Helping My Child Use the Nebulizer

I always did it when my daughter 1 1/2 at the time we started using it (luckily only 2 months) was sleeping. I waited until she was sound asleep and then got the nebulizer all ready, picked her up and sat her on my lap while I gave her the treatment. She rarely woke up. If she is in a bed you could even do it while she is still lying in bed. Good luck.

Hi J.,
My son was just 10 months old when he first starting using the nebulizer. He too was terrified and screamed every time he had to do it. For him, he was too young to use the other types so he just had to get used to it. Eventually he did - it didn't take that long. He is almost 4 and still uses it. Now the battle is, he's not too young, he just doesn't want to do it! :)

I know how you feel, because I felt that way too. BUT, like others have said, maybe put on a favorite movie or something to help distract her.

We always had the view that it was a "necessary evil" for her to endure the breathing treatments even though she didn't want to, so we felt we had to to help her, even if that meant we double teamed her to make her do it. The doctor said too that the harder they scream, the more the breathing treatment will actually help because they're using a lot of energy and have to "exercise their lungs" so the medicine is actually getting there (to the lungs) faster if they scream and holler during the treatment.

I will tell you too that, at least with our oldest who seems to have needed more breathing treatments than our youngest, that after a while, she quit fighting it because she realized it was actually helping.

Goode luck!

We sang songs, and soon transitioned to the mouthpiece. It's what Great Grandpa and big brother used. He will choose to hold it with both off near his nose/mouth at times.

HI J.
we went through this with my son when he was 3,he is now almost 8. he did not like it either, we would put him on our lap and watch tv and at first he did yell or scream through it but i think he could tel the difference when it was over and soon realized it wasn't so bad. if they are scream through the treatment they are still getting the medicine as long as the mask is on. ours only took about 10min to finsih, it is loud but i think just sitting with him and holding him and talking him through it or talking about what was on tv while he did the treament helped. i am not sure if this will be helpful to you or not, but it did not take too long for him to get used to it. we did have a child mask but it was still to big for him so we had to hold it in place. good luck.

Hi J.,
I feel your pain . . . . we were in that situation too. We let our daughter 'play' with the mask, without turning the machine on. We also made it less scary by sitting with her, reading/looking at books, turning on her favorite show (The Wiggles) loud enough for her to hear it, giving her a favorite toy, looking at pictures of family & rattling off names (Grandma, Papa, Auntie,etc.) There was some fighting at first, but she eventually got used to it & enjoyed the activities we were doing together. Good Luck!

Don't use the mask, it is scary. Use the attachments for adults and hold it by her face so the steam goes by her nose and mouth. As long as she is inhaling it, she's getting the meds. Our kids call this the peace pipe. They will sit on our laps and watch a movie with their peace pipe. We only use it when they are having trouble. When they don't feel good, they sit still longer.

Once the child realizes the nebulizer helps they accept it more--it takes awhile. My son did better when he helped. Even at two he learned how to put all the tubes together and have it all set up for me. This helped him to feel better about the treatment. He still cried. We also read books, sang and watched our fav. tv shows. (At the time he only watched tv for 30 minutes a day so this extra 10 minutes was a HUGE deal to him!!)
I did have to restrain him for about the first two weeks, and after that he realized how much better he felt after the treatments (espeically when he was actually having an asthma attack) that he stopped fighting. It takes time, it's trying on you as a parent but keeping them a part of it and not making it a chore does help (although nearly impossible to do at times!) Best Wishes!

When my kids were really young they had to have nebulizer treatments. I didn't use the mask. Instead, I used the adult attachment with the tube that is horizontal. The side of the tube that was used for exhaling I put a baggy over and tied tight with a rubberband. Then, the side where normally an adult would put their mouth I just held in front of their nose/mouth area. If they turned their head, I followed them, but it was much easier and they didn't seem to mind it being in their face. I did this up until they were about 4, then started having them use it the proper way. Those masks are uncomfortable and make you feel claustrophobic, so I don't blame her for being freaked out.

I suggest getting her to sing her favorite songs. It's entertaining, and it encourages her to breathe whle singing. Try getting her older brothers to get her to laugh, too, with funny dances or jokes.

My son had to do these when he was little too. He had a doll baby and we put a second mask on it each time and they did their treatments together. That helped. Also, I would sometimes read a special book that he really loved during the treatment. I would save this book only to read during treatments so he knew if he wanted to hear that particular story, he had to be still and listen to it during his treatment. Another thing I di was I let him help me connect the tubes and squeeze the medicine in and he ALWAYS got to be the one to turn it on. If I forgot and switched it on myself, he would have me turn it back off so he could do it himself. All this seemed to make it less scary for him and eventually he would even smile through the treatments. Hope some of this helps :)

When we had to do this for my son we couldn't use the mask. they gave us a different attachment that just aloud him to basically blow it into his face, it was much less scary for him than the mask and if gave him control since he could hold it.

have you tried holding her and reading a favorite book? or maybe buy her a new stuffed animal that she can pretend to give the medicine to before she has to take it. or if it's possible can you give it to her at night, my son was on a nebulizer from about 6 mo till 3. so often as an infant i'd just hold the mask by his face while he slept.

My boys gets to watch 15 minutes of TV while he does it.

With my children we always started whatever was there favorite movie at the time. That way they concentrated on the movie instead of sitting still for the breathing treatment they didn't want. Also, until they weren't so scared, we would just set them on our laps in a big bear hug, trying to offer comfort. It also helped because the doctor said not to worry about them crying during the treatment, it actually helped the medicine get deeper into the lungs.

Hi J.. My son was diagnosed with asthma at 14-months old. I felt so bad for my baby to have to use a nebulizer and he cried at first. The doc said crying is good, he will breathe in more of the medicine and breathe it in deep. He got used to it, but what helped for him was to put on a favorite TV show or movie to distract him a bit.

We also had an extra mask that we put on a teddy bear so that he was getting his treatment just like my son. At 14-months he thought this was great that teddy sat with him and got his medicine too!

In my opinion you would be doing more harm by not "restraining her" and getting the medicine in. As long as you aren't hurting her, letting her fuss and cry isn't the end of the world. She will get used to it...and so will you! I sometimes cried right along with him, but I knew it was for the best.

I do believe you need to use the mask. Just holding it in front of her will not "force" her to breathe in the medicine.

My son is now almost 12 and is off his daily medicine and only uses his inhaler before heavy exercise. I was told that getting asthma that young is actually better than getting it as an adult as the child may outgrow it and the adult may only get worse.

P.S. Reading someone else's post reminded me that I always let my son turn the machine on too. That way he had control of something. I believe part of the fear was that 10 years ago these machines were awfully loud. I do believe they have improved on them, in size and sound, and hopefully they aren't so scary!

We went through this with each of our kids. We did have to continuously "restrain" them until they eventually got used to it. As far as I can tell, there is no lingering trauma (they are now 5, 9 and 12). The most important thing is that they get the necessary meds to have healthy lungs.

Hi J.,

I went through this with my daughter also. when they gave you the nebulizer, did they give you info about buying more masks? They did with my daughters and we got her one that looked like a fish (covered by insurance). She loved that one. :) She always laughed at it and wanted that one. that made it less scary I guess.

They have to have it on for 15 minutes, so I let her watch her favorite show and it kept her mind off of it.

She only has to use it now when she gets a cold & she is 7.

I hope this helps.
L. kay

I have been giving breathing treatments to 3 children over the past 5 years. All of them fussed, wiggled, screamed, etc. at one point or another. This is just something that has to be done. It is for the childs well being. The Dr told me that it is fine for them to cry/scream because they inhale more of the medicine, which is what you want. It just comes down to the fact that you are the mommy and sometimes we have to make our kids do things that they don't like. Part of being a parent! I have never used the mask though, I have always used the piece that blows into their face. However, my 23 yr old daughter used the mask on my 1 yr old grandson and he loved it because he could move around, as far as the tubing would allow, and play with his toys. Maybe instead of restraining her let her sit and play with a toy or just move about.

GOOD LUCK!!

My daughter was on a liquid form of albuterol when she was 2. That might be a good option for you, although I think there can be more potential side effects when taken that way. I didn't notice any, though. She is almost 5 now and uses an albuterol inhaler with a special attachment for children. Don't know if your child would be old enough to understand how to use it, though. Talk to the doctor about these or other options, such as Singulair. I don't blame you for not wanting this to be a traumatic experience. Good luck!

I have been giving treatments to my kids for about 11 years. The masks are scary to them. In the bag of tubes you should have received there should be some tubes. If not call your dr who gave you the machine and pick one up. THey have tons of them there for free. Just put her in a high chair (where she can't move) and point it in her face. As long as she is breathing it in that is good. My oldest was only a few months old when we started doing that for him. As he got older he enjoyed trying to catch the smoke in his mouth and we called it the "good smoke" and he would sit there and breath it in.

Use the tubes, let her help hold the nebulizer. SHe will feel pretty independent.

Good luck!!
J.

I have used a nebulizer for 3 of my children. Basically, until they are used to it, you have to force them to use it. We tried the mask and the wand and neither made them feel better. I tried distracting my daughter and that never worked for us either. Finally I just held her tight in my lap while she used it and sang to her and told her I loved her repeatedly. She was screaming and crying but I felt like I needed to remain calm and that was a way that I was able to do that. The first two got used to the treatments but the third never did. We, luckily, knew there was an end date to it but 3 times a day for several months was tough!
Good luck. Just remember that sometimes as Moms we have to do things that are unpleasant for the safety of our children. It doesn't make us mean, it makes us nuturers.

Our son has been using one off and on (whenever the exercise-induced asthma kicks in) for the past 4 years (so since he was 2). We didn't get a mask with ours. Our pediatrician doesn't like them because many children are scared of it. We have a 'wand' attachment... it's a 6" hollow tube slightly flattened at one end. He holds it with his hand and can either put it into his mouth or just hold it in front of his mouth/nose so he's breathing it in. He has never been scared to use it and thinks it's fun to wave it around to see the 'smoke' come out (he knows not to wave it too much... he played alot the first session but has been great since then). He sits on the couch with a special movie or tv show that he rarely gets to watch.

Talk with your pediatrician for ideas and ask about the wand. It's common for kids to be afraid of the mask so I'm sure he/she has some tips and suggestions.

You do not have to use the mask. Your nebulizer should have come with some other attachments. We just use the part that looks like a piece of pipe and hold it in front of her nose. As long as they are breathing the mist in and out it is enough. You daughter may still be afraid at first but will quickly get used to this. Much better than having a mask over the face!

Do you have a mask or a mouthpiece? Our daughter had to be on a nebulizer when she was 2, and she was fine if we had a kid show on for her to watch during the treatment. She would sit in a special little chair, and we'd turn the volume up loud so she could hear over the machine. Good luck!