"Does she have allergies?"

It is inevitable. Every time I put my daughter into a new aquarium of preschoolers (camp, play group, school), she gets a cold. I know better than to send her to school, or swim lessons in the summer, if she has had a fever overnight, or is lethargic and just not herself. This time, she just woke up over the weekend congested and she sneezed out a lot of clear "gook," but nothing else was different. Her activity level and appetite remained the same. So, on Monday, I sent her to preschool equipped with tissues and a small bottle of hand sanitizer. I even reviewed proper respiratory etiquette with her. I went home and waited by the phone in case the teachers wanted to send her back to me. Her preschool is only 2 hours in duration, but it could feel like a long time to a sick kid. No phone call on the first day, or any day thereafter for the next 2 weeks. She continued with swim, gymnastics/dance, and soccer without a problem. Just on day 13 of her cold, a politely phrased question was posed to me by two of her teachers when I dropped her off, "Does she have allergies, maybe? It's been 2 weeks already with this sneezing." I replied confidently, "No, I don't think so. I have allergies, but she doesn't. It's really just a cold. She's much better now, really." Granted I've noticed that her mucus changed from clear to yellow to green, but, again, she never had a fever and no other symptoms. Remember that the color of one's mucus is not a tell-tale sign that antibiotics are needed. Colored "gook" could mean that the viral infection is actually getting better. I just persisted about getting her to blow her nose so that it didn't become a sinus infection (easier said than done) and to drink a lot of fluids. More importantly, I did not cave and bring her to the pediatrician. Gradually, her sneezing only occurred in the morning upon awakening. Then the noisy breathing and "gook" production stopped altogether. After three weeks with the common cold, she's been happy as a clam, and without allergies. It also turns out my daughter wasn't the only kid with a cold in her class.

Colds do take a while to cure, but medicine will not speed up the process. It just takes a "tincture of time," lots of rest and fluids, and good drainage of the nose. We didn't use the saline drops and bulb syringe that I bought, but these can help with clearing the nasal passages. Finally, to prevent your child from spreading or catching a cold, teach him/her good respiratory etiquette and proper handwashing techniques. Know the signs and symptoms of the common cold, and be prepared to give a lot of hugs and kisses.