4yo cough won't go away! among other things

[Laeyla]

My son started Kindergarten in September and since then he has been sick on/off since, well his third day. I know it's normal for a cough to linger and I wasn't very worried about it until Halloween when he started to have a fever every day with it and kept choking on his cough and sometimes spitting/throwing up. Anyway, we've been to the DR three times since...he stayed home from school four days, got antibiotics which seemed to help some things (no more fever) but now he has like little appetite (he's lost 3.5 lbs since Oct 31) and he's extremely irritable!!!! The last time we were there the doc said it seemed like he was on the mend and to just wait it out.......(he's been off antibiotics for 5 days now).

I just don't get how I am supposed to be OK with waiting it out when he's losing weight/not eating much and his cough keeps him up at night. Like last night he had coughing fits at 1130, 1230, 130, 2, 230, 3, and 6. He does have a puffer for suspected asthma but this cough doesn't sound wheezy to me it's more phlegmy now. I'm sure he's partly so irritable because of his lack of sleep but it's also making me extremely irritable and then I feel terrible. He's pretty good in the morning (besides refusing to eat breakfast) but after school he is pretty whiney/demanding. Like "pass me my water", "I can't get it", "I don't know how to put my pajamas on", "I don't want to eat this it's yucky" (when it's one of his faves). If I'm honest by the end of the day when he's like that it just grinds my gears. I don't know...it's frustrating for me and very overwhelming. I am also sick and so is my daughter who is 2 and also up 2-3 times a night.

Has someone gone though something similar? Am I honestly just supposed to wait this out? Will it go away?! Please tell me there is light at the end of tunnel.

 

[MindUtopia]

If he doesn't still have a fever and he isn't struggling to breathe, like really sucking in air so that you can see his ribs, yes, sounds normal. Just wait it out. If he's only just started in a school environment, it's super normal for them to be sick all the time. The first two years my daughter was in nursery, she either had a chest infection or was recovering from one from November until May. It was literally like two weeks of being sick, then two weeks of being off and having a cough and getting better, and then sick again for like half of every year. It was only in the third year that it improved. If it is bronchitis, which it sounds like it was, it definitely put her off her food for about a month after. If he is losing weight, I would focus on getting whatever food he is happy to eat in him in the short-term, lots of snacks, favorite meals, there were days when my daughter literally didn't feel well enough that I had to cuddle her and spoonfeed her (I've never spoonfed her even when she was a baby!). Normal life can resume when he's feeling a bit better, but yes, sadly sounds pretty normal to me after a chest infection and they can be very cyclical, especially if this the first time he's been in a school like environment. If the fever comes back or his asthma seems really uncontrolled or he seems dehydrated, I would go back to the doctor. Otherwise, I'd just wait it out and do what you need to do until it gets better. Calpol (tylenol) helped with the nighttime waking and coughing. We'd give it before bed and then once during the night.

 

[Laeyla]

If he doesn't still have a fever and he isn't struggling to breathe, like really sucking in air so that you can see his ribs, yes, sounds normal. Just wait it out. If he's only just started in a school environment, it's super normal for them to be sick all the time. The first two years my daughter was in nursery, she either had a chest infection or was recovering from one from November until May. It was literally like two weeks of being sick, then two weeks of being off and having a cough and getting better, and then sick again for like half of every year. It was only in the third year that it improved. If it is bronchitis, which it sounds like it was, it definitely put her off her food for about a month after. If he is losing weight, I would focus on getting whatever food he is happy to eat in him in the short-term, lots of snacks, favorite meals, there were days when my daughter literally didn't feel well enough that I had to cuddle her and spoonfeed her (I've never spoonfed her even when she was a baby!). Normal life can resume when he's feeling a bit better, but yes, sadly sounds pretty normal to me after a chest infection and they can be very cyclical, especially if this the first time he's been in a school like environment. If the fever comes back or his asthma seems really uncontrolled or he seems dehydrated, I would go back to the doctor. Otherwise, I'd just wait it out and do what you need to do until it gets better. Calpol (tylenol) helped with the nighttime waking and coughing. We'd give it before bed and then once during the night.

Thanks for the reply! I expected him to get sick but not for two months and counting, lol. It is reassuring to read your reply. I will try the tylenol, I was giving him tylenol when he had a fever but have since stopped. We have tried everything else though, like a humidifier, elevating his mattress, vicks, honey...my poor baby. I just want him to feel like himself again. </3

 

[SucreK]

Honestly, it sounds like his asthma is probably acting up. This reminds me very much of my asthmatic 2 yo. Is his puffer albuterol or steroids? The only thing that helped my girl is twice daily steroid puffs for maintenance. I'd drop by the doctor or urgent care or any place that has someone with a stethoscope to see if he's wheezing (a lot of time you can only hear a wheeze with a stethoscope). And ask about inhaled steroids (much gentler than oral steroids).

 

[Laeyla]

Honestly, it sounds like his asthma is probably acting up. This reminds me very much of my asthmatic 2 yo. Is his puffer albuterol or steroids? The only thing that helped my girl is twice daily steroid puffs for maintenance. I'd drop by the doctor or urgent care or any place that has someone with a stethoscope to see if he's wheezing (a lot of time you can only hear a wheeze with a stethoscope). And ask about inhaled steroids (much gentler than oral steroids).

Thanks for the reply! It is albuterol. I was doing some reading and it does sound like the preventative puffers would be much more beneficial to him. The first time we were at the DR there was no wheeze, second there was, third there wasn't. From what I've read (don't know if true or not?) but the albuterol puffer should make it better within 24-48 hours...which it hasn't. I do feel like I am using it too much? But probably only because this is all so new to me/us. He has been getting it nightly for the last week and today/yesterday before school as well.

 

[SucreK]

Hello! You can use it every 4 hours, and as much as every 2-3 hours, but in that case, you should call the doctor to let them know that he needs that much extra support. Do you have a pulse oximeter at home? It's a little device that you just put on his finger and it tells you what his oxygen levels are (maybe you've seen it in your doctor's office?). You can buy them on Amazon or at the pharmacy for $25 or so. I always use mine if I'm not sure how well she's feeling. 97-100 is a good reading, I'd be using albuterol for 93-96. Below 93 and they're struggling. (Not hard and fast rules, just what I've been told and seen with my asthmatic.) Having the pulse ox gives me INCREDIBLE peace of mind.

Oh, and the albuterol should start helping in 2-3 days if you're using it every 4 hours. Is he coughing a lot at night? That's the sure sign my girl's asthma is acting up (that and not eating and not playing as much). Did your doctor give you a spacer with the puffer? It's a chamber with a mask on the end--in the other end you insert the puffer. It is MUCH more effective at getting inhaler meds into young kids. You puff once and count to 20 seconds. Wait one minute and then do the second puff (waiting 20 seconds again).

 

[Laeyla]

Hello! You can use it every 4 hours, and as much as every 2-3 hours, but in that case, you should call the doctor to let them know that he needs that much extra support. Do you have a pulse oximeter at home? It's a little device that you just put on his finger and it tells you what his oxygen levels are (maybe you've seen it in your doctor's office?). You can buy them on Amazon or at the pharmacy for $25 or so. I always use mine if I'm not sure how well she's feeling. 97-100 is a good reading, I'd be using albuterol for 93-96. Below 93 and they're struggling. (Not hard and fast rules, just what I've been told and seen with my asthmatic.) Having the pulse ox gives me INCREDIBLE peace of mind.

Oh, and the albuterol should start helping in 2-3 days if you're using it every 4 hours. Is he coughing a lot at night? That's the sure sign my girl's asthma is acting up (that and not eating and not playing as much). Did your doctor give you a spacer with the puffer? It's a chamber with a mask on the end--in the other end you insert the puffer. It is MUCH more effective at getting inhaler meds into young kids. You puff once and count to 20 seconds. Wait one minute and then do the second puff (waiting 20 seconds again).

I've never even heard of an oximeter. I can see how that would give piece of mind though because I do feel kinda clueless/helpless right now.

Some days he coughs A LOT (like every hour for 10-45 minutes) and sometimes, like last night he didn't cough at all until 4am and it was only for a few minutes. We bought an aerochamber at the pharmacy to go with the puffer. There's no mask on the end though so I think it's kinda similar to the puffer itself just that I can see if he's actually getting it now.

Sometimes he complains his chest hurts when he coughs and he's sneezing different now too? Like now he kinda tisks (? not sure how to explain it) instead of full out sneezing. Not sure if it's cause it might hurt or not? I also think he has started avoiding doing some physical stuff because he's worried it may make him cough. We play hockey in the house with mini sticks often and lately he doesn't last as long as he used to or just doesn't want to altogether.

 

[SucreK]

Poor guy! I would buy the mask--inhalers and aero chambers are really tough for little guys to use correctly. Also, has your doctor done a peak flow meter test on your son to see how is lung function is? My daughter is too young for one, but they say age 5 is old enough. Basically, it will tell you how inflamed his lungs are. Can you ask his doctor or an urgent care nurse to do a pulse ox test and a peak flow? The day my daughter seemed bad off with her asthma, her pulse ox read 82 and we were in the ICU for 4 days while she recovered. The longer you go if his lungs (and by extension, his heart) are working hard, the harder the recovery is.

I promise I'm not trying to scare you--asthma can be really manageable if you have the right tools. But if you don't, it can get out of hand.

 

[sophxx]

Sorry your lo is poorly. It can be normal for coughs to linger the other ladies have given some good advice. Hope your lo us better soon.

 

[Laeyla]

Poor guy! I would buy the mask--inhalers and aero chambers are really tough for little guys to use correctly. Also, has your doctor done a peak flow meter test on your son to see how is lung function is? My daughter is too young for one, but they say age 5 is old enough. Basically, it will tell you how inflamed his lungs are. Can you ask his doctor or an urgent care nurse to do a pulse ox test and a peak flow? The day my daughter seemed bad off with her asthma, her pulse ox read 82 and we were in the ICU for 4 days while she recovered. The longer you go if his lungs (and by extension, his heart) are working hard, the harder the recovery is.

I promise I'm not trying to scare you--asthma can be really manageable if you have the right tools. But if you don't, it can get out of hand.

My doc hasn't really told me much of anything about it other than he thinks he "may have asthma" and to use the puffer when necessary. I feel...I don't know the word...but we have been to the doctor three times since Halloween just for him and once for myself, and a few times before that since school has started for other issues. I feel like the DR maybe thinks I go in too much or over everything. Ya know?
I don't know..I'm just the type of person that likes to know WHY things happen and when I don't it causes mad stress/anxiety. And I just don't like seeing him like this. Like we were just playing outside and if he starts coughing he goes and sits down. I asked what he does at school and he said he goes and sits by the wall if he starts coughing. I am considering bringing him in again within the next few days though because we are supposed to get our flu shots on Friday and I don't know if I want to / should get him his when he's like this.

 

[Andypanda6570]

It may be a virus.. I had a cough for a month and my MIL had it for 3 months it was terrible, but it was a virus which eventually goes away. Hope he feels better soon XO