It was a looooooong night here in the Miles household last night -- at least it was for my little Hannah, and therefore also for me. Out of all our girls, Hannah is the one who catches every.single.thing that is going around. Sometimes it seems like she finally gets healthy and we're lucky if it lasts for a week before she's coughing or sneezing again. I know that there are lots of times she's healthy for a few months at a time, but in the middle of a long sick spell it's hard to remember. And winter is usually worse for her, which is proving true again this year.
Anyway, she has this terrible cough that comes and goes, and no matter how many times I take her to the doctor they always dismiss it with, "Her lungs sound fine, so here's some prescription cough syrup to help her sleep and you don't need to worry about it -- sometimes kids just cough." The codeine cough syrup doesn't seem to do a thing for her. Not only does it not help the cough, but it doesn't make her sleepy, which is a side effect they always tell me about that sounds like it would be wonderful for both her and me!
I have certainly tried other things for her as well. I searched high and low and found an all natural, honey based cough syrup. I make her warm honey-lemon tea, and give her fresh orange juice, as well as just lots of water. Night after night I've tried running a humidifier by her bed, using vick's vaporub on her chest, or helping her breathe warm steam. None of it seems to help her! So this is my cry for help...do any of you moms have tried and true tricks that help your children overcome a cough and get a good night's sleep?? Hannah and I would be so grateful for any ideas that might help her.
Last night she coughed so hard that it repeatedly made her throw up, at least 4 times throughout the night. She always is considerably better during the day, but I dread night time for her when she's like this. She trusts me completely and clings to me in the night...it is so humbling that she lets me comfort her, and such an honor that she wants me to hold her when her poor little body is being wracked like that. I want so badly to be able to do more to help her, and will gratefully try any suggestions.
