[salmontree]

So I've been reading through old threads about pertussis and I think my 4 year old son may have it. It's either that or croup, I'm thinking..<br><br>
He got a fever and said his tummy hurt last wednesday and I thought it was just a cold. Thurday he had a mild fever and seemed lethargic. Friday he started coughing abit. Yesterday the cough got more severe. It sounded barky- like a seal. Still had a mild fever. Today he is very tired, he says his head hurts and still has the fever. The cough alternates between sounding barky and sounding slightly mucousy. He doesn't have the whoop yet but I can see that when he's having a fit of coughing he gets scared and panicked. His voice is raspy and he says his throat hurts. He doesn't have an appetite but he's drinking juice with sodium acsorbate dissolved in it. He's had probably about 1/2 a tsp today.<br><br>
My husband keeps asking me if we should take him to the doctor and I'm starting to wonder if maybe we should. I feel pretty sure they'll prescribe antibiotics and I'm wondering if that is a good idea. Does that usually help?<br>
I'm also worried about my 8 month old daughter. This morning I dissolved 1/4 tsp of the sodium acsorbate in water and gave it to her in a dropper. She still breastfeeding exclusively. She's completely unvaccinated and my son had the regular rounds of vaxes until he was 9 months old, when I stopped.<br><br>
Part of my reluctance to go to a doctor is that we don't have a regular one.. in fact I haven't ever taken the kids to a doctor in this town. My son hasn't seen one since he was 9 mo. old and I'm not looking forward to the fuss the doctor is sure to put up about not vaxing. I feel quite strong in my decision to avoid the shots but I just don't want to deal with the doctors if I can avoid it. But at the same time, I'm worried about spreading pertussis if that's what my son has and if abx would help him get over what ever he has sooner then I'd be willing to go in.<br>
Ack! I'm so worried for my son.. I can't imagine him having to endure these horrible coughing fits for weeks or even months!<img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/greensad.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="greensad"><br>
Could pertussis threaten my daughter's life at this age?? I'm scared for her..<br><br>
Thanks for reading my long post<img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/redface.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="Embarrassment">

 

[Gitti]

Your dd should be getting immunity through your bm. And you don't really know whether it is pertussis or a croup. Because from what I remember about pertussis (my three cousins had it), it's a very bad cough but after spitting up the fluid, the child seems fine.<br><br>
If they were my children I would give both more Sodium Ascorbate and give Cod Liver Oil. I would also give Sambucol (Elderberry Syrup).<br><br>
I would not give abx. <a href="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=332284&highlight=antibiotics+whooping+cough" target="_blank"><b>Here is why.</b></a><br><br>
And if it were me, I would not take the kids to the ped. But be sure they have the best nutrition and NO sugar.

 

[Gitti]

Our Whooping Cough Thread:<br><br><a href="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=195623" target="_blank">http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=195623</a>

 

[salmontree]

Thanks Gitti!<br><br>
The abx link was very helpful. My instinct was to avoid them and it's great to have some concrete info to back up my feelings. I think I'll go get that elderberry syrup tomorrow when the health store opens up and I'll try to get ds to take the cod liver oil but I don't know how successful that'll be.. he's super picky and it's hard to get anything new and unfamiliar in him.<br><br>
I think we are going to avoid going to the pediatrician.<br><br>
Thank you!

 

[Momtezuma Tuatara]

That is not whooping cough as far as I can see. Normally whooping cough is a cold, usually little if any fever. The "cold" goes away, and there is about a weeks space before the coughing starts, and even then, apart from a cough, it takes about two weeks to really get going.<br><br>
Nothing you have said leads me to believe at this point that he has whooping cough.<br><br>
Editted to add It is very important for all parents to make sure they understand and know the natural progression of all diseases. When you know incubation periods, and the natural progression of the diseases, you are "immune" from spending days getting stomach ulcers and imagining all sorts of things when the actual symptoms could well indicate something quite different.

 

[2busy2clean]

Hey! We just had those symptoms!! Sorethroat, low fever, lack of appetitite, headache, sinus infection/runny nose, and a chest cough that produced phlegm.<br><br>
The 18 m.o. started it -- his cough was very barky at first, it did have some whooping cough tones to it -- (and yes, I do have intimate knowledge of that) as he got better, I caught the bug. Then my 5 y.o. son came down with the disease while he was at his grandma's house - and being the kind gentleman that we are raising him to be, he shared it with her. To finish our family out, my husband came down with it. It seems (from my family's experience) that the virus (my thinking) causes sinus infections in adults, since my husband and I suffered from it greatly while we were fighting the illness.<br>
My mother-in-law, who had a real, real bad cough, visited a Dr., and he diagnosed it as bronchitis and gave her some abx - which helped her out. For us, we suffered without any intervention (beyond increased vit c) and we all survived. =) My (unvaxed) boys had the cough for a week to 10 days.<br><br>
So, if you have the bug that visited us, your boy should be better in the next couple of days (although the cough may linger as it decreases in frequency) and... don't be surprised if someone else catches it!<br><br>
and... this is very different than pertussis -- we did that last year -- with a 4 month old, who survived quite easily with all of the wonderful knowledge I found here. =)

 

[Plummeting]

Doesn't sound like whooping cough to me either.

 

[salmontree]

Thanks all!<br><br>
I think you are all correct in that's it doesn't seem like wc. You're right, MT.. I suppose I need to do some homework and learn the progression of some of these illnesses better. I just jumped to a hasty conclusion because it was such an unusual cough, one I'd never heard in him before and I'm of the sort that tends to usually assume the worst of things. <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/redface.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="Embarrassment"><br><br>
2b2c, thanks for sharing your story.. I think it must be the same general thing cause he does seem better today.<br>
The fever is gone and while he still seems alittle sluggish, he's definetly more alert and feeling better. Yesterday he literally spent the entire day on the couch, hardly speaking and dozing on and off. Today he's sitting up and asking for his usual morning breakfast. He still has a cough but it's not at all as intense as the fits that were overwhelming him yesterday. Today they sound like normal coughs that come with the flu or cold.<br><br>
We are going to continue with the sodium acsorbate and happily, I've gotten him to take the cod liver oil and sambucol, so I'll continue with those. I'm also making sure that the rest of the family continues with vita c. and oil and syrup too just for good measure.<br><br>
Thank you for the reassuring words and advice, everybody..<br>
I'll be sure to do my homework and learn more about illness progression so as to save myself some unnecessary worrying next time.. <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/img/vbsmilies/smilies/Sheepish.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="Sheepish">:

 

[Gitti]

Glad to hear your child is doing much better and even more glad you avoided the ped and possible abx. <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/thumb.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="thumbs up">