help me get this congestion out of DD chest

[meg-momto2]

DD(2.5yo) has been dealing with this cough/cold for 4 weeks now. it started with a dry cough every couple of hours for about a week. then the stuffy nose came and the cough turned wet and phlegmy. a few days later she had a mild fever for about 36 hours and complained of her ear hurting. we did some homeopathic ear drops and honey cough syrup on and off for a few days. the cough got worse(coughing every 20 minutes all day) as her nose and ear cleared up. i've used a essential oil chest rub with no change. she's to young for the mucinex type products and i don't know what else to do. she's been more clingy in the last few days and i'm wondering if she's hurting and not expressing it.

she gets a daily probiotic, multi vitamin, calcium and vita-D combo and extra vita-D(around 5000-8000IU) every few days. i don't want to waste the time and money to take her in if she's not showing other signs of infection. her chest sounds clear when i put my ear up to it but there's obviously some phlegm in there when she coughs. can you think of anything else i could try? maybe i should just take her in.

[chattyprincess]

I'm not going to say bring her or don't bring her. She is your dd and you know what is best. I would suggest calling her ped and talking to the nurse there. Our doc doesn't reccomend bringing them in unless they start to get worse.
For dd (3.5) she has some type of asthma/reactive airway going on so with her she usually starts with a runny nose, a day or two later has a cough that is super phelmy but cannot cough any of it up (her bronchial tubes are to irritated.) so for about 3-5 days she gets breathing treatsments to assist with that. I know however that it is a solid 2-3 weeks before she is normal (from start of runny nose to no more coughing). And then there is always the possiblity that she will catch something else in the meantime...I give dd daily vitmin c when sick and I am debating just doing it daily anyways duing the winter...I don't know if it helps or not but I feel good doing something kwim??
Before bed I give her a nice really warm big full bath with a mentholated bubble formula in it (not my first choice of bath products...) it really seems to help open her up and settle her down for sleeping.
Like I said I cannot really tell you what to do she is your dd and if you want to take her in go you! lol. But for me I think that with little ones like that they just don't know how to cough effectivly enough to remove everything and so it hangs around a lot longer then in an older child...
Hth! ( wanted to add if she is still nursing I would try to nurse her as much as she will take when she is sick. When dd was nursing her cold always seemed a much shorter duration then when she wasn't.)

[Marnica]

We use natural products and see an ND for most things. My DS is prone to respiratory illnesses and had had several bouts of just what your describe. In addition to what you already are doing I would be giving high doses of SA (275mg per 2.2 pounds of body weight. This thins the mucus so she will be able to cough it up more easily. We also use this product per our ND and have great success with it

http://www.naturessunshine.com/us/pr...d-2-fl-oz.aspx

you need a higher dose than what is on the bottle. Our ND has us do 15 drops per hour when DS is super congested and then drop it to every 2 hrs then every 3 as his congestion gets better. We do not call the ped unless there is a concern about his breathing. Hope your LO feels better soon.

[chattyprincess]

Marnica....What is SA exactly? I am VERY intrested in this since dd tends to hold onto her mucus for so long.

[meg-momto2]

chattyprincess- she is still nursing, in fact she's been wanting to nurse a whole lot more in the last week. you're right about them being so little that they don't know how to cough the stuff out.

thanks Marnica. i'll see if my local supplement shop has that or something equivalent.

[Marnica]

Originally Posted by chattyprincess

Marnica....What is SA exactly? I am VERY intrested in this since dd tends to hold onto her mucus for so long.

SA is sodium ascorbate...it is a buffered form of Vit C. It is far superior to other forms as it is more bioavaliable.

to OP...and chattyprincess SA is very hard to find in healthfood stores. Most people get theirs online. I use the NOW brand and het a 3 pound tub for about 38 bucks...it lasts foever!

Nature's Sunshine brands are only sold through health practitioners or online.

I order a bunch of their products so i know I have them onhand if DS gets sick.

[chattyprincess]

Marnica, duh ok I get it now...this is me without a brain because I am 6 months pregnant! lol. I have seen some kind of gummy chewy vitam c that is sodiom ascorbate but thats the only one in stores...doesn't emergenc have sodiom ascorbate?? DO you dose all winter long or just during times of illness?
I will be adding that to my next vitacost order...online shopping is so addicting!