Continuously poorly!

[Podmog]

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Hi Podmog, we're having a dreadful run of illness with my 2 too. ds1(25mo) and ds2(8mo) both had pneumonia last month and ended up on steroids and antibiotics for 2weeks. We've had 2weeks in the clear and now we're back to the antibiotics again for ds2, yet another chest infection. ds1 has managed to shake it off without, but dh and I are coughing and spluttering with this bug too. ds1 lost over 1kg with his pneumonia and reassuringly but it back on v v quickly. He's back where he should be on his weight charts much to my amazement. ds2 is really off his food, but based on the bucket loads of snot he's producing, I expect his stomach is full of it. Bless.

Just could do without the night time waking (4x with ds2 and 2x with ds1 last night). I'm not used to it as they normally sleep so well.

We're doing olbas oil in the bath for decongesting. vaporisers overnight in the rooms to help with this too. Raised cot heads to help with breathing. Reduced dairy foods to reduce catarrh and snot. ds2 is still bf so I'm trying to keep off the dairy too. I'm giving them Sambucol for kids(black elderberry extract) recommended by my sil as a build up post virally and was using Echinacea for jnrs for ds1 (but with little effect) to help boost his immunity.
Minadex with iron was excellent at helping to build up ds1 again post pneumonia too. We try to stick to a balanced diet, all home cooked as opposed to ready packaged/processed, with organic fruit, veg and meat where at all possible. Don't know if its doing us any more good, but I feel its important.
HTH, wish your dd a speedy recovery from us.

Hi Podmog, we're having a dreadful run of illness with my 2 too. ds1(25mo) and ds2(8mo) both had pneumonia last month and ended up on steroids and antibiotics for 2weeks. We've had 2weeks in the clear and now we're back to the antibiotics again for ds2, yet another chest infection. ds1 has managed to shake it off without, but dh and I are coughing and spluttering with this bug too. ds1 lost over 1kg with his pneumonia and reassuringly but it back on v v quickly. He's back where he should be on his weight charts much to my amazement. ds2 is really off his food, but based on the bucket loads of snot he's producing, I expect his stomach is full of it. Bless.

Just could do without the night time waking (4x with ds2 and 2x with ds1 last night). I'm not used to it as they normally sleep so well.

We're doing olbas oil in the bath for decongesting. vaporisers overnight in the rooms to help with this too. Raised cot heads to help with breathing. Reduced dairy foods to reduce catarrh and snot. ds2 is still bf so I'm trying to keep off the dairy too. I'm giving them Sambucol for kids(black elderberry extract) recommended by my sil as a build up post virally and was using Echinacea for jnrs for ds1 (but with little effect) to help boost his immunity.
Minadex with iron was excellent at helping to build up ds1 again post pneumonia too. We try to stick to a balanced diet, all home cooked as opposed to ready packaged/processed, with organic fruit, veg and meat where at all possible. Don't know if its doing us any more good, but I feel its important.
HTH, wish your dd a speedy recovery from us.

whoops!!

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You could try boosting her immune system through diet. I did a google search once on "immune boosting diet" and had a look through the foods it suggested and any vitamin supplements.

DS2 was constantly full of cold for his first year and I wanted to give him a boost. I give him a PJ Smoothies "Monster C" fruit smoothie to drink every day. It's got lots of Vit C and echinacea extract in it. He has had less colds this year but that may be coincidence.

Hope she improves soon.

Wish I could persuade my 2 to drink that Soupdragon! Thought I'd found THE thing I was looking for when I saw this, but sadly they dont like it. May try it again though as they were ill at the time and off everything.

Only DS2 will drink it, DS1 says "it bites my tongue"

I don't know if it would help you to know that the average under-10 gets 15 - 20 Upper Respiratory Infections every year (basically colds). When you see it like that and realise that most of them are in the winter, no wonder that they seem to be constantly ill. I'm not trivialising what people are describing, but I thought it might help to know you are not alone. Dh is a GP and on Frinday morning did a clinic where he saw 20 patients and EVERY SINGLE ONE was a child with a cold - it's just this time of year. Lots of fluids, calpol if needed, see a doc if they are unwell in themselves, have a pussy throat, painful/dishcharge from ears, cough up green or bright yellow phlegm or anything which is either red or brown (unless have been eating choc - dh once sent a child to casualty urgently coughing up brown phlegm mother had noticed, which turned out to be Mars Bar), or if temp is over 39o. Not verified medical advice, but I have listened to this being said over the phone SO MANY times recently I can quote it off! Hope this helps!

not meiowing - if there is pus in the throat !!!

Two years ago when DS1 was almost two he had constant colds between November and about March, I felt he was unwell almost continually. I took him to the Doctor several times (not something I normally do for a cold), twice to be told that he was just catching one cold after another and the third time to be given antibiotics, I think just to get rid of me (different doctor). At the same time however my DS1 was undergoing investigations about his speech and attended an appointment with a paediatrician at a Child Development Centre who noticed how under the weather DS1 was, I explained that I had had him at the Dr several times and didn't know what else to do. The paediatrician said that DS1 was acting like someone who was used to having a sore throat and wasn't even coughing properly anymore, he took a swab and it turned out to be a Strep throat infection, although he had been given antibiotics they were the wrong type. Anyway the outcome of it all was that I was advised if DS1 had an ongoing cold in the future to ask for a swab to be taken in case it is an infection. Thankfully we have not had to do this. I don't think this helps you much Podmog but I hope your child feels better soon. If anyone else is ever in a similar situation, it may be worth asking the Dr to take a swab.

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Hi Podmog

My dd is 16 months old and she has been suffering from numerous chest infections etc since a bad attack of chicken pox at about 5 months. During the summer, after one chest infection had failed to go after several courses of antibiotics, she was referred to our local hospital. They carried out various tests including those for cystic fibrosis and immune deficiencies, although they felt sure that she was suffering from asthma.

When the results came back we were told that she did in fact have an immune deficiency and that is why she had been continuously ill. She is now on low dose antibiotics all the time and we have to go back to have her levels checked again in 6 months.

Since the diagnosis, I have done quite a bit of research and have learnt more about immune deficiencies. I would think it was definitely worth asking your doctor to send you for these tests, even if it is just to rule it out.

If you want to contact me, please ask mumsnet for my email address and I will tell you what I know.

Hope your dd is feeling a bit better this evening.

Podmog- would you consider trying a homeopath for the coughs etc and a cranial osteopath for the glue ear? Neither would do any harm and could work? Homeopathy has helped both my boys, especially ds1 (who has a distinclty dodgy immune system). If you're interested I can give you more info on finding one or the other or both.

I'd be interested JimJams! At the moment I want to explore every avenue possible to give my dd's immune system a boost.

Sorry Podmog - not trying to take over your thread.

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