Nasty cough

Hi


I have a nasty cough that won't go away for 2 weeks...have visited the doc but nothing is working. I can't just eat any medication because I'm breastfeeding my baby.....any advice??

I hate it when doctors do an across the board "no medicine" rule for pregnant or breastfeeding mothers. IMO this is as stupid as the opposite blindly prescribing a medicine cabinet of stuff. Of course you want to avoid unnecessary medications, and there are some that do cross the placenta or get into breastmilk. But there are other meds that do not, and also it's a risk-benefit analysis even for those that do cross over. Some meds do cross over but pose no threat whatsoever to baby (or baby may actually benefit) while in other cases the mother's need outweighs the small risk to baby or else the mom can substitute formula for just a few days while the she takes a necessary med. Of course there are cold medicines and antibiotics you could take with no harm at all to baby, and a good GP will already know what these are. If he doesn't, or if he's too lazy to look them up, you need to either switch or gently educate your doctor. (In any case, you need to figure it out for yourself and be more proactive!) One problem is that so few women BF that docs lack experience or training and aren't set up to deal with them routinely. Try to find a doc that open minded and more "user-friendly". Also, consider that you could possibly be experiencing asthma, in which case you would also need some different categories of meds. Sorry to be blunt!

Sometimes the most simple things are most effective. If you have seen your doc, he/she would have excluded any complications (chest infections etc). Why not go for the old fashioned simple linctus, steam inhalations, or over the counter cough linctus containing guafenisin (robitussin brand).


The Matilda Breast Feeding Clinic can advice you on the safety of drugs when breastfeeding.


Matilda Medical Centre - 2537 8500

9,Queen's Road Central

Matilda International Hospital

Hong Kong

http://www.matilda.org

GO SEE A PROPOER DOCTOR, DONT TAKE ANY RISKS AND GET IT SORTED BEFORE IT GETS COLDER, CONSIDER HAVING A FLU VACCINATION AS THEY ARE CHEAP AND DESPITE PEOPLE SAYING THEY DONT WORK I HAVE 6YEARS OF EXPERIENCE THAT PROVE OTHERWISE (SAFE DURING PREGNANCY)

You may go for alternative Medicine. TCM will help. YOu can consider Quality Chinese Medical Centre. Enquiry number is 28818267.

Web site is www.qualitycm.com

Thanks all. I gave up fighting and to the sino-jap hospital to see a doctor. I cannot breastfeed until I am done with my medication, but I am pumping to ensure that the flow is still there when I am ready to breastfeed again.

Hi Cloudtree, . . . I know you are fixed up now . . . but for future reference, I would "second" Ruth's suggestion to contact LLL and ask for help. The local leader can contact people up her "chain of command" to get access to the most sophisticated resources concerning BF that are available. In my personal experience, one time many years ago one of my friends needed help with figuring out the effect her very rare illness might have on BF. Her local doctor had told her that the medication she needed would preclude breastfeeding.

I put her in touch with LLL and their medical consultant said, "this is exactly the kind of thing we can help with." WIthin a few days, my friend's case had been reviewed by a more specialized medical consultant who, it turns out, was one of the most highly recognized specialists in the world in her particular illness. That guy telephone conferenced with her local doctors and explained the medical stuff to them and got them all on board with how to manage the illness (e.g. what medications were safe etc) and still be able to breastfeed. I guess what I'm saying is, LLL has tremendous depth of resources, including medical and advocacy resources, and is not just a bunch of mommies wearing hippie clothes.