How to Relieve Children’s Discomforts of Clogged Nose Caused by a Runny Nose

My son was so restless last night.  Usually, he sleeps at around 9 o’clock but last night he’s irritable, he had a runny nose that every time he tried to lay down to sleep he found it difficult to breathe.  Actually, if he just knows how to blow his nose, he won’t have problem breathing.  Many times we taught him how to blow his nose so he will be relieved but he just can’t get it, he’s doing the other way around. 

We have no available nasal spray so my husband carried him in an upright position making him rest his head on my husband’s shoulder.  Somehow he was relieved and fell asleep.  My husband put him on bed with his head and back supported by pillows making him sleep in a slightly sitting position.

Clogged nose is the common problem my children encountered since they were small and for parents it’s a big problem because it makes children irritable and restless at night giving us less sleep and worst they want to be carried all night.   

Today, there are nasal sprays and decongestants available in the market to help relieve clogged nose for children but I don’t use them unless prescribed by pediatrician.

 Aside from these prescribed medicine, we have practiced the following natural method to relieve our children the discomfort of having a clogged nose caused by a simple cold:

-          Make the child sleep  in a slightly sitting position (just what we did last night)

-          Get rid of the stuff that clogs the nose, for bigger children this will be easy because they already know how to blow their nose.   For infants, a small suction equipment is available in the market.  I have bought one once but have not used it because I was afraid I might damage my child’s nose so instead of using it, my husband sucked our child’s nose.  It’s gross and I don’t have the guts to do it, but it’s effective.  I remember my mother doing it also on my brother before. Hmmm, my stomach's turning upside down by the mere thought of it.

-          Wrapping the child’s head with a cloth or towel leaving only the face exposed.  I don’t know what’s the reason behind this but it’s effective.  I got this idea from my mother.  She used to wrap our head before whenever we have difficulty breathing because of clogged nose caused by cold.

-          Rub the soles with a vaporub and put the socks on.  I read this information from the internet and it works not only for clogged nose but also for cough.

-          Soak a cotton ball in eucalyptus oil and put it near the child’s bed but not so close to the child because eucalyptus has a strong aroma and irritating to the eyes.  This was advised by my children’s pediatrician and we tried it when our children were still below 1 year old and this also worked.     

These remedies are based on our personal experience and may be used for reference only.  It is always best to consult your doctor.