5 day old has bad cold - what can I do to help him?

[LadyoftheLake123]

Just this really - DS born last week, now 5 days old. I had a bad cold leading up to the birth, which DH then caught, so we've both been knocking back the honey and lemon drinks and getting through mountains of tissues. I guess probably inevitable that DS would get it too, but I feel so bad for him! He's all sniffly and sneezy and bunged up. Luckily he still seems to be sleeping / feeding ok so I'm not too worried but wondering if there's anything I can do to help him? Poor little guy!!

You can get a saline spray from the chemist to clear his nose, you might need to check it's ok for newborns. You can also get Vicks plug-ins. The night we brought DD home she was completely bunged up so we spent hours sitting in the bathroom with the hot taps running for the steam. Also lots of cuddles!

He's too young for Vicks or anything else menthol. Just saline drops really, a drop in each nostril before each feed.

Too young for anything. Just watch his breathing and feed him and keep him close. Just what you’d be doing really. He may throw it off very quickly. Heavy colds are unusual in newborns. Just be careful it doesn’t turn into bronchiolitis etc.

Hi

My son is 10 weeks old and had a nasty cold last week. I bought a Nose Frieda nasal aspirator after trying saline drops, a standard aspirator and a humidifier (which worked but made my walls damp!). The nose Frieda is amazing and is NHS approved. Clears out snot that you can't even see, and the snot doesn't go anywhere near your mouth

Thanks for all this advice. DH went down to Boots and the pharmacist suggested some saline drops (only thing they had suitable for babies younger than 3 months) and they seem to have helped. DS much less sniffly now a few days on! Hooray.

Great news

Yay! It's so horrible when they're full of snot, you feel so helpless.

Really horrible - I felt so bad for him, snuffling away in his crib... So much better now

Snufflebabe oil is suitable from newborn. You put a few drops into a bowl of warm water and it really works.