Worst 4.5 months – help

[Anonymous]

My DD was born 1 month early and ever since then life has sucked. I love

her and she is very cute, but I am so depressed. I get to shower once a

week, and I don’t want to leave the house ever. She has had reflux since

3 weeks. No one seems to think it is that bad (including my husband),

because she smiles all the time and is gaining weight. Her main problem

is that she she fights the bottle and doesn’t sleep that well – naps or at

night. She was taking a bunch of 45 minute naps and then at night we

would be up all the time (she has always only slept a total of 12 hrs a

day). First she was on zantac. We have continually raised the dose of

that drug, then 4 weeks ago it seemed to just stop working. We then

tried reglan with the zantac, and that made her space out and scream for

4 hours at night. We just started her on prilosec (2 ml in the am – the

dose is 2mg/ml). It is day four. The doctor also told me I should not

keep her on the zantac and the prilosec at the same time. The only thing

the prilosec has improved so far is her naps – now they are btwn 1-2

hours (her eating is also a little better – still fights bottle a little). At night

we play the binky game every hour. Up until 4 weeks ago she did not

need the binky to stay asleep. She also constantly sucking on fingers

and gagging herself and constipated. Ugh. I know these things sound

minor, but I have not slept in 19 weeks. (and over the past 3 days she is

also constipated and I have given prune juice and karo syrup – no luck yet

– and she has always gone at least once a day).

Does anyone know if the dosing of the prilosec is correct? I don’t

understand the dosing charts. My DD weighs close to 14 lbs.

Has anyone had the binky problem and found it gets better when the

reflux gets better?

Has anyone had the hand sucking problem? Is it the reflux? teething? just

cause?

Any suggestions? Sorry so long – thanks for listening!!!!

[hellbennt]

hi & welcome!

constipation can be bcse of her formula, or your diet if you’re bf…

at 14lbs she should be getting AT LEAST 19 mgs of prilosec and she’s only getting 4mgs!!!!!

also, even if she was getting enough prilosec, it can take up to 2wks for it to ‘kick in,’ so it’s like she’s not on any meds at all– so yes, she an have zantac until you get her meds ‘right’- just give at least 2hrs seperate from the prilosec…

please please get to a ped GI ASAP!

please please read & BOOKMARK this link- keep coming back to it! read about the meds, especially zantac dosing to find the right dose & to get some immediate relief, the ‘proper’ doing of the meds, read ‘prevacid 101,’ even though your baby is on prilosec, & read about MSPI… https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853&am p;am p;am p;PN=1&TPN=1

hang in there!

~laura

[Anonymous]

Hi and Welcome.

First let me say please don’t apologize for feeling exasperated and exhausted. Believe me we’ve all been there. Babies are hard work and reflux babies can be a real challenge. I fully understand. I cried and cried with frustratation and exhaustion with both of my reflux babies. And like you, my husband was not very understanding or supportive. Only a mother whose been through this can understand. You’ll find lots of support and understanding here, and hopefully some good advice to help you get through this.

If she’s almost five months old, and weighs 14 lbs, she should be getting 1.25 mg per kilogram. That’s 14lbs divided by 2.2 to convert to kilograms. 6.36 kg x 1.25 = 7.95 (8) mg. So she should be getting 8 mg’s three times per day, which would be 4 mls three times per day. She’s only getting 2 mls once per day. That’s probably why she’s so unhappy and fighting the bottle. My son did the same thing until we got him on the right dose of Prevacid. I think what you need to do is talk to her doctor about getting a big increase in her meds. I was not able to convince my doctor to increase Myles’ dose to the appropriate level until I printed the marci-kids.com information and faxed it to her. Once he was on the right dose things turned around and he was a different baby. If you can’t get anywhere with your current doctor you’ll probably have to find another one….maybe a ped. GI.

I would definitely continue with the Zantac until the Prilosec starts working. Just give them at least two hours apart. You can also try Mylanta Cherry Supreme.

As for the pacifier, for now I’d just let her have it as much as she wants. At least until you get her meds right and she is more comfortable. Myles is hooked on his nuk too, and I was worried that I would have to get up all night long to give it to him, but now that he is older he can find it himself and pop it into his mouth at night. You can help her learn to put it into her mouth herself by putting it into her hand during the day and letting her put it into her own mouth. When she’s older she may be able to find it in the crib and put it back in her mouth. Or, when she’s feeling better you can try to wean her from it.

Is this the first time she’s been constipated? Or has she been for a while?

Have you read Laura’s intro? I’ll post it here for you. You may want to bookmark it because it is long. Then you can read when you have time.

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853&am p;PN=1&TPN=1

I’m glad you found us and I hope we can help.

[Anonymous]

This is the first time she has been constipated. I feel so bad for her since

she just keeps grunting and nothing comes out. I am going to call the

ped has 10 days on this dose – since my husband thinks I am

overreacting. I told him I would wait to see if there is any improvement in

that time period.

I am not so worried about her wanting the pacifier – just the fact that it

pops out of her mouth and then an hour later she is crying for it – all

night long. I feel bad for her fussing all night and for me for being so

tired. I also think she is tired all the time from being up all night. She

never seems well rested – always rubbing her eyes. I was just hoping it

was part of the reflux – so if I fix it she could sleep some.

[Anonymous]

Hi and welcome

Please dont apologize…I agree with Laura…you need to see a pediatric GI doc ASAP…pediatricians are not skilled at all in this area.

Make an appointment ASAP!!!

[Anonymous]

PPIs can cause constipation.

[Anonymous]

Hi and welcome!

The dosing has already been addressed, so I won’t mention that again, so:

1. You stated that you are depressed, and with reason! Something I would like to add is that you need to take care of yourself in order to take care of your baby. I was like you, (I have reflux twins). If I showered every 2 days I was doing good. I didn’t want to go out of the house or do anything around the house. When I went back to work at first I couldn’t wait to come home to see my babies, than I didn’t want to go home at all. I would cry when listening to songs on the radio and would get angry at my husband for no reason. You may not be experiencing all this, but my point is I HIGHLY suggest paying a visit to your ob and see if you have postpartum depression. I waited for a long time before calling, but I’m so glad I did. She put me on Zoloft and I felt like a completely better person…and I could handle my twins issues better. So just remember, you need to take care of yourself too!

2. Constipation can be a side effect of prilosec, but should go away. how long has your daughter been on it?

3. How are you giving the Prilosec? It needs to be given about 30 minutes before feeding. With the zantac needed to be spaced from the prilosec and the prilosec needeing to be spaced from the feeding, it can get confusing. Zegerid can be given with formula or breastmilk. In some doctors eyes it’s the same as prilosec because the generic name is the same, but it’s the buffer that makes it different. So if your doc is willing to prescribe prilosec, there should be no reason not to prescribe zegerid.

4. Hands in the mouth…that sounds like teething to my. Many moms here have recommended hylands teething tablets. Those didn’t work for my twins, but the hylands teething gel did.

[Anonymous]

Oh, one more thing. Did your doc recommend prune juice? Mine said that’s too harsh for infants when I jokingly said I should give them prune juice. He gave me more reasons but I don’t remember what. He had me do 1 tsp. karo syrup per bottle and 2 oz of apple juice with 2 oz water. Took a couple of days, but they both blew up more than i care to describe!

[Anonymous]

Hi, your story sounds like I could have written it. Our dd is still going through the exact same thing, its so hard to deal with. Have you tried thickening her formula? Maybe that is binding her. Also, we use lactulose 1/2 tsp. 2x a day because of the constipation issues. It wakes her up with all the gas and discomfort and i beleive it irritates the reflux as well. Have you tried mylanta cherry supreme? it has a laxitive effect and helps with gas. We do a couple of bites of prunes every day too that seems to help some, but some days it irritates her belly. Important to get the dose raised and maybe split it to 3x a day. That is when dd started to feel better and I finally got some sleep. Found a great gi on this board by doing a search for ones other mom’s reccommended in my area. Good luck and I hope you get some sleep soon!

[hellbennt]

(you don’t have to worry about when you give the prilosec just yet, I’d say)

First, you need to address the issue of what the dose is:

“We just started her on prilosec (2 ml in the am – the
dose is 2mg/ml)” – this is only 4mgs a day- pretty low…it’s a low dose for a baby who weighs 8.8lbs, & yours is 14lbs

Next, it can take up to 14 days to ‘kick in’…and, yes it could be causing constipation, but ‘usually’ their bodies adjust after about 2wks of the medication…

Next is the issue of how it’s being compounded please read ‘prevacid 101,’ even though your baby is on prilosec https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853&am p;am p;am p;am p;PN=1&TPN=1

are you formula feeding or breast feeding?

~laura

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the good advice. Molly is formula fed (Good Start- she did

not react well to soy). We thickening it with 2 tsps of rice cereal (soy free)

because the baby won’t drink anything thicker. She is so hard headed. I

have been trying to give the Prilosec 30 minutes after her first bottle in

the morning – because I read that on here – but the Ped never said it. It

is now day 5 on the Prilosec w/o the zantac (my husband thinks we

should do exactly what the doctor says). There has been a little

improvement. The baby still doesn’t sleep well and coughs all the time.

She has been eating a little better – but I am also spacing the meals 4hrs

apart instead of 3 – to make sure she is hungry.

I have decided that I am going to call the Ped on Friday to let her know

there hasn’t been much improvement. My husband thinks I am nuts – but

that’s the longest I will wait. He thinks I just want to drug the baby to get

some sleep, and that I am bitter and tired. I also thought I would fax her

the dosing info from Marci-Kids. I am hoping she will agree with me to

give her more Prilosec. My mom and my MIL think I should just give the

baby more. If the ped gives me a hard time I am going to take the baby

to a Ped GI – even though my husband doesn’t think we need to. Ugh. I

hate this.

[hellbennt]

I’m sorry your husband isn’t supporting you more. Sounds like maybe your MIL understands a bit more- maybe she can talk to him? or, maybe you should just leave her out of it?

as far as the doctor goes, just FAX your concerns…I JUST this morning wrote ‘how’ to do this- click here: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6004

Again, I wouldn’t worry just yet about WHEN you’re giving the prilosec- the 30minute thing is for solutabs, packets and capsules- not liquid…

I’d be more concerned w/ the DOSE…

Next: why are you thickening? what happens if you stop? I’m not saying you should or shouldn’t…it’s just that this is what might be causing the constipation…

~laura

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the fax info. We have been thickening her formula since she

was 2 months old. A couple of weeks ago we increased the amount of

the cereal we added. We do this to help her not spit up – and it does

seem to work most of the time. I think it is the meds making her

constipated – but it could also be the increase in cereal. I gave her karo

syrup yesterday and we got some poo. I may give her more if she does

not go today again.

Hopefully the Ped agrees to give her more. Do you think the reflux could

be making her wake up at night – or do you think my husband is right

and we are just playing the binky game every hour. I swear we didn’t use

to play the binky game until the reflux got worse. He makes me doubt

myself. Ugh.

[Anonymous]

Also the Ped told us to continue tummy time and practicing rolling over

and sitting up – even though all of this makes the baby spit up. Did you

still do this?

[hellbennt]

reflux can keep anyone up at night!

during the day they’re more distracted so sometimes they don’t seem like it’s bothering them as much as during the day

plus your baby is on a pretty low dose of PPI…

do you need the thickening for calories to keep weight on her? is she in pain when she spits up, so you want to keep the formula down so she won’t be in pain? again, just wondering about why you increased the amount of cereal…

the pacifier definitely helps w/ the reflux- the swallowing keeps things down & also somehow the brain releases seratonin when htey suck on the pacifier and this calms them…

constipation can be a sign of mspi also. maybe it’s time to try nutrimigen or alumentum formula? please read about mspi and also about formulas from my welcome/intro…

how old is she? can you put info in your signature? go to the upper right hand corner of the screen and click on ‘settings’ & from there look for ‘profile’ and from there you’ll see ‘Signature’ – put baby’s name, age, meds & doses (mgs), formula and thickening…thanks!

it’s so hard to keep track of all these GERDlings

~laura

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