Getting A Sick Baby To Sleep

Sick babies often need to sleep but can't.

Sick babies often won’t sleep. When your baby is sick, all of those good sleeping habits seem to go out the window. The reason babies have trouble sleeping when sick is the same reason that adults do: they don’t feel good and they often have difficulty breathing. Worse, when your baby has a cough he tends to lose the pacifier pretty quickly, one less way for him to soothe himself back to sleep. Our twin boys got a cold at around five months of age, and it was a nightmare. They’d just started sleeping through the night. Things were going great. Then all of us got sick, and suddenly they couldn’t stay asleep for more than an hour. Here’s what we did, and what you can do, to get things back on track.

Getting Baby’s Nose Clear

I don’t recommend the blue bulb syringes for trying to clear out baby’s nose. It’s hard to know how deep to push these in, and most of the time you just end up irritating the nose even more. Our pediatrician recommended instead using infant saline drops (such as Little Noses) several times a day: two drops in each nostril before they eat and before they go to sleep. You don’t have to use a syringe to clear it out and the drops won’t sting. We also came to appreciate Boogie Wipes, soft little moistened tissues for gently rubbing the crusties away.

With saline drops you can provide your baby some relief, but let’s be honest, it’s not equivalent to adult blowing his or her nose. Some congestion will remain. It’s time to ask yourself: how far are you willing to go to help your sick baby?

Saline Drops

Nose Wipes

The Nosefrida Snotsucker

There’s another, more direct option for getting the snot out. Something that has 800+ reviews on Amazon, most of which give it 5 stars. I’m talking about the Nosefrida Snotsucker Nasal Aspirator.

This is a Swedish device that you can use to physically clear out your baby’s nose, not unlike a bulb syringe except you (the parent) provide the suction. In that way it seems a bit safer than other snot-suckers.

Now, this idea probably grosses you out. But is it any worse than being peed, pooped, or spit-up on by your little one? You’ve undoubtedly been through that. So bite the bullet and order this. There’s a reason it’s currently the #3 bestselling baby item on Amazon.com.

Nosefrida Aspirator

Helping A Sick Baby Breathe Easier

We took two more steps to help our sick babies breathe easier when they went to sleep. First, we purchased a humidifier for the babies’ room. Humidifiers now-a-days come in two forms: warm and cool. I don’t know much about the differences between them, only that cool-air is the newer thing and these tend to be a bit more expensive. We chose a cool-air humidifier for safety reasons, not just for the babies but for their two-year-old sister. Crane makes a series of small, quiet cool-air humidifiers for children shaped like a penguin, frog, cow, puppy, or half a dozen other animals. They’re cute and have over 3,000 reviews on Amazon, usually a good sign.

Cool Air Humidifier

Make the Baby Bed More Comfortable

Second, we elevated one side of the bed so that our babies’ heads were higher than their feet. This helps keep their airways clear of mucous, which is loosened by the saline drops. You can do this the “right” way, by lowering the setting at the foot of the bed (assuming that the crib is already at its highest setting), or you can do this the “easy” way by putting a couple of books or similar sturdy, flat objects under the head of the mattress.

Treat Your Infant’s Fever (if possible)

If your baby has a fever, he’s probably uncomfortable even with a clear nose. If your pediatrician gives the OK, you can treat your baby’s fever with a number of over-the-counter pain reliever / fever reducer products. These are usually acetaminophen- or ibuprofen-based, in liquid form, often flavored to make your infant take them. Follow the dosage instructions carefully, as these medicines tend to vary in concentration. It goes better if your infant is partly or fully inclined, and somewhat calm. Administering medicine helps if you do it a little bit at the time so that your baby can swallow it. Make sure that you wash the dropper after each dose!

You should also look into the Cold and Flu Season section of Amazon.com. They have everything you could possibly need!

Baby Advil

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