Oh friends, pertussis is a whole different beast.
We walked through it at the start of this school year, and it gave me both a pause and a big slice of humble pie. I’ve been asked a lot, “Where did you get it?” I have my theories, but that’s not the point of this blog. My goal here is to share what we noticed, what actually helped, and how we navigated each phase—so you can feel prepared, not panicked.

I hope it’s helpful. ❤️

It looked like a regular cold… until it didn’t.

If you’re reading this because the cough at your house suddenly turned… different—you are not alone. I’m a holistic practitioner, an avid researcher, and (most importantly) a mom who went through whooping cough. I respect medical freedom and I like a plan. Below is exactly how pertussis showed up in our home, what I wish I had known on Day 1, what we did in each phase, what helped, what didn’t move the needle much, and how we navigated testing, school, and antibiotics.

What is Whooping Cough (Pertussis)?

In plain language: pertussis is a very contagious cough illness caused by Bordetella pertussis. It tends to show up in stages, which is why it can fool you at first and then hang on far longer than a regular cold.

The 3 phases (how it often plays out)

Phase 1 — “Looks like a cold” (days 1–14)
This is the tricky one. My LO showed VERY mild cold like symptoms.

Runny or stuffy nose, sneezing
Mild, dry cough that’s not constant yet
Low fever (or none)
Sometimes watery eyes, sore throat, reduced energy
Kids are most contagious here, and it’s the easiest phase to miss.

Phase 2 — “The cough changes” (weeks 2–6+)
This is when most parents realize it’s not a common cold bug.

Paroxysms: coughing comes in clusters/fits, often worse in the evening/first half of the night
A long out-breath followed by a sharp breath in (the classic “whoop”) — some children don’t whoop
Post-tussive vomiting (throwing up after a fit) or gagging on mucus. Unfortunately, this was constant day and night for us.
Face may flush or look a little bluish around mouth during a fit; eyes water
Between fits many kids act fairly normal, then the next wave hits. They can come every 45-90 mins as the mucus pools again.

Phase 3 — “Recovery phase, but slow” (weeks 3–10+, sometimes longer)

Fits gradually space out and soften of the fits at night
A new cold activate the cough into paroxysms phase for a bit. This is why its so important to keep up with your lung recovery protocol and immune supports.
Energy and appetite generally improve first; the cough is the last to leave

Infant note (important): babies may not whoop. Watch for pauses in breathing, color changes (blue/gray), poor feeding, difficulty waking, or a very quiet/weak cry. Those are red flags . This can escalate quickly!

👉 Curious about DTaP and want informed, balanced guidance? Jamie Arroyo at Hopewell is excellent—her IG is here.

**To test or Not…**

Here’s how it really went down at our house, the cough changed. I did what most moms do—ran through the list in my head: croup? RSV? just a bad cold? But then came the gasp/whoop after a long out-breath and the vomit after a fit—classic pertussis. Waiting to “see” or delaying a test would’ve only made school, siblings, and care decisions harder. So this is when you pivot and seek help. Don’t let your crunchy self be too prideful to get the answers you need.

How We Knew to Test (and Why)

Phase 1 looked like a basic cold… until it didn’t. Around day 10–12 the cough changed—tight fits, worse after bedtime, and one bout of vomiting after a fit. That shift was my cue to take her in. Some families skip testing and treat at home—that’s valid. For us, school started in two days and we didn’t want to bring this around. Plus, my older kid had shared drinks with the little one, so household exposure was likely. Testing gave us answers for care, school, and protecting other families.

Testing options:

Respiratory Pathogen Panel (RPP): a lab PCR panel that checks multiple bugs at once. Some RPPs include pertussis; many don’t—always ask what’s on their panel.
Stand-alone pertussis PCR: if pertussis isn’t on the RPP, request a nasopharyngeal (NP) PCR for pertussis as a separate test. This can take a couple days to get back thogh, and time is of the essence when figuring out if its pertussis to treat according.
BioFire SpotFire (if clinic has it): a rapid, in-office PCR platform some practices use for same-visit results on common respiratory pathogens. Helpful for fast clarity( you can get results in 20-30 min!).
If your in Middle TN, I can’t recommend Hopewell enough—ask what rapid options they currently offer and how they handle pertussis testing specifically.

“Do I need to test every cough?”

Short answer: no. Most coughs are not pertussis. I lean toward testing when several of these line up:

We’re past day 7–10 and the cough is getting more intense, not less.
The cough has a pattern: fits/clusters, often worse at night.
Post-tussive vomiting (throwing up after a fit) or a noticeable “whoop.”
Known exposure, or close contact with infants/medically fragile folks.
School/daycare timing where a postive will help us make good decisions.

Just a heads up If your test is positive

Pertussis is reportable. Your pediatrician/lab must notify the state health department, and you can expect a call.

What they’ll cover: reducing spread (especially to babies), school/daycare return timing and paperwork, and guidance for close contacts (e.g., a young infant).
What they might ask: when symptoms started, any infants/pregnant people in close contact, school attendance dates, whether anyone else at home is coughing, and whether treatment started.
Good to know: policies vary by state. It’s okay to ask, “What exactly is shared, with whom, and what are our options?” In some places, they may notify the school or close contacts with general guidance. Keep it short and kind.
Simple script: “We’re on day __ of cough. We’re following home precautions and treatment and school guidance. Please let me know exactly what you need from us.”

As a medical-freedom, non-vax mama, I wanted to know this before testing—hopefully helpful if you decide to test (which I don’t regret doing!).

**Antibiotics or Not?**

What we chose + why

I don’t take antibiotics lightly. We eat clean, I’m pro–gut health, and we use natural supports first whenever we can. But I’m also a mom who knows that there can be a time and place.

Heres What we did:

Started Our 10-year-old (pre-symptoms, high exposure) on 5-day azithromycin course
School was two days away, and she’d shared drinks with her sister, and you can pretty much guess anyone in the home is exposed because of how contagious pertusiis is, so we treated it as a direct exposure. We decided on a 5-day azithromycin course (compounded dye-free) for a few simple reasons:
- Stop the spread quickly. Starting early helps shut down contagiousness so we’re not sending germs into a classroom, and she did not want to miss weeks of school. azithromycin also ramps down B. pertussis by blocking bacterial protein synthesis. When started early (or right after exposure),your usually considered no longer contagious after 5 full days of treatment.
- Catch the bacteria before it spreads and damages the cila. If you treat before the paroxysmal phase really takes hold, there’s a chance to blunt the intensity/duration of what’s coming. It’s not a guarantee, but early is when antibiotics have the best shot not when the fits have started.
Unfortunately, our 6-year-old was already in the paroxysmal “fit” phase before we caught it 😩
Antibiotics don’t turn off the cough or STOP the paroxysmal phase if caught in phase 2. Pertussis is sneaky! early on, the bacteria release toxins that irritate and damage the cilia (the tiny sweepers in the airways). By the time the big coughs shows up, that irritation is what’s driving the fits. Killing the bacteria at this point doesn’t erase the toxin effect, so the cough typically doesn’t shorten or stop just because you add an antibiotic.( which honestly sucks!) They will just stop spreading to others which may still be worth it for some families. Since we were able to isolate at home, we chose to skip antibiotics, and kept her home for 31 days.

👉 Without treatment, people can spread for 21 days after cough begins! After 5 days of appropriate antibiotics, most are considered no longer contagious.

If you do choose antibiotics

Ask your pharmacy or use a compound pharmacy for a dye-free, option of the antibiotic
Join the JoyWell Membership for my favorite, most comprehensive guide to supporting your body during/after antibiotics. Goes beyond just take a probiotic. Take a look: Here

If you don’t choose antibiotics

Plan to be home, and away from others for awhilllllle. look at it like connection, reset time 😅
Double down on mucus management (steam, saline, percussion, wedge) and your vitamin C plan( more below👇)
Be ready for a 6+ week sleepover and Keep a night station ready (humidifier, red light, lined “spit bowl,” saline, homeopathy etc) more below
No sharing cups/utensils, separate towels, frequent hand-washing.

So to recap👇

Phase 1 — Catarrhal (“looks like a cold”)

What we started-

We rotated my favorite immune supports from this list here, and find more at my amazon storefront depending on what your symptoms are. I break things into categories and you can save 20% on supplements at my dispensary!

Phase 2 — Paroxysmal (“the fits”)

Goals: thin & move mucus, keep oxygen up, support the nervous system, take care of yourself!

What had been an annoying dry cough morphed into the classic pattern: cough–cough–cough… gasp( will sound like a whoop), and for us, vomiting afterward from the force of it. The fits came in waves, especially after bedtime. This wasn’t croup or a random URI anymore; it was that sticky, back-to-back paroxysm you feel in your gut the second you hear it.

[Listen here to the sound I’m talking about—this short clip will help you tell it apart from croup or a typical cold cough.]

Note for infants: babies don’t always make the “whoop.” Their tell can be apnea (pauses in breathing), color change (pale/blue), poor feeding, or exhaustion after coughing. If you see any of that, get medical care promptly.

What we started right away when we got the positive

High dose Vitamin C-
I followed Dr. Suzanne Humphries’ guide (linked here) and then adjusted to my child. The suggested, spaced doses per her weight didn’t touch the cough. Daytime and evenings were intense and mucus was thick, so I switched to small, frequent doses and went higher overall. It can feel odd to give such a little body so much vitamin C, but at peak I dosed about every 30–45 minutes.
I also front-loaded the last 2–3 hours before bed so there was vitamin C active in her bloodstream for the rough stretch (usually before midnight). Yes, it felt like a job—but it made a difference.
Over 3 months, we only hit bowel tolerance twice. That told me her tissues were using what I gave to fight the infection as fast as it arrived.
Whooping cough isn’t just a bad cough; Bordetella toxins injure the airway lining and the tiny hair-like cilia (your built-in “mucus sweepers”). When cilia are stunned or damaged, mucus sits thicker and lower in the chest, and the body has to use harder, back-to-back coughs to move it. That’s the paroxysmal phase we all recognize—cough, cough, cough, gasp, sometimes vomit.
Vitamin C doesn’t kill B. pertussis, but it supports the airway environment so your child can cope better while healing. It helps buffer toxin-driven irritation, supports epithelial repair, and keeps secretions less sticky so they’re easier to move. That’s why consistent small, frequent doses mattered for us more than a single big dose. In peak infection, kids can burn through vitamin C quickly; if they aren’t hitting bowel tolerance and symptoms are still strong, it can mean their tissues are using what you’re giving—tighten the interval or up the dose within the framework.
What I learned with dosing C
My child “burned through” sodium ascorbate very quickly. She almost never reached bowel tolerance—only twice the entire illness. That means vitamin C was being taken up by tissues/immune cells, with little left to “spill” into the intestines (that “spill” is what causes loose stools). Because she wasn’t hitting tolerance and fits were still strong, I surpassed the weight-based starting total; some days, I went close to double (divided into micro-doses).
- If you’re not reaching bowel tolerance and symptoms are intense. keep dosing—either tighten the interval (e.g., from every 60 min back to every 30–45 min) or slightly increase the amount per micro-dose, staying within a reasonable interpretation of the protocol’s ranges for your child.
- If you do reach bowel tolerance (loose stool). that’s your ceiling for that moment. I backed down by reducing the next dose by ⅓–½ or widening the next interval (e.g., 45 → 60–75 min). If symptoms crept back (awful night or daytime coughs), I returned to the higher dose.
- Gut cues before true tolerance. even though she only hit true tolerance twice, I sometimes heard gurgly belly or noticed smelly gas. That was my cue to back down a notch (e.g., from ½ tsp every 45 min → ¼–⅓ tsp at the same interval, or keep ½ tsp but stretch the next dose to 60–75 min). If the cough ramped again, I went right back up.
How high/frequent we actually went at peak (for my child). at one point I was dosing ½ tsp sodium ascorbate every 45 minutes during the worst window. (Powders vary—check your brand’s milligrams per ¼ or ½ tsp so you know what you’re truly giving.) I kept a log in my Notes app; it prevented under-dosing AND not missing a dose on peak days.
Why we used sodium ascorbate (and quick thoughts on other forms)
We used this sodium ascorbate (This One ) because it’s buffered and gentler on the tummy for frequent dosing. With how often I needed to dose, this mattered for us. Ascorbic acid (unbuffered) can work, but it’s acidic; with high frequency, many kids get upset tummies and may be hard to discpher if its from hitting tolerance or the form. If it’s all you have, you can briefly “buffer” it (let a tiny pinch of baking soda finish fizzing), but taste/tolerance can be tricky.
A note on Food-based C (camu camu, acerola, “whole-food C” blends) these can be great for daily wellness, but in pertussis peaks it’s usually not enough. You can’t hit or precisely titrate the higher milligram amounts with food-C without a pile of capsules, and you lose the ability to make small adjustments. I kept food-C as a daytime add-on for lung and airway recovery in phase 3.
How I actually gave the doses
I mixed each micro-dose into a very small splash of grape juice (just enough to cover the taste) and gave it with a stainless-steel oral syringe (these work). I did not dump vitamin C into a big water bottle to sip. Ascorbate in solution breaks down over time and you can’t track how much they truly took. Fresh, small, immediate doses worked best for us.
I get it though- we have real life with school and busy days even if you choose the antibiotic route and your child is back in class, you still want steady dosing so vitamin C stays available in the tissues. When we left the house, I packed a tiny “C kit”. Pre-measured powder in a small jar with a lid, the syringe, and a mini bottle of grape juice. I mixed a quick dose on the spot and kept going. If it helps your situation, ask the school nurse to give a mid-day dose from your kit. I loved these stainless steel shot glasses for easy dosing.
Other supports I layered in
Demulcents (soothing the airway lining)
- We used our homemade flax-seed syrup with calm drops (>1 yr) → [flax video ] and [ calm drops]
  This helped her coat that irritated throat and made the cough feel less sharp between fits, and able to settle after a fit
Hydration + minerals (to thin and move mucus)
- We rotated broth, throat coat tea with licorice, and electrolytes → [ fav electrolytes .
  Keeping fluids up helped her secretions stay looser and kept energy steadier on low-appetite days.
Comfort measures
- We ran a cool-mist humidifier and added briotech- (Code TWF TO SAVE $ ) air by her bed, did so many shower steam during the day and especially at night before bed, and used saline spray/ propolis spray → [humidifier link] [Nasal Sprays].
  The moisture helped her airway feel less dry and made mucus easier to move.
Calm the nervous system( for both of us!)
- We used Calm Drops (marshmallow + lemon balm) → [Calm Drops link].
  This helped her settle so every little tickle didn’t set off another round.
  Steam showers (we did 3–6/day on worst days🙃. always one before bed
  Postural drainage & gentle percussion before sleep ( read more in this blog)
  Nebulzing:
- What we used-
  - Handheld Mister: this is what I used after fits in the middle of the night. its so quiet and was really helpful to soothe and thin the mucus membranes after a fit
  - Home compressor neb: Much more powerful and can deliver the solution much more effectively

Solutions we used

Quinton Isotonic saline soultion — I personally love taking this medicinal cold-microfiltered seawater with a full spectrum of trace minerals and electrolytes in a balance similar to our extracellular fluid—both nebulized in small amounts, and taken orally daily, because it feels deeply replenishing and mineral-nourishing ( Find Here)
- How much: 2–3 mL per session (standard neb cup fill).
- When: Right after a fit (to soothe and re-hydrate the airway) and before bed as part of our routine.
- Why: Moisture thins secretions and takes the “sandpaper” feel off the airway
Sterile Saline (3%) — Find here
- How much: 2–3 mL
- When: mostly at bedtime for us to help us moisten, thin, and soothe mucus and airways
NAC (N-acetylcysteine) — No fillers! We only use this one
- What: Do not DIY from capsules—those aren’t sterile for lungs.
- How much: a pinch! we used 1/8 in sterile saline
- Why: NAC breaks down thick mucus—think de-clumping so it moves.
- Watch-fors: If you hear wheezing/tightness, stop and go back to saline; some kids get a little bronchospasm with NAC.

We never added vitamin C, essential oils, or colloidal silver to the neb. Silver is a common suggestion, and I explain here why we dont personal nebulize this soultion
A common day of nebulizing for us
we did about 5-15 min depending

Morning: 2–3 mL saline (compressor) to start the day to loosen thick stuck mucus. If she sounded extra thick, NAC with saline
Late afternoon: 2–3 mL sterile saline or isotonic before the evening “window” to get ahead of it.
Before bed: 2–3 mL saline ( if gunky with NAC) then our gargle → hum → gentle lymph→ percussions routine
vagus + airway support before bed
Vagus-calming work (gargling, humming, slow nasal breathing) helps flip the body into a more parasympathetic state, which turns down cough reflex sensitivity and eases that “tickle → fit” spiral. Gentle lymph massage + diaphragmatic breathing improve drainage and chest movement, so mucus clears more easily and the airway feels less reactive, especially at bedtime.
- Gargle (we used oral swish from briotech- code TWF): this helped her calm the throat and gave a quick rinse to the back of the airway.
- Hum a song together: the vibration and long exhale helped her airway relax and helped with vagal tone
- Lymph massage with our herbal infused soothing salve (jawline → sides of neck → above collarbones): a minute or two of light strokes helped her drainage so things didn’t feel as “stuck” when she lay down.
- Positioning: we used a wedge pillow( this one) and kept her head/torso slightly elevated in a cool, humid room
  Since the fits were scary, we basically had a sleepover for 6 weeks😅. I kept this night station by my side for easy to grab and ready to support👇

Red light → [red light link] Code TWF
Game chnager to have soft, low-stim light so I could see without fully waking her or me!
Lined “spit bowl,” towels, and water/electrolytes
Post-fit vomit happens. A lined bowl with paper towels and a quick sip of water/electrolytes helped her rinse and rehydrate without a big sit-up (less chance of triggering another cough).
Saline spray + portable saline mist → [portable mist link]
We used a simple saline spray for a quick rinse, then the Boogie portable mist for 5 minutes after a fit. The quiet cool mist helped thin and loosen mucus and eased that raw, dry feeling so she could settle again. Truly a lifesaver for us.
Oximeter → [oximeter link]
I learned her baseline when she was calm, then spot-checked after a hard spell. If saturation sat below ~92% or she looked distressed (working hard, color change, pauses), that was our cue to escalate care or get seen.
Homeopathy (what we tried, what we noticed, and what I recommend)
We used the classic whooping cough remedies alongside everything else. I’m sure some of them helped—mostly with how agitated she felt and how quickly she settled after a fit, but we did not see a huge, night-and-day change in the cough itself. For us, the steady, high-frequency vitamin C rhythm plus our airway/vagus bedtime routine were the bigger helpers.
That said, I still value homeopathy, especially constitutional care. My daughter is now working with a constitutional homeopath to address the susceptibility piece (why her system was such an easy “host”). I highly recommend this route if you can access it.
If you’re new to homeopathy:
- Learn the most common acute remedies for whooping cough in the guide on this post → here
- If you want deeper help and to feel confident choosing/removing remedies, I love this parent education membership → [membership link]. They teach so much and have a specific whooping cough guide that’s helpful
- For the long game, consider a constitutional homeopath (this is what we’re doing now) to work on terrain/susceptibility, not just the acute picture.

Homeopathy was a support for us, not a stand-alone solution. Don’t delay medical care for red-flag signs (breathing trouble, dehydration, color change, pauses in breathing—especially in infants). It can be used alongside vitamin C and, if prescribed, antibiotics.

Phase 3 — Convalescent (“slow repair”)

Goals: keep mucus mobile, rebuild cilia & mucosa, restore gut/immune , regulate the nervous system.

When the cough began to space out and the night fits stretched farther apart, I could tell her body was turning a corner. The clearest signs were around weeks 6–7 after the positive: she stopped spitting up mucus, there was no more post-tussive vomiting, and she could sleep longer stretches. Those were my cues to start easing the vitamin C, not all at once, but gradually. I first widened the spacing between doses in the evening, then reduced the amount. If a day sounded thicker or bedtime got coughy again, I brought the spacing a bit closer for a day or two, then continued slowing down.

What we used for phase 3

Astragalus — classic lung/“protective qi” builder. I brought it in after the acute phase to rebuild stamina, and support day-to-day immune tone in the airways. (Not my pick during an active infection; it’s for recovery and resilience.) I used this one which is glycerin based

Reishi — modulates immunity (beta-glucans) and acts like a nervine adaptogen.

Vitamin C (maintenance) — we switched to food-based C (camu/acerola) once fits were less. Great as a daily antioxidant while the airway lining finishes healing.

Phosphatidylcholine (BodyBio PC) — phospholipids for cell membranes (airway lining, nerves, gut). Also supports bile flow and fat digestion while appetite normalize. Think: cellular materials for repair after weeks of irritation! My favorite!

Constitutional homeopathy — addresses the susceptibility/terrain . This is longer-arc care that complements the acute work; I recommend it when you’re past phase 2.

Cod liver oil( we love rosita brand) — small daily dose for vitamin A (epithelial/mucosal repair), vitamin D (immune balance), and omega-3s (pro-resolving, calming). Gentle support for the airway lining and overall regulation. We use this one- (SIGN UP FOR 20% OFF)

Gemmotherapy Ribes nigrum (blackcurrant bud)— this is an extract of the plant’s embryonic bud tissue (“stem cells”), rich in growth factors and flavonoids, used for a gentle anti-inflammatory. In recovery, it helped her airways feel less swollen and reactive, supported lymphatic drainage around the throat/neck.

Find in my dispensary

Probiotics-

Soil-based blend (Bacillus spp.) — hardier strains for general gut-immune resilience after stress/antibiotics/travel.
Find Here- Microbiome labs)
ENT oral probiotic (S. salivarius K12/M18) — helps the upper-airway microbiome while cilia recover, which can mean fewer throat/ear irritations. (Hyperbiotics ENT)

I introduced these one at a time, for Supporting the cilia (progress can feel slow)

B. pertussis toxins are hard on the cilia—the tiny “mucus sweepers.” Cilia can take up to 3 months to fully heal. During that window, a new cold or URI can stir up the fit coughs again. It doesn’t mean you’re back at square one, it means the mucociliary is still repairing and can be still more sensitive.

A word to the parent reading this

This part takes patience. There were long nights and plenty of second-guessing. If you’re in it right now, I see you. Watch your child more than the clock. When the cough begins to spread out and the vomiting stops, you can start easing vitamin C and shift into rebuild

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: Would you have reconsidered the vaccine after going through this?
Short answer: No! Just a heads up, the vaccine doesnt mean you won’t get pertussis. Immunity can wane and vaccinated kids can still catch/spread it; some families feel it may lessen severity. This is a personal, nuanced decision with your clinician and your family’s risk picture. If you want a deeper dive into questions and trade-offs, I cant recommend the work from @justtheinserts — Heres their pertussis FAQ : https://justtheinserts.com/pertussis-faq/

Q: If we use antibiotics, do we stop everything else?
No. Antibiotics mainly help with contagiousness (especially early). We kept all supportive care going—frequent vitamin C, moisture/saline, demulcents, and our vagus/lymph routine because those are what made the cough more manageable while her body healed.

Q: Why did cough fits flare again during recovery after a simple cold?
Cilia (the tiny “mucus sweepers”) can take weeks to months to fully rebound. Another URI can re-irritate a sensitive airway and bring short bursts of clustered coughs.

Q: Can you catch whooping cough again? What about immunity?

From what I’ve seen and read, you tend to get much longer protection if you’ve caught pertussis “in the wild” and healed naturally—I’ve seen sources say up to 30 years.

With the DTAP shot, it can wanes quickly, which is why they suggest boosters. You’ll also see discussions that some vaccinated folks can have very mild or even unrecognized illness and still pass it along, especially to babies because they don’t realize it’s pertussis.

If you want to dig into the nuances (studies, inserts, pros/cons), these are great parent-friendly starting points:

Just the Inserts: Pertussis FAQ → (Here)
Hopewell → (here)

As always, weigh all of this with your clinician and your family’s risk picture (newborns, grandparents, medical needs, school policies, etc.).

Whooping Cough (Pertussis): What We Did—From a Holistic Mama & Practitioner

I hope it’s helpful. ❤️

It looked like a regular cold… until it didn’t.

What is Whooping Cough (Pertussis)?

The 3 phases (how it often plays out)