In any case, it looks like after age 3, you can actually give kids cough drops or cough syrup. I'm taking recommendations, because I don't know if she (or we) can take another night like last night. What's effective? What will they actually take?
Please keep in mind that Kavi developed a strong aversion to medicine a few months ago, and generally refuses to drink any. And when her throat is sore, she really doesn't want to drink anything at all. I got her cough to calm down at three a.m. last night by letting her suck on a lollipop, but that doesn't really seem like good parenting. (You're sick? Have some candy!)
Oh, and bizarrely, she hates honey. Also dislikes ginger. So those two home remedies are out.
Help?
Oh poor baby! Or do I need to make that poor big girl now?
Kavi is old enough for a small amount of cough syrup. Our ped, who I think walks on water at times, told us to only give it at night so the child can sleep. During the day they need to cough out the germs. I would try to base a choice on what her favorite flavor is at this point. And if that doesn’t help, her doctor will have something stronger, but hopefully it won’t come to that.
And sucking on hard candy like a lollipop can help the throat as much as things like cough drops.
Hope she feels better real soon now!
When your kid is coughing so hard she throws up, and you fix her cough, that is good parenting. And a lollipop is safer than a lozenge, anyway. If it gets you guys through the night, do it.
I give Violet honey on a spoon when she has a bad cough, which is probably more sugar than your lollipop anyway.
As long as you don’t let her go to sleep with the candy in her mouth, that’s ok.
Popsicles were favorites for my kids too. You are really dealing with 2 issues, her cough and her throat, which is irritated from the cough. Cough medicine will help the cough itself, but if her throat is still irritated she will still be coughing from that! So a two pronged approach, meds and candy, is helpful. Just read the directions on the cough meds carefully, try to get one that gives dosages by body weight rather than age, which is more accurate.
Ricola lemon mint drops? Not quite candy, but not at all mediciney either.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_kmafp/is_200601/ai_n15986535/
This one is worth a call to your ped. The safety recommendations on kids cold medicines have changed and medicines have been recalled and such, so don’t listen to your friends–get it straight from the horse’s mouth. If her cough is getting worse, she may need to be seen. Poor muffin. Night time coughs are the worst! They can be caused by allergies, too, and I know August is MY worst season.