How to Get a 4 Month Old to Sleep with a Cold

My 4 month old son just went through this! Best advise was mentioned about sleeping upright in car seat or swing (not moving), using nasal saline drops,and hot steam showers. But if it doesn't seem to go away, go back to pediatrition. After 5 weeks, my little guy still had it and he had to take Zyrtec for 2 weeks to get rid of it.

the hot steam vaporizor always worked when I raised my kids. I put a dab of Vicks by the steam hole opening and the vapors worked like they needed to get enough rest to get well.

Vics vapor rub on the feet.It sounds crazy, but it really works. After a bath, before bed, we would put vics on their feet and then cover (at a young age if he won't pull his socks off that is probably fine, but we used foot pjs so they didn't get it on their hands or in the mouth before falling alseep. Sometime we would reapply in the middle of the night if they woke up. Also, elevate the bed (just at a slight angle) so the head is a little above the feet. (Don't use pillows, but most cribs you can put one side a little notch higher than the other. (Our ped recommended this.) It helps them drain thought sometimes you get a lot of puking the next day, but they had a good night.

Ask your doctor, since he is a premie about what to do. Is he sleeping in a full size crib? I always felt little ones, mine were 5 & 6 lbs, were happier in a bassinette. Ask if they have one at daycare, or at least a Pack-and-Play.

List of things that have worked with my kids:

1. Lay off milk if there is lots of caughing (go to water downed gatorade or pedialyte)!
2.The wedge thing works great too!
3. Sleep in car seat if in the carrier type (it is angled and they can sleep in it and at the day care too)
4. Make sure your humidifier produces really wet air! Walgreens has the best (cost effective too!)

Don't be so sure it is a cold...it could be teething! My daughter did this till she was done with all of her teeth:)

5.

Try some home remedy..it worked for me...Apply the oil and camphor mix..slightly warm on his chest and back..It helps..

V.

I haven't tried this yet but have been told it works great . Put Vicks vapo rub on his feet with socks on :)

When my soon had his first cold at about the same age, we had him sleep in his car seat for a few days. It seemed to help since he was congested and it was easier to breathe when he was more upright.

Good luck

I'm not sure if you'd be willing to do this given that your son is having trouble sleeping in his crib at daycare, but you may want to try letting your little guy sleep in a swing until his cold clears up. Most swings have a position that allows the baby to sit up slightly, so you wouldn't even have to turn the swing on. Just move it into his room close to his crib (try to keep as many things consistant with his sleeping since you don't want to create any bad sleeping habits). I am fortunate that my little girl hasn't been sick yet (knock on wood!), so I haven't tried this out myself, but my sister swears by this when her son has a cold. Hope this helps!! Good luck!

I have tried pillow uner head, a car seat or a inclined baby seat. Anything to keep his head elevated

Breastmilk up his nose will help clear his nasal passages. Express a little and put it in with a dropper

Try the Safe Lift Crib Wedge (you can buy it at Babies R Us). YOu slip it beneath the mattress & it gives just the right amount of incline. We have used this many times (especially through the winter months). Other than that, I also recommend using saline drops to clear his nasal passages. Another thing that greatly helped us was steam showers. We'd hold our daughter or put her in her exersaucer or bouncer & turn our shower on the hottest setting. Sit in there for 10-20 minutes. Mostly, you'll just have to be patient (not easy-I know) and ride this one out. His sleep patterns will get back to normal once the cold passes. Hang in there!

How about a humidifier or vicks plug-in soothing vapors/nightlight. Good luck.

When my son had a cold, we put a pillow underneath the matress so his head was elevated. It worked great for him with the addition of saline drops before bed time.

Hi L., One of the pieces of advice our pediatician gave us was to let the baby sleep in the car seat inside the crib. It'll keep him safe in the crib, and it'll allow him to sleep in a more upright position to help with all the stuffiness. Also - before you put him to bed at night, sit in the steamy bathroom with the door closed and the shower on high and hot. The steam from the bathroom really helps. Best wishes! I remember those tough days of having them sick when they were that young :( It gets a little easier as they get older....

Hi Leanne,

This was what I responded to another mother looking for advice with a sick baby. Hope it helps!

My son has been sick with one thing after another since he was born. He's now almost 9 months old (at time of posting, he's not 15 months) and is currently sick with RSV and a secondary ear infection so do I know about trying to get a sick baby to sleep!

First try elevating one side of his crib about 3 or 4 inches, this will help with his sinuses draining. They make wedges that you can buy but a rolled up towl will work too. Also, Vics makes an infant chest rub we use every night. Smells more pleasant than the adults version and is much more gentle. Putting a humidfier in his room will help a LOT. It keeps the snot thinner so his body can rid him of it. Without humidity, the mucas gets thicker, harder to get rid of and just hurts more in the nose and throat.

Infants need sleep to heal so make sure he gets his naps but before bed give him is last meal and make it a big one. Give him a nice warm bath and using the wash that has the vapo-rub in it will help too. Rock him and give him a little Tylenol or Motrin if you know he's got a sore throat, something else that hurts or a fever. Run the humidifier all day and night so the room is nice and moist and get him tucked in.

I've made the mistake of relying on the swing for our son to sleep in. Do NOT do this. I actually just posted a question the other day about getting him out of the swing and into bed more. If you haven't started this habit already then do yourself the favor and don't.

But all the little things really add up for a baby who isn't feeling well. We like to be pampered when we're not feeling well, it's the same thing. If he's not feeling well, make the evening before bed extra special...a nice long warm bath, a massage with some lotion and some Vics rub on his chest...it's about all you can do for him.

Hope you find some help in this. Best of luck. Being worn out from a lack of sleep is something I'm too familiar to.

saline solution! Now it is all my family uses whenever we have colds. It works perfectly and now my kids ask for it when their nose is both running and stuffy. Miracle stuff. Good luck!

If your son continues to have a hard time sleeping I would recommend having his ped check him out to rule out an ear infection. Other than that I would recommend taking a pillow and sticking it under the crib mattress to keep him elevated- and some saline nose drops. you could also let him sleep in his carrier- to keep him elevated. good luck.

We did the vicks rub and humidifier like the previous person said. We also purchased a "plug in" for her room that is specifically for colds. She was far to active (all over the crib)to elevate the crib. We also pushed LOTS of fluids. Hope your little one feels better soon.

Before you put him to bed, sit with him in the bathroom with the door closed and the hot shower running and steam will help clear him up. Stay in for about 15 minutes if you can. Then, elevate his crib on the end where he puts his head so that his sinuses can drain some while he sleeps. They make little pads you can buy and put under the sheets for this purpose. Or, you can use books and put a blanket on top of them and then put the sheets on top of that. Then, try to get him to sleep as much as possible so his body can fight the cold faster. Easier said than done I know. Some extra TLC is the best medicine for this age as well.