Hi all. I was wondering what night time cold/cough medicines have worked the best for your children? My 3 year old daughter has yet another cold and we have tried several different brands of cough/cold meds and nothing works for more than a couple of hours. Even the 8-12 hour stuff only lasts for maybe 3-4 hours. I have tried propping her head and the head of her bed and that has helped some but??????? Any other ideas and what works for you would be much appreciated.
I just wanted to thank everyone for all their help and advice. I ended up using childrens nyquil (at a much lower dose than rec.) and the vicks plug in vapor thing in her room. I also put her on some probiotics. After all of that, we ended up at the doctor today and she is strep positive again (this makes 5 times in 2 1/2 months). No fever, no sore throat, nothing other than cold like symptoms! So we are doing antibiotics again and if she is still strep positvie in 12 days, we are going to the ENT. Again, thanks everyone for all your help.
Hey A.!
I started using the suddacare vapor plug ins a year ago when m kids would get the first sign of stuffy noses & it seems to make a huge difference in just one night. It lasts up to 8 hrs & really helps with their congestion that usually comes with a cold. They sell them @ drug stores, Walmart, Target, etc. Good luck.
When my step-daughter had strep repeatedly, I started putting 2+2 together. I realized they were putting her on the SAME antibiotic each time. I asked for a STRONGER antibiotic and it knocked it out with no repeat of the strep. The antibiotic that was not strong enough was Amoxicillin. All it was good for was giving her a yeast infection!
Best of luck to you!
When my kids are sick their doctor just has me put a cool mister on at night with their head propped. I give them Childrens Motrin if they have a fever, which they usually do. She says that it will go away without Rx meds within 5 days. And it does.
If the cough and stuffy/runny nose is mainly at night, you might want to try allergy medicine. My daughter is 4 and was in the same situation. It turned out her cough was caused by postnasal drip, and they're setting up to have her sent for allergy testing. Sudden changes in climate can trigger it, and that sort of pattern is notorious here in Florida. I have her on a prescription but I'm finding just about any allergy meds work. If it is a combination of cold & allergy, try something that combats both - they seem to last the longest. My email is ____@____.com if you need any more help or suggestions. Good luck!
try Deslym, it worked great for my kids.
Hey A.! I have found that Benadryl chewables work great. A lot of the time, kids have a cough because their throats get irritated from the post nasal drip that a cold virus can bring on. Since my son is only two years old and weighs 26 pounds, I give him half of a grape Benadryl chewable. Then, about 2 hours later, I will give him Tylenol Cold and Runny Nose over the counter formula. It really helps him. I hope that you find something that will work.
Mucinex DM (spelling???) for kids. It worked like a charm for my 3 year old.
Night time cough is a sign of asthma. Talk to your ped about it. We use a nebulizer with albuterol. The cough was the only sign that she had asthma.
Buy a vaporizer!!! and the meds to go with it... it is a saver, less medicine into your child and a better night's sleep for all. they have plug-in vaporizer things but I didn't find them to work as well as the good old vaporizer.
Also - having a good cool mist humidifier for regular use during winter will help cut back on the coughs to begin with - a little prevention :) We have one that also has a cool blue nightlight on it, cost about $30 - worth its weight in gold - also GREAT to keep skin hydrated.
Also - chest patches! they stick on chest, works like vicks - but without the mess :)
I started using natural homeopathics the past year and they have been very effective without the side effects allopathic medicines have.
Here are some things I have used with good results for myself and my 3 and 5 year old:
Allium cepa for Allergic or viral runny nose, Common name: Onion
Children's Chestal® for Cough
Spongia tosta for Croupy cough
They're all listed at this site and most health food stores sell them.
http://www.boironusa.com/index.pl/prod/by-symptom/results...
For my baby, I've used Hyland's C-Plus Cold Tablets.
I have read that rubbing Vicks Vapor rub on the bottom of feet stops coughing.
Your daughter probably suffers from allergies. What may appear to be a virus/cold could be allergies. You might consider a hepa filter in her room and if there is a ceiling fan in her room, turn it off at night. Dr. Alvarado is a wonderful allergy specialist for pediatric and adult patients.
Hi A., I have a 3 year old son, who I think because of this aweful weather, has another cold too. As far as meds. I recommend triaminic cold/cough day time and then the night time version. I have a pedisure plug in....like a vicks plug in, next to his bed and it fills his room up with vapors so he breaths easy all night. I also alternate throughout the day with motrin and tylenol for aches and pains. You can also try triaminic popsicles as well. I hope this works for you. I'm a Military wife so I know how it is. Take care and I hope your daughter feels better.
I would highly recommend Chest-all or Chest-ease (I am pretty sure that is what it is called). It is syrup. You can find it at a natural foods or health shoppe (there is a great one near Publix on Kernan). It doesn't have all the additives and alcohol in it that most brand-name (supermarket) ones contain, so it just helps the symptoms with out any other side effects. It has worked great for us.
Hi A.,
I have had the same problem with cold medicines not lasting long enough. (I thought it was just my daughter!) What has worked for us in the past is using a cold medicine (we use either Dimetapp or Triaminic) in conjuunction with a PediaCare plug-in vaporizer. The vapors are very therapeutic and open the nasal passages so that my daughter can get a good night's rest. Hope this helps.
C. Y.
Hi A.! Sorry to hear your lttle one is not feeling well. The only cough medicine that works for my kids is the prescriptions from their pediatrician- nothing over the counter seems to work. Also 2 of my 3 children have asthma so when they get a cough it seems to never go away unless they use a nebulizer treatment. The reason I bring that up is we found out my daughter had asthma when she was about 3 years old. She's fine now (8 yrs. old) and only has to use med. when she gets sick like the others. I know this isn't much help but I thought I would pass it along!
Okay, so forgive me if I'm repeating anything, because I haven't read all the replies. The latest research indicates that you shouldn't give OTC cough remedies to children under 6. They have high risks of side effects and they're not reliably effective. For coughs, they are now recommending to give a teaspoon of honey before bedtime. For other symptoms, the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests:
# Moisturizing the air with a vaporizer or hydrator
# Using saltwater nose drops to dry up a runny nose
# Using a rubber nose bulb to clear up congestion
# Feeding the child chicken soup
# Consulting a pediatrician
A.,
I have had the same problem w my 5 yr old, I started propping her head up and i finally took her the dr and she was wheezing so i have to give her breathing treatments every 4-6 hrs...I have tried so many different cough meds...
Good luck
deslym is what work for me with my kids.
i've tried tons of diferent otc meds for coughs and things like that.. but the one thing that actually worked was a prescription from their doctor. it is called rondex. it seems to do the trick with their cough. my younger daughter once needed a breathing treatment at the doctors office, b/c her chest seemed to be really congested and that helped. i would take her to see her doctor and ask about the treatment and see if thats something she might need. it wasnt anything serious and she's never needed it again, it was just a little mask they put over her nose and mouth and it delivered oxygen to her and it seemed to help clear out her stuffiness. i know a sick child is not a lot of fun so i hope she gets better soon!!
The 8-12 hour stuff is awful, I don't care what brand it is! She is old enough to rub vicks on her chest, but I would keep a shirt on over it to keep it from getting in her eyes. I like to take mine in a steamy bathroom to help her breath, also they sell those tablets you but in the running shower that create vapors to open you up. To be honest only time and love will make her cold better. The medicines you buy help...
GOOD LUCK, my 3 year old daughter just got over yet another cold.
The cruds are here at our household as well. I usually use the RX ED-TLC that are pediatrician gives us for nasal congestion, post-nasal drip and cough, but that didn't work this time. So, I switched to Children's Tylenol Cold & Cough and it has worked like a charm!!! :) They are sleeping the entire night and even taking a good nap. The other think I found is the "Waterless" Vaporizor, I think it is by Vicks. Cost almost $20 but it has been the best investment for us this cold season. You put those vapor things in it (it comes with 5-6) and use it while they are napping or asleep during the night. Works like a charm. It also has a Night Light built in, so that makes them feel better as well.
Hope she gets better.
My twins are 2 1/2 and I give them 1 tsp of the stuff every 4-6 hours as needed. Just make sure it isn't any shorter than 4 hours so you don't overdose.
Also another idea is to ask your pharmist what he/she recommends. As well as the dosage in case it isn't on the package.
Hope she feels better.
Take care,
God Bless,
J. D
Mom to Ashleigh & Austin ~ 2 1/2
I have a three year old as well, and I like the triamedic cold and cough, but it also helps to put some vicks vapor rub on their chest too.
Well it looks like you've gotten alot of suggestions that all sound good. I have a 2 year old and have found that the Triaminic (sp) patches that go on the chest help alot. They seem to last longer than Vicks vapor rub and they don't have all the oils that are in rubs like vicks so you don't have to worry about them getting on the clothes. They last alot longer than the package says they do.
