Dear Internets, can you help me?
Do any of your kids get nosebleeds? What causes it? What can be done about it? What exactly do I have to do when it happens?
Kelvin has been having them pretty often (by that I mean at least once a week). I don't much like the sight of blood, but fortunately I get "cold-blooded" enough to be cool about it. It isn't easy for me to deal with it, though, particularly when it happens in the middle of the night.Last night I was quietly typing away some blog comments when in came my son, looking like a little vampire who had just feasted on lots of blood and was wiping it from his face into his pajama sleeves and pants. There was so much blood it was almost scary! The poor half-asleep boy was complaining of boogers up in his nose and I could tell it was hard for him to breathe with all that blood tricking down his left nostril. Good thing he doesn't freak out. I had him tilt his head back, pressed a tissue to his nose so the blood stopped, and cleaned him up. I brought him back to his bed and it took him a little while to fall back asleep (during which time he asked me some complex questions such as "Why is the night longer in the winter and shorter in the summer?" Then, after I explained it to him as best as I could, "Why is the earth tilted/inclined?"). He ended up coming to my bed later and I told him he was allowed to stay "only for tonight, on account of the bleeding nose episode."
I know nosebleeds are probably caused by him sticking his finger up his nose and also because of the dry air from the heating, but sometimes it worries me. I know that some people never ever have them (like me) and others always do (my husband). Apparently it got a bit worse after he had a head on collision with another boy in church about a month ago -- his nose bled very profusely then.
I'm yet to Google this issue and I'll certainly mention it in our next visit to the pediatrician, but I thought that meanwhile I'd ask you about it.
P.S. I wrote most of this last night, but didn't want to post it so I could get a little more "mileage" out of the previous post. Good thing, since two more people commented! ;)
7 comments:
Two of my kids went through stages when they got nosebleeds. And yet, the other two of my kids have never ever got a nosebleed. Boy in Black has outgrown them (he's 18) but With-a-Why hasn't(he's 12). They seem to recover from the nosebleeds quickly -- they are more an annoyance than anything else.
One thing that works to absorb the blood -- stick a tampon up the nose.
Liam used to get quite a few nosebleeds in our old house. The ped. said they were caused by dry air and, of course, by congestion in the nose. He refuses to blow his nose--EVER--so that doesn't help. Since we moved things have gotten tons better...
Here's what we were told to do--pinch the nostrils tight to stop the blood flow and do not tilt the head back, as this causes blood to flow back into their throats--ugh.
Oiê!
Meu nariz sangrava muito, muitas vezes, durante toda minha infância, pelo que me lembro, sem razão aparente...até hoje as vezes ainda sangra, mas enfim, acho que é só botar a cabeça pra trás, com um papel higiênico e esperar passar...até hoje eu não morri! ;-)
Lembro que eu até achava divertido depois de um tempo.
dh used to nosebleed a lot as a kid. Still happens now - when he has a lot of stress!! not sure what can be done against it - we put a cold, wet washcloth into the neck, that's supposed to stop the blood from coming out.
My mom still suffers from chronic nosebleeds (almost daily), and the doctor has assured her it's a result of the dry air in any home's air conditioning system. The fix: a cool mist humidifier in the bedroom. This adds moisture to the air, which lessens the potential for the nostrils to dry up. There's also an over the counter treatment for them as well... I can't remember the name at the moment, but if you're interested, I can get it from my mother. I hope you're able to get some relief for your son, chronic nosebleeds can be quite a nuisance.
When I lived it the northeast I heard of people getting nosebleeds in the winter due to the dry air from heating your home. One solution, other than a humidifier, is to rub a little Vaseline in the nostrils to keep them from drying out too much and causing bleeds.
I used to bleed a lot when I was a kid as well, it went away. It's very common in children bcs their blood vessels are more delicate.
BUT, I must say this, blame vet school - please don't tilt his head back, we now know that's the wrong thing to do. What you should do is simply pinch his nose rigth under the bridge, that's where the blood vessel is that is usually to blame. Constant pressure will stop the bleeding. If you tilt his head he'll probably swallow the blood, and while it's not harmful per se, blood in the stomach can induce nausea and even vomit. And why risk his aspirating it? If the weather is very dry moisturising the inside of his nostrils with a bit of vaseline or something similar may help as well. If the bleeding lasts for more than, say, 5 min, apply something cold to the nose.
Sorry, but I had to say it, don't be mad!
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