Best medicine to gvie my 20month

[Alicnwondrln]

old before the flight
the pedi said it was good to dry out the nasal passages and ears to help prevent sickness
we have never given him anything like this so i was wondering
what would be best and when to actually give it to him
our flight is at 850am we land around 12

so benadryl or dimeatap??

thanks

 

[jultomzach]

Personally, I would not give my child any NEW medication and then get on a plane. What if he has an allergic reaction to it?

 

[Alicnwondrln]

see i never thought if that
the pediatrican never brought that up to
so I guess I should buy it now and test it out one day ??
hmm i heard there is one that cna give you high blood pressure anyone know which one that is ??
thanks again about the allergic thing

 

[JodyTG]

Whenever my 21 month old son gets a stuffy nose we give him 1 ml of Benadryl-D. It clears him right up, but it also knocks him out. I don't give him this very often at all, but to clear up his nose, it is the best.

 

[K P & J's Grandma]

My son gave his daughter benadryl on her first flight - she had just turned 2 -- there was no side affects, she did fall asleep quickly. They gave it to her about 1/2 hour before boarding. BUT --- when his second daughter was 18 months -- they gave her benadryl before boarding --- oh my goodness, she was 'terrible' - screamed 3/4 of the way to MCO (from MSP). We tried everything we could think of to calm her down -- you should of seen the looks from the other passengers that were around us!!! She finally did fall asleep. The doctor said that some people have a reverse reaction to benadryl --- she hasn't gotten it since ---- she is now 4 years old & LOVES to fly -- benadryl free!!!

 

[kelscross]

Not trying to be rude in anyway, but if your pedi suggested it then why didn't he/she tell you what medication to give? I'd ask the pedi what he/she recommends.

 

[minkydog]

see i never thought if that
the pediatrican never brought that up to
so I guess I should buy it now and test it out one day ??
hmm i heard there is one that cna give you high blood pressure anyone know which one that is ??
thanks again about the allergic thing

That would be pseudephedrine. it's a common ingredient in a lot of cold meds.

I'm with the others about trying out the medication prior to the flight. If your child is going to have a paradoxical reaction to the med, you don't want to find that out in the air.

I've used Benedryl on my older kids many times but the one time I tried it with DS10 he sat on the couch and cried for 8 hours. What a long day that was!

 

[Alicnwondrln]

Not trying to be rude in anyway, but if your pedi suggested it then why didn't he/she tell you what medication to give? I'd ask the pedi what he/she recommends.

she suggested benadryl but i wanted to see what other parents use
i never thought about an adverse reaction or a hyper reaction its nice to hear others experiences

 

[Threehearts]

We were living in Europe and had to make many transatlantic flights with the children and then my husband was working in London for a year and I used to take a < 1 y/o and 2 y/o (by myself) over on the weekends to Heathrow from Boston to visit him so I've had quite a bit of experience. The Pediacare was very effective for our kids but Benedryl was a disaster. My daughter has what they call an idiosyncratic reaction to Benadryl and instead of sleeping, she became wild and irritable. I felt comfortable choosing medications and trying them out prior to flights because I am a pediatric nurse but I would ask your pediatrician for several options and definitely read the dosing guidelines. I think that this is a tricky situation and if at all possible try Earplanes and other soothing measures before meds as a first line. Good luck with whatever you choose as I know it is a difficult decision. Threehearts

 

[maps]

Is your child sick? If not, why give any medication at all? I've taken my kids on planes since they were 11 mths old and have never given any medication. If you do decide to use meds, I would definitely test it out before the plane trip.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

i forgot about the earplanes
ill look into those

 

[vossjemi]

WE have a 3 and 5 year old and took them on first trip this past sept. We did not give them any meds at all. We did get some chewy snacks like starburst to help their ears pop as pressure changed, and they were just fine. I wouldn't give my kids medicine unless they were sick.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

WE have a 3 and 5 year old and took them on first trip this past sept. We did not give them any meds at all. We did get some chewy snacks like starburst to help their ears pop as pressure changed, and they were just fine. I wouldn't give my kids medicine unless they were sick.

i chcked with the pedi again she said it was preventive so it clears out teh passages and stuff like that it can prevent ear infections and colds
oh well we will see

 

[chamonix]

Your doctor is wrong, it can't possiby "prevent colds" and preventing infections is pretty much not what those meds do either.
As for "drying up" their sinuses, if they aren't stuffed up and sick already, there isn't anything to "dry up". In fact, airplanes are notoriously drying for nasal passages, so most folks use saline washes to hydrate their nasal passages, not dry them out more than they already are. How long of a flight do you have? I think your ped is (for whatever odd reason) suggesting you medicate your children for the possible sedative effects, not sure why s/he isn't just saying that and is instead making things up about the supposedly miraculous properties of some OTC meds. This sound more like the advice of a misinformed girlfriend or dh. LOL

 

[Disneyrsh]

My pediatrician said that decongestants and cold medicines do not work the same way in babies and children that they do in adults, and he doesn't ever recommend them-he said most babies don't even have sinuses big enough to warrant a decongestant.

I wouldn't give them anything, either...

 

[jultomzach]

What are your concerns for your 20 month old? Were you concerned about him getting sick? having ear problems? and/or tolerating staying in his seat for the long ride? There are probably different recommendations depending on what your concerns are.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

we are concerned about him getting sick
he had some ear issues that w were very lucky that cleared up pn there own
the pedi said giving him medicine would clear any fluid from the ears adn nasal passages and thats where bacteria goes during the plane ride increasing the possibility that he will get sick
which would stink

 

[Alicnwondrln]

Your doctor is wrong, it can't possiby "prevent colds" and preventing infections is pretty much not what those meds do either.
As for "drying up" their sinuses, if they aren't stuffed up and sick already, there isn't anything to "dry up". In fact, airplanes are notoriously drying for nasal passages, so most folks use saline washes to hydrate their nasal passages, not dry them out more than they already are. How long of a flight do you have? I think your ped is (for whatever odd reason) suggesting you medicate your children for the possible sedative effects, not sure why s/he isn't just saying that and is instead making things up about the supposedly miraculous properties of some OTC meds. This sound more like the advice of a misinformed girlfriend or dh. LOL

nope sorry the doc rec the medicine as he had some ear p[roblems lately and as i stated before felt it coul possibly help prevent him from getting sick
and needing medicine
i will be taking him the day before we fly to have his ears checked
we are not looking to sedate the kids his is gonna be in his car seat and we are a bag of stuff and snacks for himt o help with the ears and we have looked into the ear planes
also the pedi said we can get medicine that is NONd rowsy so it isnt about sedating my kids

 

[jultomzach]

My son get lots of fluid in his ears also. Interesting enough, he has never had an ear infection. The fluid does cause pressure and discomfort. He would not keep the earplanes in his ear when he was 20 months old. (Now that he is seven, he understands and has no problem using them). Last trip in October, I thought he was complaining about his ears even though the plane was not descending but the attendants informed we WERE descending. This was with the earplanes in his ears! I have also made trips to the pediatrician the day before a flight to check condition of his ears. (We even made an emergency room visit to Celebration before a trip home because of fluid in his ears). You are wise to attempt to address this before the trip as it can cause great discomfort to your child, as well as not being a fun way to start or end a trip! BTW- there are many tips to minimize discomfort to little ears that are sensitive to pressure differences.....swallowing (give him something to drink or suck on), and in a dire emergency- have the attendants fill small cups with warm, wet paper towels and "cup" over the ears. Another interesting thing is that his reaction seems to be inconsistent. We have had trips were he has had no problems and our last trip we used earplanes and the cups with warm paper towels!

 

[Alicnwondrln]

My son get lots of fluid in his ears also. Interesting enough, he has never had an ear infection. The fluid does cause pressure and discomfort. He would not keep the earplanes in his ear when he was 20 months old. (Now that he is seven, he understands and has no problem using them). Last trip in October, I thought he was complaining about his ears even though the plane was not descending but the attendants informed we WERE descending. This was with the earplanes in his ears! I have also made trips to the pediatrician the day before a flight to check condition of his ears. (We even made an emergency room visit to Celebration before a trip home because of fluid in his ears). You are wise to attempt to address this before the trip as it can cause great discomfort to your child, as well as not being a fun way to start or end a trip! BTW- there are many tips to minimize discomfort to little ears that are sensitive to pressure differences.....swallowing (give him something to drink or suck on), and in a dire emergency- have the attendants fill small cups with warm, wet paper towels and "cup" over the ears. Another interesting thing is that his reaction seems to be inconsistent. We have had trips were he has had no problems and our last trip we used earplanes and the cups with warm paper towels!

we just want him to be ok
i dont want himto be sick on the vacation and uncomfortable
we are trying to be very organized
i wanna do what my pedi said but i also wanted to see what other moms have done
thanks for some other ideas