Colds Companion

As a companion piece to this week's episode "Baby Colds", I found out last week that my daughter has Bronchitis.  Scary.  I won't get into the debate between my wife and I about whether or not it was teething/weather change/cold, I'll just say this: DO NOT TAKE COLDS LIGHTLY!  Our daughter was sick for about 2 weeks before her wet cough got bad enough to keep her (and us) awake at night.  After two nights of dramatic coughing fits and a low fever, I finally took her to the doctor who diagnosed her with Bronchitis and prescribed antibiotics and suggested Pedialyte which is meant to keep her hydrated and help get rid of the chest congestion.  (It's like heavy-duty Gatorade for babies.)  The danger, the pediatrician explained, is that Bronchitis can easily turn into pneumonia which can then cause permanent respiratory problems.  Like I said: Scary.  She's a little better now, although not out of the woods completely.  She had a coughing fit early this morning which worried me and prompted me to call the doctor again who advised me to see how tonight goes.

The thing that scares me is that she's teething now, too, and the symptoms of teething are similar to the symptoms of a cold.  It's tempting to be dismissive about it (especially when you have a spouse that reinforces this attitude).  Luckily I got her to the doctor in time and she will hopefully be 100% in the next day or so.  But this experience has taught me to stick to my guns and err on the side of caution rather than have a daughter fighting off pneumonia.

A few other things this experience has taught me: If your baby gets a cold, keep her hydrated and take her to the doctor.  If she has a coughing fit, cup your hand and pat her back to loosen the phlegm.  It's OK if she swallows the phlegm because then it's going into her stomach and no longer in her chest/lungs.

By the way: Did you know Pedialyte is only good for 48 hours after opening?  Even if it's refridgerated.  What's up with that?

-t.