Calpol!

[Poliosmolio123]

Why does everyone always jump to using Calpol straight away and it's always the first bit of advice they give?

Baby sad, ah must give them calpol
Baby teething Calpol!
Baby has a temperature raised by 0.2 of a degree, oh they need calpol
Baby not sleeping - give them Calpol!

Like, is it only me who just doesn't like the stuff or want to medicate my child willy nilly?

Its the first thing any of my family members do or say and it makes me feel like a shitty parent for not wanting to give it to them! Obviously I would if I was advised by a HC professional.

Is this totally unreasonable?

YABU - I use Calpol all the time
YANBU - I don't use it all the time

Don't get me started about anbesol.

Why deny painkillers?

Do you take them yourself?

As a last resort I will take painkillers or anti inflammatories but not before trying to address the cause of the issue first. If I have a headache my first thought is “ah I haven’t been wearing my glasses, have I had enough to drink today, do I need some caffeine if I haven’t had my morning coffee, is my ponytail too tight?” Then if I conclude that none of the above apply and the headache can’t be fixed by removing or adding something non medicinal, I might take medication.

The same with my DCs - are they hot, tired, teething etc - can this be fixed by a fan, a nap, a teething ring or cold flannel? If not then paracetamol is a legitimate option.

A friend of mine would dish out Medised to their DC when they went out for lunch to get them to sleep through. They would wake them from their nap, put them in a pushchair, get to the restaurant, then give them medicine to knock them out again.

I’m horrified by anyone giving kids unnecessary meds, especially paracetamol as that can have a horrific effect on vital organs with prolonged use. And I bet they’re the first ones to moan about other people using iPads to babysit their kids in a restaurant while their little poppet sleeps.

@Bizawit, there is no sedative in Calpol. It's either that your daughter had pain relief and could then sleep or a total coincidence.

And @Poliosmolio123, count yourself lucky re the teething. DS had 7 teeth through in 10 days and screamed pretty much the whole time he wasn't dosed up with Calpol. All kids are different, eh? Who the fuck knew?

For all those saying that Calpol doesn’t make children drowsy- on the odd occasion I have given my baby Calpol it has definitely sent her off to sleep.

It's paracetamol. If it's helped her sleep it's done it's job as a pain reliever.

Also, a high temperature is the body’s way of fighting off infection. So while I wouldn’t let it get out of hand to the point where a child might have a febrile convulsion, I would leave a slight temperature to play out and do it’s work. The body is a marvellous thing and knows how to heal itself when left to its own devices a lot of the time.

@MarkRuffaloCrumble love the name BTW - Disgusting really, honestly, really amazes me why these people even have kids! 🤦🏼‍♀️

@nowordforfluffy I realyl do! Even more so after some comments on here, think our 'bad' days are very good compared! Sorry to hear Your DC (and you!) suffered though! Like you say, every child is different, a small dose may of helped in some way. I think that may be why people have the stigma it helps them to sleep I.e why not give it a try and fuck it, it's only Calpol, so won't do any harm!? (sarcasm)

I used the barest amount of calpol when my D.C. were small, and I don't regret it. Paracetamol is a dangerous drug, with effects on the liver. It is not intended as a sleep aid, or for "teething". It is best used for high temperatures only, IMO.

@MarkRuffaloCrumble Yes same here, I'd let it get to a certain point if she was, obviously still comfortable! Before administrating any medication. But, thankfully so far she has never had a temperature, she must just be abnormal or something!

Who gives a kid paracetamol because they're sad or not sleeping?!!

Just weird.

Wrong, @onlinelinda. Here is the NHS advice on pain relief for teething (it gives non-medical options too).

@ktp100 I wish, no one! But I know personally, at least 5 parents that will happily shovel it down at any given moment.

There is nothing in it which could cause drowsiness. Maybe you just give it when she's very upset and the sugariness is soothing and then she's tired from crying?

Bringing ADHD into this is bizarre.

"There was a documentary done a couple of years ago into whether parents were using too much Calpol these days building an immunity to the effectiveness of paracetamol much in the same way as antibiotics."

WTF? That's not what antibiotic resistance means

So much bizarre stuff on this thread.

[quote Poliosmolio123]@MarkRuffaloCrumble love the name BTW - Disgusting really, honestly, really amazes me why these people even have kids! 🤦🏼‍♀️

@nowordforfluffy I realyl do! Even more so after some comments on here, think our 'bad' days are very good compared! Sorry to hear Your DC (and you!) suffered though! Like you say, every child is different, a small dose may of helped in some way. I think that may be why people have the stigma it helps them to sleep I.e why not give it a try and fuck it, it's only Calpol, so won't do any harm!? (sarcasm)[/quote]
It was the dose on the box. Not a 'small dose' (what do you mean by 'small dose', less than is recommended?). And it was regular, as he was in constant, obvious, pain.

If your child is ill, they'll often be prescribed a bottle of liquid Calpol and you're told to do full dose for 3-4 days (DD when she had croup - twice - and DS with a persistent ear infection which wouldn't go away).

We're lucky that our kids haven't been ill that much. But when they have been, or when they're in pain, then they get painkiller given to them.

It's not morally superior to deprive an unwell child who is in pain / feels grotty pain relief. It's actually quite horrible.

@BertieBotts Did you even read the comment I made regarding that? I said apparently, not that it was facts like I believed it was gospel. I've never given Calpol to try soothe my baby to sleep nor think it helps get them to sleep, its other people I know who do this for these reasons.

TBF, if you watch the Michael McIntyre segment on calpol, he reflects this idea that "it makes them sleepy" and you can give it if they are sad or behaving badly or whatever the fuck you make up, and the routine gets loads of laughs so people must relate to it.

In that context I agree with OP - I don't relate to it at all and it makes me feel faintly uncomfortable TBH. I normally quite like his stuff (yes I know that makes me a total failure of a SOH...) but I couldn't laugh at it, I'll try and find the clip.

And in that very famous case about a missing child there was a HUGE amount of dicsussion at the time about whether they could have overdosed their child "on calpol" as a sleeping aid, which suggests to me that a lot of people do think it makes children sleepy, even though it doesn't and never has.

Maybe in your moral judgment of other people's use of Calpol, you've actually misunderstood their intentions, @Poliosmolio123. It would be interesting to speak to them to hear their side of the tale.

I was replying to the poster who said she thought it sent her child to sleep.

Here is the clip. I have never given calpol for a runny nose (I may be taking a comedy routine too seriously :o)

I've given Calpol when it's thick, green, sludge coming from the nose, coupled with a miserable child. Not a runny nose when it's clear!

@NoWordForFluffy Ah, see, everyone! Here's the comment I've been 'twisting' I'm a bad mum for not giving my daughter Calpol!

Im not sure I ever stated anywhere I sit and listen to my daughter scream her head off in pain or ignore her temperature 🙄😂

My daughter has never bar twice (which I consulted our GP about, because she had other symptoms) needed it. She's a calm, happy, very rarely unsettled baby who hasn't needed calpol to be settled, she's never had a temperature. I don't deprive my daughter of anything and certainly don't feel that giving her a dose of Calpol when she cries because I can settle her in other ways (which work 🤔) is 'morally superior' or 'depriving her'

A 'small dose' I meant more the fact that in general, the dose they have is small?!

TBF, if you watch the Michael McIntyre segment on calpol, he reflects this idea that "it makes them sleepy" and you can give it if they are sad or behaving badly or whatever the fuck you make up, and the routine gets loads of laughs so people must relate to it.

Jesus wept!

Are you seriously using the fact that people laughed at a comedians joke as a point here?

People were laughing at the concept, not because they all give their kids Calpol at bedtime

Yeah by the end of it when you're picturing the calpol syringe wielding ninja wife.

But at the start where he's explaining how calpol (supposedly) works, even though it doesn't

Anyway, everyone is getting a bit angry about some sugary paracetamol. I'm going to bed.

[quote Poliosmolio123]@NoWordForFluffy Ah, see, everyone! Here's the comment I've been 'twisting' I'm a bad mum for not giving my daughter Calpol!

Im not sure I ever stated anywhere I sit and listen to my daughter scream her head off in pain or ignore her temperature 🙄😂

My daughter has never bar twice (which I consulted our GP about, because she had other symptoms) needed it. She's a calm, happy, very rarely unsettled baby who hasn't needed calpol to be settled, she's never had a temperature. I don't deprive my daughter of anything and certainly don't feel that giving her a dose of Calpol when she cries because I can settle her in other ways (which work 🤔) is 'morally superior' or 'depriving her'

A 'small dose' I meant more the fact that in general, the dose they have is small?![/quote]
I wasn't addressing that part to you. It was a general comment. You're a bit chippy / defensive.

@NoWordForFluffy Just like you feel the need to sit and justify your every action regarding giving Calpol to a sick child when that's not what the post was about at all?

So, telling me to give my daughter a dose of Calpol because she sat and screamed because I would not let her play with a knife and she must be tired and needs a good nap and Calpol will help send her to sleep is good intentions? Or 'ah fuck sake, she's woken from her nap early, she's obviously still tired, she was up last night being a shit because I think she is coming down with something, even though I kept dosing her up, best give her another dose' she had 8 doses in 48 hrs with NO symptoms.

None of these are well intended, these are just to shut a child up and get a bit of peace. Don't sit and give me the high horse talk.

@NoWordForFluffy you quoted my comment, then called me horrible and basically a shit parent for apparently neglecting my child? Eh? What are you on 🤦🏼‍♀️

You're very chippy about this!

@NoWordForFluffy As are you?