croup

[damona]

we found out last night that our youngest ds has croup. he sounds so awful... he woke at midnight last night (wednesday night) and he was wheezing and choking... it honestly sounded like he was drowning in his own mucous. i thought it was croup, but i had no idea what to do for him, and he started getting a little bluish around the mouth so i took him to the e.r. i know my insurance company is going to flip, but that's just tough. i'll deal with them later.

the e.r. dr gave him liquid prednisone and a teeny dose of tylenol with codeine, and sent us home with 5 days worth of the steroid. told me to elevate his head and if he starts coughing like that again, to bring him outside in the cold because it will "shock" his airways into opening up again. so far, so good, i haven't heard him coughing or anything.

this was a total shock to me, i didn't know kids could still get it as old as he is or even older. i had thought it was something that only affected babies and toddlers. what they didn't tell me was how long i should keep him home from school (but i'm keeping him home until monday, anyway) or that it was contagious. now i'm worried that the rest of my crew may come down with it.

[Plaid Leopard]

My dd had croup several times. We never gave her anything for it - just did the cold shock (opening the freezer and sticking head in works well, too!).
Also, supporting the immune system, and doing steam baths with eucalyptus oil to clear the mucus. Just sit in a closed bathroom with the hot water on full blast for a couple of minutes to create a lot of steam, put a few drops of eucalyptus oil in the water, and stay in the bathroom for 10 minutes or so.
Hope your little one is better soon.

[damona]

ok, thank you, good to know. i wasn't entirely keen on the meds, but, as i said, i didn't know much about croup or how to treat it.

he's doing much better now, wakes up a little wheezy and coughing in the morning, but overall, much better.