My son has spots! Benadryl...

My son got these terrible "spots" that look like bug bites all over and they are really red and hot. I called my pediatrician (who is 45 miles away) and they said to give him 1/4 tsp of Benadryl every 4 hours. I bought the liquid children's Benadryl and it says not to use on kids under 4 years of age. Now I'm scared to use it.

Does anyone have any idea what the spots could be?

Have you ever used Benadryl on such a young baby?

By the way, I can think of NOTHING different I have done that might cause him to break out like this..

I feel horrible....I hate it when I don't know what to do for my son!

Thanks
Kina

 Did he have a fever that broke a few days ago?  I know Alex got Roseola after a fever back in the fall.  It was a reaction to his MMR shot.

Tristan had it when he was younger. The rule with that stuff is that under 4 you're supposed to get dosing instructions from your pedi. It goes back to when all that cough medicine was recalled because parents were accidentally overdosing their kids. Dosing at that age relies on weight not age.

I would give it if you trust your pedi.

Did he just have a vaccination? it could be a reaction to one, if he did. Are the spots broken open like blisters? My daughter broke out in a chicken-pox like rash aftter she had her MMR shot as a baby. Did the dr say to put any cream on them? Poor little guy :(

ETA, per the Dr's advice, I did give her benadryl and also used Aveno anti-itch cream. I think she was around 6 months old? It was a while ago.

I don't have an answer about the spots, but I had to use benadryl with my daughter when she was very young and she is fine...!! No worries!

My niece used to get that. Found out it was from perfumes and stuff on our clothing and skin. She got really bad when she came in contact with tanning oils or lotions as well. So maybe if you are using perfume or something that his skin in coming in contact with. I know we put that stuff on not even thinking about it rubbing on the baby's skin.

I usually just lurk but I went through this with my little guy.  Didn't you just switch him to regular formula. I tried to supplement my little guy with formula and he broke out horrible. He is now almost 11 months and we still cannot do formula, I have to pump and put it in a cup for his meals. Your doctors  know how much he weighs, so I would follow there dosing instructions.

I second Emily...you just switched him to regular formula instead of the soy and he may be having a reaction to it.  I'd suggest talking to your pedi and letting them know that you switched it and get their input...and follow their instructions.

I'm going to come off very rude in this post... but so be it.

1. You switched his formula without consulting his pedi (which I'm guessing you don't trust because you bluntly said you didnt inform them or call them, even though you and family are highly lactose intolerant).
2. You shouldnt be asking everyone and their momma what to do with your baby because you don't trust your pedi... call and find a new one... or be honest with the one you have.
3. Yes Benadryl is okay to give, my daughter is on zrytec because she has allergies and this causes her to be congested, however we have given her benadryl because my father and sister are extremely allergic to bug bites and because of this... our pedi decided it was best to give it to her if she got a bug bite in summer... to be safe until they can run a complete panel on her after the age of one.

You switched him from SOY to Milk Based... my younger brother was extremely allergic to milk based anything... we discovered this at the age of 6 weeks... we switched him to SOY... and he was on SOY mil****il he was 5 yrs old! He is now 13 and roughly 5'7 and shows no signs of the all the interent BS out there... He is strong and healthy and a great kid all around.

I suggest you talk to a pedi (one you trust) and be completely honest with them... and then get some true answers!

You gals are great!! There are so many on here that have real-life experience...and OHHHH the honesty!! Gotta love it!!

Anyway, I'm not going to defend my actions in any way. No point... Live and learn. The life of a first-time mom...

I did recently switch Gage from soy-based formula to regular (sensitive stomach formula actually). I did it very gradually and he had been on full regular for about 3-4 days before this happened. I had the thought myself that this could be the problem, but really thought it would happen sooner if so. I switched him back to soy, and lo and behold, hives went away.

I did give him the benadryl a few doses to ease any discomfort the hives may have been giving him. Although he seemed like they didn't bother him at all. I just thought they had to be!! From what I can tell, the 1/4 teaspoon did make him sleepy, but no other side effects that I could tell. I guess I'm just a nervous mom, especially when it comes to medications. 

Looks like I have a soy boy--for now anyway. I'm sure I'll get an earfull from his pediatrician when we go for his 4-month appt. since I didn't consult with her. But I felt like the reason she put him on soy in the first place was because I convinced her to. She acted like very few babies are really lactose intolerant.

Thanks for all your answers and advice. As usuall...right on!!
Kina