Making a sick toddler feel better?

[physmom]

What sort of comfort things do you do to help a sick toddler? DD's caught a nasty cold so DH and I are switching off staying home from work with her today and tomorrow. She's lost her voice, has a cough and is slightly warmer than normal. We're trying to think of some comfort things to make her comfortable and help her heal quickly.

So comfy clothes is one thing, she's also gotten to watch a bit more TV than normal , and we're trying to make sure she eats lots of oranges for vitamin C. She refuses to take any tylenol and DH wants to see about Vicks vapor rub for kids? Maybe while she's sleeping at night but I have no clue what is appropriate for a 1.5 year old.

Even though the poor kid can barely speak right now (although not from lack of trying she was very talkative this morning!) she's SUPER active. She was jumping on the bed a few minutes after she woke up this morning. Is there any problem with letting her do this? Shouldn't she be resting so she can get better sooner? DD has pretty much never been sick. Just once when she was 3 months old and another time when she was about 10 months so I guess we really don't have much of any experience with this!

[gbailey]

Originally Posted by physmom

What sort of comfort things do you do to help a sick toddler? DD's caught a nasty cold so DH and I are switching off staying home from work with her today and tomorrow. She's lost her voice, has a cough and is slightly warmer than normal. We're trying to think of some comfort things to make her comfortable and help her heal quickly.

So comfy clothes is one thing, she's also gotten to watch a bit more TV than normal , and we're trying to make sure she eats lots of oranges for vitamin C. She refuses to take any tylenol and DH wants to see about Vicks vapor rub for kids? Maybe while she's sleeping at night but I have no clue what is appropriate for a 1.5 year old.

Even though the poor kid can barely speak right now (although not from lack of trying she was very talkative this morning!) she's SUPER active. She was jumping on the bed a few minutes after she woke up this morning. Is there any problem with letting her do this? Shouldn't she be resting so she can get better sooner? DD has pretty much never been sick. Just once when she was 3 months old and another time when she was about 10 months so I guess we really don't have much of any experience with this!

It sounds like you are doing all of the things she needs to make her feel better. Hope she feels better soon! Her being active and wanting to play is good sign she's on the mend.

[marispel]

I would recommend trying V8 Fusion over OJ. OJ and a cold can contribute to more phlem. We dilute ours with water and DS loves it. Lots of good stuff and the more liquids the better to help loosen things up and move them along.

If your DD is playing...great! Kids bounce back so much faster than adults. Just go with it. A little outside time is good too. The sun has great built in Vitamin D and the fresh air is really good for you. Small incements though!

I wouldn't worry about the Tylenol unless she was really fussy. A little fever with lots of activity should be fine.

[gagin37]

I used the baby vapor rub on ds many many times back in the winter and spring with colds and allergies. it helped get his sinuses opened up, so he could nurse. it always helped us a lot. I also used a cool mist vaporizer the last round of allergies we endured. Once, when he was having a lot of trouble at night, I got him a plug in vicks vapor thing (you put the strips in the plug in, and it filled them room with the vicks smell), and that would keep his head clear most of the night.

[MountainMamaGC]

You are doing great.

I put a few drops of eucalyptus oil in DDs bath.