hopefully, with your daughter, as her immune system stregthens she will also be able to get over these bugs easier. They cannot officially diagnose asthma until there are multiple breathing episodes like this. She's way too young to have this diagnosis yet. Keep an eye on her, stay calm and be there for her. She'll get through it. Continue to get her good treatment and stay positive, especially around her. Best wishes!!

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C.R.

answers from Richmond on

Hey H.-
From the sound of things, it seems your little girl has the same issue my son had when he was smaller. I'm a smoker, but didn't smoke around my son much, regardless, he kept having breathing problems. After trying most of the medicines you mentioned, none of them really seemed to clear it up, it just surpressed it for a little bit. Finally, Christmas 2006 he got very sick and we took him to the hopital. He ended up having RSV, you may want your doctor to check into this. I did find out that everyone pretty much gets this from time to time but its worse in children. I also found out that most children that get it.....it will be the worst if they get it before they're 2 years old. Hope this helps.

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A.R.

answers from Norfolk on

You sound like me a year ago! My daughter was a preemie. We noticed that anytime she got sick, it very quickly developed into a bad cough, then trouble breathing. Within a couple days, she would be so ill that she wouldn't drink, sleep, or eat. We would end up at doctor's office or Urgent Care, even with the albuterol and flovent inhalers we were using.

Around her first birthday my doctor told us that we were going to treat it like asthma even though she was too young for an official diagnosis. It's important to prevent asthma attacks because they cause scar tissue. The less scar tissue, the better chance they have of growing out of it. So whenever we see the telltale runny nose, we give her Xopenex in the nebulizer every few hours. If it weren't for that nebulizer she would end up with pneumonia or worse every time, so I thank God for that wonderful machine!

Typically, it's only for a few days every few months. She also gets Singulair during high-allergy times.

Just wanted you to know that you are not alone. Try not to worry so much about the medicines. I think it will be easier once you see how effective they can be. Good luck to you!

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A.B.

answers from Charlotte on

I have/had asthma. They gave me all of those drugs and told me what they told you and it was true, until I got off that train! I saw a local homeopath and I no longer suffer with asthma and no longer need the meds. If I get sick, it doesn't automatically turn into bronchitis as it used to. So there are natural alternatives that actually offer hope.

I would also look into food sensitivities, dairy and wheat are biggies in respiratory issues.

A.

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J.C.

answers from Raleigh on

My daughter, now 18 months, went through this when she was around 6 months old. Our pediatrician sent us to a pediatric respitory doctor and he said she would most likely grow out of it by the time she was two. Thankfully she is much better. He instructed us to only use the nebulizer when she was having trouble (we could often hear her breathing or feel it in her lungs when she breathed). He put her on Xopenex and it seemed to do the trick. If she did get sick we would only use the nebulizer for about 3 days and she would be much better. I don't think we have had to neb her for almost 3 months now. Don't get scared and hope that she is as lucky as my little one and outgrows it.

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H.L.

answers from Hickory on

Hey! Sorry to hear you are going thru this. I myself am going thru it also. My youngest son who is 2 1/2 had RSV at 2 weeks old and literally stopped breathing at night. He was in the NICU for 2 weeks. He was not diagnosed with asthma but he was on breathinng treatments and steroids till 1 year old and off and on till 2. He got Croup at his 1st birthday and then again at 18 months. Because he has had so many problems since birth when ever he gets sick he gets it 10 times worse than a normal healthy child his age. He is underweight and now goes thru speech therapy because he is speech delayed. Trust me it is very scary and i freak out over it all the time. I even slept woth him for about a year just so i could watch his breathing. The only thing that kept me sane was lots of praying and putting it in God's hands! Everytime he gets a runny nose i will watch his breathing. Every time he has to have a breathing treatment(which is slim to none now) they always give me enough supply to last a year! I will pray for your family.

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M.Y.

answers from Atlanta on

Hi! I know it is so scary watching your child go through all this. My middle daughter was on all the things you mentioned when she was little. Did your Ped. explain to you that most children will grow out of childhood asthma? Well, they do! That is the good news! My daughter is now 9 yrs. old and doing fine. She has not been on a nebulizer or any meds in a few years now. I still keep a bottle of singulair handy, but havent had to use it in a long time! Hang in there, things will get better!

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M.I.

answers from Charlotte on

I have a 4year old ibeen dealing with his allergy of milk,eggs,penutsandsoy then it turn in to asthma when it gets cold seson it gets bad i do not take him outside just rent movies and playing with him; sand or dogs gets bad asthma ordusts ,cold feets when it gets cold cover her with zipper pijamas do not wash hair if is too cold good luck call if you want M. ###-###-####

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