My 28 mths woke up in the middle of the night and started coughing badly and gagging for an hour or so and finally fell back to sleep again. This happens almost everynight and she did not cough during daytime. Why is this so?

Here’s an article on the potential causes of nighttime coughing: http://www.livestrong.com/article/487236-why-does-my-child-only-cough-at-night/ The three mentioned in the article are: 1. Postnasal Drip Syndrome: coughing occurs when the child lies down at night and excess mucus collects at the back of the throat. It could be caused by breathing cold or dry air, infections (such as cold or flu), allergies and nonallergic rhinitis (irritation to nasal passages caused by exposure to environmental irritants such as smoke, pollution or solvents like cleaning solutions) 2. Nocturnal Asthma: caused by changes in airways that occur during sleep. This may be triggered by allergens or other environmental agents. The 3. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (or GERD): when stomach acid from the stomach leaks into the esophagus, it may bring on a dry cough as the throat gets irritated by the acid. You may want to speak to your doctor to find out the cause. Hope this helps!

It could be a backflow of saliva or mucus if ur toddler is having a cold. My toddler used to wake up coughing and cry. I rubbed some vicks on his back and chest and he is able to sleep better. I think if it persists, you have to see pd for advice.

Try making her pillow upwards so that its slopy. sometimes such help.