5 Tips For Comforting A Child With Bronchitis

The Chillow helped my son when he had a fever.

It's been a rough nine days in my house. My son, who is NEVER sick, was running a 102 degree fever for 8 days. At first, the doctor thought it was a simple virus. When his temp hit 104.8 two nights later, I freaked, although the doctor on call didn't. She started him on an antibiotic. When he still wasn't any better, another pediatrician at the practice diagnosed him as having “bronchitis and 'recovering pneumonia'.” It turns out that two viruses are fighting for control of my poor Teen. She prescribed two more antibiotics which, THANK GOD, have brought down his fever, although he's starting on a steroid today to stop his wheezing.

Making him comfortable throughout this has been a challenge. Here are 5 things I've been doing which seem to be helping:

1. Eucalyptus oil – A few drops of this on his pillow seem to make him cough less. I did when when my kids were babies and I couldn't rub Vicks on their chest.
   
   
2. Using the Chillow when a child has a fever – When I reviewed the Chillow (read about it here), I suggested it might be helpful for a feverish child and it certainly was. The coolness of the Chillow helped him on very restless nights. It's now part of my arsenal whenever anyone is running hot.
   
   
3. Ovaltine – Junior has not been eating much at all. Ovaltine was my go-to drink when my son was growing up and refused to eat fruits and veggies. Yes, it contains sugar but it also has 12 vitamins and minerals. It's one of those “comfort drinks” from when my son was little. I mixed it in with whole milk (because he needs the calories right now) and I'm happy that at least he's getting some nutrition in addition to the seltzer he lives on and, thankfully, has been drinking throughout this ordeal. For more on Ovaltine, click here.
   
   
4. Salt water in the nebulizer – Although the doctor has Junior on Albuterol, at the first cough, I usually put salt water in our nebulizer and start the kid on that every few hours. The steam is comforting. I follow that up, at night, with the vaporizer. 
   
   
5. Some fresh air – Junior has been weakened by this illness, but getting him out, just for a walk around the perimeter of the house, clears his head a bit. Plus, since being sick for so long is just plain depressing, it reminds him that there is life outside this house that he'll soon be a part of again.

He just announced he's bored. GOOD! If he can tell me that, it's time that he begins, gradually, to get back to really living. Later on, I'll take him for soccer cleats and a new backpack. High school starts next week and he needs to be ready. The bronchitis and pneumonia will soon be an unpleasant memory. These viruses have robbed him of two weeks of Summer vacation. It's time for us to re-claim what's left of this season before we move on to the next. 

Product Review: Soothsoft Mini Chillow

One of the more annoying byproducts of menopause is the hot flash. It's like someone instantly turned on a heater and you wonder why everyone around you isn't sweating. I haven't had too many hot flashes, but now that I'm getting at least one every night, it's getting on my nerves. I sleep with a fan on and make sure I have a bottle of ice water on my nightstand before I go to bed, but I've been curious about a product I'd seen advertised that supposedly helps with hot flashes.  It's called the  Chillow and it's a water-cooled cushion that contains memory foam to keep you cool without electricity. I'd read mixed reviews on Amazon, but with Summer coming up and the prospect of being even hotter and more uncomfortable, I bought, not the full one, but the less-expensive Mini model.

When you get it, you have to fill the Chillow up with water. This is the trickiest part because you will spill some. The trick is to hold the opening up with one hand while filling the product with the other hand. Then, after the foam absorbs the water, you carefully squeeze the air out during which you spill even more water. I had to squeeze the air out twice to have the Chillow look like it's supposed to in the instructions. You let the thing “rest” for four hours before using and, to get it even cooler, can put it in the refrigerator for up to 30 minutes before using.

After using the Mini Chillow for about a week now, I can tell you that it is not like putting your head on something uncomfortably cold; rather, it is cool to the touch. Since I don't have a hot flash until the middle of the night, I keep the product next to my bed and only use it when I wake up. This way, it's cool when I need it since I'd read that it can absorb body heat, just not as fast as a pillow. It does have a kind of weird, burnt smell that threw me off the first night or two that I used it, but that smell has subsided. Using it with a pillow case, obviously, raises the temperature a bit, however, since I don't mind sleeping on the plastic side of it, I sleep directly on it.

Does it help with the flashes? Yes. It is a “cure all” for them? No. I understand from some of the reviews on Amazon that the product tends to leak or smell funny after a year, but for under $20, I'm willing to spend that for something that helps me sleep. Also, I could see this helping one of the kids when they're running a fever since the temperature is quite soothing.

Try it if you have hot flashes at night. It's a nice, non-electronic, non-medicated way to help with these pesky byproducts of menopause. 

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