Mums of very 'sicky' babies,I need your advice please.

[Mirage]

DD2 is nearly 19wks & has been bottlefed since she was 9wks old.She has always been a very sicky baby & would throw up most of her feeds,regardless of whether it was breast milk or formula.I thought it might improve as she got older,but it seems to be getting worse.She is sick after every feed & sometimes will throw up 4 times after a bottle & will still throw up 2 hours after her last feed.

She doesn't appear to be in any pain & often laughs as she is being sick.She does fight the bottle a bit & loses interest in feeding very easily.As she only takes 4oz or so per feed,I am starting to worry that her weight will slow down-she is currently 13lb 6.5 oz & on the 25th percentile.She doesn't sleep through,probably because she drinks so little during the day.

My mum was a nursery nurse for years & says that she has never seen a baby be sick so much as dd2.

I wondered if anyone who has been through the same thing had any advice about how to help her keep her milk down? Also,if your baby was sicky,did they grow out of it or stay a sicky child?

Thanks
Mirage

[bakedpotato]

DD sicked up like a fountain until (oh dear, I'm sorry to say this) she was 9 months. Sympathies, it's horrid and so much work. The washing machine never stopped.
Don't worry about the weight thing too much, if your dd was hungry she wouldn't be cheerful, and she sounds pretty content from what you say.
My GP did prescribe something that I used to give her after feeds can't remember name, apologies but it didn't make much difference. I thought going on solids might help, but no: it just meant orange or green sick instead of white.
Buy loads of bibs and muslins and bear in mind that it will stop in the end...

[carly82]

hi mirage!
i have two ds and my first son was an extremley sicky baby, he would be sick without fail after every bottle, up until the next one! he was always a happy baby and never seemed in pain. nevertheless was in and out of hosp, first they said he was just a sicky baby and would grow out of ii, then they said his muscle between the throat and stomach was too floppy, but wouldnt do anything till he turned one!!! in the end i found a formula milk called sma staydown (in a purple tin) basically its a thicker milk and made with only whey, it doesnt cost anymore than usual formula, and after about three weeks there was a significant improvement. sorry for waffling! i hope this helps and good luck

[Roobie]

Is it a girl thing? DD used to drive me crazy with her constant sicking - pure milk, curdled milk, watery stuff etc. It went on virtually all the time even hours after her last feed. She still thrived though and eventually grew out of when she was about 9 or 10 months. Sorry not to have any advice....believe me it is not uncommon.

[MrsWednesday]

My first DS was a very sicky baby and it really got me down at times because I felt like I spent the first few months of his life absolutely covered in puke. He put on weight steadily but took a very long time to sleep through (about 8 months I think). The only thing that made a difference was time - by about 10 months it started to get better and since then (he's 3 now) he's hardly ever been sick.

Agree with the 'lots of muslins' comment - I never travelled anywhere without them!

My health visitor and doctor both said it was just one of those things (something to do with the valve at the top of the stomach not closing properly in some babies) but that most babies grow out of it by the time they are 1. Hope you don't have to wait this long!

[Mirage]

Thanks ladies.Believe me,you have reassured me over the whole puking thing.Waiting until she is 9 months-1 year isn't a problem.I was more worried that she'd continue to be a sicky child as a toddler ect.My mum can be sick at the drop of a hat & said that dd2 will perhaps be the same {thanks mum}!

I'm off to Boots today,so will ask about the staydown formula & see if it makes any difference.She is waking up 3 times a night now when she only used to wake once,so we need to do something to help her keep her milk down.

[Before I had dd2,I used to see babies out wearing bibs & wonder why they were still wearing then when they weren't being fed-now I know}

[Pollyanna]

mirage have you ruled out reflux? My dd2 threw up loads, and at 6 weeks was diagnosed with reflux, She didn't seem to be in lots of pain (although was in discomfort sometimes I think), but having infant gaviscon after every feed definitely helped. (Your doctor could prescribe this). Like others on here she was less sick after about 10 months.

[crumpet]

another one with a champion chucker here. can't remember when she grew out of it, but she wore bibs pretty premanently for months - easier to change than a whole outfit. And also lots of muslins...

[matnanplus]

[1]Infant gaviscon added to her bottles, Rx by GP.

[2]SMA Staydown, can be bought and Rx by GP.

[3]Keep her in semi upright position ie, bouncy chair/car seat for 1 hour after feeds.

[4]feed her in semi upright position, no jiggling your foot or her, if you can bear it, feed her in the chair and don't move her after a feed.

[5]do not pat her back, gently and slowly rub her back in a circle.

[6]when in her 'seat' firstly put over it a pampers care mat and then a sheet, the sheet will be the messest but the care mat is absorbant so less mess thru onto seat.

[7]Yep, they do grow out of it, tho it seems like it is forever.

[8]when you wean at 6m+, stick to white foods for a bit, ie potato, parsnip, cauliflower, rice.

[kate100]

I had a puker the first time too, my washing machine never stopped and at one point I had over 40 bibs, I really needed that many. He also carried on puking after he went on solids, it was just a more intersting colour!! To try and keep it down he had gaviscon which thickened the milk and I tried to keep him upright after a feed to try and keepit down. I also propped up the end of the cot, so he was slightly uprigth at night. Oh and I never put him on anyone else's carpet with out a blanket underneath him easier to wash a blanket than clen a carpet, mine has never really recovered!!

[geekgrrl]

Mirage,
my ds was a terribly sicky baby - he'd bring up anything from a dribble to a full feed, it seemed to be a constant stream of sick all day long. Gaviscon didn't work for him, and it was difficult to administer as he was breastfed. Solids didn't really make any difference, either. He just outgrew it, but it did take some time - I'd say by the time he was 14 months old he'd only bring something up a couple of times a day. Now he is 22 months old and is still prone to being sick quickly during coughing for instance, he also gets grossed out easily and starts gagging when he's in the bathroom whilst one of the dd's is doing a poo!
I was really fretting about it when he was little - it seemed like so much sick all the time, but I kept an eye on his weight and that was good, so it was more of a laundry problem. For sleeping I'd put him on his front into the carrycot attachment for the pushchair and prop the top up quite high. He used to be sick in his sleep loads too, so sleeping on his back just didn't work.

[mamaoftwo]

Hi Mirage. I do sympathise with you. My DS2 has reflux and is now 15 months. His 'problem' is mostly controlled by diet now (no dairy, egg or soya) as he couldn't tolerate any formula and the problem didn't improve when he was weaned.

Looking back a year ago, I don't know how we got through it. The washing machine was permenantly on - had an engineer out to fix it three times, it was so over used! - we too used about 20 bibs a day, and each night I had a bucket of wet muslins and clothes to rinse and wash. When I was particularly low, we didn't go out or see people as I was fed up of clearing up and apologising for the mess.

But, the reason I am putting all this down, is that it does get easier. I know at the time I couldn't see how I would ever manage, somehow you do. and before you know it, you look back and think 'hey, how did I do it?'. I know it is easy for me to say that now, but I do mean it.

I would however, speak to your Dr about reflux. There is no harm in asking and getting referred to a paediatrician. And if it is Reflux, there are variuous things which could help, as others have listed here. (We've been through most things!) Matnanplus has also suggested soome good tips for feeding etc.

Good luck, and do scream if you need to! There are lots of us here who know what you are going through!

[beccalanismum]

My DD1 was always very sicky and went to a cranial osteopath who said due to her birth she has diaphram problems. It did settle at about 5 months but even now at 3 is she is very upset she is easily sick. Read somewhere that some kids have weak valves at top of their stomach which improves with age.

take care of yourself

[Mirage]

Wow-after reading how hard some of you have had it,I feel quite lucky.Compared to what you've had to deal with,I have nothing to moan about.

I started DD2 on the Staydown formula today & am astonished,she has drunk 7.5 oz,she has never drunk that much before.95% of it stayed down too & she then ate some pureed pear.Fantastic!

Again.thanks for all your support & feedback.It helps knowing that I'm not alone in this.

[mamaoftwo]

Hi Mirage. So pleased the staydown milk stayed down a bit better!! I don't know what they put in it but it does seem to help! We used it for about three months. It's a pain to make up though isn't it? Although, it has turned out to be very useful for us as my DS2 now drinks his 'milk' at room temperature which has saved lots of hassle trying to heat it when out!!

Good luck. let us know how you get on.

[janeybops]

sounds just like my dd. she ended up being seen by a peadeatrician but they could find nothing wrong. then when she started to walk at 13 months it gradually got better and better. she is now 50 % on centile chart and not a sicky 4 year old.

keep your chin up though I know how it can get you down!