Comforting Poorly Baby that doesn't want comforting

[Bumblelion]

Has anyone any idea how I can help my 1 y.o. dd2. She has never been settled to sleep at night, has always been put down in her cot, finds her thumb to suck and that is it for the night. She is a really good, happy, contented baby but last night I found myself in an awful position that I couldn't help her.

She has a really bad cough and cold (so bad I nearly got my mum to come round so I could take her to the hospital as she was very, very wheezy - her dad has asthma - but decided it was just part of the cold).

She went to bed last night at 7:15 (as she always does) but was really snuffly. She had had some cough medicine before going to bed and also some calpol. I also squeezed a capsul of Karvol on a hanky tied to her bed to try and help her to sleep.

She went off to sleep as normal but woke at 9:15 (something she has NEVER done). She just would not settle - eventually settled at 12:45 this morning (not good as I am in work today!!!)

Between 9:15 and 12:45 I did everything I could to try and comfort her but she has never had assistance to go to sleep, never been cuddled to sleep, rocked to sleep or anything. All she wants is her thumb. Because she was so blocked up, she couldn't suck her thumb for any length of time (literally about 5 seconds) and then out came the thumb and off she would start crying.

I gave her more calpol about 11:30. When I turned on the bedside lamp, she was bright red in the face, swollen face from so much crying, red rimmed eyes from being so tired but she didn't want to be picked up, comforted, nothing!

She kept turning on her side, trying to suck her thumb and then turning on her back again.

What can I do tonight (if tonight is like last night) to help her to settle herself? She only wants her thumb but can't have it as she can't seem to breath through her nose.

It was very disturbing for me, seeing my baby so unhappy, so unsettled but she didn't want me.

Any suggestions would be helpful?

(I have spoken to my mum today - who looks after baby when I work - and she said that she doesn't seem too unwell in herself at the moment, although she slept for 3 hours this morning - not surprising after her "late" night last night).

Bumblelion, I sympathise, dd1 has always been a thumbsucker and we had exactly this problem when she was weeny. I can only recommend 'chocking' up the head of her cot to help the mucus drain, and we use olbas oil on a tissue by her cot to help clear blocked noses. Apart from that there isn't a lot you can do.

I used to bring dd1 downstairs and let her watch tv with us when she was poorly. It relaxed both of us and meant that those long evenings didn't seem too dire.

The only other thing I'd say is don't give her too much calpol, it wont actually help unless she's got inflammation/a fever.

Hope you have a better night tonight.

This is really the situation with DS when he's got usch a bad cold. He doesn't want me, he just wants to sleep but he can't. Would agree with Enid about raising the head of the bed - my DS's has been raised for months. Is there any chance your DD would sleep on her front? Now that she's one there's not much risk of cot death. I smear Vick on DS's pillow and also on his chest and back. The other thing I do is try and get his nose as clear as possible before he goes to bed. I basically try and get rid of as much snot as possible while he's in the bath. What about a boiling kettle in the bathroom?

Thanks for both your comments. Before bed last night, she had a nice hot (warm?) bath that seemed to clear her nose quite well, but obvoiusly not as well as I thought. I will prop up the end of her mattress tonight (if she is still a bit poorly) and see if that helps.

It is so horrible seeing your child like that but there is nothing you can do to help - it is very distressing (more for me than her I think).

I used to use Medised (or Medised Infant for under ones) in these situations. Paracetamol syrup with an added antihistimine which dries the cold a little and makes them drowsy. I only used it at night so as not to dry the cold up too much.

Hope she's feeling better soon, Bumblelion.

Bumbelion, sorry to hear your little one is poorly. I would also second Medised and some lovely stuff called Dozol which is paracetamol with some antihistimine in it. It smells and tastes less pungent than Dozol and both mine prefer it to Medised and it dries up their noses and helps them to sleep.
Both mine are poorly at the moment: coughs, colds, sore throats and ear aches. For the last 5 nights I've had less than 5 hours sleep each night and last night set the record at 3.5 hours!!! Sorry, just had to go for the sympathy vote!

Hmm,the lack of sleep is making me type nonsense..... "Dozol smells and tastes less pungent than Medised".
Sorry 'bout that, the matchsticks must have slipped. (Hope you are all reading this to the accompaniment of violins).

Bugsy you have my most sincere sympathy. After having a disturbed night last night (I normally am in bed asleep - during the week when I am indoors on my own anyway!!! - by 9:30/10:00 at the latest). Being kept awake until 12:45 on a weekday night was not good for me. Needless to say, when I am "childless" at the weekend (one night) - for example, last Friday night overnight, I didn't get to bed until 4:45 am but that was different - didn't have to get up in the morning.

Bad luck Bugsy , I can hear plaintive violins from here. Hope you and Bumblelion both get a better night's sleep tonight.
Bumblelion, rather than Karvol, you could try a mix of eucalyptus/lavender oils on a hanky. Lavender is really calming...and you might also want to try her with some chamomilla. The easiest way to give her this is in the form of the homoeopathic teething granules from Nelsons or Boots. Ds often has these still when stressed out or glum at night.
Not that we don't get through our share of Calpol/Nurofen in our house, but I'd agree with Enid that for a stuffy cold without fever it won't do much good. Hope she gets over it soon or it will be you knocking back the Medised (anyone else ever been tempted at 3am...?).

Bumblelion do you have a Swiss ball (or birthing ball). DD also will not be cuddled to sleep, but accepts being held pright on my chest whilst I bounce up and down sitting on my ball. When her cold was very bad I put her to sleep in her car seat rather than her cot as this meant she was sitting more upright.

I did the carseat thing during a nasty cold when ds was v small and it did help with the breathing but I suspect an older child will be too big. I recommend Dozol, turning off the radiator in her room even if it's cold as it seems to help with breathing to keep the air as cool and fresh as poss. I've found ds sleeps much, much better (& longer - hooray!) in a fairly cold unheated room but well wrapped up in long-sleeved vest, Pjs & socks or sleepsuit, plus the extra warm baby sleeping bag. I use a lighter one for daytime naps. Personally, I always find central heating is horrible when I have a cold.

Our dd is also a great thumb sucker and we found the best thing for clearing stuffy noses is the plug in "Breathe Clearly" that you can get at Boots. Its like a mosquito thing you take on holiday - a little gizmo to plug in and separate tablets that slot in and dispense menthol-y type vapours.

Our dd is also a great thumb sucker and we found the best thing for clearing stuffy noses is the plug in "Breathe Clearly" that you can get at Boots. Its like a mosquito thing you take on holiday - a little gizmo to plug in and separate tablets that slot in and dispense menthol-y type vapours.

In fact, its so good I'll say it twice !!