How can I help this poor child stop coughing?!

[melissel]

Poor DD5 is sick and cannot stop coughing. It's driving all of us crazy, including her. I gave her some homeopathic cough syrup, which has done not one single bit of good :glare: The only other thing I have is Mucinex, which she refuses to take because of the taste (frankly, I don't blame her, ugh). She had an attack of croup last night, so I think there's still a touch of that happening, although her cough is not the barking cough and I can hear a bit of wetness in the cough too.

 

Is there anything natural I can make/give her, or some trick to help her?

 

TIA!

[OnTheBrink]

I found Mucinex didn't help my coughing at all. What I did find that blowing my nose helped! My coughing comes from my throat itching because of sinus drainage, so if I kept blowing my nose and using the neti rinse, it helped a quite a bit. Cough syrup did nothing.

[flobee76]

Our kids had this nasty cough back in February. It lasted about 2-3 wks for each kid! YUCK! I don't use conventional meds, only homeopathic meds. Some things that helped our kids:

 

Boiron Chestal cough medicine

Hot steamy showers with drops of eucalyptus in the bottom of the shower

warm-mist humidifiers at night

LOTS AND LOTS of tea and water during the day

GOOT (garlic, Olive oil, coconut Oil, treatment) http://www.welltellme.com/discuss/index.php?topic=3310.0

[kwickimom]

I swear this sounds crazy, but my 2 DS's have the same thing and I rub Vicks vapor rub on the bottoms of their feet and put on their socks....cough goes away for 6 to 8 hours. It has worked every night. I got the idea here awhile back and didnt believe it, but I was desperate and it worked!!!!

[Lara in Colo]

I second the vicks on the feet.

I learned this here and filed it away in my "if I'm desperate" file. Last week I was and it worked on two children, one 22mo, the other 6yo.

 

Weird.

[Disney Dreaming]

Delsym is what our doctor has recommended in the past. Have you tried a humidifier?

[mytwomonkeys]

raw honey helps my kids. not sure if it will help you or not, bu it taste yummy & won't hurt.:)

[TheCoffeeChick]

I third the Vick's! It works! :D

[melissel]

So far I've given her children's Advil for the neck/headache she was developing and a lollipop to suck on, and she's quieted down a bit. Not exactly my preferred method of dealing with it, but we're all a little happier for the moment!

 

I've not had good experiences with any homeopathic treatments, ever. I feel like we're the only family on the planet for whom homeopathics does nothing! Everyone I know raves about them. We've tried 6 or 7 different things, including the Chestal Honey that I just gave her, and nothing has had any effect at all (unless you count in the increased allergic reaction DH had after taking a homeopathic allergy med). So I think I've given up on that for now, unfortunately.

 

As for the humidifier, I recently gave ours away because it didn't do anything but soak our walls.

 

Nothing comes out when she blows her nose :(

 

I've never tried the Vicks or Delsym. I may run to CVS when DH gets home if it's still bad by then. No one will get any sleep tonight if she's still coughing this much!

[melissel]

raw honey helps my kids. not sure if it will help you or not, bu it taste yummy & won't hurt.:)

 

Hm, we do have raw honey! I'll give her a spoonful--she'll definitely like that either way :D

[talk2ham.1]

I swear this sounds crazy, but my 2 DS's have the same thing and I rub Vicks vapor rub on the bottoms of their feet and put on their socks....cough goes away for 6 to 8 hours. It has worked every night. I got the idea here awhile back and didnt believe it, but I was desperate and it worked!!!!

 

I do the same thing for myself and my kids! Works like a charm!!!! I've heard onions in socks on the feet do the same thing, but I haven't run out of the Vicks yet to bother trying it.

 

Another thing I do to help with the post nasal drip hacking, is to use a neti-pot on the kids. It helps rinse out the gook and ease the coughing long enough for them to fall asleep.

 

I put a pillow under the boys' mattresses to help them prop up a bit at night. Also, use a humidifier at night.

 

You can use Delsym if things get too bad. But I usually don't make that my first resort.

[emeraldjoy]

Honey and lemon juice mixture works well.

Sometimes though, it just doesn't and when they need to sleep at night..yikes.

My midwife suggested this over the counter stuff called Afrin. Most coughs are due to post nasal drip and so if you deal with the drip you can deal with the cough. It cannot be used for more more than 3 days...and can only be used once every 12 hours. what she suggested was just to get me through a couple of bad nights for sleep. It can be used on children 4 and up, if I remember right. It took the cough away 100%...sort of eerily. Just thought I would add this for your to research.

 

An onion poultice on the chest directly....baked onion. Also an onion and honey baked mixture works for the cough, like cough syrup.

e

[Rivka]

Hot mist vaporizer with Vicks Vapo Steam (Rite Aid also makes a generic equivalent) in the water. If her room is large, make a little tent around her and the vaporizer with blankets.

[Angel]

I rub Vicks vapor rub on the bottoms of their feet and put on their socks....cough goes away for 6 to 8 hours. It has worked every night. I got the idea here awhile back and didnt believe it, but I was desperate and it worked!!!!

 

I have tried this with success with my dd10. She had about 4-6 hours of relief, but that was enough to get her some sleep.

[JennyD]

I read a study a year or two ago that found that buckwheat honey was more effective at relieving coughing than dextromethorpan. So we now give a teaspoon of buckwheat honey plus some water. It usually takes the edge off.

 

The Vicks thing has never worked here, alas. I usually prop the beds up with blocks and crank the humidifier, too.

 

Poor bean. Hope she feels better soon.

[StephanieZ]

Ask the doctor for codeine (or similar narcotic such as hydrocodone) based cough syrup. It's the only thing that works for us for a bad cough.

[ktgrok]

Poor DD5 is sick and cannot stop coughing. It's driving all of us crazy, including her. I gave her some homeopathic cough syrup, which has done not one single bit of good :glare: The only other thing I have is Mucinex, which she refuses to take because of the taste (frankly, I don't blame her, ugh). She had an attack of croup last night, so I think there's still a touch of that happening, although her cough is not the barking cough and I can hear a bit of wetness in the cough too.

 

Is there anything natural I can make/give her, or some trick to help her?

 

TIA!

 

Honey and lemon helps. But my best trick is vapor rub on the chest, and a vaporizer running in the room. The vapor rub on the chest stops that tickle that keeps making you want to cough. miraculous stuff!

[JennyD]

Ask the doctor for codeine (or similar narcotic such as hydrocodone) based cough syrup. It's the only thing that works for us for a bad cough.

 

Wow, I didn't know that that was still available! I remember codeine syrup from my childhood -- that stuff worked when all else failed. (Or maybe it just knocked you out enough to stop the coughing?) Clearly I will have to hit our ped up for the good drugs before next winter.

[wapiti]

I would try the aforementioned Vicks and also honey.

 

I'd also want to be sure she's not wheezing, in which case she'd need to be seen. If the cough is very bad, I'd consider a trip to the ped. What does it sound like? Listen to her back.

 

In our house, we have a lot of asthma/wheezing/bronchiolitis type stuff, so for coughs, I almost always start with albuterol (yesterday ds had to move on to Orapred after a lengthy visit to the allergist, waiting to get his sats up so we could go home :glare:). But it depends on the kiddo. For asthma boy's twin brother, the coughing is usually an upper respiratory thing (except for last month, when negligent mom that I am finally took him in for what I thought was a sinus infection and he had walking pneumonia :tongue_smilie:).

[wapiti]

Wow, I didn't know that that was still available! I remember codeine syrup from my childhood -- that stuff worked when all else failed. (Or maybe it just knocked you out enough to stop the coughing?) Clearly I will have to hit our ped up for the good drugs before next winter.

 

It depends on the cause of the cough - if there's gunk in the lungs involved, I would not try to turn off the cough. That is how the body gets rid of it.

 

Most peds do not recommend cough medicine for kids under something like 7 (can't remember the age).

[teamturner]

I agree with propping up and we've also had sucess w/Delsum but I only use it at night so they can sleep. Also a Mucinex product that doesn't also have a cough suppressant which will thin the mucus.

 

When our dc had whooping cough and we got really desperate we gave them a tablespoon of honey mixed with lemon and a tiny splash of whiskey. Similar to what we call a hot toddy when combined with hot water. It was recommended by my friend's dad who was a retired pediatrician.

[JEMama]

My ds has gotten croup a few times already... Unfortunately, they say that if you get it once, later viruses will likely settle in the same spot (on the voice box) next time. Here's what I do for him...

 

Warm lemonade (honey, lemon and warm water) during the day, plus lots of extra water.

Humidifier at night.

Sometimes, I plug in a PediaCare Gentile Vapors. It fills the room with some kind of soothing scent that helps to relax his lungs and allows him to fall asleep better.

If he wakes up with a coughing attack, we bring him into a steamy bathroom, or downstairs in the cool garage (or outside). Sometimes the cool air relaxes his lungs also.

I've read that warm pear juice at the start of a cough works to stop it, but I've never been able to catch it early enough to confirm this.

 

I've never tried the Vicks on the feet+socks. Maybe I'll try that next time.

[lcelmer]

I'd also want to be sure she's not wheezing, in which case she'd need to be seen. If the cough is very bad, I'd consider a trip to the ped. What does it sound like? Listen to her back.

 

 

:iagree: DD's first asthma attack & trip to UC was a long unstoppable cough (semi croup like sounding) that nothing helped, then became obviously asthma... in just barely enough time to speed to the Urgent care.....

 

 

I had never had coughing instead of wheezing.. I squeaked (no stethoscope needed) when I was little with asthma, so I was totally unprepared to hear a just a cough as the priamary symptom.

[Susan C.]

Delsym is what our doctor has recommended in the past. Have you tried a humidifier?

 

Delsym.

 

I use natural too, but sometimes you need more!

[amo_mea_filiis.]

My ds has asthma and usually his only outward sign is coughing. Is she having any trouble breathing? Is she able to talk normally without the cough stopping her?

[melissel]

Thanks again, everyone. No, she's not having trouble breathing, and she can speak with no problems. DD8 is sick with this right now too, and she's coughing also, but not as bad. Anything respiratory always hits DD5 hardest for some reason. I wouldn't be surprised if she's diagnosed with asthma at some point, but I've asked the ped about it because she gets croup at least a few times a year, and he says not to worry about it now.

 

She actually slept pretty well last night, only coughing once or twice during each wake cycle (this is usually when she rolls and puts her thumb back in her mouth, mumbles, etc.). She's coughing again today, though not quite as bad. If she's still at the same level tomorrow, I may take her in. I never got to run out for the Vicks last night because DH came home not feeling well himself and conked right out after dinner--I think he's having major allergies though *sigh* I'll try to go tonight.

 

I tried giving tea with lemon and honey today but she wouldn't drink it. She'd rather cough, I guess? :confused:

 

We'll see what tomorrow brings, I suppose. Asthma is always on my mind too, for her, but I think this is just another virus. Because she still sucks her thumb, we seem to get a lot of those :glare:

[amo_mea_filiis.]

I'd ask the ped to see a pediatric pulmonologist. If she has asthma, daily maintenance will reduce the frequency and severity of sickness.

 

My ds used to be in the ER 4-5 times during the colder months until he was diagnosed with asthma just before he turned 4. That first winter he was only in the ER twice, and this year he has not needed ER help at all! We finally found the med that works for him and now he can run like a maniac without coughing, play in the snow, no night coughing, and he's been looking a lot healthier. He didn't even need oral steroids this winter.

[Jennifer in MI]

Thanks again, everyone. No, she's not having trouble breathing, and she can speak with no problems. DD8 is sick with this right now too, and she's coughing also, but not as bad. Anything respiratory always hits DD5 hardest for some reason. I wouldn't be surprised if she's diagnosed with asthma at some point, but I've asked the ped about it because she gets croup at least a few times a year, and he says not to worry about it now.

 

She actually slept pretty well last night, only coughing once or twice during each wake cycle (this is usually when she rolls and puts her thumb back in her mouth, mumbles, etc.). She's coughing again today, though not quite as bad. If she's still at the same level tomorrow, I may take her in. I never got to run out for the Vicks last night because DH came home not feeling well himself and conked right out after dinner--I think he's having major allergies though *sigh* I'll try to go tonight.

 

I tried giving tea with lemon and honey today but she wouldn't drink it. She'd rather cough, I guess? :confused:

 

We'll see what tomorrow brings, I suppose. Asthma is always on my mind too, for her, but I think this is just another virus. Because she still sucks her thumb, we seem to get a lot of those :glare:

 

My ds has been diagnosed with asthma. But, he only gets symptoms when he has a virus. So, yes, this could be a virus, but it could also be aggravated by asthma. KWIM? When my ds starts to get a cold, we immediately treat with Xopenex and Pulmacort. It keeps it from turning into an ER or UC trip. This now only happens once or twice/year. He's the 10yo. (Diagnosed with asthma at 3.)

 

I'd ask the ped to see a pediatric pulmonologist. .

ter.

:iagree: They really know what they are doing!!!! And, it just feels better to have a plan.

[melissel]

I'd ask the ped to see a pediatric pulmonologist. If she has asthma, daily maintenance will reduce the frequency and severity of sickness.

 

My ds used to be in the ER 4-5 times during the colder months until he was diagnosed with asthma just before he turned 4. That first winter he was only in the ER twice, and this year he has not needed ER help at all! We finally found the med that works for him and now he can run like a maniac without coughing, play in the snow, no night coughing, and he's been looking a lot healthier. He didn't even need oral steroids this winter.

 

My ds has been diagnosed with asthma. But, he only gets symptoms when he has a virus. So, yes, this could be a virus, but it could also be aggravated by asthma. KWIM? When my ds starts to get a cold, we immediately treat with Xopenex and Pulmacort. It keeps it from turning into an ER or UC trip. This now only happens once or twice/year. He's the 10yo. (Diagnosed with asthma at 3.)

 

Huh, this is very interesting! She doesn't generally cough this much with every upper respiratory thing--this has been unusual--but she does get croup every bloody time, which is scary and upsetting, but ultimately quickly resolved each time (steamy bathroom, then sitting on the front porch [so fun at 3 a.m.!], then back to sleep).

 

However, asthma is definitely present on both sides of our family, and DH has something like situational asthma (if he's in a place with lots of secondhand smoke, or if he runs in weather that's too cold, or if he has an upper respiratory thing going on...). How do I convince the ped that I need a referral? I feel like they'll poo-poo me without some kind of concrete evidence.

[Paige]

Huh, this is very interesting! She doesn't generally cough this much with every upper respiratory thing--this has been unusual--but she does get croup every bloody time, which is scary and upsetting, but ultimately quickly resolved each time (steamy bathroom, then sitting on the front porch [so fun at 3 a.m.!], then back to sleep).

 

However, asthma is definitely present on both sides of our family, and DH has something like situational asthma (if he's in a place with lots of secondhand smoke, or if he runs in weather that's too cold, or if he has an upper respiratory thing going on...). How do I convince the ped that I need a referral? I feel like they'll poo-poo me without some kind of concrete evidence.

 

My DD doesn't have an asthma diagnosis-yet-but she gets treated very similarly to if she did have asthma. For several years, this time of year she gets a wicked cough and nothing helps except albuterol and an inhaler. Last year, she had to take it to school for the first time, and she's getting worse each year. It only shows up when she gets a cold, virus, or seasonal allergy type irritation. She never gets it from exercising, for example. The Dr should be able to hear the wheezing if that is what is going on. You could just bring her in for the cough and have the Dr listen. I can't hear the wheezing and I used to have no idea how bad the cough really was, but the Dr always picked it up on the stethoscope. Also, at night, when she gets really bad sometimes, she cannot talk, she sounds like she is going to throw up, and it is bad. I am sooooo glad we have the inhaler on hand for times like that now.

[ktgrok]

Huh, this is very interesting! She doesn't generally cough this much with every upper respiratory thing--this has been unusual--but she does get croup every bloody time, which is scary and upsetting, but ultimately quickly resolved each time (steamy bathroom, then sitting on the front porch [so fun at 3 a.m.!], then back to sleep).

 

However, asthma is definitely present on both sides of our family, and DH has something like situational asthma (if he's in a place with lots of secondhand smoke, or if he runs in weather that's too cold, or if he has an upper respiratory thing going on...). How do I convince the ped that I need a referral? I feel like they'll poo-poo me without some kind of concrete evidence.

 

If it is croupy, and in her throat, that isn't asthma. If it is asthma, or asthmatic bronchitis it would be in her lungs.

[CalicoKat]

rub the bottoms of his feet with vapor rub.

 

Doesn't work for everyone though.

 

Edit: Guess I should have read other's responses first. :)) I agree with previous posters.

[wapiti]

Huh, this is very interesting! She doesn't generally cough this much with every upper respiratory thing--this has been unusual--but she does get croup every bloody time, which is scary and upsetting, but ultimately quickly resolved each time (steamy bathroom, then sitting on the front porch [so fun at 3 a.m.!], then back to sleep).

 

However, asthma is definitely present on both sides of our family, and DH has something like situational asthma (if he's in a place with lots of secondhand smoke, or if he runs in weather that's too cold, or if he has an upper respiratory thing going on...). How do I convince the ped that I need a referral? I feel like they'll poo-poo me without some kind of concrete evidence.

 

FWIW, I wouldn't be worried about the referral just yet. First I'd be wondering whether she's currently wheezing (and in need of treatment), and the ped ought to be able to figure that out by listening with the stethescope. If you tell them she's coughing a lot and you're wondering whether she might be wheezing, they are not going to poo-poo you. They are going to take a listen. That is their job. Viral colds are not an uncommon trigger for asthma.

 

Croup is a separate issue, as you know. :grouphug: It is so scary every time, isn't it. But after the third night that should be finished. I hate croup.

[Mrs Mungo]

Coughing at night was my son's only symptom of lung problems. He would cough before the doctor could even hear wheezing in his lungs. He has permanent lung damage from 2 different doctors blowing me off and insisting it was just an upper respiratory infection. He now only has 74% lung function.

 

Please, take her to the doctor. :(

[melissel]

Croup is a separate issue, as you know. :grouphug: It is so scary every time, isn't it. But after the third night that should be finished. I hate croup.

 

So do I. Fortunately hers has never gotten scary enough to have to go to the ER, but there's always that "Is this finally the time I have to take her?" element that adds a bit of adventure to every cold :glare:

 

Thank you all. I'll be calling the ped first thing in the morning. I don't like the dry deep-chest sound of the cough she's doing now--it sounds like bronchitis :( She's sleeping now, but she's coughing much more tonight than she was last night. URGH! Thanks to everyone for sharing your stories. I'll definitely bring up the issue in the morning.

[coralloyd]

Try the Vicks :iagree:.

[texasmama]

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but Vicks Vaporub on my kids feet (liberal amounts) and covered with socks really helps them.

[wapiti]

So do I. Fortunately hers has never gotten scary enough to have to go to the ER, but there's always that "Is this finally the time I have to take her?" element that adds a bit of adventure to every cold :glare:

 

You're not alone in that feeling. I hate that feeling. In our house, there's the added fright remembering a couple of hospitalizations on oxygen for bronchiolitis (it's relatively rare to have it get that bad). Different kids, no less. Two ambulance rides from the ped's office, complete with large firemen. Breathing issues of any kind - croup, asthma, etc. - scare the dickens out of me. Doesn't help that my stealth wheezer had an oxygen level in the mid-80s on Monday and was still chasing his brother around the house.

 

I don't like the dry deep-chest sound of the cough she's doing now--it sounds like bronchitis :( She's sleeping now, but she's coughing much more tonight than she was last night. URGH!

 

How you're describing the cough now sounds like some version of asthma/reactive airways/bronchiolitis. It is good that you're getting it checked.

 

By the way, when you go to the ped, in addition to listening to her, they should check her oxygen level with the pulse oximeter. For a kid who may be wheezing, checking oxygen is usually something the nurse does when she is weighing, taking temps, etc. before you see the doc.

 

Hope she feels better soon!

[girligirlmom]

Poor DD5 is sick and cannot stop coughing. It's driving all of us crazy, including her. I gave her some homeopathic cough syrup, which has done not one single bit of good :glare: The only other thing I have is Mucinex, which she refuses to take because of the taste (frankly, I don't blame her, ugh). She had an attack of croup last night, so I think there's still a touch of that happening, although her cough is not the barking cough and I can hear a bit of wetness in the cough too.

 

Is there anything natural I can make/give her, or some trick to help her?

 

TIA!

Hi Melissa!

 

I haven't seen you in awhile!

 

It sounds like she might need Spongia (croup) or Bryonia(constant coughing) or some other specific remedy. I never got far with the multi-remedy solutions and understood why once we started consulting a homeopath.

 

We now only use classical homeopathy which means one remedy at a time and watery doses (put pellets in water and succuss as needed). My youngest ds had a croupy cough about 2 weeks ago, but one dose of Spongia cleared him up. I've been doing this for 5 years and have learned something about homeopathy along the way so I didn't call my homeopath for this one.

 

Here is an article on colds, coughs, and flu for some ideas:

http://www.drluc.com/colds-caughs.htm

 

It could also be season allergies since everything is sprouting now! Does she have post nasal drip induced coughing? We used to get that but not really much anymore. The next few weeks the tree pollen and the grass pollen combine in our area to make a lovely mix of serious pollen!

 

Here is an article on allergies:

http://www.drluc.com/allergies.htm

 

We started with Arsenicum in 2006 for seasonal allergies and switched to the specific remedy each kid needs by the end of the Spring. I also take a different remedy. They don't take it much these days (once a month to every few months) since they have taken it over the years at increasing potency they don't need much anymore. One takes Calc Carb, one takes Pulsatilla, one takes Sulfur(but might switch to Pulsatilla for 1 week in May) and I take Sepia. We take Psorinum in March before the season.

 

Also we are off all sugar and all grains which helps with how our bodies handle allergies and fights illnesses. We also take Ester C or Acerola © which helps with histamine. We take FCLO daily with Fish Oil and the A & D in FCLO helps immensely with immunity.

 

Christina