AnonymousInactive
I remember it being so hard emotionally for me to wean my babies from breastfeeding. It was kinda sad to give up that special time with them & admit that they were growing up, & not quite babies anymore.
from the ‘main’ mspi page (stickied in the MSPI forum), go to page 2 (you’ll see ‘Google Cache’ stuff at the top of the page – scroll down). there is the best explanation of allergies & intolerances and there is a list of symptoms. Look for changes in stools and definitely in behaviour – especially sleeping…
as for what to add back, there is a link, also in the MSPI ‘main’ page- scroll down to the ‘Elimination Diet/breastfeeding section’ to find the link
what oatmeal have you added back? instant with flavorings, etc or just plain old fashioned oats? maybe just the introduction of something new is what did it? or maybe it’s gluten? I don’t know…
when I added back tomato products it was OBVIOUS 3-4 hours later- Jonah was shrieking in reflux hell…
maybe try adding in beans for protein? soy is a legume, right? so I would avoid peanuts and are green beans ‘related’ also? hmmm
so I’d do lentils or chickpeas…then you can have lentil stew and humus and stuff like that…
I don’t know enough about ham- like what’s in your Christmas ham? any nitrates, etc? I’d be careful about that kind of stuff?
I think the ‘major’ proteins like milk, soy, beef and perhaps even wheat and corn can build up, so maybe just choose one of those to add in for the next 2 weeks? I don’t know…what does your gut/instinct tell you? me, I really didn’t think Jonah was mspi…but that’s me.
AnonymousInactive
Marianna,
I have a little one too, and we are also trying to figure it all out. One thing you may want to consider AFTER you get her meds. where you want them to be, is to try a full elimination diet. It may not be only the dairy that is/was bothering her.. it could also be soy, eggs, etc. It also could take several weeks for dairy to leave her system, so you may not see results from eliminating it right away.
I am right at the end of the diet myself, and while I haven’t seen huge improvements in my son’s behavior, at least, once I start adding things back in, I will (hopefully) know for sure what is or isn’t bothering him. Best of luck to you. I really think breastfeeding a little refluxer is so heartbreaking.. There’s just someting about seeing them scream and struggle after you feed them that just makes you feel horrible.
AnonymousInactive
Myles was very gaggy like that too. At seven months he could not eat any solids but he had given up his bottle so I started spoon feeding him all of his breast milk. I think that helped him learn to accept food from a spoon (although that’s not the reason I was doing it) and eventually he began eating cereal and baby food from a spoon without gagging.
An evaluation wouldn’t be such a bad thing. I probably should have done it with Myles.
AnonymousInactive
Hey Shelby – I logged in to post on a thread to catch up and saw your message about needing help. Hows your little one sleeping? Laura’s right – my dd’s most obvious MSPI symptom was absolutely horrible night wakings. She was on the highest dose of prevacid FOREVER and an OTC antacid with still no results. I distinctly remember asking the GERD specialist when Sophia was around 6 months – “is it normal for reflux kids to wake up every hour at night even on the highest dose of meds?!?!” His response was that its extrememly rare but hes seen it before – ah thanks bozo. Still a little bitter about that one. I tried every trick in the book. . .except putting myself and Sophia on an elimination diet. I was following other MSPI stories but it just didn’t seem tangible enough to be a real reason for horrible night wakings. For some reason that MSPI monster is a hard one to believe in. Sophia had reactions to all kinds of strange table foods – bananas, peas, meats . . .so it was basically MSPI but multiple proteins as well. Even after I took her off of all solids and did a slow introduction I was still somehow unable to wrap my brain around MSPI and blaming it for Sophia’s behavior. She was very irritable in bouts (now I know it was related to food and when the offending proteins built up in her system) and her sleep was so erratic and out of control it was next to impossible to get her on a schedule! Then the ear infections started around 9 months or so. We suffered through 16 double ear infections and 4 singles in a year. Drumroll please – no tubes and her hearing is perfect. Thank God
Night wakings + ear infections + erratic irritablility + itchy nose + rashy skin (off and on) = MSPI for us. After cutting back mainly soy and milk in my diet she got much better. I was reluctant to stop breastfeeding because I felt like it was the only way that I could comfort her and control her diet. But we got to a point that I knew she was getting better and that it would be easier to control her diet through table foods. I switched her to Nestle Carnation Soy formula with comfort proteins at 15 months and I think by then she was able to handle the soy proteins that were already digested. Its gotten better and better from then on. Shes been sleeping through the night since 24 months and I don’t even feel like I need to say “knock on wood” when I say that out loud 
! She still needed Prevacid even after a controlled diet but it was obvious to see that the reflux was a seperate problem from the dietary ones. The MSPI has a way of making everything worse!!! Teething was especially bad for us and I’ve found from other moms with MSPI kids that teething is an absolute bear. Every tooth was like a traumatic up all night screaming event with a two-week prelude of especially bad night wakings. Any time a tooth was about to pop I started a really strict bland diet weeks before. I also used Acidiphilus a lot and that did wonders during teething time especially.
Anyway, I left you my e-mail address in private posting so feel free to give me a shout if you have any questions.
~Liz
BTW – you get to a point when your not sleeping that everyone thinks your nuts and you think your nuts too. .. then you start fidgeting with their diets and people start accusing you of having issues with parenting and control and blah blah blah. Even though its hard, try every avenue until something works. .. getting no sleep is miserable! I may have looked like a nut to most everyone including my own mom but proof was in the pudding. I did a trial with full soy milk around 14 months before switching to formula and the poor child had a complete and total meltdown for two days straight, it was obvious to everyone that there was a problem. I just feel bad it had to be proved at my childs expense. .. ugh, live and learn.
lovemysophia2006-12-11 16:30:59
AnonymousInactive
Hi there,
I’m an older mom too (42) and I can relate whole heartedly to what you are feeling. I felt cheated at times too because two of my three babies had severe reflux, and I felt that I could not enjoy them as I would have if they had been “normal” babies. My dh hated to hear me complain about it and his standard answer was “he’ll outgrow it” and “be thankful it’s not something fatal.” Yeah, I was thankful it wasn’t fatal and I knew he’d eventually outgrow it but when you are the one dealing with puke all day everyday with no end in site, you tend to get discouraged. Things were so bad with Myles that for the first 7 months of his life I never left this house except for doctor’s appts. and mad dashes to the grocery store so dh and the girls wouldn’t starve. It wasn’t worth going out because I knew it would just be one big puke fest where ever we went. On top of his constant puking he would not nurse so I had to pump 10 times a day to provide breast milk for him. My whole day consisted of pumping, feeding and cleaning up puke!!
On a more encouraging note, it really does pass. For Myles 7 months was a particularily bad time, and after that he began to have days where things were better, followed by a few bad days, and back and forth for a while, BUT FINALLY at 9 months it was over. The puking stopped for good. And now that he’s 15 months I can honestly say that I barely remember how bad it was. A post like your’s brings it back for me but otherwise I rarely think of it and I enjoy him immmensely on a daily basis. Those days will come for you as well. Hang in there. Let it out sometimes. I went to my Pastor once and cried for an hour about how horrible it was. I felt a lot better just having someone listen and care. Sometimes that’s all you need to forge ahead.
I found this interesting article written on by a woman from the yahoobreastfeedingreflux group:
http://tracykm.blogspot.com/2006/11/back-to-your-regular-sch eduled.html
She read the book “Could it Be B12?” by Sally M. Pacholok, RN and Jeffrey J. Stuart, DO. She mentions that a urine test is important rather than a blood test (it seems that doctors routinely do blood tests)
AnonymousInactive
actually i was exclusively breastfeeding. when i introduced neocate nora’s sxs returned. i am giving her as much breastmilk as possible — i don’t know if this matters but i do eat soy and it does not seem to affect nora like dairy did…she just seems so cranky and uncomfortable. i don’t know what to do. i guess there are just going to be good days and bad days?
AnonymousInactive
My daughter 4.5 months old. she was diagnosed with reflux when she was three months old (refused to feed, excessive spit up). dr prescribed zantac .6ml 3x/day — she is now on 1.3ml 3x/day. i also eliminated all dairy products from my diet (she was exclusively breastfed). the spit and food refusal have stopped and she began sleeping through the night! i am returning to work soon so i began to ween her and started to introduce formula. her symptoms worsened on nutramigen and alimentum and she broke out in a rash (excema?) on her face and neck which doctors attributed to the milk allergy. i started her on neocate (one bottle a day – last feeding). the rash seems to continue to get better but she has begun to wake up every two hours crying in pain at night. has anyone had a similar situation? any advice? i am trying to get my milk supply back but would love to be able to give her formula!!
thanks,
joanna (mother of nora)
AnonymousInactive
Boy do I hear ya. Justice has never slept well. I nurse him all night in bed just to get every 2 hours. Now he is sick and for the last two days he has been waking every 30 min. Nothing makes it any better. At first it was an ear infection. Well today is day ten of his antibotic and things are only worse. We went into the doc today and the ear infection is gone, but he has a temp and some inflamation in his nose. Also she said what is probably bothering him the most is his reflux. He doesn’t really want to eat which scares me since I’m breastfeeding. I worry about my supply. I think I will be okay though as long as he nurses at least 5min every few hours. Now I’m honestly considering just not leaving the house until winter is over. I can’t take him getting sick again. I’m sorry for all your going through. Just know your not alone. You know what really stinks is that we all live so far from each other. it would be nice to hang out with someone who has a baby like mine rather than my friends whose babies sleep so well. I just don’t know what to do anymore. Sorry to steal your post. I have just been feeling the same way today. I just don’t feel like I can do this anymore. I am so sick of being a monster.
AnonymousInactive
i guess you can try it as well.. shane did ok on it at 2 mos.! in his bottles.. but yes there are a lot that cant do it. i started spoon feeding it to him a week b4 he turned 4 mos. sooo maybe you can wait a couple weeks and see if she would want to do that, if you dont think it would work well adding it to breastmilk. and yes the theory is that they cant digest it well. but, my mom and mother in law said that they fed their babys around a couple months old. soo you never know, i guess each baby is different, and if you do it, and see that she cant handle it i guess you can always stop right?
AnonymousInactive
A family practitioner is also called a family doctor. My doc was able to diagnose both of my refluxers by their symptoms and she was very willing to prescribe reflux meds. She never discouraged me to stop breast feeding. Personally I think that should be a last resort for a mom who is nursing and wants to continue.
Good luck with you appointments.
AnonymousInactive
Naomi – I am so sorry that you are going through this! How are you administering the Zegerid to him? We couldn’t give it to Sarah straight from the syringe because too much was coming back out, so we mix it in a 1oz bottle of formula. That works great for us. Shortly after we started on Zegerid, I saw the same things happening to Sarah that you’re seeing with Ben. THANKFULLY I realized it was because I was mixing the medicine in the bottle too far ahead of time. I was mixing all his formula/medicine bottles the night before. Turns out, you aren’t supposed to put the medicine in until RIGHT before feeding. Wooops! Ours was an “easy” fix after figuring that out…I hope yours turns out to be an easy fix as well. I can’t imagine that it would completely stop working. There has to be something else going on. He seems a little too young for teething, but it’s definitely possible?!?! Sarah’s reflux became a nightmare when she got her first tooth a few weeks ago. Have you tried any mylanta during his fits?
I think I’ve read of a few babies on here that couldn’t stand/tolerate the sweet taste of the zegerid and would spit it out as well. 
I’m not sure what they did, but I’m thinking they switched to prevacid or something.
The elimination diet might be a good alternative to look into as well. I had stopped breastfeeding Sarah around the time we started Zegerid (went back to work) and we are now on Alimentum.
I wish I had more ideas for you. 
Hang in there and know we’ve all been there too and understand your frustrations!!!!!!!!!
Amy
AnonymousInactive
We have the same problem too, and I also struggle with OAL. One thing that really helped was to take him off the breast once my milk lets down. I just let it shoot out into a burp cloth until it stops, and then I put him back on. He HATES this, but at least he isn’t gulping as much. He still will cough and gulp a little, but it’s not nearly as bad as before. I thought about pumping, but that only increases your supply. This way it’s not coming out so fast, and he can settle down and really latch on well. I also usually nurse him on one side per feeding … only moving to the second if he really seems hungry. This cuts down on the oversupply, but also gets him sucking enough on one side to encourage more milk supply too. Christine’s idea about the Mylicon sounds like a good one to me, and I’m going to try it. We go through about a bottle of that stuff every week around here. One thing I do is give him Mylicon before I lay him down for a nap. Right now, I am still pretty much rocking him to sleep, so I give him the Mylicon, and rock and pat and rub his back as much I can to encourage and burps to come up. It doesn’t always work, but I can usually tell if he has one in there.. .he wiggles around and stuff.
