I keep second guessing myself

[Anonymous]

I just don’t even know where to begin…today has been particularly

exhausting. My daughter was diagnosed with reflux and put on Zantac

two weeks ago. She’s 9 1/2 weeks old. She had reflux symptoms since

she was about 4 weeks old, but they seemed to come and go until one

day she screamed all day. After she was put on zantac the obvious

symptoms lessened, like gulping and choking, but there’s still plenty of

hiccups, sneezing, poor napping. Sometimes I wonder if it’s reallyreflux

or something else. She’ll have times where she’s showing no symptoms,

but she’s inconsolable. And there’s things like being perfectly happy

laying down (she loves her changing table) and sleeping well at night up

until last night. But she’s hardly slept all day. I wonder if her reflux is

waking her up during the day, but she doesn’t wake up crying…I feel like I

second guess myself every day, wondering what’s wrong with her, if it’s

really reflux, colic, food sensitivity, or something else all together. Did

any of you go through this, or were your diagnoses obvious? She’s not a

terribly fussy baby, but she has her days. Then again, they all do. I guess

being a first time mom I just don’t have a frame of reference. Help!

[Anonymous]

I feel exactly the same way re: second guessing myself.. Is it

overactive letdown/ too much milk, Is it food allergy, Is it reflux, Is it

easy gag reflex. I’m going to try a form of the elimination diet for a

month. It’ll be hard because I already don’t eat meat so what little

protein I was getting was from milk/yoghurt/ soy. Aaaaagh

See my post re: my 3 month vomiter.. they’re just little mysteries

aren’t they? My husband and I joke that we wish they had little lights

on them that lit up to tell you what’s wrong.

I didn’t know poor napping is part of reflux… my little guy was a

great napper until last week then all of a sudden he won’t go down

for an afternoon nap.. head hit’s the pillow-eyes pop open!

I’m in the same boat re: being a first timer..and really learning alot

along the way. Thank god for the internet… what did people do 10 –

15 years ago. I guess just rely on whatever the doctors said.

[Anonymous]

It is really tough with babies… doctors will treat them first and then do some tests later. IF the Zantac seems to have worked for a while, and lessened her fussiness, then yes, reflux is probably part of the problem. Zantac is really weight sensitive, so it may have worn off. Most of us use PPIs instead (see marci-kids.com website) which has a ton of info about different drugs that can be used.

Sometimes, reflux is a sympton of a food intolerance, so if you do not see an improvement with the PPI, then you will have to try to eliminate diary, and possibly soy and possibly more things! Unfortunately, there really is no realiable test at that age, so it is a bit of trial and error.

If after a couple of weeks the baby is still not doing well, then maybe some testing could help, possibly endo to tell you if there is any damage to teh esophagus or there are EOS cells present (allergy related) or any other abnormalities.

As you said, tehy cannot talk, so we need to keep trying things…

[Anonymous]

Have you made an appt. with a ped. GI. You benefit from doing so. The reflux usually peaks by 3-4 months, and the zantac is very weight sensitive and might not be working well soon. Might have to go to a PPI like prevacid or zegerid.

Don’t second guess yourself. There are many reliable tests out there to properly diagnose conditions that go along with reflux. My daughter gulped, choked, and gagged so much. It turns out she also has floppy airway and a mild swallowing dysfunction. Probably due to prematurity, of course she will grow out of it, but we needed to thicken her bottles with simply thick. Alot of mothers thicken so the food stays down better with rice or oatmeal.

Hiccups, sneezing and poor napping are def. signs of reflux. I never know when she is going to sleep well. But, she does do better since we bought the tuckersling and wedge. She sleeps on her tummy. Also, we hold her upright for 30 mins before we put her down and use Dr. Brown bottles. Good luck with everything! Lots of info on this site! Sarah

[Anonymous]

Trial and Error is the best route that I’ve found. If it looks like something isn’t working, keep trying other foods, meds, etc. Also, it is VERY helpful (as other moms have mentioned) to KEEP A JOURNAL of what your baby eats, what meds she’s on, what dose, etc. It will be very helpful in determining what’s helping and what’s not. Also, try not to change to many things at once. I was always excited to change formulas and meds in the same day to just get that quick fix, but it’s harder to back track if one’s not working (now which thing isn’t working the formula or the meds?) Keep plugging away at it and you’ll be fine. And remember – always trust your gut!!! Motherly intuition doesn’t lie (not even a first time mommy! – I’m one too)

[Anonymous]

Thanks, everyone. I gave up milk about a month ago, and all dairy,

chocolate, and caffeine about 3 weeks ago. This little spell lasted about a

day and a half with lots of crying and very little sleeping. We called the

doctor again, and she recommended we see an LC,but we already have.

We’ve got the overactive letdown and oversupply under control. I am

wondering if we should switch meds, but the doctor didn’t seem to think

it would help. My husband talked to her, so I’m not too sure what she

said. I think I’ll take the earlier advice and seek out a pedi GI doc. She’s

doing really well today. I love these days.

[Anonymous]

I was beginning to think that I was the only one that constantly second guessing myself. Three weeks ago, I was 100% certain that she is a silent refluxer, but then after reading up on colic and gas issues, I wonder if she is simply colicky.

She does not vomit or spit up that often, but she does hiccup and sneeze all the time. She is very fussy after feedings and always try to stand up straight, but not really arch her back like she used to. Her nasal passages always sound congested, especially early in teh morning.

The reason I think she has indigestion/gas issues is because her BMs are very runny/watery now (though still yellow). They are sometimes explosive.

I can’t seem to tell for certain whether her discomfort is due tummy aches or reflux.

Are reflux and gas related? I already don’t eat dairy, soy, or nuts so I don’t think it is an allergic reaction.

[hellbennt]

wow. I feel for you all!!!

my little GERDling was a TERRIBLE napper, yet he did better at night (maybe too exhausted by the time night came around?). Don’t get me wrong, in those first few months it all was a nightmarrish blurr and he shrieked/howled non stop and once he did this so much that he went hoarse. That was it!!!! I begged/implored/demanded for more meds/different meds and we were on our way (well, thank goodness we had a great ped GI & we were ‘on our way’ anyway!)

as you’ve read in my welcome/intro ( https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853&am p;PN=1&TPN=1) I implore you to get to a ped GI ASAP & if you don’t get the answers you’re seeking, then find another one!

also from the link above is the link to Here’s about mspi and related issues: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2697&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&TPN=1 and here you’ll find out all about mspi and what you, as breastfeeding mamas of GERDlings, can try. From the Elimination diet ‘section’ there there’s links to all things Elimination Diet & you’ll see my posts of my own experience and that it is not ALWAYS a diet issue…unfortunately, there’s only way to find out for sure…

I really & truly think meds will help and so if your doctors are telling you no, please find another doctor! You won’t know if they help until you try!!! They are safe and I do not believe a baby should have to be in pain & suffer and just wait to ‘grow out of it!!!”

Ok, so that’s my venting for now- please read the info I’ve posted in the links above, because I’ve written a lot more about my experiences, my thoughts, beliefs, findings & feelings

glad you found us!

~laura

[Anonymous]

Sarah wrote:

I was beginning to think that I was the only one that

constantly second guessing myself.  Three weeks ago, I was 100% certain

that she is a silent refluxer, but then after reading up on colic and gas

issues, I wonder if she is simply colicky.

She does not vomit or spit up that often, but she does hiccup and 

sneeze all the time.  She is very fussy after feedings and always try to

stand up straight, but not really arch her back like she used to.  Her nasal

passages always sound congested, especially early in teh morning.

The reason I think she has indigestion/gas issues is because her BMs

are very runny/watery now (though still yellow).  They are sometimes

explosive. 

I can’t seem to tell for certain whether her discomfort is due tummy

aches or reflux. 

Are reflux and gas related?  I already don’t eat dairy, soy, or nuts so I

don’t think it is an allergic reaction.

That sounds just like my Julie! Her poops aren’t runny, but they can be

explosive for sure! My husband’s taken to calling her bottom the poop

canon! I can hear what I think is her refluxing, though, so I know she is,

but many times she is already crying when I hear it. So I sometimes

wonder if she has digestional issues that cause the crying, and then the

crying causes the reflux. I read in the Sears book that crying makes reflux

worse. We’ve had her sleeping in her infant chair, which seems to help, so

of course that points to reflux. I can’t wait until she can tell me what’s

wrong!

[hellbennt]

from a post from the moderator of the yahoo breastfeedingreflux group: biological/physical/scientific explanation for the
> connection between food
> allergies and reflux?

The body has difficulty digesting or tolerating the food for whatever
reason, so it is essentially treated the same way the body would treat
a non-food substance or poison – back up the way it came so that it
can’t affect the rest of the digestive system.

> 2) what’s the connection between gas and reflux?

Gas is created when something isn’t digested properly; for example,
beans are generally harder to digest than other foods, which is why
they are notorious for causing gas in most people (they are generally
not a common problem with breastfed babies through mom’s milk, though;
this is just a common example to help make sense.)

Also, gas puts pressure on the esophageal sphincter (the muscle at the
top of the stomach that helps move and keep things down), making it
easier for whatever is in the stomach to be refluxed.

[Author]

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