bad cold in first trimester

[Anonymous]

Hi - I'm 11 weeks pregnant, and have been suffering through a terrible cold (maybe flu?) these past few days. Of course, now that I'm on the upswing, I'm questioning the actions I took while in the midst of delirium. I have a terrible cough, and took a bit of Robitussin DM one night in order to be able to breath without coughing. I also took some Tylenol to keep my fever down. And I'm popping throat lozenges like there's no tomorrow.

I know I'm paranoid, but as a first timer, all these thoughts keep running through my head. Did the Robotussin hurt my baby? Does coughing so hard do any harm?

Anyone else been there or have thoughts/advice?

Thanks very much.

[Anonymous]

I think all of those things are fine. Tylenol is definitely ok and I believe cough drops don't present any problems either. My OB recommended plai Robitussin over Robitussin DM, but DM has no known side effects and some OBs have it on their green light list (see Reiter Hill & Johnson's website under FAQ for Expectant Moms). You should probably check with your OB, but this is probably not cause for alarm or sleepless nights. You should probably also stop the meds as soon as you think you are able.

[Anonymous]

You'll be fine. all of those were on my recommended medicines list from my OB.

[Anonymous]

My OB told me I could take all those and Sudafed when I got my terrible cold, also at 11 weeks. I know what you mean about being paranoid, though. The only thing I ended up taking was one Sudafed, and I felt guilty right after I swallowed it. I also had a really violent cough, and my OB said not to worry about it. Now I'm 22 weeks, and everything has been fine with the baby. I STILL have the sniffles and a bit of a cough, though.

[Anonymous]

Oh my... me too. I did the same thing. I had a horrible cold, and my OB said motrin was okay for a few times, as was tylenol. She said it was more impt to keep the fever down, which it did well. For some reason, my OB says no menthol in cough drops, which is weird and frankly, I haven't asked why. But really, I have heard of NO ONE else saying that... I'm on the upswing, but I completely feel your pain. I was around 9 weeks when it first hit me.

[Anonymous]

A good non-med treatment for a cold is the saline nasal spray. You have to work to really get it up in there but it helps to loosen stuff up so you can blow it out. Also, steamy showers help too. And sleep! I'm on cold number 6 of this pregnancy and miserable. I'm taking robitussin, sudafed, and now antibiotics because it just won't go away.

good luck!

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks very much, everyone. It really helps to hear from others who have been in the same situation! Now if I could just get rid of this darn cough.