Tips on how to give Calpol?!? Please!

[Blueswede]

So when ds was younger, I gave him calpol after his vaccines by syringing tiny amounts into the side of his cheek aiming for the back and kept giving breastfeed between bits of calpol. This no longer works, so am now trying to use syringe inside a bottle teat. Kinda works but now he’s over 6 months, 5ml is a struggle to get down him as he really hates the stuff. At least when he was younger it was only 2.5ml he needed to swallow. He’s teething badly the last few days though and tethers and granules just won’t cut it at night. Any advice???

We used to use a medicine dispenser dummy, you can get them in supermarket pharmacies for a few pounds. Have you tried different flavoured paracetamol? Ds used to prefer cherry flavoured (Asda's own I think) to strawberry flavoured.

If you buy the calpol for the next age group the same dose equivalent is only 2.5ml. Or use suppositories - pharmacies sell them.

Tesco own brand is cherry flavour (and much cheaper)

Suppositories are crazy expensive, like £20 for fewer than 10 doses.

Things that we have tried that have worked:
Dip the syringe in yogurt/ketchup.
Give a decoy syringe full of water to hold.
Holding her upside down and squirting it in.
Everyone else in the room pretending to have some.

Things that have not worked:
Bribery with chocolate (she's still too young to understand)
Forcing it all in (it just gets spat out again)

My son hates it too! I'm going to find another brand with less of an intense flavour, hopefully! I feel bad watching him eat it when he clearly hates it! It smells so strong.

Will he take a bottle of milk? I mix it with a small amount like 30ml. I’ve never had any luck getting it in in with a syringe, so just spits it out.

Why is it so damn sticky!! And why is the dose so huge - why not market the more concentrated junior stuff at babies too, just a smaller dose? I’ve tried 3 different flavours and she spits them all out.

I put it in a little bit of milk in her bottle. Strawberry flavour seems to go down the best!

I used to put medicines in a small yoghurt for dd (until about 18 months when she worked out my betrayal).

I have to kind of pin dc down and put the medicine in

I purred ip a strawberry put it in some water ( tiny bit in a bottle a mixed in the calpol the fruit disguised it. Raspberries work but use a rea strainer to get the pips out if they've tried real strawberry before this is a bonus.
Thry like to play with the empty syringes too,then after a bit it's a case of trap them an squirt a bit in the back side of the cheek in about three attempts they syringe does distract.

Pureed even!

Suppositories. We travel to France regularly to see family and friends there so we buy them there (OTC from the chemist, they are very cheap). On the one occasion we didn't have any and needed some we got them on prescription from the GP.

You can also get Nurofen suppositories in Ireland and we've ordered online from Irish pharmacy websites.

Wrap in a towel,hold firm and use a syringe going in at the side of the mouth.

A tip I only heard with my second DC - with babies, you can pop the medicine in their mouths, and then blow in their faces and they will instinctively swallow!

You’re welcome

We ended up having to go down the suppositories route as dd would spit medicine out or make herself sick. They are expensive but you know you've given the correct dose. When she got older I offered her a choice of method and, funnily enough, she now takes medicine orally with no issues.

Have you tried a spoon instead of syringe? I do a spoon of yogurt then a bit of calpol.

I end up syringing a tiny bit at a time in the side of the mouth, tilting his head back and being super positive to distract him "oh wow you're so good!! Good boy!!". It takes a while longer but I just feel too mean putting loads in one go (more chance of him spitting it out).
I can see why parents would choose suppositories if they have zero luck of child swallowing, I do understand... but for us it's too invasive, I'd prefer the extra bit of faff with oral medicine. I treat my son like a Prince right now and it's far too undignifying 😂 quick wipe when changing is as far as we'd go!

I am going to try the spoon idea though, thanks Russell19

And the face blow reflex! Got to give that a try, thanks EnsignRoLaren

How did it go??

Ok, he won’t take a spoon (hates me trying to spoon anything in his mouth) and he’s never had a bottle! But thank you for all your tips. I’ll try the older kids version but give half as much (il check the mg) and blowing in face etc! I’ll get a second syringe for him to hold with a second bottle too! I asked my mum how she managed with me when calpol gave a little spoon and a) I liked dummies and spoons b) I loved the taste of calpol! suppository really creeps me out haha I’ll try my best to avoid that!

If he would eat ice cream from a spoon then a bit of vanilla ice cream with the calpol on top works.

My girl varies between pretending to be sick and begging for medicine and being actually sick and spitting it all out 🤢 can’t win. So we do suppositories if it’s a need to get the temp down thing.

Oh god I have the opposite problem, my ds has such screaming tantrums for calpol it's unbelievable! He never gets it obviously unless he's ill but he had a four week run of temp/cough/cold/teeth and now he's an addict!!

Sorry that's not helpful could you dilute it in squash?

Spoon can work

You need to press the spoon down in their tongue slightly and they swallow instantly

Try it yourself first

Oh god DS is horrendous with any medicine. To be perfectly honest I’ve stopped even trying with calpol, just let things run their course and he’s normally fine within 24-48 hours but I did have to get a week’s worth of antibiotics down him 3 x a day and dear god it was horrific. I tried everything, bribing, small bits, spoons, letting him do it...retired nurse MIL watched this undignified mess happen one day and basically told me to get the fuck on with it as it had to be done
The best technique I managed was to hold him really tight with one arm with him lying over my knees, tilt his head back (he’s screaming by now so mouth is open), tuck the syringe in the corner of his cheek right to the back and go for it. Then immediately hold his chin and tilt head back. Then a cuddle and a chocolate button when he’d calmed down. Just bloody awful though I felt like the world’s most horrible mother.

We have been doing lots and lots of practice on teddies and other willing victims so I’m hoping next time he needs medicine it might go a bit easier - he’s also older so understands better. Good luck

I always used to mix the bedtime dose in ds bottle with Horlicks, he always loved a bottle at night right up to being 3 or 4 ( shoot me now I know most perfect parents stop bottles much younger, but when you haven't had a nights sleep in over 2 years you do what you have to) It worked with most otc medicines, Piriton, Nurofen & Calpol. If he was really off colour I would let him have a bottle of Horlicks or Hot Chocolate during the day as a "treat" but put the medicine in it. At 16 he still doesn't know that was why he got them & still demands Horlicks or Hot chocolate if not well.