My 9 year old son has recently started drooling in his sleep. Not just a little - I mean a lot! Soaking a huge area of the sheets and his pillow. I tried letting it air dry during the day but that doesn't work. Now I am back to washing sheets like I had to do when he wet the bed! I don't know if it is a nasal problem and that is why he is breathing through his mouth or what. Any ideas?
He could have allergies and can't breathe well through his nose. Therefore, he breathes through his mouth and drools. Try Children's Claritin to see if that helps?
I had this problem for a while but (not this bad) but it bothered me. I mentioned this to my acupuncturist and it has gone away completely. I remember reading what this symptom indicated something (other than allergies) but I can't recall what. If allergies are not the problem there is a very good doctor at the Academy Of Oriental Medicine his name is Doctor Wu (his wife is also there so ask for the male Dr. Wu). He is VERY GOOD with children and can treat you child with herbs and can show you a procedure where you can massage acupressure points instead of using needles. This helped my child tremendously when all the doctors wanted to remove his adenoids, tonsils put tubes in his ears etc. We avoided all of that and have a very healthy child now.
HTH,
M.
T.,
Take him to an ENT and/or your pediatrician. It could be allergies, sinus/adenoid issues. He could be having some sleep apnea too. Could it be that it is sweat and/or saliva? One of my sons started heavy sweating in the head/neck area when pre-puberty kicked in. He now keeps the fan on and a lighter blanket even in the winter. Anyway, night sweats could also be something you can talk to the pediatrician about... good luck.
Just a thought
Does he take any medications? Our daughter started taking some meds and we later learned that drooling is a side-effect, although a rare one. And it was just how you described your son's.
He is a mouth breather, talk with the Dr. he may have some allergies or see an ENT and have his nose checked along with his sinus's. Another thing that you can do in the mean time is put a cover on the pillow.
Not sure why he's dong it but just wanted to mention that I would encourage him to always sleep on his stomach until it clears up. You definitely don't want him at risk for choking during sleep if he should sleep on his back.
i read that is a sign of parasites ,may want to look into.
does he suffer from Upper respiratory problems at this time?. it might be that he either has allergies or sometimes the heater on at night dries you up and end up breathing with the mouth. check him out for mucus or congestion and clear his airway.This might be the problem why he drools at night.
GabiF RN
