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Archive through November 27, 2004

The TVClubHouse: General Discussions ARCHIVES: 2004 Nov. - 2005 Jan.: Parenting Place {ARCHIVES}: My Child is Sick... (ARCHIVES): Archive through November 27, 2004 users admin

Author Message
Vee
Member

02-23-2004

Tuesday, September 14, 2004 - 7:14 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Dana, I'm sorry that Samantha is having to endure this pneumonia at her age...what a pain for you all!

My advice is nothing medical, rather a cheerer-upper method I used when my kids were sick. On any extended illness, I would pick up a few items...new crayons, coloring book, those inexpensive flip cellophane drawing things, paper dolls, whatever I thought they would enjoy...and then place one in a beautifully wrapped, kid-friendly looking box with lots of tissue paper, too. Then it was presented as a gift...Thing is that I had wrapped the box so the lid would come right off without tearing up the paper. That way I could reuse it again the next time a fun project was coming their way. They so looked forward to the box returning!

Best wishes as Samantha goes through the recovery process

Oops, forgot to mention that always one of the gifts was an inexpensive stuffed animal with the same condition...to offer moral support whenever medication had to be taken, etc., since the stuffed animal also had to take medication and treatments. Worked like a charm...

Sia
Member

03-11-2002

Wednesday, September 15, 2004 - 12:30 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Hugs to you and your daughter, Dana. What a great suggestion Vee had for you. I love the idea of the gift box for special occasions. I keep a bottom drawer of my dresser and a plastic tote in my closet stuffed full of gifts for all ages. It makes a sudden unexpected party invitation for one of my kids' schoolmates much less stressful, and it provides a stash of bridal/baby shower gifts from which to pick.

Since I keep and reuse all the decorative gift-bags we've ever received (I store them in an oversized coat-box like you'd get from a department store), I always am prepared for any occasion. I also have a large box of greeting cards in about a dozen categories--oh, and wrapping paper for all occasions in a giftwrap organizer in the closet, as well. (Maybe this post belongs in the TVCH Organization thread instead of here, LOL!)

Hope your little girl is soon much better and her normal happy self again!!
pic

Danas15146
Member

03-31-2004

Thursday, September 16, 2004 - 8:16 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
thanks everyone! Vee -- great idea - I went to the dollar store and filled up a goody box for her this weekend. She loved it and it kept her on the couch resting.

Jmm
Member

08-16-2002

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 10:50 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Ok guys, It's been a long time since I've dealt with a sick baby. Seems Melodie probably has the flu, she's running a temp up to 103.9R which comes down to about 100 w/tylenol. Can't keep formula or food down (tried a formula bottle at 4 am, not a good idea we both had to change all our clothes). She is able to keep down a pedialyte bottle and some crackers so we're not dealing with dehydration yet. She's horribly congested and getting Tri-Vent for it. She's not really whiny just sort of clingy and is napping for short periods of time.

Anything else I can do? It's been such a long time since I had a sick baby this young around. LOL

Thanks,
Jackie



Mocha
Member

08-12-2001

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 10:58 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Alcohol baths to keep the fever down, continue with the pedialyte, continue with the tylenol every 4hrs. Ummmm. Oh do you have a vaporizer? With the vicks liquid you can put in it?

Mocha
Member

08-12-2001

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 10:59 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
And I would avoid formula for about 24hrs till her tummy settles.

Jmm
Member

08-16-2002

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 11:05 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Thanks Mocha. I had forgotten about the vaporizers with the Vicks, I'll look into that. And yeah I think we'll skip the formula, but I worry that she's hungry. I guess she's probably like us and isn't hungry with the flu, but it bothers me that she can't tell me for sure. You know?

Lancecrossfire
Moderator

07-13-2000

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 11:10 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
If she will drink water, give her all she wants. It will help with hedydartion--even if she can't keep all of it down--any amount is better than none at all. It will also help flush her kidneys better, which are stressed in times of such infections.

Kaykay
Member

01-21-2004

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 11:21 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Try Vick's vapor rub on her chest. Also, try the Ocean Saline Drops for kids, it really helps my son when he is really congested. LAst but not least, try putting a pillow under her crib mattress to help raise her head a little bit. This will help her to sleep.

<Pedialite ice pops may be good - something different and it could help to cool her down>


Jmm
Member

08-16-2002

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 11:27 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Thanks Lance and Kaykay, great suggestions. You know it's kind of funny, I'm one of the ones who jump in on the medical questions but when it's Melodie I just draw a blank. LOL



Mocha
Member

08-12-2001

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 11:38 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Lol Jmm and it's understandable. Don't worry about Miss Melodie being hungry. If she keeps the pedialyte and water down that will be enough for a day or so. Or apple juice too.

Kaykay
Member

01-21-2004

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 11:50 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
No problem JMM - it's all fresh in my head. LOL!! I have a 2 1/2 yr old and a 4 1/2 yr old :-)

It's a pleasure to help you since you help everyone all the time!!!

<you could also try steaming up the bathroom that will help her breath better!!! my little guy has breathing issues!!)

Danas15146
Member

03-31-2004

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 1:36 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Jackie: If you don't want to put the pillow under the mattress (that always made me nervous) you can take the wheels off of her crib and prop up the top legs. Johnson & Johnson also makes a vapor bath that you could let her soak in for awhile.

Hope that Melodie is feeling better (and that you are holding up okay.)

Dana

Hippyt
Member

06-15-2001

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 1:51 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Awe,I just feel bad for poor little Melodie.

Llkoolaid
Member

08-01-2001

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 2:11 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
oh, I just came across the greatest thing, it is a vapour patch that you put on their chests, Triaminic makes it. Hilary had such a cold and she couldn't sleep because of the coughing and congestion and she is one of those kids that absolutely will not take medicine, I came across those, put one on and the first night she was able to breathe easy and slept well with very very little coughing


Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 2:11 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Poor little baby. A fever isn't all bad. If it makes her miserable treat it, but if not, might just hold off on the tylenol. Do you have one of those bulb suction thingies to help suction the mucus from her nose? I hate those things, but they really work! Vicks rub is great. Like the others, I wouldn't worry about formula.

Skootz
Member

07-23-2003

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 2:11 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
You can use ibprophen/advil/motrin (one of them) in between using the tyelnol to keep the fever down.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 2:26 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I was thinking of that too, Skootz. Our doctor always suggest alternating between advil and tylenol to break the fever.

I love those vicks patches. No mess, just stick it on their chest and thats it.

Jmm, if she'll eat the pedialyte popsicles, those are great. Though she's still young so that might be more of a mess than you're willing to deal with.

I hope both of you are feeling better! I hate hearing kids are sick, specially babies cuz they're just so miserable and can't really tell us how miserable they are.

Urgrace
Member

08-19-2000

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 2:48 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
ACK! Our Miss Melodie is sick? It sounds like you are getting a lot of good advice, and I'm like you in that I don't remember all the stuff to do either, but I've heard you need to listen to the younger generation about what to do these days. Seems all the things we used to do aren't right anymore.

Hope you all get some rest and Miss Melodie gets all better real soon.

Llkoolaid
Member

08-01-2001

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 3:46 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
you probably already did this Jmm but if you haven't had her to a pediatrician yet and the fever isn't gone by tomorrow I would suggest that you should probably take her, she may need an antibiotic. Babies get sick so quick but thankfully they also recover pretty quick too.

Pamy
Member

01-02-2002

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 8:45 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Thoughts and prayers that Miss M gets better soon!

Graceunderfyre
Member

01-21-2004

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 10:18 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
JMM having just been through this with Jay - I know you can alternate between tylenol and motrim every 3 hours (instead of waiting 4-6 when using just one). Also, I've noticed that the motrim is much better with pain so I always try to time it so Jay gets that when he's awake.

As far as the congestion goes, the doctors (and my midwife) have stressed over and over not to OVERUSE the bulby thing (we call it a squeegie, I have no idea why) because it is a lot of force on their insides. What I do, is give Jay a warm bath or hold him in the bathroom while I run a VERY hot shower so he gets the steam effects. Then when his nose is super runny, I use the bulb. Also, saline drops are great because the salt is healing on the dry membranes and also causes the excess mucas to become runny.

I'm not sure if she is still using it, but Jay has spent many nights in his swing. It had 2 positions, a reclined and an upright and we would put it in recline and let it rock him all night. This last time, we were lamenting the fact that it's in storage because he's outgrown it. We took shifts letting him cuddle while we rocked him on the glider.

If Melodie isn't throwing up the pedialyte keep giving it to her, but don't overdo it. There is a lot of sugar in it. Plain water is really best for thinning out the mucas as well as cooling the insides. What they always suggest for any age not keeping food down is a BRAT diet - b=banannas, r=rice, a=applesauce, t=toast - so if she likes any of those things, you may want to try them.

Going back to baths - if she likes the water like Jay does, this is also good for keeping the temp down and you can put lavendar or chamomile in it to help sooth and calm her down.

In India, they will put a child that doesn't roll or is sleeping on their tummy in the sun for like 20-30 minutes (you can do this in the house it doesn't have to be outside) - I don't know why, but it does seem to help clear up the chest.

Is that enough ideas? I got more - they don't like to diagnose an asthmatic child til they are 2 so for now Jay is just prone to upper respritory problems - he's even been given a nebulizer which I have used like 2 times in the past year for him (me much more often).

Jmm
Member

08-16-2002

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 - 10:52 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Thanks so much for all the concern and suggestions everyone. We really appreciate it. It is just so hard when they're this small, but she does seem to be feeling better. Just a low grade temp most of the day and she's keeping fluids down now so that's a good sign. She's going to spend the night with daddy tonight and his mom is going to keep her tomorrow (she doesn't work and I'm going to try to go back to work). I went in for about 3 hours tonight and it's amazing what you can get done when there's nobody else there. LOL

Herckleperckle
Member

11-20-2003

Wednesday, November 17, 2004 - 1:39 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Glad she is feeling a mite better, Jmm! Hope you got some rest.

Sia
Member

03-11-2002

Saturday, November 27, 2004 - 11:17 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
The saline nasal drops are to be used in conjunction with the nasal syringe for extracting snot/nasal drainage from a child's nose. The nose drops moisten the inside of the nose so that the tiny blood vessels don't break and bleed when the bulb is used. It's not really a good idea to use the sucky-thing (aka "squeegie") without wetting the inside of the nose first, hence the nasal drops.

Ask a doctor before trying a rubbing-alcohol bath. I wouldn't advise trying it because a child's small body might absorb more of the alcohol through the skin than you'd realize, and I don't think that would be good for her little system. Just my opinion, as I haven't researched this. That's just my gut instinct.