Dealing with an asthmatic toddler
12:37:00
Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases in children and mason 'has it' i use the term has it loosely because he's under 5 and the doctors wont say exactly that its Asthma in case he grows out of it!
kids get colds,especially if they go to nursery! honest they are rank! literally every week he's caught someone else's kids germs. but this doesn't help my ongoing battle with his asthma and coughing!
if you have a child with asthma then you know where i'm coming from, constant trips to the doctors, im pretty sure they've had enough of my ' he cant breath when he's asleep' talk and my plea's for them to help me, and lets not forget having to have a little blue inhaler in every bag you might take out *just in case* its a chore on top of the challenge of parenthood. but its a chore i want to try and fix asap!
if your reading this post then it probably means you're on the web trying to look for a magic cure to fix your little angel and i'm sorry to disappoint but there's not one, but there are plenty of ways you can really help them!
1. we all know giving your child lots of fruit and veg is important but we probably don't go out of our way to get added vitamins into our kids, i know i certainly didnt until mason developed asthma, and i don't mean i fed him chocolate everyday but i didn't give him vitamins tablets/chews either. now its not easy getting chewy vitamins for a 2 year old, in fact most brands start at 4, so you'd have to add drops to a drink of some sort! easier said than done because 2 year olds are clever and they know when you've put something yucky in their drink but persevere and in the end they will know thats all their getting until they drink it... i know im mean! i recommend these drops here but if you go and see your health visitor they might have some to give you anyway at your 2 year check up!
2. keeping their bedroom at the right temperature will also help. not too hot and stuffy but not too cold either, i've found keeping the room on the cooler side seems to be working better. Also get a bowl of hot water and some lavender essence to put in the water and leave high up in the room out of reach. i've put this up on a shelf above the bed and do this every night. it helps to keep moisture in the room because a hot dry room isn't going to help anyone.
3.if your GP has given you a brown inhaler, use it as directed, don't miss days don't get lazy!i made this mistake because it was an issue to get my boy to take it but make it fun for him, and give him a bit of control about it. toddlers love to think their in control! mason helps me press the button every morning and night time. the brown inhaler is helping to open up his airways constantly not just when he's having an episode. my biggest tip is to use it even if they seem fine day to day. honestly though USE IT!
4. if your toddler has a cold, and believe me they will get one, and then on top of that has asthma then there are 2 things i can suggest! a) keep the mattress on their bed propped up, i've put my nursing pillow under masons so he's kinda at a 45 degree angle. this will help with any mucus that they have on their chest as they wont be lying down completely flat . and b) Vicks, vicks vicks and more vicks ! and i don't mean just put it on their chest. put it on their feet then pop socks on! and then add some onto their back. people think its just an old wives tale but honest its worked wonders!
5.finally, as hard as it is in this horrid weather get out! mason doesn't last long when it comes to running around a park for hours on end, he gets out of breath and pukes and needs his inhaler. but the more we get out and walk the stronger his lungs are getting. its hard to begin with because you can see how annoyed he is that he cant play for long, but with each trip the time he can go without his inhaler is slowly increasing. exercise truly is a powerful thing! but its all about little and often for an asthma sufferer.
remember im not an actual doctor all these tips are just from person experience, but if they've helped me look after my little mite then they might help out another little person who's suffering to help look after theirs.
my final tip is to pester your GP, it took me a year (literally a year of going to the doctors every month! like seriously!) but i have finally been referred to a specialist about masons breathing,coughing and 'asthma' and we have an appointment at the end of jan, and ill be sure to update you all.
if you have any other tips not mentioned leave them in the comment box! im more than happy to try anything that might help and you might be helping anyone else that reads them too and that is a win win situation in my eyes!
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