Dealing with fevers here in our home...ugh! So how do you other mothers get your kids to keep drinking liquids? Especially water. Jonathan, 3 1/2, is SO stubborn. When he gets sick, he won't drink. Yesterday, he ran a temp anywhere from 102 to maxing out our temporal thermometer. It read "HI", which I read in the manual meant 107.4 or above. Pretty freaky.
So, we have tried everything...gatorade, apple juice, Pedialyte disguised as apple juice, lukewarm tea, popsicles... We try different glasses hoping one of them will interest him and he'll think it's cool to drink...Clifford cup, cool cup with built in straw/handle, just a plain blue plastic glass from the camper, his Camelbak, a big sports bottle like Daddy uses...Nothing works! Of course, when he's burning up, nothing is good. This is understandable, but it reaches a point where we are frantic to get him to drink. I fed him Saltines yesterday in hopes of getting him thirsty...it sort of worked. He did drink a little. FYI, I know he doesn't have enough liquids in him because he didn't pee today until about 1pm, not even this morning when he got up.
This morning was horrible. Now he is complaining about having "stains in his mouth from drinking the green water." (clear water from his green cup, which, btw, he specifically asked for last night.) Nothing takes the "stain" away. I brushed his teeth and tongue, he rinsed with mouthwash, I gave him 1/4 of a zinc tablet, gave him water in his blue glass, gave him a juice pouch, then resorted to yelling I was so frustrated. He whined ALL morning and it drives me absolutely bonkers. I asked him if his tongue hurt and he said yes, but couldn't explain it any further. I looked at it and it just looks like it may need more brushing...it has a whiteish film on it.
OK, so suggestions on 1) how do you get your kids to keep drinking? and 2) how do you get them to get past things like Jonathan's "stains on his tongue"?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
9 comments:
Yikes... My kids are pretty good drinkers and just the thought of getting some juice makes them drink (we don't hardly ever let them have juice/soda, etc.). If they are sick and we are desperate we bribe them... drink this whole glass of water and then you can have some Sprite, or? Have you tried 7-Up or Sprite? Maybe mix juice and soda?
Reese threw up for 6 days and the doctors wouldn't give him anything to stop it and somehow we managed to keep him hydrated... just kept pushing him to drink and gave him juice mostly. An orange bendy straw helped him drink even more.
I don't know how to get them over the green tongue thing... I just try distractions... read a book, let them draw, etc. When my kids are sick I pull out all the things we don't play with everyday and let them go to town. Painting, drawing with markers, cutting with scissors (cutting up old magazines), toys they haven't seen for months, etc.
Hope this helps! Thinking of you with a sick kid--absolutely NO fun.
My daughter is like this too sometimes, but she will always drink milk. If he likes milk, even though it is not clear, it seems better than nothing, you might even dilute it a little with water. Maybe he likes fruit smoothies? I can't believe how many things you've already tried! Would he be amenable to changing the color of his tongue with a Koolaid to a different color? I hope he doesn't get dehydrated enough to need an IV. I am feeling for you.
Just keep doing what you are doing. We actually told our 4 year old when she had pneumonia and a 106 fever that she had to drink or she would have to go to the hospital and get a needle. Well that helped....she doesn't like shots, etc. She still wouldn't drink a lot but we kept a water bottle with the sport top with her and would urge her to drink about every 10 or 15 mins. I know it is hard to scare them but sometimes you have to do that sort of thing to get them to know that mommy and daddy know better. He will come around. Keep doing what you are doing. Good luck and will be keeping him in our thoughts and prayers.
Hi, I'm a blog hopper and just happened upon this blog. Pretty cool, as I'm a SAHM and it's nice to know other people deal with the same things I do. I'd say give him *anything* that sounds good to him to drink, which sounds like you've been doing. The whitish film on his tongue could be thrush. That would make his tongue hurt and his mouth feel funny. An antibiotic mouth rinse will take care of that. Good luck!
Thanks ladies! I did threaten him with the whole hospital/IV thing, "If you don't start drinking, you'll have to go to the hospital and be away from mommy and daddy for the night and they'll have to poke you with a needle to get fluids in you. It's way easier to just drink when Mommy asks you to." He drank the first time I said it, but not again. Went to bed again tonight with 103 temp. Peed 2x today, and probably ate a palm full of food all day, and maybe 12 oz drink, MAYBE...Thanks for all the suggestions. I didn't think of sprite or 7up and forgot about straws. Tomorrow is another day. I'll try them them.
Hi,
I found this blog from someone elses that I know. I hope you son gets well soon. I am very into holistic health and am wondering if you have traied any natural options. One sure fire way to get the fever down is to use peppermint oil. It has to be PURE! Most brands you find in stores cut the oil with proplyne glycol. NOT good! You can get 100% pure peppermint from Young Living Essential oils. The trick is to rub some on their tummy and foreheads. (You will want to dilute it with olive oil) Also you will want to use warm water with 1-2 drops of oil in it. Give it to them to drink. I know your sone isn't wanting to drink but if you can even get 2 sips down him it will help bring down the fever. Peppermint is a natural cooling agent and it will help his stomach to balance out. Another oil you can try is called Theives. It is a blend and it is used to naturally fight off virus/bacteria infections. Which it sounds like he has. If you would like I can mail you out a sample of these oils. When you get this and if you are interested you can email me or call me. Thepinklimosine@aol.com or 505-286-9395
I have a 18 month old girl and a 3 year old boy. My girl just had this same flu like junk last week and she was over it in 2 days via the oils. Also if you have a health foods store near you I can give you some other options. Good luck and I'll be praying for him.
-Jeanette Cronk
Thanks Joyce. Jonathan doesn't complain of a sore throat, just this silly "stain". He can't explain that, but certain things bug his mouth...acidic things like OJ, maybe even apple juice, spicy foods, honey nut cheerios (huh?!). But today at lunch he ate about 1/2 cup of those dry chow mein noodles, and he liked some pretzels today, and he drank 2 glasses of cherry kool-aid with 7-up. Tonight, he ate about 2/3 of a small burrito with refried beans and cheese, a couple pieces of tomatoes and some black olives. So he is on the mend. YAY!
You know the medicine syringes they give you at the Pharmacy? The big ones work perfect. When my 21 month old won't drink I give him a cup with water in it, and the syringe. I show him how to fill it up and then the rule is that the water only gets out by going in his mouth and then he can fill it again. We make a game out of it and it works and keeps him distracted for awhile if he isn't feeling well.
Thanks, Renee! I finally thought of that on Tuesday, when J was finally on the mend. I may need to write all the suggestions I got and put them inside my medicine cupboard!
Post a Comment