9 Month Old with a Cold

I would caution you on the over the counter cough medicines. There were several warnings months ago about giving children under 2 over the counter cold medicines. They make Little Noses for infants and toddlers. I would try that and possibly putting a pillow under his mattress so his head is elevated...better yet, make daddy get up tonight ;)...good luck

1 mom found this helpful

i just had the same problem with my 9 month old. i elevated her mattress with a phone book, used a humidifier, used a vapor plug in, and used triaminic decongestant strips. i even tried benedryl after i got the doctor's okay. her doctor told me that i could used saline nasal spray or little noses. good luck--i know it's frustrating not to be able to get any sleep.

Ah, colds!! We have 4 children who had allergies, plus the usual mucous, sometimes running into pneumonia, diarrhea. By finding the cause of their allergies, food related--milk, fats etc. they gradually outgrew the worst part, but still have to be careful of acidic foods, etc. and they are all now in their 40's and 50's!

By addressing the basic culprit, you can avoid using so much medication, which usually just offers a temporary relief, if that. I also have trouble and when I used the cool, moist air vaporizer, it would send me into bronchitis----the same as being outside on a cold, damp day, but now I take Claritin or an equivalant, every day, an asthma inhaler, Dr.,ordered, and have not had a cold for several years. Our kids still have to be careful of cold drafts etc. Good Luck!! It seems that there are more allergies out there, these days, and your body naturally builds up phlegm to dispell the excess mucous---

Also, I worked at a hospital for 30 years and found that the moist vaporizer was moldy inside, and was putting out germs, and most of us at the nurses station, kept getting strep!! Which stopped, after they removed the offending vaporizer@!

P.

Hey, D.! My name is K.. I have a 9-month old, too and we went through this same thing a few weeks ago. It was horrible. Every time my little girl sneezed it was like her face exploded! We tried some Dimetap that our dr. had given us before. I called our pediatrician and the nurse there recommended a different kind of Dimetap. Our baby is big, too - she was about 23 pounds so we tried a couple of different things - always keeping in mind to alter the dose. We ended up sticking with Robitussin Pediatric Cold and Cough. We gave her about half to 3/4 teaspoon every eight hours and it helped a lot. And, don't be too concerned if the mucous turns a little green - the nurse said that it was because she needed to take in a little more fluids.

Hope this helps. I feel your pain!!

Take care - K.

You can call your local walgreens and ask the pharmacist...they can tell you what is safest to take and exact dosages...even if it's not on the label.

I would give him a little bit of Benadryl for babies!

D.,
My son and I just got over a cold and our pediatrician recommended Infants' Tylenol Cold. Call your ped for a dosage for your son. He said DO NOT give an infant a cough suppressent; only a decongestant (they can get pneumonia of they don't break up the mucus in their chest by coughing). It worked pretty well to give him some relief.
Good luck!!!
J.

Little noses decongestant and/or saline spray will help. Ask your pharmacist.

My son had a cold at 6 months and the pediatrician recommended Triaminic. It helped clear him up enough to eat and sleep...and as the pediatrician said, he needs sleep to get better! She did say to never give them medicine with cough suppressant in it, so I gave him Triaminic cold and allergy.

This is a link to my pediatricians' website (Pediatric Partners in O.P.), which has dosage info on it.
http://www.doc4kidz.com/faqotcdosage.htm

I saw a couple of people suggested elevating the mattress, which I think is a good idea. But, to even take it a step further, when my daughter was around that age & had a cold, we actually let her sleep in her baby swing all night. It's probably not as comfortable as the crib, but it definitely keeps them upright so they can breathe. Or you could try a bouncy seat, too... same idea. Good luck! I hope you can get 2 solid nights of sleep in a row, now!

Yeah, I wouldn't give him any medicine. There is a great homeopathic, but I can't remember the name. They should know at Wild Oats or Whole Foods. Also, baby vicks on the chest works wonders. I don't know if the saline spray will help much since it is already so runny. He might sleep better if you are sleeping with him (if you aren't already). If he was sleeping well in his crib before he got sick, you shouldn't bring him to your bed because he will get hooked. Try putting a mattress in his room and sleeping there with him. Good luck! Just found out, the homeopathic cold medicine is called Coryzalia, made by boiron.

Tylenol and Advil both make cold medicines that would be ok for your son to take. Hope this helps.

I would avoid medicine if possible. God created our bodies to have symptoms such as a runny nose to help flush out the virus. It shows his immune system is at work. I know this doesn't make it much easier. The problem with your typical decongetants is that they dry up so badly that they can actually damage the sinus. Your best bet is to use non-medicated saline nose spray. You can even add xylitol sweetener to that nose spray (the top pops off fairly easy) and this will prevent bacteria from sticking thus reducing a chance of it turning into and ear or sinus infection. You can also squirt that saline in the nose and then immediately suck it back out to remove some of the blockage. There are also baby safe vapor rubs out there that can be put on the chest and back (preferably under a onesie where baby can't reach well) and this may help open him up more. Other than that there are homeopathic rememdies that work wonders and don't cause bodily damage. I may be able to help recommend one if you are interested and have a health food store such as Whole Foods nearby where you can purchase such a remedy. Good job thinking about the humidifier. That is also very important. I think the saline nose spray may help too though. You can get it in any pharamcy section of a discount department store such as Target, Kmart, Walmart, etc. Good luck and I hope you guys get some good sleep soon!

B. :)

I am a mother of 3 and a childcare provider. My little one has a cold now too. I have found that Childrens Dimatapp works Wonders!!
Check with your Doc. before giving anything! Good Luck!

My 8 1/2 month old had a really bad cold about a month ago (7 1/2 months at the time). I had been giving him Triaminic and it helped a little. We had already tried all the other typical stuff (humidifier, suctioning, not to mention about ten other things) and none of it worked. I ended up taking him to the doctor when the cold got worse and he told me to give him infant Robitussin (Robitussin Cough & Cold Infant Drops). He said it was better than Triaminic because instead of drying up the sinuses, it would break the mucas up and my son would expel it. He told me just to go off the weight guidelines on the back of the box. It really, really helped and my husband and I, not to mention my son, finally were able to sleep. I too have a fairly large boy. He was 26lbs when I took him to the doctor for the cold a month ago. I'm not the biggest fan of putting a lot of medicine and other crud into my child, but we go to a really well respected office and our doctor is wonderful, so I fully trust what he says. Of course, you should always check with your own doctor. If you just call your office, I bet one of your doctor's nurses can recommend what to use over the phone. I know a lot of people say that you should always avoid giving medicine. The thing is, although it's not my first choice, I just try to relate it to myself or my husband. I mean, if I had a really bad cold and couldn't breathe, what would I do? Well, I don't know about you, but I'd take something to ease the symptoms. At least when adults get sick, they know what's going on. Babies have no idea why they feel bad, and they can't deal with it as well. Anyway, good luck, and I hope your little boy feels better soon!

Try using baby Vicks rub and they make a vapor bath by johnson and johnson that u can stick in his bath water. Also try like saline to help his nose stay moistened.

try benagryl or pediacare, but calling the doctor would be smarter than taking our word

I would give him Benadryl as well...probably about 1/2 tsp.

iwth both of my girls i use little noses...they have both a spray decongestant and a salie spray. i use them both. there are very few side effects withthe sprays. it sounds like you are doing everything. hope you get some sleep tonight

I would use a cool mist vaporizor and elevate his head by folding a blanket and put under the mattress at the head of his bed. I don't trust Benedryl, it has seditive affects and Dimatap has been taken off the store shelves a few times for causing seisures(sp). The saline nasal spray is good too and nothing in it is harmful, it's only purified salt water...just make sure he is sitting upright when applying it. The plug-in vaporizor things require that you leave the door open because it shouldn't be concentrated in a small space so it is better to have juat a cool mist vaporizer and close the door so the humidity will stay in the room and he can breathe it. Don't use any OTC meds on your son unless it is prescribed by your pediatrician. What works well for one baby may not work well for yours and your ped knows your baby's history. Good luck!

my son is 8mo, and we have given him children's benadryl, but only about .5 mL. and only 4-6 hours apart. it has an antihysthamine in it and is suppost to help stop the runny nose. there are also little noses drops that i've found helpful in losening up stuff in his nose to suction out more. they have one that is a decongestant. just make sure he is getting plenty of fluids if you use these medicines as they can dehydrate. so plenty of nursing (or bottles) and he's old enough to have some juice or juice diluted with water. so try to get him to sip on that during the day. other than that, plenty of tlc! i feel for you. my son is finally getting over his cold. he loves his pacifier and it was tough for him to be able to suck on it at night since his nose was so stuffy, but thankfully we got through it!

quit suctioning...you are irritating his nasal passages and making the problem worse. Go ahead and give the boy some tylenol. He will appreciate the relief, and so will you. I am a mother/baby nurse.

The only advise I can give you is to stay away from the milk. Milk makes them cough more, not sure why but it causes more mucus.

I would get one of the vaper plug ins for kids. I get those for my girls when they get colds and they sleep soooo much better with them, it puts the vapor in the room so you don't have to put it on them!!! You will notice it helps you! I would really watch out with the benedryl because with colds it really doesn't work much.

definatly the Benadryl,but call your pharmacist and ask for a dosage.

One of my favorite websites for childhood illnesses and medicine dosages is askdrsears.com.

i just read your update......dont use vicks..that is not good for a child your age...... also use a COOL mist vaporizor......not HOT......... and dont make your house really warm. germs fester in the heat. dress a bit warmer but dont have your house really hot. good luck

My doctor always told me to give the kids PediaCare, use a vaporizor, vapo rub since it helps with the breathing thing, and yes the humidifier is great too. Elevate his head... a pillow or cushion under his mattress and then just ride it out. I know that sound crazy but hey it workd for my babies. Good Luck!

Infant Tylenol Cold & Cough is great, I use it for my 7 month old.