cold remedy safety

[brackin]

Okay, so I'm on my third cold with this pregnancy and with the last two, I was able to avoid taking any meds. This time, I'm so stopped up I can't breathe through my nose at all; it's affecting my sleeping, eating, not to mention mood!

Anyway, I left a message for a nurse at my OB's office yesterday, who left me a message saying I could take Sudafed or any Tylenol Cold product (containing, I assume, pseudoephedrine also). The problem is that I keep reading conflicting reasearch here! Some say avoid pseudoephedrine, others say take it. So far, I've instead tried Chlor-Trimeton (did nothing whatsoever) and Afrin spray (worked okay, but still a cat C drug...), and Claritin (Cat B). Nothing has really worked well. Does anyone have any experience with this? I'm getting desperate to take SOMETHING, although I'm usually one to avoid this stuff even when I'm not pregnant!

TIA!

[mirandahope]

When I had a cold last and just thought I might be pregnant, the walk in clinic doc I saw told me I shouldn't even take the cough drops I was preparing to pop into my mouth in his office. I think he said that hot lemon and honey, and steaming with hot water in a pot were fine, but he personally nixed everything else, saying that it was "because they don't do research on pregnant ladies". I don't know if he was overly cautious, but that stuck in my mind as a guideline. I suspect you won't want to hear this, however!

however, someone just reminded me of homeopathics. If you know where in your area you can find a naturopath or homeopath, you might want to try that. In the past I have had had some success there, and the remedies are, to my current knowledge, safe for pregnancy, particularly when prescribed by someone who knows what they are doing!

I am sorry to hear that you are sick for the 3rd time! I hope you feel better soon!

[flowmom]

I choose not to take meds when I am pg. For extreme stuffiness, I break my no-caffeine rule and drink a stiff cup of tea or coffee - the caffeine seems to help with congestion. Also, this will sound wierd but using a neti pot for nasal flushing works wonders for stuffed noses - much better than cold medications and drug-free!

[nitareality]

Is it very dry in your home? If so, humidify...it helps so much. Take a steamy hot shower. Drinking hot liquids from tea to chicken soup will heat up and thin out the mucous to make it easier to get rid of. Increase your fluid intake drastically to again, thin out the mucous. I personally, if all these things don't work, will take a sudafed, but limit it to times when I"m literally unable to sleep due to the stuffiness. I won't during the day or when I can sleep through it. I hope you feel better!

[Unreal]

Just a second vote for HOT water with lots of lemon juice and honey. It has gotten me through every cold during pregnancy.
and vaporizors or humidifiers...

Humidifiers make my kids and I cough worse....I find vaporizors VERY soothing.

Especially with eucalyptus EO in the little spot for it

We also do echinacea and lots of Vit C (we use Emergen-C and all love it)

[ltk]

ME TOO! I am miserable right now and it's my birthday! I need some remedies for a sore throat, any suggestions? Would Ricola drops be okay? I have been stuffed up for months, and seem to wake up w/ asthma daily. I am using an inhaler in the morning,cause I need to breathe and the Dr. said that was okay? I still doubt everything I read, b/c I never take over the counter anything when not pg. hoping the peanut doesn't feel the way I do.

[nydiagonz]

Originally Posted by ltk

I have been stuffed up for months, and seem to wake up w/ asthma daily. I am using an inhaler in the morning,cause I need to breathe and the Dr. said that was okay?

Exactly, exactly what I have been going through. IT SUCKS!!!! I am desperate for a remedy for the nighttime nasal congestion. When I can't breathe, I can't sleep and neither can DH....argh.

[ltk]

Bad Cold to Bronchitis!

Hi Ladies,

I just thought I would share. I thought I had a cold, and right after thanksgiving I started feeling the chills, aches, etc. I called the midwife and they said to take Sudafed and Robitussin. I was desperated and decided that I wanted to feel well for my 33rd birthday...fast forward 4 more days and my cold moved into my lungs.

I call the midwife (receptionist) and she says "did you take your blah blah". I say "yes, but now I have horrible asthma and a deep, deep cough". They put m on the list for a call back. In the meantime, I am just pissed and feeling like what are they going to do, put me on anti-biotics? I haven't taken those in 6 or 7 years. I missed my herbs

I call my mom and she refers me to a homeopath. well an Acupuncturist/ Chinese herbalist calls me back. I decide to spend the money and went down there.

The woman went over my diet, medical history, symptoms, everything. I spent on hour and a half on her table, w/ the needles ALL over. After this she did "cupping" a really cool way to move *energy* and suck out toxins through suction on the skin. she then asks if I am open to taking herbs. I said yes, as long as they were safe for the pg/fetus.

It's now been 5 days since I have seen her the first time and saw her again on sat. I am almost 90% clear, back at work after being out/in bed for 7 days! I have not noticed any negative side effects, feeling the stretchy crampy feeling and nothing negative. Still taking the herbs.....

I was totally nervous about following her advice, despite her license. Under normal circumstances I would be eager to follow a natural health practicioners advice......but this felt different. I can honestly say that I would still be asthmatic and coughing horribly had I not seen her. And I have NO idea what my Ob/midwives would have prescribed! They didn't even call me back to schedule an apt.

So....ladies, TRY acupuncture.....just make sure your communication is good.

Anyone else gone this route? I felt bold, but empowered. I figure as long as you can see their license and you can tell they have worked with pg women before...it's all good.

I have to admit I am eager for the ultrasound, just to *prove* that all is well.

[alliei]

Try flushing out your sinuses with salt water (a pinch of salt in a cup of warm water). Spicy foods also help. And I like the Vicks vaporizer. If you need meds, Afrin is the safest choice because very little appears in your blood stream. Sudafed is considered safe, but more appears in your blood stream (research per Sears book when I had a bad cold).

Allie

[NurseLaurie]

A Cold by the power of Suggestion!

I read these tips yesterday, thinking to myself "good to know, if I ever get a cold"... By 10PM last night I was stuffed up with a sore throat. Not ready for meds yet, but this morning I tried a steam treatment with eucalyptus oil and it seems to have thinned me out enough to blow my nose. Now, if something could make this sore throat let up...

[luckylady]

Me too NL - must be going around. My throat is KILLING me and I am drinking hot decaf tea as we speak. I was coming here to ask if I could have honey while PG...hope it doesn't get worse, and I HOPE my DD doesn't get it! I could not sleep last night at all and wound up spraying clortrimiton in my throat and spitting it out. LOL. It helped. for abut 5 minutes. Long enough to fall asleep at least.

[NurseLaurie]

I've heard that honey isn't safe if you get it straight from the hive, but if you buy packaged honey you should be ok. I eat it But then I eat sliced turkey even though I know I'm not supposed to, so perhaps I'm not the best judge.

[mama~bear]

I had a head cold last year when pregnant and am just overcoming another one ... both times my midwife recommended 1 tsp. elderberry tincture and 500 mg chewable vit C taken together every hour ... cont. for 1 day, 2 if really necessary, but both times, it wiped out my cold in 1 day. Both are safe for babies which is a must for me. Yep, just yesterday I was moping around the house with stuffiness, pressure in my sinuses, headache (even hurt to move my eyes) general achiness, and sore throat on and off. The worst is definitely not being able to sleep!! But today, I've showered, dressed, and we're going out tonight

I love my midwife (p.s. she's a lay/home-birth midwife)

[L'lee]

Originally Posted by luckylady

I was coming here to ask if I could have honey while PG...

I looked this up because honey is my sweetner of choice, and I'd never heard that it wasn't safe for pregnancy (just for babies under 1). Here's what I found:

http://www.webmd.com/content/article/43/3606_275

"A pregnant woman can safely eat honey because her digestive tract will keep the botulinum bacteria from growing, and her honey consumption poses no danger to her fetus."

http://www.drgreene.com/21_1476.html

Dr. Greene agrees, though he doesn't reccomend peanuts for pg women - ! (SHOOT!)

I was really sad to give up feta cheese and raw scallions. Luckily, cooked sushi and honey are OK!