Baby's First Cold

Well it’s been a fun and eventful week in our household. Our son hit a milestone! No he isn’t sitting on his own yet, and no he’s not a 6 month old prodigy that can already walk, talk , and recite the entire works of Shakespeare by heart ( they all seem about equally likely at this point). No, our little Greyson has his first cold.

Honestly I’m amazed it’s taken this long.

With a brother in kindergarten at a public school and how bad this flu season has been I’ve been on high alert for sniffles for awhile. His older brother seemed to always have something as an infant and I swear the ER docs knew me by name. So for all you first time mamas out there I thought maybe I’d clue you into what I learned the first time around.

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You Will Probably Catch It

Unless your little love muffin caught it from you, there is a good chance you will be sick in the immediate future.

Go buy some Airborne, Vitamin C, one of those 2 liters of hand sanitizer, and say a prayer to whatever god you believe in because the one thing that is harder than having a sick child is being sick yourself while taking care of a sick child.

As I type this I am surrounded by a mountain of tissues and am ready for nighttime cold medicine O clock because guess who caught the cold?

Oh yeah, me.

You see the thing about having a sick infant is you can’t exactly quarantine them from you. They feel bad, they are miserable, they are fussy, and you want to comfort them in addition to all the normal contact that happens during the course of a mom’s day. I have been coughed on, breathed on, and sneezed on more times than I can count the past week, so this outcome was inevitable.

A Baby With a Cold Is SCARY

Even a minor cold can seem catastrophic when it is your child.

I remember with my oldest constantly wondering if he could breathe ok and here is the kind of terrifying truth: babies cannot breathe through their mouth (without crying) until they are 3 to 4 months old.

So having a stuffy nose can cause big issues in especially young children. We were extremely lucky that Greyson caught his first cold after that developmental period because it does make it a little less scary, but with my first I wasn’t so lucky.

Know When To See The Doctor

With my first I went overboard on this one, he sniffled or snorted once and I was running for the doctor because I was terrified. So when should you see a doctor? Well I’m not a medical professional, but here are the rules of thumb I’ve been told and go by.

Breathing Issues: The first is a biggy. If your baby is having ANY trouble breathing it is better to err on the side of caution and take them in. So if they are snorting or congested ring up your pediatrician to see how best to proceed.

Fever: For babies less than three months the magic number is about 100.4 due to the higher risk of complications and especially weak immune systems. For older babies watch for temperatures over 102.

Cough: Watch for a persistent or particularly bad cough. If it makes them vomit or if it lasts longer than three days it is time to schedule an appointment.

Wet Diapers: Counting wet diapers is important because it is a great indicator of hydration and feeding. If your child doesn’t wet a diaper at least every 6 hours it is time to call.

length of illness: Your child should start feeling better and symptoms should dissipate in under a week.

Instinct: You know your child best, period, end of story. If you think whatever you are observing warrants going to the doctor, don’t hesitate, just go. I have been the parent who a doctor scoffed at a few times wondering why I’m wasting his valuable time on this minor cold but I don’t care. Even if it was for the peace of mind I don’t regret taking him when I felt I needed to.

Know What You Can Do At Home

No one likes having a miserable baby and there ARE ways to help your child feel a bit better at home. Here is my list of tried and true tip to help your little one feel a bit better.

Leave a humidifier running: This is one of the easiest things you can do and it makes a HUGE difference. My children always seem to go from being a little snorty during the day to sounding like a stuffed up Darth Vader at night. Leaving a humidifier running while they sleep loosens up some of the congestion and helps them breathe much easier, hopefully allowing you to get a bit of sleep yourself. Be sure to use whatever type of water they recommend ( normally distilled) because we were lazy and used tap a few times and it corroded the filter. Since then we’ve upgraded to the Vicks Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifier and love it, but just be sure whichever humidifier you buy is cool mist!

At Home Steam Room: Pretty much every time my child is sick I end up standing in the bathroom with the hot water running and door closed at least once. You don’t stand in the shower (wet babies are slippery) but stand outside and leave the vent fan off. The steam does a great job at loosening congestion when all else has failed.

Incline while sleeping: Ok so you do NOT want to go against SIDS guidelines, meaning those inclined pillows for their crib probably aren’t the best bet. If you have a Rock N Play or something similar letting them nap in there while supervised may help. Be sure to check with your doctor about the safety of any products.

Saline Spray: This one isn’t fun by any means, but it also REALLY works to help flush out the mucous and moisten those nasal membranes. Just try to remember you are helping them as they look at you like you are the most evil person alive.

Nasal Bulb: You were almost certainly sent home with one from the hospital but how much have you used it since? If it’s been awhile and it was previously opened it may be time to buy a new one, these things are infamous for growing all sorts of gross stuff inside (Yuck). Personally I like the BoogieBulb Baby Nasal Aspirator because it allows you to do a thorough clean in between uses. Also worth noting I only use these when there are visible boogers because they can worsen the inflammation if used unnecessarily.

Infant Tylenol: If they are running a low grade fever you can use the appropriate dosage to help bring it down, just be sure to keep track of what it is between doses so you know if it is time to head to the doctor.

I Hope your little one (and possibly you) start feeling better soon! Illness is unfortunately a part of life so be patient with them and yourself and try not to freak out too bad (I know easier said than done).