ok so i know i cannot give my 16 month old Son anything for a cough but what am i suppose to do? We use the humitifier (sp?), and he takes mucconex (per dr). He has so much flem stuck in his little throat and can't get it out. It drive me nuts, he coughs, coughs, coughs so much he gags. Sometimes its so bad he acutally vomits. I called Kaiser who says its viral and they cannot give meds, i took him in for something unrelated she checked his ears and throat and said he is fine just a cold. Most of the little kids at school have this cough and the teachers says its normal for this time of year. They wash hands constantly... we also use the vapor rubs and the one for the wall nothing is working... what should i do?
Hi,
Coughing is also a sign of Asthma. If you have Kaiser, I would suggest calling and making an apointment on a weekend when you will see a dr different then the one you usually see, Sort of get a second opinion.
Try also giving a spoonful of honey- It works better than cough medicine in my opinion.
my mom also used a vaporizer with tincturebenzoine (spelling) and we use it as well really helps for the overnight stuff or vicks vapo rub works too!
Try mixing some honey with warm water and have him drink it. It's worked for me.
What is always the most effective for my girls is to steam them in the shower for 20 minute intervals. Bring a book, toys and sit with them in there with the shower on very hot. It really speeds up the clearing out of the gunk in their chest. Vicks on their chest works well, too.
Agree with everyone, prop head to sleep, lots of fluids, no dairy, hot bath before bed, take the mucinex religiously every 4 hours, slather on vicks vapor rub on feet and cover with socks at bed time, and chicken soup.
Definitely give honey, either a little bit from a spoon or mixed in warm water. My daughter has bad dust mite allergies and sometimes when she's coughing in the night (I haven't vacuumed her room recently enough) I'll give her a sippy of warm honey water and it works right away.
You might also try NOT doing the Vick's rub. I have heard that it can irritate the sinuses and throat, making coughing worse.
I mix olive oil (about 2 T.) with a couple drops of eucalyptus oil and rub it on my kids feet, then put cotton socks on them. I swear it helps. You can also put the eucalyptus oil in the humidifier, or a couple drops in a warm bath for them, etc. It's great stuff.
Raise the head end of his bed so that he is not laying flat for naps and bedtime (if you haven't already). I found it was easiest to put an extra pillow under the mattress itself. This might help assist the "drip" down the back of the throat cough.
Lots of liquids. Try to limit milk for a few days as it makes mucus worse. Try Simply Saline in the nostrils. All those passage ways come together so even if the problem is more in the throat than in the nasal passageways, it will still help, and the saline is good to break up mucus (remember gargling with salt water?...well your little one can't very well do that yet, but the Simply Saline will work in much the same way). Perhaps elevate the head end of the mattress. This can be accomplished with a pillow or two placed under that end of the mattress so there is nothing on top for the child to get tangled up in.
