How to Face Your Child’s First Cold Like a Champ

family urgent careHaving a sick kid isn’t good for anyone. As a parent, you feel sympathetic to their current condition, yet in order to best take care of them, you need to stay healthy yourself. Doing this takes skill, practice, and the ability to multitask. And you will definitely develop these skills, because the average child catches between six and 10 colds per year. Luckily, there are a number of things you can do that will both comfort your sick kid and help them bounce back from a nasty bout of the sniffles. Here are a few ways to tackle this situation.

  1. Give Them Hot Soup
    The classics are still mentioned for a reason; they work. Now, is a bowl of your homemade chicken noodle going to cure your child of their cold? No. Getting the right food for sick kids, however, can give them the psychological edge they need to feel comfortable. The bonus to feeding them soup is that it will prived much-needed liquid to keep their body hydrated. When you’re sick, which would you prefer, a glass of water or a wonderfully warm bowl of well-seasoned soup? Still, make sure your child continues to drink water, and slowly reintroduce the idea of other foods they like.
  2. Stay Home
    This might disrupt your work schedule, but so goes the life of a parent. Staying home with your child, especially for their first bad cold, is absolutely essential for their comfort levels. At a young age, you need to be taken care of. A glass of wine and a good night sleep doesn’t (and shouldn’t!) work for kids like it does for adults. Mom or Dad need to be there at such a miserable time.
  3. Stop at a Family Urgent Care Center
    Over the counter cold medicine isn’t working, it’s the afternoon and your pediatrician’s office is closed, and the hospital is too far and expensive, what do you do? Stop at one of the nearby urgent care centers to pick up some medicine for your little one.

Parenting is a bumpy ride, something that you’ve probably realized by now, and dealing with a sick child on your own is no picnic. As long as you utilize your resources, like your fantastic cooking skills or the local family urgent care center, you will be able to handle everything just fine. Remember to wash your hands, though, and try your best to avoid getting sick yourself.