Short of a month ago, Krishaen boy was down with a nasty bout of cold. He was coughing, til he teared up and had very thick clear nasal secretions. He had a low grade fever, yet was feeding well and still considerably active with a lil crankiness here and there. His lungs were fairly clear, and his ears and throat were normal. He was passing motion well, and had his regular amounts of wet diapers. His sleep was disturbed, guess he was a bit uncomfortable and woke up quite a bit mainly to nurse rather than to feed.
Having treated so many kids and babies before, I knew what was wrong and I knew what he needed. Yet, one still can't help getting uber worked up, and somewhat saddened especially when he had a coughing fit and how his eyes will well up with years after that :( it really broke me apart.
We usually don't prescribe kids below two with antihistamines and antitussives for fear of its sedatives effect, and it's adverse reactions towards their immature CNS.
So, this is what we did.
- Breastfed to glory! He was cranky, and just wanted to nurse all the time. Felt this was my very own secret weapon for everything! His nose was congested, so he nursed slower and longer. Most of the times, he merely nursed for comfort. Never gave up, we nursed and nursed and nursed. Even if it meant for hours, or multiple times at night. I was so sore, and I was worried if my susu will be sufficient since he nursed more than usual. So, we loaded full swing on my many susu boosters and drank lotsa water. All went well.
- Dragged him into a hot steamy bathroom almost every 2-3hrly. Bums would just hold him, while I turned on the hot water to max and just steamed up the entire bathroom. And all 3 of us enjoyed a few minutes of instant sauna. Hot steam eased his congestions, and soothed his throat and he coughed a lot less after each session.
- Gave him one teaspoon of VCo twice a day to boost his immune system. I took one tablespoon thrice a day. Should have done this earlier though.
- Since we couldn't rub Vicks Vapour Rub on him, we used a concotion of VCo and fresh garlic concentrate. Rubbed it on his back and chest and the soles of his feet. Made him smelly like garlic bread, but he dint seem to mind!
- Placed whole sliced onions around him always. In his cot, near his rocker and in his socks. Raw onions are apparently natural antiseptics. Was kinda sceptical, but it must have somewhat worked.
- Cuddle, cuddle and cuddle. Soothe his pain, sayang his flu away. Made him feel safe and protected.
- As I was breastfeeding, I consumed handfuls of raw garlic too. Ate it with my meals, toasted em in the oven for a bit and just snacked of garlic! It would have passed to him thru my susu. And no vampires came near!
- Nasal wash down almost every 2-3 hrly using Sterimar.
All our effort paid off, when it only took him one and half days to recover. He was still having a little sniffle after that, but he was so much better off. I only gave him one dose of oral paracetamol just in case, and very reluctantly also gave one dose syrup ventolin for his cough.
I depended a lot on other websites for feedbacks, and thus hope this would somehow someday help other parents in distress! Just don't give up, and stay calm. Understatement, I know. Coz I literally freaked out and was really upset! It was so hard to see my usually bubbly 6 month old, so sick!
Oh so last nite we went on a lil date nite. Which turned out to be so eventful! Our first movie in almost 8 months!!! Decided to watch Transformers, went to some super ulu place called Space8 Mall. Such a sad looking mall, and utter waste of good resources. Movie was so draggy, I felt it was the worst Transforners movie ever! We left 30mins before it ended, coz we were hungry as there weren't anything to eat around in the mall, and we were cold coz the cinema felt like a freezer with its dahsyat air on and only 6 pathetic people in it, and I missed Krishaen boy and just wanted to go bck and cuddle him! Left, went to McDrive for dinner and faced a rude server at the drive thru window. Then took a wrong turn on KESAS, and had to U-turn all the way after Subang! *sweats* Lucky we had the yummy Banana Kick McFlurry to teman us! It was so dahsyat, yet fun in a way. Think all parents with budaks need a break like this sometimes!
Ok, till next time! Have a great weekend!
