What started off in my daughter as a slight sniffly nose quickly turned into a full-fledged flu.
I initially blamed the clear snot on teething, but it became obvious that it was more than that. The stream got thicker, her eyes became watery, her breathing rattled, and she was extremely cranky.
Each time she woke up from a nap, she spit up a huge amount of what looked like snot. Deciding it probably wasn’t good for her to have it draining down her throat all night, I decided to sleep with her on the recliner in our living room.
It wasn’t the most restful night of my life, to say the least. She woke up about every hour, crying a lot, snot everywhere, and wanting to eat. Still, I’m glad we slept in the recliner, because the cold didn’t settle into her chest, as it has in the past.
When she was younger, I was able to use a bulb syringe to get the snot out of her nose without any problem. Now that she is older and can see the syringe coming, she fights it like nobody’s business. I hate to wipe her nose all day, because it gets red and raw, but I also don’t want to poke her eye or accidentally shove the syringe too far into her nose when she thrashes.
As soon as she was ready to be awake for the day, I brought a space heater into the bathroom, turned it on high, and ran the shower for a few minutes. Next, I filled up her infant tub, and let her play in the water for awhile. The steamy air helped drained her nasal passageways, and the water seemed to soothe her discomfort.
We spent the rest of the morning napping on and off in the recliner, humidifier going full-blast. By 2:00, she seemed a bit better.
I hate seeing her so miserable and uncomfortable, and I hate bringing her to the doctor when everyone else in the waiting room seems to be coughing and sniffling. I’m hoping this is a short-lived cold.