Pertussis freakout

[MelindaGayle]

Hello,
Hopefully someone can help me on this.

I have just started my third trimester, I have a terminally ill seven year old, and my 2 year old (unvaxed) started up with a runny nose on Friday night. By Saturday night, he had started coughing. Today, the runny nose and cough have continued.

I am terrified that he has whooping cough, which my 7 year old (who has muscular dystrophy) will then get. And then I'll get it, right before delivery.

For those of you whose children have had whooping cough, did they start coughing right away? Sometimes, his cough sounds productive, sometimes dry.

I've already started SA, just in case, but still.

Someone help me calm down.

Thanks,
Mindy

[lightheartedmom]

I do not know if my kids have it (yet...waiting for test results), but if it is pertussis, they started with a runny nose and then coughing the following day. I have a friend who's children had it and both her kids starting coughing right away with no other symptoms (they both had a mild case of it, despite being unvax'd, if that's any comfort to you).
I'm sorry you're going through this. I think most moms who's kids get sick right now are freaking out about pertussis because it seems to be everywhere these days...but you have a lot of extra burdens to bear. I hope it's just a cold that your LO has...it's entirely possible that's what's going on. I'm still not sure about my 4yo DD, but when I went to our ped about it last Friday, she practically laughed me out of the office when I suggested pertussis...she said the cough was from post-nasal drip.
Keep up the SA and maybe add some elderberry syrup and try to get your LO to eat lots of foods with garlic (pesto pasta worked for my picky eaters, and matzo ball soup with homemade chicken stock that had lots of garlic in it). Also, run the humidifier if you have one.

s mama

[MelindaGayle]

Thanks so much for your response. I'm breathing a little bit easier now, because he woke up with a really productive cough and yellow snot. It's really seeming like a virus now rather than the dry whooping cough sound that I've heard online. It also seems to be getting better throughout the day - he coughed less today than yesterday. I guess it's just the paranoia of the unvaccinated.

Thanks again.

[lightheartedmom]

Originally Posted by MelindaGayle

I guess it's just the paranoia of the unvaccinated.

I'm finding that comes with the territory. I've backed down a bit from my pertussis freakout last week as well...:-) Hope he continues to improve.

[MelindaGayle]

Thanks again. Please let me know how the test for your little ones comes out! Hoping it's negative.