Parenting from September to March is significantly harder in my house than the happy days of April to August. And it’s because of the F-word.
Not that F-word. The three-letter one.
Flu season has wreaked havoc on my family (and my will to live) since our first of three kids was born four years ago. The kids go from one infection to the next with little break– although they are thoughtful enough to mix it up between cold, cough, stomach flu, and even a bit of Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease to keep things interesting. The faucet of runny noses and vomit-stained laundry turns on in September and continues until March.
But I blame myself for this suffering. I didn’t come to the fight prepared. I disregarded all the tips and advice and figured I’d just wing it. How bad could a couple sleepless nights of cleaning up vomit be? Well, turns out, it’s really, really bad because it’s not just a couple sleepless nights. It’s more like six months of sleepless nights and not just cleaning up vomit but every other bodily fluid that can be secreted by three tiny humans.
Four years in though, I’m ready. I know all the tips. I have all the drugs. I am a warrior prepared to battle. And in this post I share my most effective weapons. But first a necessary disclaimer: I am not a doctor. This is not medical advice. These are remedies our family have used to alleviate the suffering of toddler flu season, after consulting with our doctors. Please do the same and use common sense. Above all, our kids get the flu vaccine. These are remedies above and beyond that, however.
Meds
My naive first-time-parent self avoided meds during flu season. I didn’t want to “poison” my children with the trappings of Big Pharma. We would make it through flu season with prayer, good thoughts, and turmeric milk. Fast forward four years, I just checked out of an Amazon cart of every child-safe cold, flu, and virus drug on the market. Here are my faves:
- For pain, Tylenol or Ibuprofen in the appropriate doses after talking to your doctor. Don’t be afraid: this will buy you at least three hours of uninterrupted sleep and relief from flu-related body-aches and sore throat.
- For cough and cold (which is the leading cause of sleeplessness from September to March in my home), I swear by the Zarbees line of natural, children meds. I don’t know what concoction of natural goodies these magicians put into this happy juice, but it perfectly coats the throat with honey to prevent coughing, has a touch of melatonin to knock the kids out, and then some other combination of what I imagine is the juice of shrivelfigs, four daisy roots, and well-shaken wormwood. The end result is a potion that will buy you at least five hours of sleep on a night of flu-dom. Zarbees also has a great and safe chest rub and an infant line that is honey and melatonin-free but just as effective.
- Finally, for vomiting and stomach flu, I have on a couple occasions with Baby 3 (when vomiting was non-stop) resorted to over-the-counter Ondansetron after speaking to her doctor. It stopped the vomiting. When the baby’s asleep, I’m asleep, and then once again enters peace and happiness in the world. I mourn the days I missed out on this elixir with babies one and two and opted instead to sit in puddles of vomit all night.
Sip the Liquid Gold
I swear by both homemade chicken stock/broth and herbal tea during flu season. Sure, there’s no proof that either works but both are delicious, feel good on the throat, keep you hydrated, and at least make you think you’re curing yourself. For homemade chicken broth, we make a large vat at the beginning of flu season and freeze it in mason jars, taking it out as needed by defrosting, warming, and adding salt and pepper. The kids drink it straight from a mug or as a soup with noodles added to it. It’s the perfect drink and meal for sick days.
For recipes, simply do a google search and pick what is easiest for you. You can’t go wrong. Herbal teas can similarly be made up to a week in advance and kept in the fridge. I give it to the toddlers (not baby) with honey mixed in. Again, do a google search to find a recipe that sounds appealing to you. There are hundreds.
Take a trip to the tropics
OK, not really. But at least get a humidifier that will make you feel like you’re there. I know this sounds basic, but for the first few years of momhood, I was running a dinky little thing that didn’t do the trick at all. Folks, you need to bring in the big guns for flu season. Currently I use the mammoth Air O Swiss Boneco Ultrasonic Humidifier. It takes the room straight from Detroit to Miami and gets us to the humidity level we need to make it through the night. In other words, if your toddler isn’t waking up with hair like Monica from that one Friends episode, the room is not humid enough.
Get the mucus out
If cold and cough is what you’re dealing with, attacking the source of misery helps. Get some mucus out of baby’s system before bedtime. Suction bulbs work like magic, but because my mom swears they will ruin my child’s nose, a nose rub with warm water on your hands while baby is upright also surprisingly turns on the runny nose faucet for a good long while as mucus drains out. Saline drops also work when blockage is severe, and relief is necessary to get toddler to fall asleep.
Screen time
I have saved the most crucial, life-saving, and potent tip for last: when all else fails, turn to the interwebs. One sprinkle of dust from the YouTube fairies, and all symptoms are forgotten and ailments cease to exist. Let Peppa do what she was made to do while you nap.
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