8 month old with nasty nasty cold...need some help here

[boredbuthappy]

DS cannot breathe, therefore cannot drink from bottle, is miserable and can't sleep either. I've tried karvol, nasal aspirator, nasal saline spray, nothing is helping this poor little guy. He's also had fever, for which I've given him ibuprofen every 6 hours, but it's obviously not going to unclog his nose. He's knackered and whimpering in bed, DH is currently in with him trying to soothe. I can't believe there is NOTHING I can give him to relieve him of some of this. All I know is that when I have a cold/flu and can't breathe, I always want someone to shoot me until I get some relief...I feel so bad for him.

Anyone have any advice?

sit with him in the bathroom, door and window shut, shower on as hot as it will go and let the room fill with steam

works for hacking coughs and snotty noses but if he is feverish strip him down to his nappy first

Poor chap. I don't know, tbh. I usually find there is always a day or two during a cold when there is nothing that helps with a blocked up nose.
Steam, warm bath with water running to create steam...not applicable at this time of night I guess. Hmm. Is your nasal aspirator the kind where you do the sucking? Those are much better than the pear shaped ones.

I'll try the steam option.

winnybella - it is a pear shaped one, unfortunately, I'll be hard pressed finding anything else at this time of night! Might have to get one tomorrow. Oh and he puts up a very big fight when I try to clear his nose, which doesn't help.

Poor guy. I used to hold dd's head against my shoulder and had her sleeping half upright against me (exhausting because I had to sleep sitting up) but it did give her some comfort. Also, saline spray just before feeding. Humidifier if you have one, room not too hot and maybe sprinkle a few (not too many, can cause headaches) children's Olbas oil or Karvol on bedding but not close to eyes. You could also alternate calpol and calprofen. Lots of distraction also helps, reading a story etc. Hope he feels better soon.

Oh, yes, definitely get the other one-something like <a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.fr/imgres?q=nasal+aspirator&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=XK4&sa=X&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&biw=853&bih=431&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=Jc0L-Gcnuw7zHM:&imgrefurl=www.beaba.com/html/en_GB/products/details/47-90-Nasal%2Baspirator-Minidoo&docid=9l-w3_LdGnmvJM&imgurl=www.beaba.com/images/produits/visuels/410x410/mouchebebe_minidoo.jpg&w=410&h=410&ei=8EXATuHcMujP4QT31ISlBA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=219&vpy=179&dur=1698&hovh=140&hovw=140&tx=88&ty=98&sig=113857228931032552525&page=5&tbnh=89&tbnw=93&start=48&ndsp=12&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:48" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">that

The pear shaped ones are crap, you can't get proper suction going on.

Btw, I realised I gave a horrible piece of advice- clearly I wasn't recommending that you put the poor boy in a bath and run very hot water

Steam option always works a treat for me too, did it night before last with DD (2.5) at 3am after an hour of screaming and she managed to get back to sleep.

I always suck out mucus myself once I have put saline drops/spray up as it loosens the mucus (yuk, but works far better than aspirator). You can try but it is a gentle short suck and they do squirm. You may need to do it more than once and be careful not to do too long or hard if you try this. Massaging gently across bridge of nose from nose across cheeks helps sinuses drain too.

If bottle difficult to feed from you could try offering sips from a cup or if really worried about dehydration from a syringe. If he can sip from a straw you could try that too.

Also raising the cot mattress by placing a towel or blanket underneath mattress can help nasal passages drain better at night.

Ibuprofen can only be given 3 times in 24 hours so alternate with paracetamol (calpol) to keep fever down.

Also in the night a wet towel hung over a radiator in the room to create humidity helps with the drying out that happens when they mouth breathe.

Poor little one, I hope he feels better soon x