Need Advice to Stop a Cough!

Children's allergy medicine is supposed to work like the cough syrup they took off of the shelves. I would just use it at night so he can get a good night's sleep. Poor baby.

Do you give him Ibuprofen? I always do, in addition to the saline, bulb syringe. It seems to help.

Thanks,
S.

L.,

I found that if you put vicks on there feet at night and put socks on them they won't cough at night. My niece is sick right now as matter of fact and she puts vicks at night on her feet then puts socks on and she doesn't cough. This also worked for my two kids. Hope this helps.

J. D

The old-fashioned way (I'm 58) was Vick's Vaporub on his chest, and a warm vaporizer in his room while he sleeps. Good luck!

Humidifier in the room at night. If you can put it in front of the air register, it works best. The dry heat from the furnace causes the "winter cough" in my kids every year.

My 14 month old has a bad cough and runny nose right now also and has not been sleeping through the night because of his cough. Usually he is my best sleeper to my 3 older kids. Anyway, 2 nights in a row I put Vicks Vapor rub on his chest and both nights had to put it on him a second time in the night. Last night before I put his jammies on him I put it on his feet put socks over it and then his sleeper. He didn't wake up one time in the night, nor did I hear him coughing at all, and he is a much happier little boy today. It may sound crazy but it works (works for adults too). I even asked his doctor about it when he was younger yet (before his 1 yr birthday) and he acted like it was a wive's tale, but said it is a long way from his hands or heart so it was okay to try it and let me tell you it does work.

Try the Vicks on the feet advice. It worked great for my boy. It even helps me and my husband too!

my mom used to take a washcloth, dipped in warm water and wrung out, and put it around our neck, then cover it with a dry hand towel and secure it with a diaper pin (the kind that were really difficult to open, so it would not pop open while we were sleeping). I have used this method on my kids and it really seemed to help them to sleep through the night without coughing.
Hope it works for your lil guy,
L.

Try propping his crib or bed up at one end with books. Sitting up a little while he sleeps might help. At that age, my kids would never stay on the extra pillow to sleep, so propping the entire bed worked better.

Put Vick's Vapor Rub on his feet, put socks on....and wait about 20 minute.....relief!!!

Try proping his crib mattress up at one end by putting towels under the mattress. Also run a cold air vaporizer in his room. Stay away from honey because it can cause allergies.

Hope this helps.

Put vicks salve on his feet and rub in good and put on socks. It should stop the cough. I would also elevate his upper body for sleeping.Laying flat will let the nasty stuff just build up.
They make pediatric tussin , at his age the dose is about a half a teaspoon.

Hi L.! Both my sons have bad coughs right now as well. The cool mist humidifier and vapor rub have seemed to help a little. I put the vapor rub on my toddlers back, neck and chest and it seemed to help with his congestion. I have a medical book that suggests warm apple juice for cough relief. Haven't tried it because my son refused to drink it! I agree with the post below- stay away from honey and be careful with OTC cough medicines. Propping the mattress has helped with my baby as well. Good luck!

Hi L.! I'm going to tell you something that may make you say, "what?!" That's what I said when I heard it, but I've talked to several people who have tried it and they all say it works. I have listened to my kids lay in bed and cough constantly, and it's enough to make you cry, because you can't stop it, no matter what you do! But try this... get some Vicks vapor rub and rub it generously on the bottom of his feet, put some socks on him, and put him to bed. I guess it works like a charm! It warms them up and somehow stops the cough! Give it a try! I would be anxious to see if it works for you too. My kids haven't had a cough since I've heard about this, so let me know how it works for you! Have a healthier and Merry Christmas!!

try putting vicks vapor rub on his feet. Rub it in good especially around his heel then put socks on him to hold in the heat.

I totally feel your pain. My 2 year old has had a terrible cough for a month. We also used Delsym, because it had worked in the past. Not this time!! Her dr kept saying she was fine, too. I was like "no she isn't because no one is getting any sleep!!" I went to a different dr in the same practice, and he recommended to try Zyrtec. OMG, what a great night sleep we had that night! It is now OTC and you can find it for toddlers. He said that the cough meds have been researched and found to be of no relief, which is what I was experiencing. We all had the cold/cough, we all used the Zyrtec, and we ALL slept!! The cough has also cleared up!

my grandson went through that recently and I had my daughter sit in the bathroom with him with the shower on hot so the bathroom got all steamy. It helped to get things running and out of his system. Giving a warm bath also helps to break things up. Don't let him lay on his back much with the nose running because that sends the yucky stuff down his throat. Hope that all helps some!!

try some vick's vapor rub on his feet.....smooth on bottom of both feet and cover with socks. I tried this with my daughter after trying 2 OTC meds and a prescription med for coughing. It took about 30 minutes to work but did work! Best wishes for some restful sleep :-)

Awww! Poor little guy!

Make sure he's drinking enough water. Hydration makes a big difference in congestion.

I would also try removing wheat and dairy from his diet for a few days to see if he doesn't improve. I stopped eating wheat, dairy, and sugar last February, and within 3 days I began to notice that my reactions to my known allergies were virtually non-existent. I don't eat those foods at all any more. It's just not worth feeling so terrible all the time.

I have to ask, what is a cold in the eyes? A cold is a virus, and isn't located in any particular part of the body. Do you mean his eyes were red and watering a lot? That's probably a result of some allergen or irritant bothering him.

I can't tell you strongly enough how surprised you might be at his improvement if you withdraw the wheat and dairy products for now to see if it helps. If it doesn't help, no harm done, but if it does, you'll know you're onto something! Oh! And avoid sugar at all costs too. It's terrible for the body. You can use pure maple syrup in place of sugar, or you can use honey (although I think your son is still a bit young for honey), but sugar is terrible for anyone's health.

FYI: My doctor who put me on this diet for health began her practice as a pediatrician. The parents of her patients were so impressed with their children's improvement that they started going to her for advice. Now she has a family practice. you might want to take you boy to her and see what she has to say. Her name is Sandra Pinkham, and her office is at 2170 Riverside Dr. in Columbus, right across the Club Rd. from Scioto Country Club. She's wonderful!

Good luck! I hope your son feels better soon.

put a cool mist in his room at night, my children have asthma and when they start coughing, especially at nite it seems like it's never going to stop. i give them cough and cold medicine take their socks off and put the cool mist it really helps my kids. please try it. good luck.

if you can help it don't bundle him up too warm for bedtime, put a onesie & pair of thin sweats on him. we use a cool mist humidifier for our kids that runs every night when they are in bed & when they take a nap during the day. so far my daughter has only had bronchitis/pluricy/borderline pneumonia once this year. last year she had RSV twice & bronchitis once. her doc said when/if she does get sick in her lungs to run a vaporizer & humidifier together. it works for us. God be with you.

Boy, do I feel for you and your poor little one. My 2 also have a history of coughing at night, often waking up. They are 4 and 7, and the doctor thinks their coughing is related to allergies. The latest thing we are trying is a prescription of Allegra which seems to help the 7yo but not the younger one. I can say that the coughing seems to be triggered by post nasal drip, so if you can maybe elevate the head of the bed/crib a bit it could help with drainage. Honey sometimes did help mine, but they got to the point that they would ask for it routinely at bedtime, not just when they were coughing! Also, I have no idea why, but lemon juice in water sometimes helped too. Good luck to you both, I hope he is better soon!

Robitussin if there is a brand for his age, or my all time favorite Tylenol cold for children. Get some rest mom.

I'm not sure which of these remedies are best in this case, but I have found the Hyland's kids kit wonderful with our baby--and it does seem to stop the severity of colds, etc. or head them off a little. Here's where you can find out about it:
http://www.hylands.com/products/kidskit.php

Good luck!

Humidifier with Vick's in it helps. Also, some Vicks on his chest might help, or put it on a washcloth and put under his shirt- since he could be allergic and cause a rash. Make sure his nose is cleaned out when he goes to bed-use Saline drops to clean it out.
Have him drink Gatorade, Kool Aid, 7-up; anything to get him to drink, constantly throughout the day.
If his eyes get worse, stuck shut in morning, thick goop, take him back to doctor. Use warm wash cloth to clean them.
That's all I got.

Vicks vapor rub on the bottom of the feet then put socks on. This works best at night. You can also put some on the chest. Run a cool mist humidifier in the room constantly to help with the dry air. Pediacare brand decongestant worked really well for my daughter. Good luck & hope he feels better soon

I agree with other mom.. i would use a cool mist humidifier.. prop the bed.. and the only thing different i have done is i've rubbed vick's vapor rub on the sole of there feet.. I've used this on my daughter who is not quite two yet.. worked miracles.. even had my neighbors do it.. I acutally got the idea from another mother here on mamasource.. Not babyvicks.. but full strengh non-greasy looks like lotion vicks.. rub it on the sole of their feet cover w/ sock and i've had my little ones sleep thru the night w/ the humidfier & bed propped.. I have also done gingerale w/ 1/2 water to settle the 'mucus' in their stomach this way they are getting liquids... but i know how i feel when i'm under the weather.. i always liked gingerale too. Hope this helps.. try the vicks (it weird) but it worked for me and 4 of my neighbors.. Good Luck!

M.

Try rubbing Vicks Vapo Rub on the bottom of his feet and make sure he wears socks to bed. You'll be surprised how much less he will cough.

The first time my son coughed himself awake through the night he was probably 6 (maybe younger) months old. The next morning I gave him liquid lea, it is natural and works amazingly. Now at the first sign of a cough I give him some and it gets rid of it right away. I can tell you how to get some if you like.
I am a 29 year old WAHM with a 21 month old son.

Vicks on the bottom of his feet with socks and also on his chest. One of my kids is a cougher whenever she has cold, allergies, etc. and this works every time.

If he does not have any allergies try a spoon full of peanut butter. It was also recomended to me to try the yellow triaminic it has an expectorant in it that will help break the stuff up so his cough is productive. You could also try the warm steam vaporizor (ask a pharmacist) not too close because it will get hot but if his room is not huge it will make it like a suana and I believe there is something you can put in the water too help. If you cant get one right away try to steam up a bathroom with the shower running and sit in there with him. You could also alternate the steam with a breath of fresh cold outside air. proping and all that stuff is good too. i feel your pain mine are sick too with the runny eyes and all and they are always sick with colds all winter long (they had flu shots too). I rub baby vicks on their chests too. Good Luck hopefully he will be on the "down hill" side of since it has already been a few days.

First off, let me say that I'm not a dr. or a pharmacist, but this advice comes from LOADS of personal experience, both with myself and my son. The itchy, watery eyes, coughing and congestion sound a lot more like allergies than a cold. Most people assume you don't have any allergic tendencies in the winter because everything outside is dead - but on the contrary, you're stuck inside all day with dry heat that circulates dust constantly!! Plus, if you have animals - unfortunately, he may be developing a irratibility (sp?) towards them. My son was on Zyrtec and Sudafed for allergies and lingering congestion by 18 months and it helped tremendously. Speak with both your ped. and a trusted pharmacist. Often a ped. will just brush off your concerns as over-protectiveness... A good pharmacist will usually take the time to talk about the symptoms and possible remedies - and then will get you accurate dosages. Because your son is under 2 - you should always get the most accurate dosages based on both weight and age. A ped. would probably tell you not to self-medicate your kids, but at the same time, would never hesitate to take medication for their own symptoms. One thing I will say - is to be VERY careful if you do start giving otc medication - I go as far as to write out little time & dosage charts if he's taking a couple of things at once so as not to confuse things in my head. Oh - one other thing - Mentholatum Salve/Ointment is in my opinion a better product than Vicks... a touch more pricey, but I've found it works a lot better! I hope this helps -- Good luck, I know there is nothing worse than a little one that doesn't feel well!!

I know this may sound odd, but it works like a charm on my children:) Put vicks vapor rub on the balls of their feet, and put socks on. I read this on the internet a few years ago and have had luck with it ever since. Good luck.

Most colds run their coarse in 7-14 days. Sounds like he just got this a few days ago, right? You should never give a child under age 5 cough/cold meds (that's why you can't buy them for toddlers anymore). Stick to treating symptoms with Vaporub, humidifiers, warm baths, etc...

ENCLCLOPEDIA of HEALTH & NATURAL HEALING FOR BABIES by Weber and NATUALLY HEALTHY BABIES & CHILDREN by Romm

I use 2T honey, 2T vinegar (I use red wine but you don't have to), 3-4 dashes of cayenne, (but I use MORE- the vinegar off sets the cayenne and does NOT seems spicey at all) and some lemon juice, but not necessary. I use lemon ANY time I can since it has so many good healing properties.

I put this in enough green tea (hot/warm) & stir to dispurse the honey. I use this for cough & congestion. IT DOES HELP!! AND......I actually LIKE the taste of it!

I don't know if this has been suggested yet- but I tried it with my 16 month old and it really works. Take Vicks vapor rub and put it on the bottom of his feet and will help stop the cough. I didn't believe that it would really work but I did it on myself as well and it helped my daughter and I sleep through the night.

I believe you are not supposed to give honey to child under the age of 2.HAve you tried vicks on his chest and under his nose when he is sleeping? Vaporizers/humidifiers work great at night too. Standing in a steamy shower can also help. I know they have taken a lot of cold meds off the shelf for kids that age so I am not sure anymore about OTC meds. Can you make him soup; broth is hard for anyone to eat. The flavor is quite dull. Eating yogurt might help him because the probiotic properties and help his immune system fight any infections. Hope he feels better. Also try tilting his bed up a little. If his head is elevated it might make it easier for him to sleep.