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General health

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Original poster

Poor dd coughing and coughing....

20 replies

SilentBite · 08/12/2004 21:46

She has had this bloody cough for 2 weeks, started with a bit of a temp, she is just lying in bed coughing like she is going to vomit - sounds very barking :( Have given her olbas oil, tixylix, calpol, a drink and vicks and she is still barking away. Any ideas for a makeshift vaporiser?

OP posts:

Original poster

SilentBite · 08/12/2004 21:46

she is 27 months btw

OP posts:

JanH · 08/12/2004 21:50

Is it stopping her sleeping or is she coughing in her sleep? (If so worth taking her to GP for a chest check.)

I know you are only supposed to use cough suppressants for tickly coughs but I use them for all kinds so that various people can get some sleep. Nobody has choked yet.

Would also try giving her some form of Vit C.

Good luck. Coughs are PITA.

galaxy · 08/12/2004 21:50

Sorry, can't help but dd has had a bad cough for ages now. She was on antibiotics for a chest infection a month ago, but her cough has remained.

bluemoon · 08/12/2004 22:21

Oh, this is just like my dd, 26 months. She had croup with a fever exactly two weeks ago. The fever died down after 5 days or so but since then she's had these awful bouts of coughing every night, 2 or 3 times, sometimes lasting up to an hour or more . We bought a humidifier which hasn't done much to help. I've been giving her Tixylix and calpol and taken her to the GP twice who says it may last for 4 weeks after the fever's gone down which I find a bit much. I suspect something possibly asthmatic as it only comes on when she's lying down.

Sorry I can't help but I'd love to hear how yours all get on ...

karen99 · 08/12/2004 22:34

You can put a wet towel on the radiator which will keep the bedroom air moist for a few hours into the night. Or have her sit in the bathroom playing whilst you have a shower in the morning, or run the shower hot when she's having a bath so she can breathe in the steam. I have just bought a humidifier from argos on the recommendation of a friend and my sil. Haven't used it yet as ds' cough has gotten better all of a sudden (has had it for 3 wks) but will put it together over the weekend if it reappears.

PS. He's just been sick everywhere tonight..:(:( the first time he's ever been like this. His poor little tummy must be sooo sore. Have changed his bed sheets once tonight and his bedroom floor is now covered in towels to catch what ever's left in his tummy... :( That's why I'm browsing the Health section now :(

Smashingpumpkin · 08/12/2004 22:42

Someone told me very cold drinks with lots of ice cubes can help suspend the cough temporarily x

Original poster

SilentBite · 08/12/2004 22:43

Oh no poor dd has just been horribly sick from coughing so much. Have just spent ages clearing up, have put a bowl of hot water with olbas oil in under her cot :( Anyone elses children vomit because of coughing? it's only the third time she has ever thrown up

OP posts:

Original poster

SilentBite · 08/12/2004 22:43

Thanks for all of your advice btw!

OP posts:

TinselTamum · 08/12/2004 22:44

I always used a bowl of boiling water under the cot (assuming I was certain that they weren't able to get out, obviously). If she's in a bed you could just stay with her until the water has cooled a bit. We have very high ceilings, so we needed something more than a towel on the radiator. Steamy bathroom is definitely worth a try. I think JanH is right though, I would take her to the doctor too.

TinselTamum · 08/12/2004 22:45

Oops, sorry, cross posted. Yes, ds used to vomit with every coughing fit. I used to sleep with him in the end with him propped up on my arm to raise his head, and a towel over us both to catch the first of the vomit. Awful. You poor things :(

Smashingpumpkin · 08/12/2004 22:46

Silentbite, my children all four of them, are ALWAYS sick when they have a cough. I don't think it is uncommon, but get it checked out to put your mind at rest xx

chonky · 08/12/2004 22:46

For a vaporiser I put contents of a karvol capsule (olbas oil would do) into a bowl of boiling hot water & put it on a shelf in dd's room. She's still in a cot so don't have to worry about the hot water factor, but it very quickly disperses the karvol around the room.
Hope your dd feels better soon, JanH is right, coughs are PITA.

chonky · 08/12/2004 22:47

Sorry, cross posted!

wrapmefestively · 08/12/2004 22:51

I've been doing some internet research on croup (dd has it) and some of the advice is to wrap them up warm and take them into the cold night air for a few minutes as the cold air helps lessen the symptoms.

sugaralmond · 08/12/2004 23:43

If it is any consellation (prob spelt wrong) mine are all down with coughs, off food, wanting to sleep - but I tend to let the fight it without antibiotics with just cough mixture, sleep etclll

bluemoon · 09/12/2004 13:54

We had an AWFUL night of it with dd last night. She coughed non-stop between 12.30-3am. The strange thing is that she's more or less asleep, just coughing and coughing. This is 2 weeks now after her being diagnosed with croup. The initial croupy symptoms of fever etc. are gone though she's been off her food the whole time. She's also very very low on energy, wants to be carried everywhere. I keep suspecting an asthmatic component but last time I took her to the GP he poo-poohed that idea ...

She had croup once before and the cough NEVER went on for this long.

bakedpotatohoho · 09/12/2004 14:00

if the coughs go on, blue mooon, definitely see the doctor again soon. esp if she's not well in herself, ie tired, off food etc. might not be asthma, with those symptoms, might be lowlevel infection.

wrapmefestively · 09/12/2004 20:20

Actually, my "When Your Child Is Ill" book suggests that croupy coughs can drag on for 3 or 4 weeks - this isn't untypical

bluemoon · 09/12/2004 21:08

I did take her back to the GP today after she coughed on and off through her afternoon nap. They think she may have some asthma, possibly always been there (dp and I are both asthmatic) exacerbated by the croup.

Not looking forward to tonight!

Bambino · 10/12/2004 22:22

My son (5months)has a nasty cold as well, since last friday, blocked nostrils - which makes feeding difficult, have tried oilbus and it gets better for a short while, have been to the doctors and he was given antibiotics, he also suggested bathroom steaming of which i did and he has slept for almost 2hrs without waking up, try it it might help. I think there is a flu bug going around.

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