Of Colds, Coughs & Nightmares

I am sure every parent out there would be worried sick themselves whenever their child falls ill. Of course I try not to worry over a minor cough or a sneeze, but recently, Aiden has been falling ill too often to make me sit up and feel really worried. Our usually healthy, bubbly and hyperactive boy is either down with the common cold and coughing, or he'd be suffer from tummy discomfort contributing to diarrhoea and sometimes even bouts of vomiting. We refrain from bringing him outdoors for water play, and crowded places like the shopping malls for fear his condition would worsen. Luckily he is happy at home, playing with his choo choo trains, lego and riding his ybike.

What worries me is, I don't recall him falling ill so often before he turned two and before he started attending pre-school. I attributed this mainly to his interaction with other kids in school who were probably ill. It makes me feel guilty as well, as we have work commitments and are unable to withdraw him from school until he has fully recovered before sending him back. This has also taken its toil on the family as we will be awoken in the middle of the night, attending to him as he would have blocked nose or cough in his sleep. Sometimes, he would also wake up from his sleep and decides to play for a good two hours before returning to bed in the middle of the night!

We have not tried other remedies besides taking the medicine prescribed to him by his PD. But I am open to trying other methods now, hoping it would help. If any of you have any remedies to recommend, please do share with me too.

Since starting pre-school, Aiden has also been waking up screaming and crying in the middle of the night and sometimes does a continuous hitting action. It seemed like he had nightmares, and will go back to sleep after we comfort and carry him. Sometimes he would cry for an extended period, shedding tears too. I have googled for ways on helping to lessen nightmares and have tried to regularly read books with him before bed, ensuring he has his comfort blanket and favourite toys around him. Getting into a routine for bed time and having regular bed time is a huge challenge for us since birth. We usually follow his timing which is erratic and irregular. I do envy friends who can get their kids in bed before 8.30pm so they get some me-time after. But with our hectic work hours, it is good that Aiden sleeps later as we get to spend some time with him daily after we finish work.

Sleep is so precious now. These days, just seeing him sleeping soundly through the night or sleeping past ten in the morning is great joy to me.