Reflux, help appreciated!

[Pink1981]

Sids refulx seems to be getting worse.
He's having gaviscon before every feed which helped for about a week but now he's started being sick again.
He's only put on 3 ozs in about 3 weeks.
And for the past week or so i have been sleeping on the sofa with him laid on me (which i dont like doing but i was getting 2 hours sleep max a night beforehand) as he just wont settle day or night when he's not laying on someone.
I just dont know what to do. I've just tried swaddling him but he's screamed for about 15 mins... his moses basket is slightly raised at the head end too

I feel like i'm letting my toddler down as i dont spend nearly as much time with her as i used to and i just feel so useless with Sid as he is sick nearly every feed as seems so unsettled

 

[lyre]

we saw a pediatrician for our lo reflux as he wasnt putting on weight and was crying/uncomfortable a lot. he is on domperidone and ranitidine, so there are other medications out there for you to try. go to your docs to ask about it x

 

[AP]

we are on the same as lyre and it's made a world of difference, the doctor didn't listen to we went to our kids hospital one night with our poor screaming girl and they finally helped us.

 

[CatStorey]

Chloe has reflux and has only been prescibed Gaviscon and now renitidine. Only started on the renitidine yesterday so praying Its going to help!
Do you think without the domperidone there is much chance? Does the renitedine on it's own have much effect?
Poor little mite has been screaming so much I can't bare it.
It's so frustraiting cos the docs are so not bothered cos she is putting on weight but the only reason is cos I spend about 2 hours on each bottle trying to get her to drink it. I just wish I can get things under control before Xmas as I'm going away and feeding her at the mo is a nightmare and can't really be done in public (I tried and the looks I got!!)

 

[lyre]

the domperidone is to keep the milk down which is prescribed for babies who need help putting on weight. the ranitidine is to stop the discomfort due to acid coming back up x

 

[TennisGal]

Can I ask, can babies get reflux at 11.5 weeks? My DD has suddenly developed the symptoms, when she previously had none at all...and none of silent reflux either. Doc seems to think she may have a little bug which is just upsetting her digestion a little...but every symptom points towards reflux?! She's BF.

Pink, do you give Gaviscon before feeds? I was advised after...not sure if it will make any difference, but maybe worth a try? Really hope your DS gets better.

 

[sam76]

wish u all the luck, my baby has colic, and its very hard, you must be so tired xx
Goodluck xxxxxxxxx

 

[Pink1981]

Can I ask, can babies get reflux at 11.5 weeks? My DD has suddenly developed the symptoms, when she previously had none at all...and none of silent reflux either. Doc seems to think she may have a little bug which is just upsetting her digestion a little...but every symptom points towards reflux?! She's BF.

Pink, do you give Gaviscon before feeds? I was advised after...not sure if it will make any difference, but maybe worth a try? Really hope your DS gets better.

i do give before feeds as when i tried after he had already been sick loads, i was never quick enough... i will try again though!

 

[TennisGal]

I know about the sleeping on you thing, too - DD has only wanted to sleep on me or DH this week, we've taken to doing a rota!

Hope it gets better soon

 

[mrso]

Here is what I did with my son: he had a very extreme case BTW

His symptoms started at 4 days old. First of all he started with the screaming and didnt quit crying until he was 6 weeks old (only stopped becasue of medication). We originally thought that he had a milk protein allergy so the pediatrician switched him to a soy formula. That was horrid and so then we went to a "gentle" formula. He was still throwing up like 50 times a day and screaming his head off. When my son was 5 weeks old he ended up in ICU for 3 days becasue he was refusing to eat. At that point the doctor finally believed me that something was really wrong. I had to fight tooth and nail with the doctors office for them to believe me (very frustrating) and that it wasnt just colic. My son was crying between 12-16 hours a day.

After his little stay at the hospital he were referred to a pediatric GI doctor who saved my sanity. James was perscribed Prevacid 30mg solutabs when he was 6 weeks old. At that point he finally stopped crying. He spit up loads unil he was about 6 months old (sitting by himself and on solids).

What else we did to combat the problem:

elevating the crib did nothing for us. We ended up letting him sleep in his swing or bouncy seat. I know that it isnt advised but it was the only way for us.
We had to regulate his food until he was 3. Nothing acidic, no juice, little meals more often.
Tummy time was non-existant. And laying flat on his back was just as bad. We did diaper changes while he was elevated on a pillow.

My son was on Prevacid until he was 3. 98% of children outgrow reflux by the time they are 2 though. I know how exhausting and frustrating this can be becasue when they are little nothing seems to help!

Hang in there. If you ever need to chat PM me. I went through hell with my son and would never wish that on anybody.

 

[nikkip19]

luca's reflux was horrible. hes 6 mths and has calmed down quite a bit. as far as the spitting up.. our doctor recommended thickening with rice cereal. kept the food down and made him gain weight. we tried every drug possible. prevacid solutabs was the only one that helped! luca is 6 mths and still sleeping semi upright on my hubbys chest. nothing else worked. good luck

 

[mrso]

luca's reflux was horrible. hes 6 mths and has calmed down quite a bit. as far as the spitting up.. our doctor recommended thickening with rice cereal. kept the food down and made him gain weight. we tried every drug possible. prevacid solutabs was the only one that helped! luca is 6 mths and still sleeping semi upright on my hubbys chest. nothing else worked. good luck

We tried tons of meds too and the Prevacid Solutabs were the only thing that worked for us too.

 

[nikkip19]

mrso... can i ask your babies weight and how high of a prevacid dose hes on? i dont think luca's is high enough

 

[mrso]

mrso... can i ask your babies weight and how high of a prevacid dose hes on? i dont think luca's is high enough

My oldest son had all the problems with reflux soooo..

He actually started on the prevacid when he was 5 weeks old. He was born at 10lbs and at 5 weeks he was about 12lbs. Our GI doctor told us that they usually make babies wait until they are 6 weeks old and 10lbs to go on the prevacid but becasue my son was a big ol baby they started us a week early.

It took about 4 days to notice the full effect of the prevacid. Originally he was on 15mg (cut a 30mg tab in half) everyday and then when he was older he went up to 30mg. He was also on Reglan until he was 6 months old but I really dont think that helped much. Reglan empties the stomach faster so there is less of a chance of his food coming up. IMO it didnt work becasue he spit up on average of 50 times a day.

If we ever needed more meds I gave him 1 tsp of Malox. The GI doctor told me that it was okay. Most of the times that we used it, it was at night. I never gave him more then 2 doses of the malox in a day though.

There are other meds that they can supplement with the prevacid. Do you see a regular Pedo doctor or have you seen a Pedo GI doctor? I would totally recommend seeing the GI doctor. They have tons more experience and know more about the problem at hand. I may be partial to the GI doctor though because our regular pediatrician is kinda a moron (live in a small town with little option and we travel 6 hours one way to see the GI doc).

 

[mrso]

luca's reflux was horrible. hes 6 mths and has calmed down quite a bit. as far as the spitting up.. our doctor recommended thickening with rice cereal. kept the food down and made him gain weight. we tried every drug possible. prevacid solutabs was the only one that helped! luca is 6 mths and still sleeping semi upright on my hubbys chest. nothing else worked. good luck

James slept in his swing until he was about 8 months old. Then we ended up just putting him in our bed so we could catch the reflux crying before it got out of hand. My sons reflux got tons better when he was about a year old but he still had problems at night until he was 3. Everynight he would wake up gulping and gasping for air which followed by the horrendous crying. If he was in bed with us we could catch him before the crying started and calm him down.

Now we have a new issue.... getting my 3 1/2 year old out of my bed and into his own

 

[xxxjacxxx]

My son has reflux too, and because he was gaining weight they wouldnt listen or prescribe anything other than gaviscon which worked for a week then we were back to square one.
In the end we went to the hospital and saw a pead, she recommended switching Leos formula to sma staydown . I researched reflux milks on the net and found excellent reviews on Enfamil AR. Not a widely recognised brand in the UK but it was our lifesaver! Although he still spit up a little it stopped the crying ans he was more comfortable.
You need to fight to get anywhere these days, but go with your instincts.