Our daughter Nya has struggled with respiratory issues for the past year. When she gets a cold, it not only lingers, but she has difficulty breathing. She has not been formally diagnosed as asthmatic but likely has it. This has resulted in three ER visits and even having to call 9-1-1.
I recommend seeing a doctor first and foremost. From our experience, it appears as though she's not `sick enough' to warrant more help from specialists and should outgrow it, so what have we done to help her? We have been trying to be very proactive in strengthening her immune system and removing triggers.
Here are the changes we have made with positive results:
1. Air purifier. We have it running in her room for 12 hours a night. It has the best filter on it to remove allergens and airborne germs.
2. Dust mite covers. They are on her pillow case and her mattress. You can also use a Norwex mattress cleaner.
3. Probiotics. She takes them daily to help her gut lining protect her body.
4. Naturopath. She had a blood test done to check for intolerances. This was expensive and I wish we had just removed the usual suspects from her diet. The results indicated that she struggles with gluten, dairy and potatoes. We have removed most of these from her diet to help rebuild her gut lining.
5. Chiropractor. Her upper body is very tight and tense. We have seen a chiropractor to help her upper body to relax so that if she has a cold, she can fully expand her ribs to help cough.
6. Vacuum frequently. We've even removed carpet in one of our rooms and put tiles in instead.
7. Wash hands frequently. We did this before but are much better at doing this after being out in public (grocery carts, church, play dates).
8. Put stuffed animals in the dryer every week. This helps to get rid of dust mites and therefore reduce allergens.
It's hard watching your child struggle and it's stressful not knowing what to do. Hopefully if you've been looking for answers, this will be one place to start. I'd also love to hear if you've found something that works for you!
Love,
Louise
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