cold/nasal congestion in 6 week old.

Themadhouse

Our little one has developed a cold. She has been nasally conjested since birth but it had improved in the last 2 weeks. She is very blocked at the moment. We are using saline nose drops and sitting in the bathroom with the hot water running to see if the steam will help. She has sneezed a few times and gotten rid of some mucus.

Eveeything I have looked at to help clear it says 3 months plus, vicks baby rub, snuffle babe etc.
So what can we do? I am getting an ultra sonic humidifier today to see if that will do aanything.

She is not a great sleeper at the best of times while in her moses basket so is it safe enough to strap her into her bouncer chair and let her sleep over night in that?
Any advice on how to help her?

bp

Hey we had the same thing. There are a few things to try:

Try baby massage there is one for the chest to clear the congestion and one for the face too ....see if there are classes in your area or google!

Also put a block or something under the legs at the head end of the crib/ basket so the top end is higher than the bottom - baby sleeps with an elevated head helps clean the sinus.

Thirdly we used the nose asperator thing - wasn't amazing but did get some mucus out.

Hold your baby up for a while - eg vertically against you - it should allow for some dripage.

That is what we did with our snotty baby, who like that was born congested.

Your GP or public health nursery have more suggestions

moy83

Can you use one of those "snot suckers " ? Sorry the name isnt right but its just a little plastic tube with a thing on the end that you squeeze and when you let go it sucks out any stuff thats in the nose out . We used for our lad and it was a great way of clearing the nose .
A bit of carvol on a tissue beside them worked well enough too

Themadhouse

Hi thanks for speedy reply.
The nose sucker ddoesn't pull any mucus out or at least it hasnt yet but we will continue to use it.
We have the head of her moses basket raised slightly but cant go too high with it or she ends up rolled over on her side in a very uncomfortable position lol.
She barely slept yesterday and had about 2 hrs last night. She is asleep now in her bouncer which made me wonder if I could let her sleep at much as she needs to in that for the next 24 hrs to see if it improves her.

How Strange

Snot sucker = bulb syringe

We use it most days on our 7 month old and have done since 5 weeks.

I don't know what I'd do without it

How Strange

You need to squirt saline solution up first then lie her in her tummy on your knees so the snot starts to come out of the nose and then use the syringe. It does work but not on a dry nose.

Themadhouse

I enquired in the chemist and Karvol no longer exists apparantly! So I went looking for ideas for something else but everything is for over 3 months even if its on a tissue near them. There is sone concern that using strong scents can shock the babies breathing and cause it to stop. Sounds mad but first time mom so im sure you all can understand my fear of using something like olbas oil when you read things like that.

Themadhouse

I will try putting her on her tummy after using the drops. Normally she is put up over our shoulder. Ma6be that will make the difference. Thanks.

Dubl07

This will sound gross but your own mouth is the best thing to use for sucking out baby snot/mucus. Google it - it's far more effective than any gadget.

Themadhouse

I will try putting her on her tummy after using the drops. Normally she is put up over our shoulder. Ma6be that will make the difference. Thanks.

Mrs Fox

Dubl07 wrote: »

This will sound gross but your own mouth is the best thing to use for sucking out baby snot/mucus. Google it - it's far more effective than any gadget.

My sister swears by this.

However, You can also use a baby nasal aspirator, apparently sold in Boots.

lucky333

Besides all the great advice here, I will say try also to aviod it getting worse. No wool- cardigans blankets etc.. Anything that fluff can come off, keep away ..

Themadhouse

Thank you for all the suggestions. She is doing much better today and has being shifting quite a lot of mucus. She is also drinking loads. Her temp is good and we are keeping a close eye on it. We have just had a steaming session and a bottle and she is fast asleep so hopefully that will last for a few hrs. Much appreciated guys. Thanks.

moy83

Dubl07 wrote: »

This will sound gross but your own mouth is the best thing to use for sucking out baby snot/mucus. Google it - it's far more effective than any gadget.

I know it works but I just couldnt do it . Fair play to anyone that can but my stomach would turn at the thought of it !