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3yo won't eat or drink with mouth ulcers

7 replies

katmarie · 06/10/2022 13:27

DD is 3 in a couple of weeks. She's also tiny, the smallest in her group at nursery, and always has been. She's come down with Hand Foot and Mouth this past week. She's been ill with it for a few days now, and we thought we were past the worst of it until she went really downhill yesterday morning, very whingy, clingy, crying over the slightest thing, and struggling to eat. She has an ulcer on the tip of her tongue, which is huge, it looks about half a cm across, so across a lot of the tip of her tongue, and it very obviously hurts every time she eats or drinks. As a result she is basically refusing all food and drink, and she's drunk very little yesterday and today. She's having calpol and nurofen, but she's still miserable.

I have tried offering her drinks in a cup, a bottle, with a straw. Milk, water, squash, even lemonade (which she is never allowed usually). I've offered ice and ice lollies. She is flat out refusing them all. I'm not so worried about food, she is usually a good eater. I just would feel a lot better if she would just have some fluids, and I suspect so would she. Does anyone have any tips? I'm getting pretty worried.

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Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Iheartmykyndle · 06/10/2022 14:09

Im a lifelong ulcer sufferer so I feel her pain. I'd just encourage her to drink as much as you can - I find warm drinks better than cold when I've got ulcers. Can you get to the pharmacy and see if something like bonjela would be suitable for her? Not sure what age they can have it from. It eases the pain a bit in my experience.

Pinkbananas01 · 06/10/2022 14:11

When I had HF&M mouth & throat were full of infected ulcers, couldn't eat anything for 3 weeks & was quite unwell. I needed antibiotics & antifungal from GP. Best to get wee one checked just in case .

YukoandHiro · 06/10/2022 14:15

Keep an eye out for dehydration. My friend's daughter had to be rehydrated in hospital for the same reason. Calpol and nurofen cycles to keep the pain away as best you can. Don't even worry about solids, just get as much milk and juice and water in as you can

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Allthegoodnamesarechosen · 06/10/2022 14:17

I think bonjela have a junior version. The adult one is pretty good at dulling the pain. I hope she is better soon

katmarie · 06/10/2022 15:02

I've rung the GP and they're going to see her first thing tomorrow. I've now offered her jelly as well, and sips from my cup, offered to share my drinks with her. I'm wary of going over the top and making a big issue of this, I absolutely don't want to force anything on her, that will just upset her even more. but at the same time she hasn't had a wee since 8am so I am getting worried. Anyway we will see what the doc says in the morning and just keep trying I guess.

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makingmiracles · 06/10/2022 16:06

My lo had it bad at around 18m, she wouldn’t eat or drink either, things that helped were-syringing fluid into her and offering slices of watermelon 🍉

it’s a horrendous illness, I always snort under my breath when it’s referred to as a mild illness and that kids can go back to school and nursery with it, in my experience it wasn’t mild, was deeply unpleasant, she was very unwell and I wouldn’t of dreamed of sending lo into nursery with it to infect others!!

btw, watch out for nails either falling off or changing colour/shape, it affected my dd nails for several years afterwards!

katmarie · 06/10/2022 17:21

@makingmiracles the nails thing is interesting, she's picking at her fingernails constantly today. It's bloody awful, she's suffering worse with this than she did with chicken pox.

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