DS has ear infection and we leave tomorrow- WWYD?

[mster425]

Urgent care DX'd my son, 3.5, yesterday and he started zithromycin last night. Our flight is at noon tomorrow, 2 hrs away so we were planning to go stay near the airport tonight.

I have flown congested before and the landing was awful, my ear hurt for a solid day. The doctor left it up to our judgement as parents (which just proves she doesn't know us well ) whether to take him on the plane.

I could drive- 14 hours with a 5 and 3 year old, lose $300 in airfare. So that sounds almost as bad as a ruptured ear drum.

There have to be better parents on here than I am- what's the right thing?

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

He may feel much better after 24 hours on the antibiotic.

 

[Gracie09]

see how he feels in the morning. Make sure he has some decongestant in him as well as the antibiotics.

 

[KrazeeK120]

After a day and a half on the antibiotic,
my guess is that he will be feeling a lot better by flight time. My 16 month old has only had 1 ear infection so far, but I noticed a huge improvement in his temperament in less than a day. The good thing is that your 3 year old will actually be able to tell you how he's feeling!

 

[Smittolis]

It's definitely going to be uncomfortable for sure, the inner ear infection usually creates a build up of fluid behind the ear drum, the pressure differentials within the cabin during take off and parts of the ascent will be the toughest! A couple of tips... if they like using a pacifier, give them one on take off. The sucking mechanism helps to offset the interior pressure... similarly if they are sucking on hard candy, that mechanism helps the sensation of pressure within the ear.

The anti-biotics won't kick in properly for a good few days, so hopefully with tylenol & motrin (ibuprofen) etc.. you can get some of the swelling of the inner ear down and allow some drainage.

Good luck with the trip, hope they manage it well and come out the other side all excited!

 

[Mousemommy1]

I would think he'll be fine after 24 hours on antibiotics. I would still fly.

 

[brockash]

Urgent care DX'd my son, 3.5, yesterday and he started zithromycin last night. Our flight is at noon tomorrow, 2 hrs away so we were planning to go stay near the airport tonight.

I have flown congested before and the landing was awful, my ear hurt for a solid day. The doctor left it up to our judgement as parents (which just proves she doesn't know us well ) whether to take him on the plane.

I could drive- 14 hours with a 5 and 3 year old, lose $300 in airfare. So that sounds almost as bad as a ruptured ear drum.

There have to be better parents on here than I am- what's the right thing?

I'd go with original plans. I'd make sure I had lots for ds to drink, let him chew gum, eat etc. for take-off & landing and maybe even try to pick up a new small toy or 2 to bring out if it gets really bad, but I'd def. still go. Circumstances would have to be a lot worse for me to drive 14 hours for a trip I've already paid to fly. He'll be okay. It may not be the most fun plane ride for him, but he'll survive. The medicine should be kicking in as well, so he may not even feel bad etc.

 

[vballnic3]

Mini cookies worked great to keep my littles chewing during take off and landing!

 

[WhispyPixie]

I would monitor things and plan on keeping the flight. Keep sucking type juice, gummie snacks and any chewable snack close by. Also, activities that help redirect his attention from any pain. Kids bounce back quickly! Glad you caught it BEFORE the trip!

 

[mster425]

All right, it's unanimous, we're leaving soon, I'll load him up with ibuprofen and gum and keep my fingers crossed. Sorry to anyone who is flying with us on JetBlue tomorrow

 

[xlsm]

I just wanted to say, my oldest (13, so better able to deal with things than 3.5...maybe, lol!!) ended up with an ear infection on our most recent WDW trip in December. He started saying his ear hurt on the plane, but we just thought his ears weren't popping. The morning of our second full day at the parks, we took him to urgent care, he got ear drops and antibiotics, went back and napped at the resort for two hours, and was ready to go for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party that night. He needed tylenol that evening and part of the next day, but he bounced back quickly.

I hope your little guy is feeling better soon and he chews his way to being alright on the plane.

Good luck and HAVE FUN!!!

 

[wilkeliza]

I really depends on how bad it is. I still get ear infections as an adult and there have been a few that have put me down for a couple of days. I have had a couple that I tried to push through because I was on antibiotics and well I ended up with two ruptured ear drums from one and another was a perforated ear drum. Both times it was incredibly painful and I had discharge from the ear for a couple days. It isn't just about the pressure of the flight but not giving the body rest. At least for tomorrow try not to over do it once you get to the airport and then land. Make sure he is staying hydrated and takes some naps as well.

 

[Nancyg56]

All right, it's unanimous, we're leaving soon, I'll load him up with ibuprofen and gum and keep my fingers crossed. Sorry to anyone who is flying with us on JetBlue tomorrow

Tough spot to be in! I wanted to wish you luck and to offer the only thing that helped my dgd. Starburst fruit chews things. I have no idea why other than in order to chew them she really had to stretch her jaws. At 15 she still carries a roll of them when she flies.

 

[lorenni]

earplanes may help https://www.amazon.com/Ear-Plugs-Airplane-Protection-Reliever/dp/B00BISISSE

I have found them in most drugstores by the motion sickness meds. They work wonders for our DS whose ears always hurt, congested or not. I think they will help in your situation because they work by limiting/regulating the change in pressure.

 

[siestakeys04]

I'm just glad you found out before you left.

 

[adisneyaunt]

Earplanes are awesome but they do need to be in properly to work.. and obviously the child size. I think antibiotic after 24 hrs should help with the accompanying OTC to help out.
Lots of fluids... lollipops, chewy type to keep those jaws a yabbering.
Best of luck!!!!!

 

[Disney Khaleesi]

He should feel better after 24 hours on the medicine. And if worse comes to worse, you can always give him something to knock him out for the duration of the flight if the pain still is prevalent. My ears always hurt on flights, regardless, so I can only imagine of how much worse they'd be if I had an ear infection.

 

[BLAZEY]

I would still fly but make sure he has a decongestant/antihistamine in him as well a the antibiotic and pain medicine. The decongestant will "dry up" the fluid in his ear, which will help with the pressure. have a great trip!

 

[prprincess]

Yes, see how he feels after the antibiotic doses and the decongestant/antihistamines. If you can believe it, this happened to us twice--on our most recent trip and the one before. Thankfully my son felt better after his first dosages, and we were able to go. We had to remember to administer his meds while on vacation, but he still felt good enough to have a great time. Good luck!

 

[blackpearl77]

How did it go? Did you end up flying? Was he ok on the plane? Hope he is all better now and you're all having great time!