Bottle aversion/silent reflux/stressed!!

[CharleyBear1]

Hi everyone

Sorry for the ramble, I've not posted before so please bear with me!

My DD is 11 weeks old and we have been experiencing feeding issues really since the very beginning. The most worrying thing is that she doesn't take "enough" according to the box, almost a third less. She's only putting on 3-4oz per week so we are slowly dropping through the centiles.

The short version is that she never seemed to latch the bottle well and her tummy was always full of air - burps usually resulting in most of her milk coming back up with it. At her 6 week check out GP pointed out that she was tongue tied and we subsequently saw a specialist who divided it. I really thought that would be an end to it (as you do, living in hope!!) however we are still having probs.

We've changed to mam bottles which are brilliant and her latch is now great, the GP prescribed colief which seemed to work for about 2 weeks but has now stopped. Infacol seemed to make her sick so stopped giving her that a while ago.

We are now at a point where she will only take a couple of ounces at each feed and I feel like I'm forcing the bottle back at her - 9 times out of 10 once she takes it back she will have more but never really more than 4oz at a time.

The HV have suggested that we wait for DD to ask for food but she doesn't tend to do that - I think she now associates the bottle with tummy ache?!

I'm 99% sure that she has silent reflux and having talked to our GP we have tried gaviscon (worked for about a week) and now ranitidine. I can't say I've seen any improvement but it's only been a week.

Thanks for reading my small novel - in writing this all down I've just realised that I don't really know what my question is!!! Maybe I'm just looking for any ideas/experience/suggestions on what else it might be or what I can do to encourage her to eat more?! She isn't a massive crier and does sleep 9 hours at night but I'm so worried that she's not eating enough that I'm getting completely stressed about it!!

Thank you xx

[CharleyBear1]

Whoops forgot to put that first feed of the day is nigh on impossible!
Xx

[Rarastar]

Bumping this as I'm having similar issues - my DD is 19 weeks old and for the past couple of weeks has been getting progressively fussier over her bottles to the point that she'll currently only take 2/3oz at a time and that's a battle to get down her.

Hope you get some answers/peace of mind OP, we are seeing the consultant pediatrician in a fortnight because she also has a dairy allergy but I'm at a bit of a loss for what to do in the meantime!

[yellowsnownoteatwillyou]

Do you give her breaks for winding every oz or so? Or wait till she stops?

[pigsunited]

I have a somewhat similar problem. TT was divided, but DS's tongue function didn't improve. We also use MAM bottles (after trying many!) which seems to have improved feeding a bit, but we are lucky if we can get 3oz into him per feed. He doesn't seem to have a feeding aversion, just gets tired/fussy easily. Unfortunately this means he still feeds like a newborn (every 1-2 hours during the day), even though he is now 3 months old. Our GP has been helpful - we have troubleshooted by treating for thrush and reflux, but I don't think he actually has either as he never seems to be in pain and the medication didn't do anything. I think the TT is still the problem. The GP has suggested trying to get him to go 2/2.5/3 hours between feeds, if he can't she might refer us to a paediatrician.

[Rarastar]

Hmmm I have some Mam bottles in the cupboard - will perhaps give them a try as other troublesome feeders seem to have some success with them!

[CharleyBear1]

Hi all and thank you for taking the time to read my ramble!

The GP has now referred us to a feeding specialist because she is also at a loss. The thing is, they don't really want to know unless DD is losing weight... In the meantime I'm just having to go with it and I can't tell you how frustrating I'm finding it!!!!

Yellow - we have tried both and it doesn't make a difference unfortunately as she cries when we take the bottle away to wind which makes it worse :-/

Rarastar - so give the mam bottles a go, they were a real find for us, honestly she's much more controlled when she's feeding from them! I really hope you have some success with your paed appt and I'd love to hear how you get on.

Pigs - did the TT practitioner give you any aftercare exercises to do with DS?

Xxx

[pigsunited]

We did suck training exercises after the first snip, and stretches/massages in addition after the second snip. I haven't done anything in the past two weeks though. We are now going 2-3 hours between feeds, unless he gets really upset and then I give in.

Have you had someone check that the TT has not reattached?

[pigsunited]

We did suck training exercises after the first snip, and stretches/massages in addition after the second snip. I haven't done anything in the past two weeks though. We are now going 2-3 hours between feeds, unless he gets really upset and then I give in.

Have you had someone check that the TT has not reattached?

[CharleyBear1]

We have been back and it's all apparently as it should be but I've lapsed with the exercises so will try starting them again and see if it helps...

It's so hard to know what to do for the best isn't it - today has been a little and often day, it's tedious but she has to eat!!

I have noticed that DD is always snuffly in the mornings - tried snuffle babe tonight, as you can prob tell I'll try anything at the moment!!!!

Xxx

[Waffles80]

I had v v similar issues with my babies - had some great advice at the time:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/breast_and_bottle_feeding/2194856-Bottle-refusal-all-day-really-desperate-for-help

[Waffles80]

Gah - posted too soon! Should have added that we finally saw a paediatrician at 20 weeks, and after one week on ranitidine things improved significantly. The babies now feed awake and my life is about 100 times better than it was.

[CharleyBear1]

Hi Waffles - thanks for your link! The fact that you got through this with twins gives me hope!!!

Ranitidine does seem to have improved things ever so slightly - but I'll take that!!!

How did you deal with the bottle aversion in the end? Was it just a case of persevering? I'd be really grateful for any advice xx

[Waffles80]

Hey again - sorry for my such brief replies!

It was bloody awful, a you know, but honestly it'll pass.

I used to dream feed the babies - rock them to sleep, swaddled, in the dark, with dummies, and then they would take a larger feed. This led to a couple of quite miserable weeks but at least they were feeding (and some awful sleep associations which then caused more night wakings but we are weaning them off those now).

It helped to write down what they'd fed and when so I could keep track and be assured they were taking enough for their weights. We have an app called Quip which means we can both acess the same document to edit / see (useful with twins so I knew what each baby had fed in the night).

I would time bottles for their naps, I would also gently offer the bottle whenever there was a minute in the day - after a play, in the buggy etc etc but never when they were really crying. Neither ever seemed to cry with hunger which was so odd! Now, at 25 weeks they do cry for a feed sometimes - though usually we've anticipated their hunger and fed them before they get upset.

It went on from about week 15 to about week 21. I have to say it was one of the most miserable periods of my life - they were miserable too, as were the many members of my family who were kind enough to come and help me out.

Now they feed well, usually after a nap, often they take a bit after their lunch - have just introduced solids.

We did try omeprazole when one baby seemed to take a dip again, but it was so hard to administer, and it seemed to make very little difference.

Let me know if I've not covered anything. You have my complete, heartfelt sympathy! It'll pass - and be a distant, blurry memory. Promise!

[Waffles80]

Also - when keeping track of feeds in a 24 hr period, factor in the previous day. Some days my babies would take less, and I'd really fret, but checking my notes I'd see they'd done really well the day before.

They are still small, but tracking along the same line which is positive. Most feeds are awake now - apart from dream feed.

[CharleyBear1]

Thanks so much waffles! We have an appointment with a paed this week so fingers crossed we get somewhere xxx

[Waffles80]

I really hope you see some quick improvement - things will improve, and although our problems went on for six week, and it felt like an eternity at the time, it actually now feels like a far shorter period. My babies are really, really content now.

[Waffles80]

How's it going OP? Any improvement?

[CharleyBear1]

Hi Waffles

We've been to see the paed today and we haven't learnt anything new - it is/was silent reflux and the short version is stick with the ranitidine and gaviscon and DD will grow out of it.

It was what I was expecting to be honest. I have to say that things have improved in the last 7-10 days and paed reckons that's prob a combination of better head control coupled with ranitidine taking effect. I do feel like we're over the worst (though paed did warn that crawling and weaning can cause it to come back - aargh).

I googled this loads before finally posting so anyone that's done the same please be reassured that things WILL get better. When you're trying to cope with silent and/or reflux it is truly awful and it was a very dark time for me but it honestly feels like an age ago already. Push push push for a referral as from expensive HV/GP are reluctant to diagnose anything other than colic!

Xxx

[Waffles80]

So glad to hear there's been some improvement. We started weaning our babies a touch early (at 5 months corrected). No resurgence of the reflux so far.

[Kim82]

I've just read your op and your baby sounds exactly like my baby dd. from birth she refused bottles, never cried to be fed, was full of wind, was very sicky, had mucousy poos (sorry!), she was always uncomfortable, was incredibly slow to put on weight and screamed blue murder from morning til night. It turns out she has cmpi coupled with silent reflux. normal formula was giving her really bad pains in her stomach so she would just refuse to feed and we had to trick her by feeding her whilst she was sleeping.

We were initially told she's fine, then after numerous A&E visits they said it was silent reflux and prescribed ranitidine, it worked for a week then she started screaming again. We were back and forth to the gp and A&E more than I care to think about and dh eventually planted himself in A&E and said he wouldn't leave until they trialled her on formula for cmpi babies. They did and she suddenly started feeding again - a lot! Unfortunately that only lasted a week too so they tried a more hypo allergenic milk and she's been on it ever since with no more refusal to feed. She does still have silent reflux (the two often go hand in hand) and is on omeprazole for that and she is like a different baby!

In my experience doctors are reluctant to look into whether a baby has cmpi. I am part of a Facebook group with babies born around the same time and there are a few banks with it as it is surprisingly common and every single one of us had to fight tooth and nail to be taken seriously and were fobbed off by most gps. Grrrr!

Anyway, if your baby still isn't right then go back to the paed and ask about cmpi as it is often the cause of silent reflux.

[Kim82]

Babies not banks!

[shoesplash]

Hi, I know this thread is over 6 years old (!!) but the OP could be written about my 12 week old DD- can I ask how you resolved the issue in the end in the faint hope you pick this up?

[R1versmum]

Hi @shoesplash

Sorry to jump in on this but i had/have a similar issue with my 13 week old. After no help from GP/HV i found through lots of googling that its likely my baby had a bottle aversion.

There is a facebook group supporting parents with this issue called Baby Care Advice Feeding Aversion Support Group. It centres around a programme to address the aversion which is detailed in a book by Rowena Bennett.

I would recommend having a read through their website and joining the group if it sounds like it might be what your experiencing

www.babycareadvice.com/blogs/bottle-feeding/feeding-aversion

Medical professionals know little about this so often fob parents off with reflux/colic/silent reflux diagnosis x

[shoesplash]

@R1versmum

Hi *@shoesplash*

Sorry to jump in on this but i had/have a similar issue with my 13 week old. After no help from GP/HV i found through lots of googling that its likely my baby had a bottle aversion.

There is a facebook group supporting parents with this issue called Baby Care Advice Feeding Aversion Support Group. It centres around a programme to address the aversion which is detailed in a book by Rowena Bennett.

I would recommend having a read through their website and joining the group if it sounds like it might be what your experiencing

www.babycareadvice.com/blogs/bottle-feeding/feeding-aversion

Medical professionals know little about this so often fob parents off with reflux/colic/silent reflux diagnosis x

Thank you so much @R1versmum - I ordered that book last week and I am really hoping it arrives tomorrow 🤞 in the meantime I shall check out that group thank you!

I seen the GP yesterday who was very helpful having been in the same situation with her own child last year so I am feeling hopeful we will I'll get it sorted soon as I hope you do too!x

[R1versmum]

@shoesplash thats great, i really wish you all the best. It is a tough programme to follow but because our babies are so little you will see a change just in a few days.

My baby doesnt show any aversion behaviour and accepts all bottles now. We are about 5ish weeks into the programme and although they would class us as aversion free because of the change in behaviour, my baby's volumes have never increased. She still only takes 17-25 ounces per day x