Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Should I be keeping DD off school tomorrow? Please help!

150 replies

PFB1 · 14/11/2018 23:20

She's my eldest so I'm not entirely sure what the protocol is with this sort of thing.

DD has had a bad cough (only at nighttime) for the past couple of weeks. I've been sending her to school each morning as she's been her normal self in the day although admittedly more tired having been up coughing through the night. She's been fine at school but when she's got home she's been tired. Particularly tonight.

Anyway, I've put her to bed and she's having a coughing fit every 30 seconds. It's awful for her. I know that tomorrow morning will come and I'll need to wake her for school as I have every morning for the last couple of weeks. She'll be tired but will get on with the day at school. In my heart of hearts I feel it's unfair on her if I send her again tomorrow and think she'd benefit from a day of resting and possibly a visit to the GP.

My mum would only keep me off school if I was at deaths door so I'm not sure if I'm being too cautious in considering keeping her home. She's already had 1 day off since starting school in September for a sickness bug which came on one weekend. Really grateful for any advice. Thanks.

OP posts:
Gileswithachainsaw · 17/11/2018 21:22

Personally I think if this continues tomorrow then perhaps keep her off Monday as well.

I would also contact drs again and ask if they have something like an asthma clinic?
How is she in the mean time? Could she be coming down with a chest infection on top?

Speaking to the school is a good idea I always wrote on the medical forms what the max dosage could be bit having said that they only ever administered the 2 puffs.

PFB1 · 17/11/2018 21:26

This is the problem. When she's not coughing, she's totally fine and well in herself. Feels silly keeping her off for the sake of one coughing fit. Especially when I know if it does happen, the inhaler will sort it out 😩 she wants to go back too. Such a tricky one.

OP posts:
JustKeepSwimmingJustKeepSwimmi · 17/11/2018 21:30

Pfb1 sounds like just the same here. Taking her to the Drs in the day seems odd when shes well in the day!

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about these subjects:

Quartz2208 · 17/11/2018 21:31

Most schools should require the box or label with the prescription on it to know what to give - they shouldnt do it without one

Do you work - could you say if it happens to call you and you can administer it

PFB1 · 17/11/2018 21:34

Do you work - could you say if it happens to call you and you can administer it

I'm 30 mins walk from the school and don't drive unfortunately. So that may not be practical as she's possibly need it sooner. I wonder if the GP would put something in writing to say she can have 4 puffs? But still if need to get her to school & get that from the doctors. Return it to the school etc with a 2 year old in tow. That would take me hours on foot!

OP posts:
Quartz2208 · 17/11/2018 21:35

Then keep her off until its stops

PFB1 · 17/11/2018 21:35

Sorry for the typos 😩 I've literally had one glass of wine! Grin

OP posts:
PFB1 · 17/11/2018 22:03

So sounds as though I should maybe keep her off Monday if the coughing happens again tomorrow. Then I could contact the GP on Monday morning and see if they can put something in writing to allow the school to give more puffs.

OP posts:
HarryDresdensLeatherDuster · 17/11/2018 23:12

So much misunderstanding about asthma terrifies me!

She now has two different medications - the brown (preventer) inhaler should be taken taken at the prescribed dose every day uses advised otherwise by your gp.

The blue (ventolin/salbutamol) inhaler is the reliever. You should give as much of this as she needs to stop the coughing/attack.

During an attack (coughing fit) her airways narrow so the air cannot pass through. Give the blue inhaler through a spacer as needed. I have always been told 10 puffs at a time is the same as a dose in a nebuliser. Please do not limit it. An attack is genuinely terrifying!

DS has bad asthma (mine is not much better!) and I have always been told that you give as much as you need to control a wheeze/cough (up the ten puffs above) and if that does not last an hour - seek urgent help! In all of our many hospital visits they would not let us leave until he was stable on a 4 hourly dose.

Your GP needs to give you an asthma plan. This will supersede a basic prescription of 2 puffs 2 times a day and tell them how to escalate if the symptoms do not alleviate.

PFB1 · 17/11/2018 23:21

Harry hoping you can help me just now. I have DD her usual 4 puffs at 8pm. She started coughing again at 10. There are breaks between the coughing but these are lessening now and the coughing is becoming more prolonged. I was trying to hold out until 4 hours had passed from the last dose. It's coughing & no wheezing. Should I have given her more of the blue inhaler at 10 when the coughing began again? Should I give her it now even although 4 hours hasn't passed? Your post reads as though I should give it but lots of people have mentioned waiting 4 hours.

OP posts:
JustKeepSwimmingJustKeepSwimmi · 18/11/2018 06:26

Hope your child is okay pfb. What did you do? I instinctivelywant to give enough to ease symptoms and then go back to the surgery if we're having to keep doing it - but I am not a doctor and def we shouldnt actually follow advice online about asthma just consider it I guess.

Harry - Ive tried seeking help but it feels its not considered "urgent" when they are coughing non stop as it is when they are wheezing/short of breath/normal asthma attack. Certainly NHS direct didnt give me the out of hours/instant hospital appointment I was expecting and told me to just ring a pharmacist (!!!).

I want to know more about what my daughter has as on one hand online all thw advice is the same as for normal asthma attacks yet in her case she can breathe okay its just the coughing fits so isnt an emergency as such?

It seems cough variant asthma is a bit different to normal asthma but I cant find clear answers and havent been given them yet. I go back to asthma nurse in a couple of weeks.

Shes been fine all year so just escalating medications for coughing fits seems hard but its been 2 weeks now. However lsst nught we did 4 puffs at beginning of night woth first attack and she has slept. So mayve the increased brown dose is working on her lungs?!

I hate not having a proper understanding of this.

blackteaplease · 18/11/2018 06:43

You need an asthma plan from your gp/asthma nurse. This tells you how to escalate your blue inhaler and when to go to hospital. School should also have a copy. You also need a second blue inhaler and spacer for school.
In the mean time I would call 111 for advice if the cough isn't subsiding

Chrisinthemorning · 18/11/2018 07:17

It’s quite difficult (but not impossible!) to overdose on salbutamol (ventolin) so I would have no qualms about giving another few puffs 4 hours later. Our GP once advised 2 puffs 4 times a day regularly for DS, plus more “if needed”. Needing lots of blue inhaler is a a sign asthma is not well enough controlled though.
I think you need an asthma care plan- at our surgery you see the asthma nurse. School will want this and they’ll want an inhaler and spacer to keep in school also.
Ask about montelukast- it has been a miracle drug for us. DS also has a dual inhaler twice a day which as well as a steroid has a long acting beta agonist. Salbutamol is a short acting beta agonist.

OffToBedhampton · 18/11/2018 07:34

Yes you can give more blue inhaler (reliever) and in less than 4 hours. Usually 2 hourly is fine if required but you need to retalk to GP about it as s/he would have started conservative in treatment and needs to know it's not enough. Just make another GP appointment (btw "not Breathing last night" is an emergency appointment request) and discuss that she needs more.

If in doubt at any point day or night when at home with DD and you feel unsure of what to do, you call 111 . It's very unpleasant being unable to breathe and dangerous.

In an emergency your GP or 111 will tell you, you can give 10 puffs within a short period (one after the other but give time in-between to work) but you call an ambulance at same time.

Your DD has a winter virus , it's contagious. So whilst she feels rotten (achy, hurts, tired) she needs to stay home and warm. It has cough as symptom which stays & takes weeks to go.

She needs her inhaler when she is struggling to breathe as result of cough. Asthma can be triggered or made worse by many viruses like this, even a cold.

Make sure it's not just continuing irritating cough you're giving extra inhaler for though. As cough comes with virus and it will stay anyway, inhaler just opens airways to make it easier & reduces but doesn't eliminate cough. So pattern GP suggested should be fine but you give more if after having her two blue (reliever) puffs she is struggling with cough / wheezing or struggling to breathe still.

You can tell she can't breathe if she can't talk a sentence without being breathless. Or moving (eg standing up to walk.., walking to bathroom, ..upstairs, ...) without struggling for breath. An asthmatic child (& adult!) will gradually stay more and more still (& become sleepy) as to move costs breath - watch that as you might not notice. Prop her up when sleeping as lying flat makes it worse. Dozing on sofa with you is ideal. I sleep in same room as my DC when their asthma is bad. Or they came into my big bed when little.

I've been in and out of A&E & GPs in past month due to winter (cough) virus sending my asthma wild. 3 weeks off work could barely talk or walk due to shortness of breath even on inhalers & steroids. My DD & DS have asthma.

Persistent coughing mostly at at night when not unwell might have been start of asthma. Coughing day and night and feeling rotten is virus with what sounds like exacerbation of asthma on top of virus and good that you GP now knows. Watch out for coughing up yellow.stuff as that indicates chest infection too which sometimes comes along after a while when virus takes more hold when asthmatic. (GP listens for crackly chest).

Sounds like the preventer (brown inhaler) may need to continue after virus. GP will talk to you about it or asthma nurse at the practice.

Btw schools can and do give more than 2 puffs ventolin in emergency even if label says that, you just instruct school what GP said.for.emergencies. My DD has "up to 10 puffs in one go but call Mum after 4th) and ambulance after 10th if I'm not there by then", as instructions from GP via me to school. But then my DC & I are chronic asthmatics. In our case asthma attack could be deadly so we don't mess around.

OffToBedhampton · 18/11/2018 07:42

Be aware that ventolin (blue) inhalers speeds up your heart. So that's why GPs are conservative with how many puffs. That's also why I say talk to 111 & GP about giving more too, that it hasn't been enough, but i'd do it in emergency anyway if I hadn't had instructions to do so, whilst ringing 111 ... They are 24 hours. ( If she cannot breathe still you ring 999. Ambulances carry oxygen and nebulisers. Your younger DD would need to go to neighbour, ours come knock if they see ambulance outside as they know I need their help with 3DC and just me )

AnnaMagnani · 18/11/2018 07:58

I would say she needs to go back to the doctors to say it is not under control with the current plan.

I can only speak as an adult with asthma (but with 70s parents who managed my childhood nighttime coughing by shouting at me to stop coughing - nice) but too much blue puffer makes you feel dreadful and there is more that can be done. You shouldn't be sitting at home thinking 'she's had her blue puffs and so that's it'. Personally I end up with a course of steroids with most viruses and I am almost without asthma symptoms the rest of the time.

Coughing is still an asthma symptom - some asthmatics never wheeze ever so please don't take absence of wheeze as a reassurance, or let health professionals brush you off with 'she isn't wheezing' (I've been there and done that).

Don't mess about with asthma, go back and get it sorted. Today if necessary.

FallenAngel89 · 18/11/2018 08:04

My DD has the same problem when the cold rolls around. She doesn't seem to be half as bad at night if I ask the school to keep her in during play so she isn't running around and is kept in the warm :)

OffToBedhampton · 18/11/2018 10:08

@FallenAngel89. That's a good point. My DC stay in for play times and off PE when asthma is playing up. I send note into school. School prefer the heads-up rather than have child get unwell and in medical room/sent home.

HarryDresdensLeatherDuster · 18/11/2018 13:06

PFB1 I'm so sorry to abandon you. I must have fallen asleep. How is she today?

Yes, absolutely give more ventolin if needed like that. If your gp has said up to 5 puffs, give the 4 you have been and see how long it will hold. Basically, the drug blows open the tubes. If the symptoms come back, give more. Was always told to seek help if I needed it more than hourly. My asthma specialist has also told me that you can't actually overdose with ventolin although a lot will make you feel lightheaded and your heart race.

Basically, give the max dose you have been advised to give and if that does not last for at least a couple of hours, seek help. 2 puffs 4 hourly is a minimum stabilising dose. You do not have to wait the 4 hours if the symptoms are still there.

You cannot mess about with asthma.

HarveySchlumpfenburger · 18/11/2018 14:14

You can give the blue inhaler more than 4 hourly, but I think you need to get her seen again if you are having to. The blue inhaler should hold the symptoms off for four hours and if it isn’t then it might be they need to step up her treatment or give a course of oral steroids.

Kazplus2 · 18/11/2018 14:20

If you haven't already make sure that the pillows and duvets are not feather filled and are suitable for people with allergies. Feather pillows is a typical trigger for my athsma.

OffToBedhampton · 18/11/2018 19:26

How is she this evening @PFB1?

PFB1 · 18/11/2018 20:01

Sorry I've not replied sooner. Today & tonight so far has been better so far. Still coughing a bit but it's less severe definitely. I'm going to send her in tomorrow. I'm going to give her 4 puffs of the blue inhaler and 2 of the brown straight before I take her in, in the hopes that'll help fend off the coughing and hopefully she'll make it through the day but if not I'll just bring her home. Thanks so much for all the advice and support on here! I appreciate it so much.

OP posts:
Quartz2208 · 18/11/2018 20:34

Viral Wheeze is awful - DS started with it at the same age and has now had it 5 or 6 times (he is starting to grow out of it this time he needed less). The first time he was hospitalised now we manage with the inhaler (have been back to the doctors to get one each time, last time he gave me 3 to see us through)

FruitCider · 18/11/2018 21:15

OP does your daughter have an inhaler at school? Does she know how to ask for it/use it? X

Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.

This thread is closed and is no longer accepting replies. Click here to start a new thread.

Swipe left for the next trending thread