Hi

I'm a first time mum and my baby is 10 weeks old. Since yesterday she has had the cold - i.e. blocked nose, streaming eyes and a bit of a cough. She doesn't have a temperature. She has been pretty miserable today and my question is, should I take her to the doctor? I'm not sure if there is anything that they can give her? Also, I thought about taking her out for a walk to try and get her to sleep in her pram as she has hardly slept today but worried in case this makes her worse? Sorry if these are stupid questions!!

Thanks!!

Theres never a stupid question! I would say if you think its just a cold don't take her to drs as like you say there's not much they can do,I would take her for a walk esp if will help her sleep she'll be lovely & cosy in her pram so won't make her worse,we usr karvol plug in when dd has a cold its like a menthol plug in that you get refills for stinks the house out of menthol but def works for blocked noses etc,hope she feels better soon & you get some rest xoxo

I'm right there with you. Beth is 8 months and got her 2nd cold but this one is way worse than her first.
She has just been crying for an hour and I have finally managed to rock her to sleep after her being awake for about 5 hours. Poor thing is a right mess.

I went to chemist this morning and they said there's not much you can give. I've got a Karvol Plug In, some Snuffle Babe (like Vicks) and Calpol.

My main worry is that she has only had 3oz all day and won't drink any other fluids.

I would def take your lo for a walk so she can get some rest. My whole aim for the next few days is just to get my LO to have us much rest as possible. Even if that means rocking and cuddling which I never usually have to do. I don't want to add major overtiredness to the reasons she feels like poo!

hello
Not a silly question at all, poor little thing probably feels rotten and you can not really give her anything yet, if she does not have a temp then not sure but calpol probably not do much good.
My LO has had so many colds, I took her to see the Doctor when I heard a wheeze as I wanted to ensure it was not on her chest.
At night I used a calpol plug in, and propped her mattress up slightly to help her breath.
You can also buy saline drops to squirt up her nose esp before a feed helps unblock all the snot
I always think as a mummy you know your babies better than anyone else and if you are worried go to see the GP at least you get some peace of mind
Going for a walk is a good way to get a change of scene make sure she is warm enough and away you go

xxxx

Hi

Toby had his first cold at about 12 weeks, it's horrid not being able to help them, isn't it!

My GP surgery offers a telephone service - I would check whether yours does so you can have a chat and put your mind at ease. Ours has a policy of seeing all babies with suspected colds under the age of three months, just to rule out chest infections and anything more serious, so they may ask you to come in but it's nothing to worry about.

I second the saline nasal drops, they really work. We also used Olbas drops (the infant version) on tissues which we put in his cot (out of reach of course) and smeared a bit of vicks vaporub on the shoulders of his sleepsuit. Calpol is good to take the edge of a sore throat as well. I hear the Calpol plug in thingies are great so will be getting one of those next time.

One of the easiest things you can do is sit in the bathroom with your LO with the door closed and the hot shower running, to steam him up - works wonders! Plus lots of cuddles of course...

Good luck and hope your baby starts feeling better soon.

C

Hi girls,

Thanks so much for replies and sugestions, definitely put my mind at ease. Baby B, hope Beth gets better soon too

My LO just got over the mother of all colds, just horrid, and as the others have said, Karvol plug ins, saline drops, snuffle babe, calpol etc, but the one thing that I found that really helped was a bowl of boiling water next to his cot (we had on a box a few inches lower than cot mattress at his head end, no way he could get it, lol) and this was brill, the steam really helped. I refilled the bowl about every 40 mins or so as it had cooled and no longer produced steam. But as I said, this really helped a lot more than I actually thought it would!

Big higs and hope she feels better soon.

ps, another thing we were told by a Dr, if she's ff, and struggling with feeds, you can put one less scoop of powder in so not quite as thick/claggy in their mouths if that makes sense!! We did this with the night feeds only as thats often when their worse.

xxx

Saline drops for the nose, and steam also helps - like another lady said a bowl near the cot, or turn the shower / taps on hot for a while until the bathroom is steamy and hang out in there for a bit!

My lifesaver has always been the nasal aspirator though, what the ladies in born in june 09 affectionately call the snot sucker, as grossly enough that's what it is, but it works wonders and gets them sleeping and eating when very small.

Hope it passes soon.

GET A HUMIDIFYER!!!
They are expensive, but really really good for colds - its like being in a steam room. You'll use it for years to come and for all the family.

Hope your LO feels better soon.

xx