a cold and cough

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anonymous

New member
I was just wondering if a cf child has a cold and then a cough can we use just a regular cough medicin for the cough? my son who is 15 months has had a cold for three days and know he started coughing and I'm so worried that he is going to get worse so I call the doctor and he wants to see him thursday because he also is due for a culture teast for pseudomonas. I am so scare that he might have some kind of bug in his lungs. Can it be posible that he can just have a normal cough and it will go away. every time that Marcos get sick it makes me very dipress and sad because it make me feel that I'm not being a good mother to him because he is geting sick. I also get very nerveus when I have to take him to the hospital and see him cry so much. Marcos is a very active little one he loves to be out side playing but he also loves to go on the mudpudles and that is very hard to control because this pass days it has rain alot and he stands at the door and trys to open it to go out side. Shoud I just keep him inside nomatter what or should i just leat him be a normal child?

Mom to Marcos w/CF
 
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irishdavid

New member
It's important that if Marcos has mucus building up in his lungs that he coughs it up. Regular cough medicine will suppress this cough and will create a better environment for infection in his lungs so regular cough medicine is not a good idea for cfers.

Don't feel like its your fault - every one gets colds and coughs, its a part of life. Let him play and enjoy himself like a normal kid. When he is older he will be greafull that you let him lead a normal childhood without keeping him away from everyone and everything and "wrapping him up in cotton wool".
 
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JoAnn

New member
Hi - In my experiences, I would not just give him regular cough medicine. You need to check with the Dr. Most will advise on a cough expectorant and never a suppressant. Many cough medicines have other components that you need to check on first. Some have decongestants and or antihistamines also. Always ask the Dr. It is quite possible that the cold can just be a cold. For congestion and comfort, we raise our sons upper body when sleeping, lots and lots of liquids, extra cpt and breathing treatments when needed. I hope this runs a regular cold's course. If not, it sounds like you Dr. wants to stay on top of it - which is good. Good Luck!
 
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anonymous

New member
Hi mom to marcos
my niece has cf and my sister said the dodtor told her not to give her cough medicine because you want him to cough and get the junk out... if you give them the medicine to stop coughing then all that junk will settle into his lungs is what I am guessing.
My sister actually just went through the same thing my niece started with a runny nose then coughing and she called the doc and he said bring her in thurs...which was her 2 week check-up anyway. There they cultured her and switched her meds. Results are suppossed to be today but she hasnt heard anything yet.
Do not feel in any way that you are a bad mom because your son gets sick...this is not the first time and I'm sure not the last time it will happen and you can not blame yourself this is part of the disease but have faith they are going to find something to help them. My niece is also 15 months will be 16 on the 4th of july.
Good luck with everything ...don't give the cough medicine and have faith.
Nicole
 
A

anonymous

New member
Last April, DS got a head cold and started to get a cough. I called the local clinic and they told me not to bother coming in 'cuz "cfers cough" Grrrr! This was a different cough -- junkier, kinda like when I've gotten sick with broncitis. Fortunately we had a regular CF clinic appointment a couple days later, so we mentioned it and the doctor heard it and prescribed Cipro for a few weeks.

Usually when DS gets a bit of a cold, we increase the number of times we beat him a day -- up it to 4 with nebs, we increase the amount of time per position and I'll give him a nice warm tubby twice a day -- let the bathroom get all steamy and let him play in the tub for awhile.

Liza aka ratatosk mom to a toddler wcf
 
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JRPandTJP

New member
Your post brought me back...all the fear and what if's we go through when our babies are ill. It is perfectly okay for him to get a cold and even a normal cough. It doesn't mean it will turn into something else. If it doesn't clear out over the normal 7-10 day period most viruses last and the cough continues past this point than you may need to do a round of antibiotics for what ever he is currently culturing just to be sure. I usually take him in to our pediatrician if I feel it isn't clearing. I also make sure I call if it is only a cough and no other symptoms.

During cold/flu we like to use UMKA and extra vitamin C. UMKA is a natural and helps shorten the duration of colds/flus and helps lungs more effectively cough. We NEVER us a suppressant of any kind and have only tried a decongesstant once. UMKA thins out the secretions as well we have found. Lots of H2O.

We rub lavender essential oils on his feet and sometimes put it in a nice diffuser (it is like a littel stand with metal dish on top and a little tea light candle underneath) with thyme and lavendar oils on top. It just makes the room smell nice and it is said to be good for respiratory stuff. A few drops in the bath is nice before bed too. I think it makes moms feel good too...lavendar calms the nerves.

Hang in there...I know how you feel. You're a wonderful mom and there is no way you can keep a boy from mudd!!!! Ben is 2 and finds every mud puddle in the park and back yard. We have to let them explore and be free. Just wash his hands really well afterwards...he'll be fine. When our son cultured pseudo last fall I thought it was because I let him do all this stuff, my husband thought it might be the fish tank, we just went crazy for a while. It is on everything and we really can only do so much. He had one round of inhaled TOBI and hasn't cultured since (knock on some wood someone).

Warmly,
Jody
Mom of JUlia 6 no CF and Ben 2 w/CF
 
A

anonymous

New member
thankyou all for your response writing to this site every time i have a question and then reading your reasponse really healps alot. This site has made me fell like there are people out there with the same fealing and probleams a me.
Not even my family has an idea of what i go through because to them a cold and a cough is just a cold and a cough but to us we know that we must be very careful and we must try to thing what would be the beast thing to do about it.
I guess that some times i just need some one to listed and understand me when I'm feeling sad and depress about Marcos health especially when your know that his life will be cut short because of cf and knowing that we are the ones that gave it to him. but like you guys say take one day at a time.
thankyou all

Mom to Marcos w/cf
 
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anonymous

New member
Hey Jody nice pictures of your kids. I will let Marcos be a kid and enjoy life and nature from now on. thanks
Mom to Marcos 15months w/cf
 
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anonymous

New member
I always like to think I'm pretty calm, cool and confident when it comes to DS's health and CF. And then something out of the ordinary occurs. Last summer it was while we were on vacation in Colorado and he just wasn't himself and developed a slight fever. Wrestled with myself trying to determine if I should take him to the local clinic or let it run it's course -- was it an ear infection or something worse.... Ran it's course and he was fine with just some tylenol.

We're not too confident with the local doctors, so if DS gets a cough or a cold or a fever --- I worry about the what ifs. What if this is just the start of him being sick all the time. What if he misses a bunch of school, doesn't have any friends 'cuz he's sickly, can't participate in stuff, what if someone's mean to him because of his CF. What if we go to a family event and someone is sick...

If I call the local clinic, a lot of times I'm told, oh it's normal cfers cough -- they don't understand that this is something different. I always worry when DS is under the weather that it could turn into something worse and what if he has to be hospitalized locally. My husband the voice of reason usually says that before that happens we CALL his CF doctor in the City and we're only a 3 1/2 hour car ride away should we need to take him elsewhere. Liza aka ratatosk
 
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