4 month old blocked nose since birth and cannot sleep

[AJB1234]

My amazing wife gave birth in September to our beautiful baby girl.
Her nose was blocked almost immediately and we were assured this was not a concern and off we went.
4 months later - when we try laying baby flat she instantly cries and we can hear the congestion in her nose. The upshot of all this is that my Wife holds baby for several hours every single night - of course my Wife is exhausted. We have been to the Doctor and he assures us baby is fine.
I read other threads on here about babies in routines etc and we would love to be doing this but right now if feels impossible.
We have used all the recommended tools/techniques to remedy the problem but nothing has worked.
Apart from this Baby is happy and joyous and so are we.
This issue has brought me to Mumsnet as google searches on the subject have not helped.
Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

The upshot of all this is that my Wife holds baby for several hours every single night - of course my Wife is exhausted. We have been to the Doctor and he assures us baby is fine.

Keep going back to the doctor. Record it if you can.

And for fucks sake take turns with your poor wife! It’s not safe to let her sit up all night holding a baby.

Humidifier for your room. Use saline nasal drops and a snot sucker to try and open baby’s airways.

And take turns!! Or do it in shifts. You are equally a parent, your wife doesn’t need t be the one with absolutely not sleep.

My baby had this and it was reflux. Basically when they lie down, milk is coming back up which causes the snuffling.

As you will see time and time again on Mumsnet sadly you often have to go back to a GP several times and insist something is dealt with before it is.

In our case baby gaviscon worked fairly well. They do grow out of it but in the meantime it needs to be dealt with so you can all get some sleep.

Is your wife breastfeeding?
A squirt of breastmilk up the baby's nose will do the trick - thins the mucus and makes them sneeze to clear the nasal passages!

Sounds horrible @ajb1234 I would definitely be back at the doctors to try and get some help/ a referral - do you have a health visitor as that may be a route too and can sometimes speed up the process. Having to hold overnight is not a great long term solution for anyone so I'd be on on the phone ASAP. Must be horrid for the poor little one. Not sure why previous posters were a little snappy with you, I'm sure you do your bit too but must be tough all round. Wishing you luck.

Someone else may be a long who has experience, I just have general sleep deprivation experience!

Thank you for your posts on this.
I do my best to help however my Wife insists I sleep due to the time I get up in the morning for work.
We share all the everyday housekeeping jobs and I am hands on with baby (even at night just not as much as my Wife).
My Wife is breastfeeding and loves doing so. I will mention the breast milk up the nose trick.

I second the reflux suggestion as if her nose was truly blocked she wouldn’t be able to feed as that requires nose breathing. Does she have eczema? How about her general demeanour, is she a happy baby? Cows milk protein allergy is worth considering. And definitely video this and speak to the gp

Oh and also have you been to the gp?

It’s a well known phenomena that men get taken more seriously with stuff like this. Bet you anything if you take her in, they’ll refer. Please do let us know!

Often babies do not like to be put down and if you read up on the 4th trimester, it will give lots of information. At 4 months babies like to be held, so using a sling and sharing the responsibilities will help.

re "threads on here about babies in routines etc and we would love to be doing this but right now if feels impossible." Why would you love to start getting your baby into a routine at such a young age? What benefits will it serve (both to you and the baby) I didn't consider routines for about a year, but I mainly followed their cues and worked around them, sharing the responsibilities with my dh, that's what helped me.

Thanks All for your thoughts.
Some really helpful information to think about. As soon as I arrive home I will share with my Wife.
X

My son is the same. I find Snuffle Balm helps but he is too young for baby Vicks - your baby could use the latter.

Good point re "babies in routines" - I guess it would just be nice to have a settled baby and to spend time spoiling my Wife. It will happen I am sure. In the meantime I will try and help more during the night.