sooo soo frustrated

[Anonymous]

I still am not getting anywhere with my son. Here is a little background incase others are not familiar with me. My son is 5.5 months old and has reflux (prilosec 2xdaily) and possibly an intolerance to something? I have been dairy free for over a month. I have been soy free for about 2 weeks. I also started to eliminate wheat. Since I have done all of this I have seen no change. Still mucus in his stool, tested + for blood once. I did have it test about a week ago and it was -. He has eczema all over his torso and his head is majorly itching although there is no visible eczema on his head. He has fluid in his ears no infections yet. He has the lines under his eyes that indicate allergy.

He has been tested and tested – both by skin and blood.

I am just at a loss of what to do. I am eating nothing but lettuce and craberries and he isnt getting better? I just wanted to know if there was anyone out there who was breastfeeding couldnt figure it out then turned to formula? If so did it work? I dont want to close the door on breastfeeding if formula wont work. What formula do I try? Alimentum? I dont want to use neocate b/c the first ingredient is corn syrup??

Here are some other concerns:

I know others have said this in some other posts and it is controversial but here it goes. I am so worried about autism. I really think the gut has something to do with it so this really makes me nervous. And of course yesterday while searching about corn syrup the first thing I find is someone posting about there 3 year old son who was on neocate from 2 months on was suspected autistic. So that didnt settle well. I am not saying neocate caused it but that father was questioning it b/c the first ingredient was corn syrup?

Also if I dont figure out what is bothering him am I harming him? I just am at a loss as to what to do for him. He isnt fussy, he is happy just doesnt sleep well. He is so itchy from his eczema. If anyone can help me I would appreciate it. Most ppl look at me like this isnt common and have no clue what I should do.

[hellbennt]

hang in there! you should be eating more than cranberries and lettuce! I understand not eating rice, but how about squash? avocado? at this point I would add in SOMETHING so you’re not making yourself nuts…if it’s as bad as you say I cannot imagine squash or sweet potatos or even white potatoes making things worse? I would use poops as an indicator as well as foul-smelling gas and straining to poop/fart. if you add in some sweet potatoes and poop is no worse after just a day or two then add in something else…

I feel for you! is the mucous every single diaper? at this point I would also address medication, checking http://www.marci-kids.com for proper dose and making sure you’re administering the solutabs properly- if it’s liquid then I would do bufferbabies or zegerid…

you can do it!

[Anonymous]

I really feel for you! I don’t have a lot of time right now, in-laws visiting in town, but the quick answer is that you can try eliminating the top allergens. Not necessarily all at hte same time. Wheat AND gluten are major culprits for things like this, my son was intolerant to wheat, gluten, soy, beef and dairy. OTher top allergens that can also cause intolerances would be: fish &/or shellfish, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, — I’m drawing a blank. Check here for top allergens for babies: http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/t041800.asp

Breastfeeding is totally best if you can stand to play with your diet. I’ll be the first to say it is VERY difficult and hard to figure out, but if you are really dedicated to the nursing it is possible. I’m struggling with finding out what my youngest is having problems with and just haven’t gone whole hog wtih the elimination diet yet. I’m scared of how much work it will be and how little I’ll be eating! But I’ve survived on a very limited diet with my oldest one and actually felt very healthy once I figured it out. it is completely possible, and the best for your baby. It’s hard to think about formulas with food intolerances and allergies because they have such a corn syrup base and you just don’t know exactly how they are processed. For example, I could be wrong but I don’t know that they say on formulas that they guarantee to be gluten free. Just something to htink about. HANG IN THERE!! You can do it if you really want to and we are here to help. Ask away if you have more thoughts. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Hi!

My son was super duper sensitive & intolerant to many many things (well, still is but not nearly as bad now). For the 1st 8 mths of his life all I could eat was: potatoes, pears, squash & potatoes… BUT it took a while to figure that out.

It took 5+ weeks of strict TED (total elimination diet) before my ds’s intestines healed & stopped bleeding & causing green, mucousy stools. I’m telling you this b/c although it only takes 4-14 days for the offender to exit yours & his system, it can take MUCH longer for the colon to heal.

Here’s what I would do if I were you:

*Start traditional TED (turkey, squash/zucchini, pears, potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice)… there’s much more info on this forum or on askdrsears.com

*Track every single diaper consistency and color & also stinky gas. As a general rule, once the stinky gas is gone (bc exclusively breastfed babies shouldn’t have consistently stinky gas) the offender is out of yours & his system. Again, the mucous &/or blood in stool could continue for many weeks after that, but as long as the stinky gas is gone then continue eating the current ‘baseline’ diet. (Hope that makes sense).

You can also consider doing home hemoccult testing (I have that info if you want-let me know) that way you can track the hidden blood in his stool.

Hang in there – we are here to help & support you.

(hope this makes sense-I’m wrangling the boys while typing this)

Edited to add: allergy testing (skin & blood) won’t be accurate unfortunately @ this age… wouldn’t that make it easier though?!

Also, many of our babies have ‘intolerances’ (vs. allergies) so some won’t even show up when allergy testing IS accurate. erinntx2009-04-15 20:39:14

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