Search Results for 'breast feeding'

[Anonymous]

Hi, welcome to the site.

What you describe sounds a lot like silent reflux to me. My daughter used to arch and grunt and refuse feedings, you could hear her reflux come up into her throat, and then hear her swallow it back down. This usually went along with hysterical screaming and fussy behaviour in general.

Some babies do get relief from H2 blockers, and do not need any additional medications until they outgrow their reflux. But those people typically aren’t the ones you see on these kinds of message boards b/c the problem has been controlled. So the sampling is a bit biased…

Most people on these boards have needed a stronger medication like a PPI to stop the acid production.

I would definitely give the Tagamet a try, but I don’t think your logic necessarily will lead you to the right answers. If the Tagamet works, likely it will work within a few days to a week, and the effect should last longer than a few days. The thing is that babies always have ups and downs, and those with reflux are no exception, so there may be days that things don’t go as well reflux-wise, and it doesn’t necessarily mean that the Tagamet isn’t working. On the same note, if the Tagamet doesn’t relieve the discomfort, then you may also be dealing with colic issues on top of the reflux, or the reflux may warrant a stronger med, like a Proton Pump Inhibitor.

My daughter was on a decent dose of zantac and it did nothing for her because she likely already had damage to her esophagus at the same time, which the zantac won’t heal.

Another possibility is MSPI (milk/soy protein intolerance). It can cause reflux symptoms. Are you breast feeding or formula feeding, and if it’s formula what kind is it?

Here’s what I would do:

1. Try the acid blocker for a week and see if it makes a difference. If not, then I’d ask your ped to try a PPI.

2. In the meantime, check out Laura’s intro (the forum moderator) stickied under the introduce yourself forum. It’s full of tons of great info about everything you ever wanted to know about reflux.

3. I would also check out http://www.marci-kids.com. It’s full of all kinds of great information about reflux and medications. If you do need to go for a PPI, you might want to read this site before hand and go in prepared to your doctor.

Good luck. I hope that the tagamet does the trick. It can be hard trying to sort things out in the beginning trying to figure out what’s going on, but the back arching is a pretty typical sign of reflux. Most babies don’t do this otherwise.

[Anonymous]

I’d be a little suspicious of an allergy as well. Could you do TED for a couple of weeks (keep all your old frozen breastmilk) and just use TED breastmilk for awhile to see if it makes a diff? (OK I know it is easy to suggest TED…so much harder to do it!). I guess that way you might know (of course you could do just the formula for a couple of weeks…but I also would never advise anyone to give up breastfeeding…what a gift to be able to do it.)

[Anonymous]

I agree with Kathleen, it sounds like an allergy/intolerance to me (Reidun had many of the same symptoms). If you arn’t going to breastfeed anymore you might want to try Nutramigan. I’d also recommend a visit to the doctor–just in case.

FYI: If you’re discontinuing breastfeeding because of BC pills, you can use an IUD without hormones instead.

[Anonymous]

If you are looking for the email addresses of TV shows, so you can help spread the message about food allergies/intoleraces, scroll to the middle of the page…

Parents, my goal is for other familes dealing with MSPI/MFPI to be able to find sites like this one easier–it took me 7 months to find this site, and I think that is way too long! This site offers such an amazing support to parents! I have listed other related support groups below for people looking for support groups similiar to this one:

http://www.quicktopic.com/23/H/aSxbbAkUULVMX One ongoing thread discussion, parents discussing MSPI, MFPI, TED and more.

http://www.thepicfoundation.org/ New website, founded my mothers of protein intolerant children. Many of these mothers are regulars to the above web site.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/momsofMSPIkids/ Discussion group for parents of MSPI, MFPI, acid reflux and more. Has links, polls, pictures and more. Must become member to have full access.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/breastfeedingreflux/ Discussion group for mothers who are breastfeeding children with acid reflux. Many of the children also have intolerances/allergies. Pictures, polls and more.

http://actagainstallergy.com/aaa/1124-act-against-allergy-ho mepage.html Discussion group on various allergies/intolerances. Good information on testing, etc.

http://www.infantrefluxdisease.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s =e5fa96f050da03abb607bb0baafd7c08&f=156 Discussion group for parents of MSPI, MFPI, acid reflux and more. Does not allow you to post links.

http://www.ehealthmd.com/forum.html Discussion group. Might be closed from time to time.

http://www.allergymoms.com/modules/wordpress/index.php Blog run by mothers who have children with food allergies.

http://www.allergycookbook.blogspot.com Cybele Pascal’s blog, author of “The Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook.” Mother of child with MFPI and food allergies. Posts free recipes and more.

http://ezinearticles.com/?expert_bio=Dr._Scot_Lewey Links to other articles and blog.

http://home.vicnet.net.au/~disa/Food%20intol-alergic%20baby. html Describes acid reflux, MSPI and MFPI. Not in USA.

http://home.vicnet.net.au/~disa/stories%20photo%20album.html Stories and pictures of family and kids with acid reflux, MFPI & MSPI. Not in USA.

I will update this list with other support groups as I find them.

If you want to read our story and see other information I have gathered, click this link https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7728&a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;PN=1

_________________________________________

Help get the message out about food allergies/intolerances!!! EMail these TV shows and ask them to do a show or segment on this issue. If you have the time, share your story!!!

Oprah

http://www2.oprah.com/email/reach/email_showideas.jhtml

NBC News

viewerservices@msnbc.com

WebEditors@newsweek.com

Health@MSNBC.com

ABC News

support@abcnews.go.com

http://abc.go.com/site/contactus.html?cat=World%20News%20Ton ight

http://abc.go.com/site/contactus.html?cat=Good%20Morning%20A merica

CBS News

http://www.cbsnews.com/ scroll to way bottom of the page and click “contact us”

The View

http://abc.go.com/daytime/theview/ Then click “ask a viewmaster”

Martha Stewart

Has done segments/recipes for allergies/intolerances. Let her know that you appreciate it, and would like her to continue these segments. http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.4af27 a8e9e64e1611e3bf410b5900aa0/?vgnextoid=25b2cd0fc8b40110VgnVC M1000003d370a0aRCRD&vgnextchannel=25b2cd0fc8b40110VgnVCM 1000003d370a0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default&rsc=leftnav& ; ; ; ; ; ; ;lastnavigatedchannel=e54acd0fc8b40110VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRC RD

Regis & Kelly

(I’m not sure this show discusses this kind of stuff, but wouldn’t hurt to ask)

http://bventertainment.go.com/tv/buenavista/regisandkelly/sh ow_idea.html

Ellen DeGeneres Show

(I’m not sure this show discusses this kind of stuff, but wouldn’t hurt to ask)

http://www.ellen/warnerbros.com/show/dearellen

_________________________________________

I have also put a list of key words together, in hopes of making this site easier to find by search engines. If someone is looking for help, and uses the key words that I have been able to think of, I hope their search engine will direct them to here. If anyone else can think of another way to get the message out there, please let me know. I think it would be great if we could get the information about food intolerances/allergies out there through TV (Oprah would be REALLY great, but that would be a long-shot .)

Key words: Blood in stools, blood in poop, green stool, green poop, mucus in stool, mucus in poop, mucous, mucousy, colic, acid reflux, infant reflux, GERD, newborn, infant, baby, child, MSPI, Milk Soy Protein Intolerance, MFPI, Multiple Food Protein Intolerance, TED, Total Elimination Diet, food allergies, childhood allergies, growing out of allergies, discussion group, help group, support group, Cybele Pascal, Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook, recipes, rash, eczema, excema, exema, Nutramagin, Alimenten, Alementum, Alimentum, Neocate, Elecare, EleCare, Skin prick testing, SPT, Total IgE, Allergen specific IgE, CAP RAST blood test, IgG, RASP blood test, ELISA/ACT blood test, delayed hypersensitivity, type II, III, IV, Secretory IgA Assay, measures the functional state of mucosal immunity, United States, USA, information on, rotation diet, theories, theory, autism, autistic, links, atopic face, allergy face, dennie lines, allergic salute, allergic shiners, asthma, cough, breastfeeding, breastfed, spit up, spitup, vomit, fussiness, fussy, constipation, diarrhea, gas pain, gas

Thank you! HeidiHeidi T.2007-08-09 17:27:02

[Anonymous]

It does sound like a possible intolerance or allergy. The only thing that comes to mind is that after a couple of weeks on only formula he may start to show the same signs because the proteins will build up in his system. I hate to say to any mom to stop breastfeeding so I would probably take a look at what eat and see if you can find out what is bothering him in your BM.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the responses, I really appreciate it. The reason I thought it was bowel related is because he sometimes looks like he is straining when he pulls his legs up. Although he has never had a hard time pooping it was just a theory and I thought the formula would bind him up as is body was getting used to it.

I am so confused and every day I come up with a new idea or theory on how to cure my son. Some days though I really don’t think it is reflux because he makes such painful movements. His classic movement is when he is sitting down somewhere, seemingly content, he will all of sudden start to move his hands, bring them to his face and rub them on his face and spit out his pacifier. It looks like something is attacking him from the inside, he is always upright it doesn’t seem like it can be reflux. Plus I when I hold him I can feel his stomach churning and moving. At this point I think I think it could be anything like an ulcer or some other issue down below. Sometimes I wonder if the prevacid is actually hurting him because w/o the acid in his stomach, maybe he is having trouble breaking down the milk.

I really want to keep breastfeeding so I have given up dairy and soy-even hidden and hope that helps. I do give the meds on an empty stomach, 30 mins before meals and he has been on 30mgs for almost 1 month.

One last thing to mention is that my son is very active and NEVER stops moving. He is always moving his hands and legs and most of the time he looks uncomfortable and then of course like I said when he is “refluxing” he curls his body and sucks really hard on the pacifier and turns his head to the side and back. I have an appointment with a neurologist in 2 weeks to ruls otu anything in the brain. My next step will be a ph probe so I can confirm that we are dealing with reflux.

[Anonymous]

Alana did the lift the legs up in the air…turn head from side to side before her reflux was controlled. Also we went to a low allergin formula at the same time.

I think that reflux and gas pain are related a lot of the time…I know Alana’s gas got so much better when her reflux was controlled.

It is a very personal decision to switch from breastfeeding to neocate. If you wanted to go to neocate and try it for a little while maybe you could pump for awhile? so you could go back if you wanted?

Have you done the 30mg split 3 x…a few mums seem to have done this with more success.

BTW….Alana takes 3 x 45 min naps every day. She never naps for longer. She also doesn’t wake in pain though. So I would say the reflux may not be controlled yet…or he is MSPI and the milk proteins are still in the system?

Gee this stuff is hard

[Anonymous]

To me it sounds like reflux pain, but it could be gas – it’s so hard to tell.

How long has he been on 15 mg Prevacid twice a day? Are you giving it to him on an empty stomach and following it up with a feeding 30 mintues later? Or, are you using the compounded version? The compounded version does not have to be timed around meals but it often is not prepared properly by the pharmacy and then it loses it’s effectiveness.

As far the as Neocate goes, you really have to try a formula for at least two weeks to get an idea if it’s going to work or not. How long did you do TED? I think you have to do it for three weeks before you can tell if it’s going to work or not.

Natalia’s idea of an H2 blocker or Pepcid complete before bed is good. I’ve read of a few babies on this board who did best with Prevacid or Zegerid during the day and an H2 Blocker like Zantac at bedtime. If you want to try that just make sure the H2 Blocker is given several hours apart from the Prevacid.

I hope things improve soon. I remember how hard it was, and I really feel for you.

[Anonymous]

We are trying desperately to help our son sleep. During the day he is pretty happy although he is getting more fussy these days-is the reflux peaking?? Anyway, he can hardly take a nap because he wakes up after a 1/2hr or so as something just attacked him. I watch him on the monitor and what wakes him up seems to be pain and he usually starts to move his arms and then maybe groan and awake as if something poked him, it doesn’t seem like reflux at all. At night he is a little better, he goes down around 9:30 for 4-5 hrs and only move a little. But then after he goes down again after his bottle, burps and walking around for 30 mins, he moves constantly. Mostly he turns his head furiously from side to side and lifts his legs up. He does this for about 3 hrs and I replace the pacifier about every 1/2 hrand then he finally can’t take it anymore and starts to cry out and wants to get up.

So we decided to try neocate because I thought maybe dairy and soy were hurting him. I did the TED but nothing changed but I was willing to try formula anyway. He didn’t really like the neocate but he ate it-very slowly and last night he started moving after an hour of being in bed (his stroller). So I thought right away that is was the neocate and it was binding him up or making him feel worse than the breastmilk does. So at his 2am feeding I gave him BM and he slept for 1.5hrs and then started him moving again (which I expected).

Does anyone have a similar story or find out that the reflux they thought they had was really a bowel problem?

[Anonymous]

Hi Everyone!

 

 

I am nursing my daughter (Reidun) who is almost 8 months old (born 7/10/06). When she was a month old we found out she had food allergies/intolerances. Looking back, when she was a week old she started showing symptoms. Her main symptoms were blood and lots of mucus in her stools (blood showed up when she was a month old, green mucus filled stools, that were a bit foul smelling, started earlier), acting constipated (grunting, decreased amount of BMs, but stools were always soft) behavior that seemed like severe colic and skin problems like severe cradle cap (eczema?), acne and a mean looking diaper rash. At times she had problems with “spitting up” a lot and had to be propped up by pillows after she ate. Before she was diagnosed, I also felt she might be autistic. She wouldn’t make eye contact, showed no social interests, and would want to stare all day long at this orange plastic toy she had. ALL of these symptoms went away when I removed allergens from my diet (see list below), she is now the most social baby I have ever seen !

 

 

 

 

Reidun continues to have red rings around her eyes and blue/red bags under them (aka “allergic shiners”) that come and go in severity. She has an extra skin fold/line under her lower lid (aka “dennie lines”). She also seems to get a runny nose a lot (aka “allergic salute”). Many of these characteristics (aka “atopic face”) are common to children who have allergies. Here is a link to more information on this: http://www.drpaul.com/library/ALLERGYSIGNS.html And here is an article from Dr Sears on the common signs of food sensitivities: http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/t041800.asp

 

 

She continues to have sleep problems. Perhaps the most frustrating aspect!

 

_______________________

 

Below is some information I have been collecting on Reidun:

Foods Reidun has been unable to tolerate through breast milk:
•All dairy (including butter)
•All soy (including soy bean oil/margarine)
•Almonds (only nut trial) (only food that has caused a rash so far)
•Eggs

Foods Reidun has been unable to tolerate directly:
•Nutramagin (blood in stools after 24hrs, severe mucus, took 2 weeks for stools to return to normal)
•Alimentum, both powdered and prepared liquid (immediate crankiness, small amounts of blood and mucus in her stools, took 2 weeks for stools to return to normal, seemed to respond worse to Nutramagin)
•Oats (took 24hrs to notice blood in her stools, severe mucus, crankiness—took 2 weeks for stools to return to normal)
•Rice? (OK as long as she is not given over 1T daily—she was given more once—had blood in her stool, even with small amounts she acts constipated)

Foods Reidun has been able to tolerate:
•Rice? (OK as long as she is not given over 1T daily—she was given more once—had blood in her stool, even with small amounts she acts constipated)
•Winter squash
•Sweet Potato
•Apple
•Green Beans
•Chicken

 

•Pears

Family History
Paternal Side
Father had severe eczema, lasted into his late teens. (We have found that “Urea Cream” works wonders for dry skin.) Both mother and sister have eczema. He is severely allergic to <ST1:COUNTRY-REGIon>brazil</ST1:COUNTRY-REGIon> buts, moderately to walnuts, mildly to peanuts. Might have allergies to cashews and macadamia nuts. Is OK with almonds and hazelnuts.

He had GI difficulties as a child—unknown cause, possibly related to stress. His sister was in the hospital frequently as a child due to GI Problems?

Maternal Side
No food allergies. Multiple skin allergies: rug freshener, pesticides, grass?, fabric softener, lavender, some deodorants, soaps, shampoos, conditioners and fragrances.

Had to be placed on massive doses of prednisone for almost 6 months after an allergic reaction (raised, weepy rash to entire body, one eye swelled shut) to a rug freshener with a pesticide in it in 2001.

 

__________________________

We have not been to an allergist yet, when we go, we would like to talk about the possibility of performing various allergy tests:

 

•Skin prick testing (SPT)
•Total IgE
•Allergen specific IgE
•CAP RAST blood test (better for determining reactions to certain foods-tests IgG and IgE?)
•RASP blood test (more sensitive to food allergies-tests IgG and IgE?)
•ELISA/ACT blood test (tests for delayed hypersensitivity, type II, III, IV)
•Secretory IgA Assay (measures the functional state of mucosal immunity)
__________________________

Some things I have learned that might help other nursing mothers out there–it takes “a couple” to “a few” days for allergens to leave your milk after you have consumed an allergenic food (based on information from “Colic Solved: The Essential Guide to Infant Reflux and the Care of Your Crying, Difficult-to- Soothe Baby” by Bryan Vartabedian). Some mothers with MFPI/MSPI have reported it can take up to 2 weeks!

 

 

From my own experience, it seems to take about 4 days.

 

__________________________

 

 

 

 

Some things I wish I could go back and change: (1) try harder to limit myself to organic whole foods while pregnant, (2) try to avoid all high allergen foods while pregnant, (3) take omega 3 supplements or cod liver oil (1 teaspoon daily) while pregnant, (4) try to avoid taking antibiotics prior to birth ((I was given PCN (which my husband is allergic to—Reidun might be sensitive to via genetics) due to being diagnosed strep B positive) there is also a theory that antiobiotic use may lead to allergies), (5) take probiotics while pregnant and then continued taking them while breastfeeding, started Reidun on probiotics right after birth, and finally, (6) instead of eliminating foods one by one when she was diagnosed with “food allergies”, I would have started the TED diet and then reintroduced foods one by one, and kept a food journal.

 

 

 

 

http://www.newmediaexplorer.org/chris/2004/01/13/cod_liver_o il_number_one_superfood.htm article on cod liver oil, discusses benefits of taking it during pregnancy, breastfeeding and giving it to young children

 

http://www.babycentre.co.uk/pregnancy/nutr…fety/fishoilexp ert/ information on taking fish oil when pregnant

 

http://www.bounty.com/News.aspx?Article=18075782 article on pregnancy diet & allergies

 

http://www.mercola.com/2002/feb/27/probiotics.htm article titled Beneficial Bacteria (Probiotics) During Pregnancy & Breastfeeding Helps Protect Against Eczema

 

http://www.mercola.com/2001/apr/14/probiotics.htm article titled Beneficial Bacteria (Probiotics) May Halt Allergies In Babies

 

http://www.mercola.com/2001/apr/14/probiotics2.htm article titled Probiotics In Primary Prevention Of Atopic Disease

 

Many MSPI/MFPI mothers have recommended this probiotic: Bluebonnet Milk Free Acidophilus (Powder)
__________________________

Here are two books I think any parent with children who have food allergies/intolerances should get:

1. The Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook: Two Hundred Gourmet & Homestyle Recipes for the Food Allergic Family by Cybele Pascal (I LOVE this book–really, really good recipes)

Also, check out her blog that has free recipes: http://www.allergycookbook.blogspot.com

2. The Parent’s Guide to Food Allergies: Clear and Complete Advice from the Experts on Raising Your Food-Allergic Child by Marianne S. Barber (The author includes a section on foods that are related that is very helpful)

 

__________________________

 

 

 

Below are some other helpful links/websites (many provided by other mothers with babies who have Multiple Food Protein Intolerance (MFPI) and Milk Soy Protein Intolerance (MSPI)):

 

 

http://www.emedicine.com/ped/topic1908.htm emedicine article on protein intolerance

 

 

 

http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic806.htm emedicine article on food allergies

 

http://home.vicnet.net.au/~disa/Food%20intol-alergic%20baby. html good description of MSPI, MFPI and more

 

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/111/4 /829 food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES)

 

http://www.foodyoucaneat.com when this site is running, it is great and free, you can individualize your diet using their search engine

 

 

 

http://www.askdrsears.com search for elimination diet—for TED diet http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/t041200.asp

 

http://allergyadvisor.com/Educational/December_2.htm good information on allergic reactions, provides more links

 

http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/food-sensitivity.html web site for breastfeeding mothers, really good links

 

http://users.bigpond.net.au/allergydietitian/ information on food allergies and sensitivities, useful tools

 

http://users.bigpond.net.au/allergydietitian/fa/wean.html

 

http://users.bigpond.net.au/allergydietitian/fa/sympcheck.ht ml .

 

http://users.bigpond.net.au/allergydietitian/fa/diary.html

 

 

Here are some other topics/links I have put togther on this site:

 

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7731&a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;PN=1 cut and pasted recipes from Cybele Pascal and BabyCakes Bakery, NYC

 

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7758&a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;PN=1 links to other related support groups

 

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7774&a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;PN=1 information on NAET, an alternative treatment

 

 

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853&am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;PN=1&TPN=1 a very informative posting by Laura, a “Self-Proclaimed Volunteer Moderator” of this site, provides good information on medications, many of the links I have listed are from her

 

 

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=8121&a mp;TPN=1 stool pictures

 

 

 

__________________________

 

Has anyone ever tried to follow a rotation diet for allergies? Rotation diets seem like a good thing to follow. Unfortunately, the recipes in the food rotation book I have seem so boring and lacking in variety. I would think it would be even more important for a person with multiple food allergies, who becomes sensitive to foods he/she eats over and over again to have a diet rich in variety?
__________________________

 

Below is a table I put together based on the fundamentals of a 4 day rotation diet and the information I gained from the table “Sequence of Adding Solid Foods for the Allergic Infant” in the book “Managing Food Allergy & Intolerance.” This is the solid food menu I am going to start following for my 7-month old daughter. It should be used for infants 6 to 9 months of age. Before I start it, I will make sure she can tolerate all these foods first by introducing one new food item at a time (every three days to a week). It is important to cook everything.

 

 

Day 1 Pear, Rice, Sweet Potato, Green Bean
Day 2 Peach/Apricot, Turkey, Cabbage, Broccoli
Day 3 Blueberry, Millet, Winter Squash, Beet
Day 4 Banana, Lamb, Carrot, Potato

At 9 months I’ll introduce other foods based on the table in the book. This table is available on-line:
http://www.hallpublications.com/title2_sample2.html

This is another table titled “Joneja Food Allergen Scale” available from the same book:
http://www.hallpublications.com/title2_sample1.html

 

 

 

 

Here is information on following a rotation diet:
http://www.food-allergy.org/page2.html
http://www.specialfoods.com/rotationdietexample.html

I hope this information will help other parents out there!

Thank you! Heidi

Heidi T.2007-08-09 19:19:25

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all your help. The x-ray was not helpful, as she was not having reflux at the time. I did find out, however, that she has a slow esophagus, too. In the meantime, things haven’t gotten better. Just this week, the doctor increased her zantac (to correspond with her weight gain) and has me mixing cereal in her bottle (to help keep it down). Nevertheless, she’s still clearly uncomfortable, crying, spitting up, having violent episodes of hiccups, etc. I’ve pretty much given up on breastfeeding because I’m no longer producing milk since I am not eating, drinking, or sleeping. She is also not sleeping; I’m lucky if I get 8 hours total in a 24 hour period. The other day, she was up from 11:30 in the morning until 4:30 the next morning, crying the whole time. The only way to quiet her is to give her a bottle, which she sucks and chews on (but doesn’t eat). I am going back to work in 2 weeks, and I was hoping she’d be feeling better by then. What can I do to make this more bearable for both of us?

[Anonymous]

Christine, yes, I am doing all those things, pumping early in the AM and they do hurt only a few seconds and go away but it’s very uncomfortable. I started lubricating them with nipple cream, hope that helps. I pump usually 5 minutes after the flow stopped.

Lori, the pain is not all the time and what I’ve started to do is start pumping at a lower setting and then increase it as my nipples get used to it. I feel like I just had a baby, that’s how my nipples hurt when I just started breastfeeding. I’m sure it’ll go away with time.

[Anonymous]

In case they forget to tell you, the barium can be consitpating, so try to give her some water after the test and throughout the day when you get home. If she won’t drink water (I’m not sure how old she is), feeding her some formula or breast milk right away will probably help too. Ask the docs and technicians about this. No one told me when Myles had his Upper GI.

Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Sleep school is literally that…you and bub go to school and someone looks at sleeping and offers suggestions etc….kind of like a lactation consultant but they look at sleep not breastfeeding.

Another reason for you all to come and live with me

Shelby… I agree totally with Anne…its time for you to take it easy on yourself. I only know you through these posts but I think you are one of the hardest working and thoughtful mums I have talked to. You are doing a great job…

[Anonymous]

You all are the absolute best. After I wrote the post, I signed off because Ben woke up from his nap (too early of course), and I spent the rest of the evening horrified at what I had written, embarrassed, mortified, humiliated, etc. Thank you so much for not being horrified too. I know there are so many of you who have been through so much worse and to take the time to make me feel better.. well, it really means a lot and helps so much too. Even if there isn’t anyone around here who understands, it’s nice to know that somewhere there are women who truly do.

To answer the questions: He hasn’t had any testing done. His pediatrician has never really felt that to be necessary, and I have always prayed that he would grow out of it quickly enough that we wouldn’t have to. Maybe I should consider this though.

He gets 16 mg. of Zegerid 3 times a day. This is even more than the Marci Kids site suggests. Honestly, he doesn’t seem to be in nearly as much pain as before, he is just so much more vocal and obnoxious about the times when he is. He is a squealer lately when he feels a burp coming. It’s the most ear piercing awful sound. But once he burps, he’s fine, so I don’t know if it’s a pain thing or if he is just uncomfortable from the pressure. He was on Prevacid at first – compounded, but not correctly, and I couldn’t find anyone to do it the right way. I can’t imagine trying to time around when he eats, but maybe a switch is necessary????

As for the breastfeeding. It would absolutely break my heart to give it up. I just don’t think I could do it, not yet anyway. But I’ve definitely thought about it.

Anyway, thanks ladies. Really, thank you so much.