Sick Baby Tips

This week has been one of the toughest weeks I have ever had with baby girl. She has a cold which for her has included a stuffy nose, a yucky cough, and an irritable, ornery baby. Desperate times call for desperate measures and I quickly discovered that I needed some backup. After a miserable and trying five days along with a trip to the doctor's office, a call to the nurse hotline, and many valuable conversations with my mom and sister, I learned some invaluable tricks and information.

 My biggest nemesis throughout this battle was the baby stuffy nose. When nursing babies have stuffy noses they want to nurse because it provides comfort and they want to feel better, but they get ticked because they can't breathe! The other thing is that as mommas, we want our babies to nurse when they are sick as much as possible because our bodies make antibodies in our breast milk which will help baby's body fight the illness. In order to clear their nose to allow them to better nurse I have been using the good ole' stand-by snot sucker or Boogie Bulb! Babies hate the process, but they appreciate the outcome. My physician suggested giving her nose drops first and then using the Boogie Bulb directly after. 
                                                         
This really helped clear her nose out. I also used Doterra Oil 'Breathe' in order to help my little sweetie breath through her nose and get a good breath. The first sick night was a rough go. I approached it as any other normal night, which was a mistake. I put her down in her bed and she woke up within an hour crying and completely stuffed up. After the first few hours walking around the house with her upright and completely asleep against my chest--it hit me. She needed to sleep in an upright position that would help her sleep! I put her in her swing which was the biggest break through of all. This allowed her to sleep without drowning in phlegm and allowed me to catch some Z's. My physician told me that sleeping her in her swing is safe. Some sleeping situations to avoid with babies includes: sleeping areas cluttered with bedding, sleeping them on their bellies, and co-sleeping. These are situations that can result in SIDs or suffocation. While we are on the sleeping subject, I have to mention the vaporizer. 
                                                        
My mother always put the vaporizer in our rooms when we were sick as children. I did the same for my little sweet heart. This keeps the air warm and full of moisture in order to keep the mouth and irritated throat moistened and comfortable during illness. I also put a couple of drops of the 'Breathe' oil into the vaporizer to be infused into the air along with the moisture!

During the day I fed her at her usual times, breastfed a lot, and kept her hydrated. I put her down for her usual naps and let her play on the floor and on my lap. Along with these little tricks I also gave her a lot of love and patience.

My Sick Baby Essentials List:

• Boogie Bulb
• Nose Drops
• Doterra Oil 'Breathe'
• Swing
• Vaporizer