I also forgot to mention, that he does quite a bit of spitting up and I do hear him refluxing, it just doesn't seem to be accompanied by pain...yet?

My first son was a perfectly happy baby for the first week of his life. At a week old I noticed blood in his poop. It was on a Friday of course and doctor said "just fissures, but if still worried by Monday bring him in". When Monday finally came around I was very worried. He had progressively got worse. More blood, very fussy, strange poop. He was probably 2 or 3 weeks old before he was a total wreck. He cried for up to 20 hours a day and didn't sleep more than 10 minutes at shot most of the time.

Laura, you just described my son's poop exactly! Sure wish I'd have found this site 5 1/2 years ago!

My second son started showing little signs of reflux by 5 days old. For him too it took a couple of weeks to get really bad! He never got as bad as Quinton because I knew more about what to do.

Probiotics are a good idea! We found them to be extremely helpful with GERD and MSPI. Did you read my blog?

Edited by Happy Mom - 13 June 2012 at 12:38pm

I'm so sorry! I felt the same way when my baby #2 started showing reflux symptoms. I had known that he probably would but it was still a very let down feeling! :(

I found with my boys that the gripe water was a temporary relief. But I spent loads of money on it because even a 2 minute break from the crying was worth it. I think Laura knows more about this... but I have read that gripe water shouldn't be given with Prevacid. I didn't know that so my boys guzzled it along with their Prevacid. :(

I would suggest adding digestive enzymes to the probiotics. I tried some kind? of probiotics with one of my boys when they were a baby and it didn't help at all. Now I know that their are many kinds of probiotics out there and that it is also really important to give enzymes with it. Digestive enzymes are what help break down the food in our stomachs. If we are lacking enough enzymes then our stomach will produce excess acid to try to break it down and this will cause acid reflux and other digestive problems. Proteins in milk are one of the hardest things for a baby's tummy to break down. That is why eliminating milk from your diet can be so helpful. But if you were to take enzymes with every meal, it would help you to produce milk with the proteins broken down in it and your baby would be able to digest it easier. Also this excess acid kill probiotics. And without probiotics our digestive tract is left unprotected and can get raw and even bleed.

Often babies that have a milk intolerance and are formula fed, have to drink a formula like Nutramigen that has the proteins extensively broken down in it. This way their tummies don't have to work so hard.

I am not saying that probiotics and enzymes will cure your child but I do know that they made a huge difference for my children! And all I want to do is share with others what I found to help. It is really an inexpensive thing to try.

I hope though that whatever you decide to do, it will SOON help your baby to be comfortable!!

I know of many people that have said "I've tried probiotics and/or enzymes and they don't seem to help much." There are many brands out there to choose from. I personally would recommend the ones that helped my children so much because I know they work!! :-) They are called Digestive Health sold from Core Health Products. The Digestive Health pills have both probiotics and enzymes in them and they are powder in a capsule so they would be easy to open up and give to your baby. At first you may need to give some directly to him on top of you taking them to help him get over his problems faster.

I don't know what to suggest for you to read but I do suggest watching the video resources on the Core Health Products site. They are 2-5 minute long videos mostly of the Shan (owner of the company telling why and how their products work and are very informative. You can also call the company and ask any questions you like even if you don't buy their product. The same person, Chris, always answers the phone and he is very helpful and friendly. 800-342-4792.

I hope the enzymes and probiotics will help your little one like they did mine!!!

Edited by Happy Mom - 19 June 2012 at 1:17am