Help, new baby with terrible cold - finds it hard to breathe! Anything work? Sleeping in car-seat helps but is it advisable?

[sizeofahouse]

Help - my dd, four weeks old has had a cold since day four, yes she's breastfed and the next midwife who tells me breastfed babies don't get colds will get a slap. My poor poor dd is so congested, seen the doctor three times but little he can do, its not on her chest just all in her nose and her temperatures okay. So far I've tried carvol and snuffle-baby from a distance as she's under three months, steamed water to inhale, cool boiled water to try to wash down the mucus - she's vomiting alot the nasty stuff, the only thing that relieves her seems to be sleeping in the car-seat but I'm really nervous of leaving her in too long as I've been told four hours is maxmimum, her neck looks crumped when she's in there and also I've been told babies brains can get starved of oxygen after long periods. Does anyone know whether this is true? She is sleeping three hours, then shorter expanses through the night until she wakes hourly at dawn because she's so congested. She is in with us but doesn't want to go out, I'm propping her up best I can - my poor poor baby she's so distressed when she wakes, does anyone out there know anything that would give her relief, my heart is hurting watching her. I know it will go, she's my second but I hate that she hasn't had more than three days of her short life without a cold - help!

[dinny]

Sizeofahouse, poor little dd My ds had soooo many colds from about this age (thanks to big sister's lurgy). I used to gently put mouth over his nose and suck the snot out! Literally. Meant he could breathe properly again, poor thing. Try it, really helps. And not really revolting at all cos you love them so much.

[Lonelymum]

I haven't really got any advice, but I want to back you up that breast fed babies get colds. My ds2 caught his first cold when he was 8 days old. The snuffly breathing is very worrying isn't it? Although I also found it a slight comfort as I could always hear his breathing in the dead of night and didn't feel tempted, as I was with my others, to shake the cot slightly to make them stir and know they were still alive!

I'm sorry to say but you may have to get used to her having loads of colds. Ds1 was scarcely ill at all for the first year or more of his life, but my three subsequent children have all had more colds than I could count: ds3 had one every two weeks for about eight months of his first year!

[dinny]

And ds ended up loving it so much as he knew it's bring him relief! Still do it now (he's 8 months) if he's really bunged up (he laughs and laughs when I do).

[babaworshipper]

The car seat thing is kind of true the angle means their little diaphrams (sp?) don't work properly making it harder for them to breathe. Have you tried propping up the cot end so she is flat but at an angle iyswim?

I would be wondering if it is an allergy rather than a cold though it seems to be going on a long time it must make BF difficult for the wee mite too. Try a naturopath maybe for alternative remedies or advice.

Hope you get it sorted out.

[babaworshipper]

Snap Dinny ! Been there done that from the girl who once threw up at someone elses snotty kid!

(before my own baba of course!)

[dinny]

It's the quickest, best fixit, IME! And strangely satisfying, Babaworshipper

[Lucymoo]

Hello,my son also had a terrible cold at about four weeks.We were given a solution to put up his nose before feeding and he also used to sleep in his car sleep,if you could have called it sleeping!I was also worried about his neck but my midwife said to let him him stay in it if it was all he would settle in and to think that if we were driving on a long journey then he would be in it the seat anyway.This worked for him and after a few weeks got him back into his crib.

[PoopyNappy]

Try putting some books underneath the legs at the head end of the cot.

Saline drops also very good. DS actually likes having this shot up his nose bizarrely and thinks it's funny.

Medised is good for a parecetamol and decongestant but I think it's for 3 months plus.

You can buy a electric vaporiser from boots....They're not expensive but they really do help.

Good luck & hope you lo feels better soon.

PN