Can a stuffy nose make my 11 mo THAT miserable??? Help!!!!

[MaryMoppins]

My LO has a mild cold from his nursery. It is a third one I think in the last couple of months. He had a really runny nose and been sneezing all day. Went to bed but keeps waking up every 40-60 minutes screaming. Like a sort of a cry he does if he is hurt.

When I try to comfort him he pushes away and arches his back and just continues crying. I know he has a stuffy nose and is feeling miserable but with previous couple of colds (and even covid) he wanst nowhere near as bithered, and I just don't know what to think.

After 10 minutes in my arms he eventually settles and goes back to sleep but adter 40-60 mins he wakes up screaming again. Can a cold / stuffy nose really do this? He hasn't got a fever and has been well and active today so I can't understand what's happening.

My only theory is that he is super tired but runny nose is waking him up and he is getting worked up. The screaming is pretty bad though. I nearly thought about going to A&E but its ovviouslt silly to show up there with a cold. Urfg. I wish he could just say what's bothering him.

He might have a sore throat too, or headache, there's no way you can tell. It could be more than just a cold.

He may have an ear infection developing. Very common cause is post nasal drip from having had cold after cold with runny nose. So long as no fever, not urgent. But you could call NHS 111 and try and get an out of hours GP appointment tomorrow morning? Or advice?

You could put some Vicks on a hanky near his head, rub a bit on his chest to unblock his tubes a bit.
When it’s a less unsociable hour, run him a nice warm bath, the steam will unclog him for a bit. Then do the Vicks again.

Can he have calpol? A stuffy nose is bloody miserable and if he's mouth breathing his mouth could be dry and uncomfortable.

Have you given him Calpol?

A cold can make you feel pretty rough - sore throat, headache, aches and pains.
Or he could have an ear infection.
Or be teething.