DD is crying in the other room

[Earlybird]

She started rubbing her ear in the bath tonight saying it hurt. I have elevated her head (pillow under the mattress), and dosed her with Calpol. Is there anything else I can do for her?

[galaxy]

dd was doing this last night and claimed she's poked something in her ear earlier in the day. She took 2 hours to settle and we think she may have actually got a touch of sunstroke. She's fine today.

[pindy]

how old is she? Do you have anything like olbas oil or decongestant that may help her if she is blocked up?

Does she have a temp?

Calpol is good.

Good luck.

[Mum2Ela]

Baby ibuprofen as well as calpol? Dose her right up - she may sleep it off.

[soapbox]

Sounds like an ear infection - poor thing they are agonising

Have you any junior nurofen in? I used to double dose them with Calpol and Nurofen when they had ear infections. Depending on how bad it is you can do Calpol then 2 hours later nurofen then 2 hours later Calpol. If mine were really bad though I'd give Calpol and Nurofen together at the same time as this often let them get off to sleep and then they'd be fine for quite a long time (usually repeated this only once during the night). Just be careful not to exceed the 24 hour max dose of either!

Something warm under the ear also used to help - so a hot water bottle well wrapped in a soft blanket or towel.

I really hope she gets better soon and you get some sleep tonight

[WigWamBam]

Sounds like an ear infection, do you have an out of hours GP service you could call, because she might need antibiotics.

[Earlybird]

She's 4. No temperature, but she does have a chesty cough (infrequent). She also has had a bad cold for about 10 days...though she can still breathe through her nose, so not completely blocked.

I think it's gonna be a long night, though I'm praying she'll settle.

[pindy]

Calpol and neurofen are good. I agree - dose her up with both to begin with and give her warm drinks to help.

Docs don't give antibiotics for ear infections anymore - unless they get really bad.

Hope she is soon feeling better - and hope you both get some sleep tonight

[Earlybird]

OK, she's had another dose of Calpol, and have put her back to bed with a heating pad under her ear, and the mattress elevated under her head. She's asleep....for the moment.

I have no Baby Ibuprofen or Junior Nurofen in the house - but do have adult versions of both. If she wakes in pain again, is it completely out of the question to give her a much reduced dose of adult Nurofen or Ibuprofen? Adult dosage is 2 tablets. What if I gave her half a tablet dissolved/crushed in some juice/water/milk?

Otherwise, I may have to phone in an order of Baby Ibuprofen/Junior Nurofen to the all night Chemist, pay for it by credit card, and get a taxi to bring it to us....or bundle her up, and get into a taxi to go get it. (should I add that to the "good things about London" thread?) Why do these things usually happen at night, and on the weekends?

[soapbox]

Earlybird - you will need to work out the dose very carefully.

From google I have ascertained that 5mls of childrens nurofen has 100mg neurofen. Each adult tablet has 200mg neurofen. You need to work out the dose based on that information.

this site suggests that at 4 your DD could have a dose of 2.5-5mls of junior nuerofen. I would therefore say that 1/4 to 1/2 a tablet would be okay. To be safe I would stick to a 1/4 for now

[Earlybird]

soapbox - thanks for your reply. Hopefully I won't be faced with the dilemma tonight, but it's good to know I have some options other than letting her be in pain, or going out in the middle of the night. And you can be certain that I will be at the chemist tomorrow making sure my medicine chest is properly stocked for any eventuality!

[pindy]

What sort of night did you both have? Hope it wasn't too bad and dd is feeling better this morning.

Unfortunately these things seem worse at night and often are - made worse by lying down.

Hope you have a better day

[Earlybird]

pindy - thanks for checking in. Last night wasn't too bad. She woke about 1.30, and again about 5. But both times, I was able to make her comfortable enough that she could go back to sleep. She seems a bit quiet this morning, but generally OK.

As soon as the chemist is open, we'll pop out to stock up the medicine chest so that I'm better prepared for tonight....which, of course, I hope isn't an issue. This has been such a long winter for everyone I know with coughs, colds, tummy bugs, ear infections, etc. Seems you get past one ailment, only to be faced with another!

[pindy]

Too true earlybird - just one thing after another. Let's hope this great weather (it is here anyway!) makes us all feel better and have a good summer.

Bye for now.....

[pindy]

Is she OK now? My dd (12) has come down with the sicky bug etc - yuk - but least it is easier to explain to her (well sometimes!!!!!! hormones permitting)

[Earlybird]

pindy - thanks for asking. We poppped out on Sunday to buy some Nurofen/Ibuprofen for kids, and discovered that there are no chemists open on Sunday in our area! Finally found one, and got some children's Ibuprofen...and I was so grateful I did because Sunday night ended up being a complete nightmare. DD was awake most every hour crying in pain. I took her to the doctor yesterday, and he confirmed she had infections in both ears. He tried to fob us off with the Calpol-alternating-with-Nurofen solution, but I convinced him we were past that stage and he gave some antibiotics.

DD is much better today, but clearly not yet well. Hope your dd is doing better. It's hard on them (and us!) when our children are sick. And I'm afraid I'm not a very good nurse! Thanks again for checking on us.

[Evesmama]

my dd is just getting through an ear infection...i really pity your dd