DD1 starts Kinder, DD2 gets sick

[ged]

sound reasonable? The bummer is the DD2 is only 4 months old! I am kinda freaked out, as DD1 never got sick until she was closer to a year old. Both are/were breastfed. I am thinking it's b/c DD2 is now exposed to many more germs than DD1 ever was. With DD1, all I did was monitor the cold, etc. Is there more to worry about with DD2? She does not have a fever, but is congested, and coughing. Last night, she woke up at 2:30 am due to congestion/coughing. Today, she is napping, but not very long, as the coughing seems to interrupt her sleep. She is still nursing fine. This doesn't raise any red flags for you all,does it? I guess I just want to make sure its OK for a 4 month old, EBF baby, to get a cold. I know, sounds crazy...but I really was caught off guard and expected DD2 to not get her first cold until much later.

ETA: Any tips/advice on how to handle this for an infant? I have the snotsucker (Nosfrida..sp?) and am using that when I feel I should. Other than that, not doing much else intervention wise.

[Indianamom2]

The same thing happened to us last year. It stunk big time, but there's just not much you can do about it when there are school-age kids around babies.

I'd say just keep a little closer eye on the little one. She'll likely be just fine, but if she starts running a fever, probably take her in. I tend to be a bit more cautious in little tiny babies.

Good luck.

[Wondermom]

Sorry to hear your baby's got a first cold, but it its hard to avoid with an older child in school.

Both my DC are daycare babies. DS1 got RSV at 3 and 1/2 months, about 3 weeks after he started daycare in November. I was stupid and ignorant, and DS1 spend his first year fighting significant colds that frequently sent us to the hospital. He's had NO significant illnesses since, so we're lucky. But we've also learned A LOT.

(1) For a regular cold (snotty/runny nose), use Little Noses (or other saline drops) VERY generously along with bulb syringe suctioning. Start by dropping each nostril with saline, like 8 or more drops each side. (I don't even really count the drops any more, I just put the bottle in the nose and give a good, gentle squeeze). Wait a few seconds to let it run into the nose, then suction. Remember to hold both nostrils closed to get a good seal and good suction. Repeat with more drops, more suctioning until you're really not getting snot out anymore. Baby will SCREAM, but you must be firm and do the best job you can if you want this to work. It's 1-2 minutes of torture, but many more mintues/hours of relief. They are SO much less congested and breath easier when it's over. Other than Tylenol for fever. Not much else you can give them when they're less than 6 months old.

(2) It's no longer a regular cold if the breathing gets fast, shallow and/or wheezy. See your pedi. Look for signs of "retraction" or deep movement along the bottom of the ribcage. That's indication of congestion in the chest/lungs, which you can't get to with the bulb syringe. See your pedi.

Hope our learning experience can be of use to others.

[hellokitty]

Yeah, this is pretty typical unfortunately. DS3 was only one month old when DS1 and DS2 started school and I think that around 4 mo old was when he finally caught his first cold. Now school has been in session for 3 wks and during the first freakin week ALL of my kids have snotty noses and a little bit of a cough. I volunteered today at preschool and omg I was grossed out. Two kids were like full blown sick (IMO shouldn't have been at school), no wonder my kids get sick at school, esp when they are stuck in a room together and eat snacks, play with the same toys, etc.. The teachers really try to be diligent about handwashing, but it's inevitable that germs will be spread.