Infantreflux.org | AHHHHHH!!!!!

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July 12, 2006 at 9:19 pm #11406

Anonymous
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First, I want to thank every woman who has ever written into this website. If not for you, I would honestly believe I was BEYOND crazy.

We have tried everything…every formula out there, every bottle, every “witches brew” medication (such as “Gripe Water”). We’ve been on Zantac and now Prevacid. The dose is indeed too low, according to everything I have read here. Am trying to get it raised. I have a truly WONDERFUL doctor who was Chief Resident at Children’s in Columbus, named one of Ladies Home Journal’s Top Doctors in America, etc…so for that, I feelvery fortunate.

None the less, this is all just so darn overwhelming. I second guess myself constantly. I am exhausted, though more from constant stress and fights to feed than from literal lack of sleep (though there is indeed some of that, too).

My little one is the most amazing little man on the planet, but I sometimes feel so frustrated with everything having to do with him.

Trying Oatmeal cereal tonight to see if that helps. Doubt it, though. Feel hopeless.

THANK YOU to all of you, though. What a resource this site has been!

July 12, 2006 at 9:30 pm #11407

Anonymous
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What you are feeling is totally normal and I am sure that everyone on this board has felt that way at one point or another so you are definitely among friends. Hopefully you can convince your doctor to up the meds as that really seems to help everything to get the right medication.

After a negative experience on another site, this is the ONLY site that I will post to anymore. This is truly the best group of informed people on the planet. You are definitely in the right place!!

Robin

July 12, 2006 at 9:50 pm #11408

Anonymous
Inactive

Welcome!

I second what Robin has said above. I am very new to this site as well. My son is 12 weeks old and I have come to rely on the information posted to this site daily. This community is so welcoming and so knowledgeable. I hope things get better for you, just remember to take it a day-at-a-time and it will get better.

July 13, 2006 at 7:23 am #11411

Anonymous
Inactive

Yes, we’ve all felt like that at one time or another. I also firmly believe that I would have gone completely crazy if not for this site. These women are my lifeline to reality. I’m glad you found us, and hope that things get better soon.

July 13, 2006 at 8:15 am #11414

hellbennt
Keymaster

sandermom,

glad you’re here!

I’m guessing your ds’s name is Sander? I like that name; it’s of Russian origin?

anyway, please continue to post & to help others- all of you! I’m just a wacko who can’t get away from here…I hope to have this baby sooon (come on li’l guy!!) & knowing me, I’ll be right back online straight away…

but, in the meantime, everyone please welcome the newcomers (seems like there’s been quite a few lately!) – here’s my welcome/intro for you all to bookmark to give to them: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853&am p;am p;PN=1&TPN=1

I’m glad we’re all here to straighten out a lot of misinformation that is currently out there in the medical (& pharmacutical) fields

~laura

ps: sandermom: can you please put your baby’s name, age, formula (if it’s thickened, what with), meds & doses in your signature? It’s so hard to keep track of all these gerdlings(at the top of the screen, in the upper right hand corner, there’s a button, ‘Settings’ and from there you’ll see ‘Profile’ and from there you’ll see ‘Signature.’ thanks!

hellbennt2006-7-13 8:18:28

July 13, 2006 at 9:44 am #11419

Anonymous
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I’m so glad you found us. I didn’t know about this site when I had my first reflux baby and I truly thought I’d lose my mind. I had no support at all. My dh thought I was nuts when I talked about how she hated to nurse, hated the bottle, etc. She was miserable day and night. And then there was the sleep deprivation…up all night for months on end with a baby in pain.

When I had my second reflux baby I was so very fortunate to find this board, and thank God I did, because he was even worse off; wouldn’t eat a thing, choked and gagged everytime I attempted to feed him. I wanted to jump off a cliff. Since I live in a praire state that was not an option, so I had to cope.

Besides finding the support here which was a godsend, I found the dosing information for PPI meds and FINALLY got Myles on the right dose of Prevacid. That’s when things turned around and he began to eat. If you haven’t already please print the marci-kids info and take it or fax it to your son’s doctor. That’s how I convinced mine to increase Myles’ dose.

http://www.marci-kids.com/

Good luck and hope your little guy is feeling better soon.

July 13, 2006 at 11:58 am #11427

Anonymous
Inactive

Welcome Sandermom! Glad you found us!!

July 13, 2006 at 3:44 pm #11436

Anonymous
Inactive

THANK YOU again to everyone!

Sander did a decent amount better last night and today w/ the thickening of the formula w/ oatmeal. He’s eating less ounces, though…is that normal since the formula is now “heavier”? Is he still getting enough?

Back to Zantac for now (argh!) until Sander gets a few more tests done at Children’s next week. Though I want him to be healthy as a horse, part of me hopes something will show up so that I can get stronger help or a better resolution.

Now, I just need to find a bottle and nipple that works better w/ the thickened formula. He has Dr. Brown’s, now…but the little insert part at the top clogs with the thickened stuff.

Bought Ventair w/ “Y” nipples. Still had to open them up more to get them to work. If it isn’t something…

July 13, 2006 at 4:55 pm #11445

Anonymous
Inactive

I used the Dr. Browns with oatmeal with no problem. How much oatmeal to formula are you using? I initially did 1 tbs for every two ounces. No clogging, but the Y-nipple was too fast for Myles until he was about 5 months old. Also, I usually made his bottles a day ahead so maybe the oatmeal became a little finer as it sat in the fridge. Only the last ounce would get stuck for some weird reason that only Dr. Brown himself could probably explain , so I always made two ounces more than Myles would likely drink.

He will proabably drink less since it’s heavier. Myles rarely took more than 4 ounces thickened. I would experiment with different nipples and oatmeal to formula ratio until you find the least amt. of oatmeal that works. Then he’ll get more formula which is really more important at his young age.

Right now I am doing 1 tbs for an 8 ounce bottle and using a #3 Dr. Brown’s nipple. The flow is perfect for him and the little bit of oatmeal actually does make a difference for him. He drinks it much better than straight formula.

Getting Sander’s meds increased will help much more than thickening, so I wish you good luck with that.

July 13, 2006 at 6:14 pm #11448

Anonymous
Inactive

AH HA! I used to ALWAYS make the bottles a day in advance, but I didn’t think that you could do that w/ the oatmeal. SO good to know! That may help, as I am doing actually a little less than 1 tbs/ounce.

Sander had moved on to the Dr Bown’s #2 by the time he was 6 weeks old, which was crazy. When I was breast feeding, the boy could clean me out in no time flat! So the “Y” nipple hopefully will continue to remain not a problem.

THANK YOU!

July 13, 2006 at 8:11 pm #11453

Anonymous
Inactive

OMG!! That’s great that he likes to eat!!

I hope making the bottles in advance works as well for you as it did for me.

July 13, 2006 at 9:34 pm #11461

Anonymous
Inactive

Funny because we could never make the bottles in advance. I found that if I tried to add the cereal to the breast milk and leave it overnight in the fridge, when I needed it, the cereal would have decomposed or something, but it was never thickened. It wasn’t until later that I found out about the antibodies in the breast milk breaking down the cereal. If I added the cereal to the bottle of formula, when i went down to get it a few hours later it was so thick like sludge and wouldn’t flow through the nipple. Certainly made for fun night-time feedings… nothing like waking up and having to prepare a bottle of formula in the dark with cereal and corn syrup, picking out all the lumps from those Dr. Brown’s bottles that you can’t shake but only stir… fun, fun, fun….

Hope it works better for you than it did for me!

July 13, 2006 at 9:40 pm #11462

Anonymous
Inactive

We had MUCH better luck blending the cereal into the formula in advance
and having bottles prepared. We were able to blend in 1tbsp rice to 2
ounce formula (usually making 6 ounce bottles) Alimentum RTF and it
flowed well through a DB #2 or #3 nipple.

July 14, 2006 at 7:59 am #11473

Anonymous
Inactive

I made the bottles last night…and this morning, they indeed were TOO FAST for the “Y”, now. Of course…why should any of this be easy? Still too slow for the number three.

DH used a hot needle to make the vetaire (even though I HATE those bottles for straight formula) “Y” a bit bigger…that seems to work since the vetaire nipple is kind of stiff, esp. compaired to the nice softness of DB. Apparently, the stiffness of the Ventaire “Y” with a bit added to the “wiggle room” with a hot needle made an ok combination.

I think if we all got together on some things, we could come up with some fantastic inventions!

On another note, Sander pooped fine yesterday and this morning, so it doesn’t seem he’s at all constipated from the oatmeal. HOWEVER, after eating, he acts like a stuffed duck…not wanting to move much, quiet. Am I overfeeding him now that he has the oatmeal?

July 14, 2006 at 9:24 am #11475

Anonymous
Inactive

You’re using oatmeal and formula, right? I could never make thickened breast milk bottles in advance either for the same reason Lori mentioned…the enzymes would thin it out in no time. But it worked perfectly with the one bottle of soy forumla I gave him each day.

The Y-cut Dr. Brown’s were too fast for Myles until he was 5 months old. I used a size 2 or 3 and snipped it with a sharp scissor. The problem with that is that like you said the Dr. Brown nipples are so soft that eventually the hole I snipped would get bigger. It was a real PITA. It was great when he could finally use the Y-cuts. You just have to experiment until you find the right combination. I drank a lot of thickened soy formula trying to come up with the right combination for Myles. Blech!! Glad he likes it.

Maybe try less cereal and a Dr. Brown’s #3? Then maybe he won’t have that “stuffed duck” effect. I think the less cereal the better, especially if all of his bottles are thickened.

Good luck.
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