help! Emotional reaction to 'flu?

[Blu]

Ds (2ys5m) has had very bad 'flu since a week last Friday. He has eaten and drunk very little, and since last Tuesday, has been getting very fed-up , screaming 'my nose, my nose', getting frustrated and often aggressive to me. For the last three nights he has been developing huge tantrums, becoming almost delirious. He attacks me, throws himself around, screams the same things, often seems not lucid, but argues against any real facts mentioned. He then conks out, only to wake, as if from a bad dream an start the whole thing over again. It goes on for 40-90 mins at a time, 3 or 4 time a night. My DP is dealing with an outbreak now.
I can understand that he is fed up with feeling ill , and probably angry that mummy has not been able to make him better - but it feels as if he is having a personality change. Has this happened to anyone else's child during / after illness?

If I were you Blu I would take him to the doctors to get looked at. Maybe he is having trouble expressing whats wrong and his tantrums are his frustration. Maybe he has an infection and his nose is very sore? Hope he feels better much soon.

Poor you.

My children react very differently to ilness. With ds1 (autistic) what you see is what you get. if he's ill, he's ill and he wil lie on the sofa until he's better. DS2 (NT) is another matter. He hams it up, clings, whinges, gets cross (he's ill for the second time in a month now and he is dreadful) cries etc. All he wants alll day long is to be cuddled. he gets lots of cuddles but even so I have to feed my other son as well He spent about 2 hours 2 nights ago thrwing himself around my bed- half asleep. My friend has found the same with her 2 (auti dd easy when ill, NT ds a nightmare).

When I had the flu a few weeks ago I have to say my nose was dreadful When lying down I couldn't breathe and it almost drove me insane. I was very cross! Do you have any eucalyptus in the house- some in a bowl of water in his room may help, or if you are worried about hot water and young children (I would be) a damp flannel with a few drops over a radiator helps.

I've also found homeopathy useful, but you can't use things like eucalyptus and homeopathy, so I tend to decide which way I'm going to go at the beginning of an illness.

Hope he's better soon....... Is there something which comforts him? FOr ds2 I've found holding his foot helps for some reason (for ds1 it is stroking his nose). @ nights ago holding ds2's foot did eventually calm him down so he stopped throwing himself around.

Thank you Jimjams and 3Girlsmum: feeling a bit thrown about as he had another marathon to-do 1.30-3a.m.
He has been seen by the doctor this week, and we've called the out of hours service twice, too. Bad 'flu confirmed, but he was checked very thoroughly for other infections such as ear. I think it IS discomfort in his nose, and also total wretchedness brought on by his own lack of sleep and probably low blood-sugar and being weak too. Think it has also become something of a habit, so we have started just holding and cuddling him and not running round after his endless contradictory demands. Tho' I WAS to be heard shouting 'lie DOWN' in an unsymapathetic manner at 2.30 a.m.
Will try some eucalyptus in the steam...

Jimjams, thanks for describing the difference between your sons: in the mad small hours of the night as DS carries on like a child posessed, I have begun to wonder whether the virus has affected his brain in some way.

Blu- I ended up shouting "GO TO SLEEP" at ds2 in the early hours of Sunday morning. Felt a right meany when he actually was asleep looking all angelic......

If he's really cross you could try homeopathic chamomilla (or chamomille tea if he would drink it- I know mine wouldn't ). Or why not give the homeopathic helpline a ring - deatils here:

www.homeopathyhelpline.com/05_telephone/index.htm

Hope he settles down soon.

Bless you, JJ, I am very inexperienced with homeopathy, and Chamomilla is a good lead. Will try the helpline, too. If he won't swllow it, I WILL!