My son has croup...

[samshane]

UGH - my children NEVER get sick - ever. They stay real healthy... now with only a few days left my son is so sick! Luckily for us it started this past weekend and I hope he will be done with it soon. I got him a humidifier for his room (can't believe with 3 kids I never had one!) and tonight we are going to give that a go. My friend has a son who just had it and she said the humidifier worked wonders. At least today he doesn't have a fever - just some really horrible congestion (he had a high fever last night).

I could use some positive vibes that he gets better soon AND that my other 2 don't come down with anything. They seem fine at this point - not even a cough...

 

[BkrsLoveDis!]

Sam - Hope your little one gets well quickly - I am a very very strong advocate of humdifiers - we use them a great deal with both of our kids - our pediatrician strongly recommends them as well.

Incorrect or no, in my mind, the humidifier helps to keep things "loose" so that they can cough and "get rid of it" (trying not be gross - sorry).

Push the liquids and get plenty of rest - make sure everyone else is washing hands like crazy and drinking OJ or taking vitamins!

Have a great trip (and a quick recovery before you go!!)

Cynthia

 

[lynetteSC]

Connor was also diagnosed with that this morning ... ugh, he woke in middle of night and scared me half to death. our dr said it is bad for three nights, so we are down to two now that we have been through one! I had tocall our friends who were over yesterday to play. I sure hope her ds doesn't get this! Good luck tonight!

 

[waspnest]

The humidifier really does work wonders. Just makes it so much easier for them to breathe and get the sleep they need to get better.

Tell me your secret to keeping your kids so healthy!! My ds just started *preschool* last year, and both kids were sick non-stop from Sept - May. We're already on our third or fourth cold this school year, and I had dd at the doctor yesterday - she got antibiotics for an ear infection and a little bit of pneumonia. Ds was never sick as a baby/toddler, but once he started preschool it's just a germ fest around here.

We leave for Disney in 10 days - one day after dd finishes her medicine!

 

[aplejax76]

I know this sounds crazy but if they are having a coughing fit take them outside. A respitory therapist and my Dr. told me breathing in the cold air would stop it. I tried it and it works. She also told me that cold mist humidier is much better than a heated one. Also one of the worst things you can do is put your kids in "Steamy Bathroom".

 

[Mom to Jordan]

My DS had terrible croup this summer and two things that they told us to try was to open the freezer door and let the cold air hit him in the face or to run the car air condition full force with him sitting in front of it. My DS is 13 so be sure NOT to let your child ride in the front seat but if you just ran it a few minutes in the yard that might help. Also they suggested warm drinks to relax the throat. Lots of liquids. Croups come from so many different things. DS was an allergic croup from a reaction to some flowers. Some are contagious and others not. Our preschool had a child with croup last week and before weeks end several children had it. Wash hands!!!!

As for so many illness in preschool, talk to the staff at the school. Be sure that they are following good hygene pratices. We make a huge effort to keep our kids healthy and our success rate is really good. We are also strict on our sick child rules. NO child should come back to school till they are fever free and free of any stomach upsets for 24 hours. Make sure that your school folllows these too!

Prayers for the recovery!!!

Jordans' mom

 

[isla bonita]

Yuck! It sounds worse then it really is thank goodness. You will not get sleep for a couple of nights so it always seems worse when we are at our wits end. Good luck

 

[kellyg403]

My son also used to get croupy coughs a couple times a year when he first started school. Our pediatrician recommended also that we go outside and sit in the cool moist night air. It did help us alot. We also did the riding around in the car with open windows so that he could get a little bit of sleep. We logged many miles our pre-school year! Our ped was an older gentleman that recommended that not only washing our hands alot but our nostrils everytime we washed our hands. He said that we airborne illnesses can be prevented...so far its part of our ritual and other than allergy induced situations we have really not had many colds/flu for a few years. Not sure if we are lucky or what but if you see some weird family in the restrooms that wash their hands and then wipe their nose...it would be us!

Kelly

 

[aplejax76]

Not sure if we are lucky or what but if you see some weird family in the restrooms that wash their hands and then wipe their nose...it would be us!

Kelly

 

[grlpwrd]

and !

 

[PrincessasMommy]

Everyone has it! My baby dd was in hospital on Saturday night for croup. Needed 2 air masks, steriod medication and was hooked up with 5 wires to a monitor for 5 hours - she's 15 months and I carried her the entire time, my back is still hurting. My oldest dd used to get it too. With 3 kids in the house someone is always sick. BTW, I second the cold air thing, as did the emergency room doctor.

Hope he feels better.

 

[macmahony]

My middle daughter always gets croup. Always when we are away, or going to leave somewhere, I think she plans it. Our doctors adivce is to run a really hot shower, and let them sit in the bathroom for about 20 minutes in the steam (we keep the shower going), then run them outside (or in cold air), that loosens them right up. We do this before calling the doctor, I don't like to give her the steriods unless we have to, and have only had to use them once. (she has had croup about 6 times) Plus, no cold liquids to drink, not sure why, but our doctor recommends warm liquids. Night time is the worst, we don't do cough medicine either, doctor claims it won't really help.
Feel better!

 

[lynetteSC]

How was everyones night? DS did MUCH better last night. I took him outside twice as soon as he woke and was instantly breathing better! I guess that steriod dose works FAST! Thank Goodness! Hope everyone else had a better night!

 

[samshane]

Thanks for all the tips and advice! I have to say that he woke up this morning much, much better. The humidifier was great! He is in preschool and I am keeping him home this week (he goes MWF - and Friday is a holiday anyway). He has a cough still but it is so much better than it was yesterday. And he sleeping fine - which is great. The fever also did not return after Monday. I think we'll be okay to leave on Sunday!

My 6yr old with alopecia has an incredible immune system. Our Dr told us that many kids with that look as if they'd be sick all the time (it's an autoimmune disease), but in reality they have a heightened immune system that fights everything off. We both had a stomach bug once and I was down for a week - so, so sick. She had it was about 6hrs and then was fine.

 

[lynetteSC]

I think we'll be okay to leave on Sunday!

 

[Huntava]

Just got back from dr. this a.m. Our twin toddlers have it, and have had for a week. Dr. said it usually runs its course within 10 days, and like many posters have said, he told us to use the cold mist humidifier and plenty of clear liquids. He said croup was bronchitis, and that it is contagious. (Our whole family has been sick for the past week). Our trip is upcoming, and I am seriously considering not sending them to their preschool next week just to try to keep them healthy. Best wishes on your kids getting and staying well!

 

[artnsonia]

Everyone here in Texas has it too. Both my daughter and son have it. Steamy shower for 10 minutes then put head in the freezer. It works real well. You might have to do it back to back a couple of times before you see good results. Hope this helps. And hope all is well before your trip.

 

[babytrees]

croup is bronchitis as a pp stated....I had "chronic" bronchitis as a child and was recently told that it probably asthma attacks I was having.

As a sufferer I have a few things to add to the "to do" list. Outside is great....just remember the blanket if it's cold. My mom used to heat up water and then put a dollop of Vicks in there and had me put my towelled head over it....that also works great. The biggest thing I can recommend is making sure as the child is recovering to keep them away from as many irritants as possible. I am deeply sensitive to fragrances and if I am recovering even from a simple cold a whiff of any fragrance can hurt my lungs for hours. SO if they are in any way shape and form sensitive to smell keep those irritants away from them.

 

[Windy City Heather]

My dd3 had it days before we left for Disney too. She had the high fever on Sunday and we were leaving on Wednesday night. I did not know what it was. We had the fevers and a little cough and congestion. Tuesday I took her to the doctor and they said croup. She gave us the o.k. to go to Disney with some rules. Keep giving tylanol for the fever. 1 and 1/2 doses of motion 1 1/2 hour before flying, fever for more than 5 days or any fever that goes over 101.5 head straight to a doctor. The motion seemed to knock it out but most likely it just ran it's course. She was fine on Thursday when she woke up.

 

[Mom to Jordan]

Babytrees is so right about the irritants. We saw 5 different doctors trying to get rid of DS's cronic croop. We ended up with a "super-specialist at a large teaching hospital. He told us the croop is a very broad term and alot of it is from allergies and not just from virual infections. It is really hard but so important to identify what triggers the attack. One for DS is eating very cold ice cream????

Something that no one else has mentioned is how important it is to keep your child calm during a coughing attach. It is SCARY. The more upset a child gets the worse they cough. Try to not let your child see that you are scared and try to keep them focused on something else. The freezer works well for DS but with a little child you might need to make a game out of it like counting all the bags of fruit or what ever. Outside count the stars or in the car put on calming music.

I know there are a lot of moms of premature babies on this board and we just learned something new about children that were premature and on vents and how they react to croop and coughing. Feel free to PM me and I will share with you!!

Jordan's mom