My 5 year old son is autistic. He refuses to take any sort of medicine. During the day we can hide medicine in various ways if he needs it, such as frozen in ice-lollies, mixed in yoghurts, etc. However, if he gets a fever in the night, there is no way we can coax him to take any medicine. We can’t mix it, because he doesn’t have food in the night, and he would taste it mixed in a drink (which he rarely has in the night either).
I know it’s really important to reduce fever, but it’s so difficult. He is quite prone to getting high temperatures when he gets any kind of bug.
Website content
Comments
oh sweetie he needs the meds….
i had to practically sit on my daughter when she was very young
and put the liquid in her mouth and close her nose off…it looked cruel but whatever i had to do to get that med in her i did…
she faught me tooth and nail…
keep up the good work mom…you can do it
my mother used 2 say rub vasaline on the soles of the feet-try it and see x
Try cool compresses to these points; under his arms (armpits), behind his neck, his groin area, and on the backside of his knees. Also cool sponge baths or a soak in a tepid or cool tub, though I doubt he would willingly accept this. This will rapidly reduce his temperature but obviously will not keep it down. I have read recently that a temperature from a fever can be allowed if not extreme and dangerously high, as it is the body’s natural defense against the invading infections.
Please talk with your pediatrician to verify these suggestions as acceptable in your case and Good luck!
I, too, have a child that will not take medication. Things that have worked for us are a tepid bath and rubbing alcohol on the palms. We use the bath method because I heard that the alcohol will bring the fever down too quickly and it is not as safe as the warm bath. Do not get the water too cold, just warm. Please do not use the alcohol method without asking a physician if it is safe or unsafe to use. I know people used to use that method many, many years ago, but I did hear once that it was not good to do that. If your son will not take medication to bring a fever down you do have to have alternative methods.
Yes, put him in the bathtub with tepid, not cold, water.
Or, place ice bags under his armpits, groin, and on the back of his neck. If it is cool outside take him out and sit on your porch/deck. Make a game out of these things to help him tolerate them better. Good Luck !
The cool bath works like a charm. I use this along with medication for high fevers. The kids typically don’t like it very much, since they are warm, the water seems very cold to them, but if it works for you, you can repeat the bath several times to keep the fever down
