It's the worst isn't it - they can't blow their nose and you can't do it for them. Arhhh the dreaded cold - but it helps to know what you can do to help. Here are five ways to ease their discomfort:
1) Use a humidifier with eucalyptus to help them breathe more easily. In winter time you've most likely got a heater going in the room which warms it up and dries out the air. This can make it harder to breathe as their little body will want to moisten their airways creating more mucus on top of what it's already creating to get rid of the virus. Putting more moisture into the air will lessen their body's need to create more and hopefully you'll both get a better night's sleep.
2) Facial massage after a bath from the top of the nose at the sides below the inner canthus of the eye and then out in a 45 degree angle towards the corners of their lips will help to improve their breathing. Massaging down their back and down their chest will help their Lung Qi to move down and not up if they are coughing. Try using sunflower oil but test a patch on their skin for an hour before you use it regularly to see if they are allergic - most likely they won't be.
3) You can tap on their Lung 7 (near styloid process on inner arm near their wrist) and Kidney 6 points (inner ankle) - see the pics. 
These will help their immune systems to fight off the virus and strengthen
their bodies to heal themselves. You can use the smooth part of a ring that is precious to you. Make sure the ring is held between your thumb and the tips of your first three fingers. Your child should only feel your fingers but the metal should be touching their skin also. This is a Shonishin technique (Children's non-insertive acupuncture) that is kinda hard to explain in words but I'm giving it a try as it works really well when done properly. You want to tap in a soft rhythmic motion up and down about ten times on each point - do this on both sides of their body for as long as they have the cold.
4) If they are old enough you can have them on a pillow so that their head is higher than their body, this will help to drain the mucus away so they can breathe more easily. If they aren't old enough you can also try saline solution up their nose to help dissolve the mucus - babies often hate receiving this however it can be beneficial at times.
5) If they are over one-year-old and they have a persistent cough - and probably a sore throat - then you can give them Chinese herbal cough mixture that I always keep in stock - it is amazing stuff that works very fast - and it's for adults and children so all can benefit. See what this mum said about it: "The cough syrup I bought from you has been AMAZING. I've tried several types of herbal / homeopathic etc cough syrup and this is the only one that has worked pretty much instantly. I would like to get some more from you for my friend who has a little girl with a persistent cough, and for my next door neighbour."
If they have been battling the cold for over a week, consider bringin them in for some acupuncture treatment as it will help their systems to become stronger to fight the virus. At their tender age it's good to let them first deal with it themselves but there does come a time when they may need some help so it's good to know where you can find it!
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