To be pissed off with Drs

[Sleepycat91]

8 week old DC, reflux is getting worse, more so over this weekend. I dread every feed, it takes an hour and a half of her screaming, going rigid and fighting me OR she falls asleep after 30ml and wont take any more. Either or is then usually finished off with her projectile vomiting on everything. To say this is wearing me down is an understatement. I called the DRS this morning desperate for just anything to help. Got told to call HV. Called HV, mine is on AL again and someone would call me back, no one has called me back. Dc had her jabs, so tried again for an appointment, got one in a week.. i dont think i can manage till the end of today, let alone another week. I just feel like giving up and no one gives a shit!

Didn't want to read and run op. Reflux in small babies

Fuck I'm sorry, these early weeks are so bloody brutal. Mine didn't have reflux, but intenstinal problems so I remember well dreading the feed and knowing it would result in screaming.

I can't do more than offer a handhold, and bump the thread so hopefully someone with experience of a refluxy baby comes along.

Go to a walk in, at least you'll be seen.

DTs had reflux, it was bloody horrendous.

Oops posted too soon! Reflux in small babies is really really common. Have you tried all the usual advice? Feeding little and often, holding upright for 30mins after a feed, winding frequently, a slower teat if bottle feeding and expressing some milk into a towel before you start if breastfeeding ( to minimise the forceful initial letdown).
The early days are so tough. Do keep trying your hv, or head over to the baby clinic: there should be some information about when they're on in your red book. The topic infant feeding also has great advice in.

It's shite isn't it???

I've been there.

You might need to change her milk or have meds. I always made an emergency appt.

Call, don't get off the phone until at Appt has been made. The HV can prescribe stuff (well most can't anyway).

*cant

My DD had this, it is very wearing, she was EBF and would vomit after every feed, then be hungry again. We were seen by doctors and paediatricians, she was tested for all kinds of things. Essentially there was nothing actually wrong. I started using Infacol before feeds.
Eventually it just stopped on it's own.
I know it's not much consolation to you OP, but once anything physical has been ruled out, it's probably a waiting game.

Who told you to call HV?
Just ask for an emergency gp appointment.

No little baby should have to suffer that pain. Gp's are bloody heartless sometimes.
If it was me I'd definitely take her to a walk in.

My son had reflux, we changed his formula and it was much better. He did become a bit constipated and ended up with a hernia which did go down once reflux gone (16 - 20 weeks old) it was better than being thrown up on though.

Well thats the thing, i THINK its reflux. She was prem and had mojor bowel surgery at a week old. She was being fed expressed BM but i couldnt keep up with feeding her, expressing and trying to juggle DS and everything else so we switched her to formula. Shes been constipated ever since. I tried SMA comfort milk but my local supermarket kept running out so switched to cow and gate comfort milk instead. Still only poops every 2-3 days but much softer now. I just feel like i cant catch a break with her at all, theres always something. And i partially blame myself for stopping pumping and giving up. All the problems seem to stem from me switching her to formula

Reflux is hell. I found I had to be very clear about why it was a problem, and I wasn't just a tired first time mum sick of cleaning up sick.

In our case it was silent reflux, so I stressed that she was in pain, and it was preventing her sleeping. In your case I'd stress the pain and that you're worried she's not taking enough milk. Say the words "If she was just spitting up and not in pain, I wouldn't be worried, but that's not what's happening". Maybe ring your GP back, say you couldn't speak to HV and that your baby does need to be seen.

I wouldn't have thought a HV could prescribe anyway, and it sounds like you'll need something.

Cross post - since she's had surgery I'd definitely want her seen. Mention that explicitly too.

I told them Hv isnt returning my call, i said she was prem and i dont want her to loose weight and i tried to stress how much this is wearing me down aswell, whilst tring to be discreet because everyone in the waiting room listens... youd think considering how much that they bang on how good the are recognising PND symptoms when i cant even get past the receptionist, i dont think ive got PND but if anything is going to trigger it, its this
Weve tried infacol aswell.

Oh it's hell OP, I remember it well.

We had Gaviscon which didn't help; eventually the HV got the GP to prescribe Lactose free milk but it was a battle because it's expensive for smaller-than-standard tins.

Good luck. Hang in there!!

You said all that and receptionist refused to give you an appointment???

Reflux sucks, that week will feel like agony to both of you.
DS had reflux - GP was part way through dismissing it as nothing when he promptly vomited all over her. Was taken seriously after that. Gaviscon and ranitidine did it for him.

Gosh I know how you feel. I had problems with my now 1 year old she had silent reflux. Some days she wouldn't even finish a full bottle it was absolutely the most stressed I've ever felt in my life. Is your baby gaining weight well? Mine was because I kept trying and trying and got anything I could down her at the time but because her weight wasn't a worry nobody helped me. She seemed to grow out of it around 8/9 months. Weaning her took a long time. She's only just eating properly at 1 years old. What are your babies symptoms? Is she sicking up or refusing? Mine refused point blank and it was a meltdown every feed time it took me hours on and off to get her to take a couple of ounce. Really feel for you xxx

Infacol was a lifesaver for me - mine struggled with an enriched premmie baby food once I stopped expressing around 8 weeks, we had projectile hit the seiling vommitting and the stretching while screaming and so on but a number of things helped

slightly raised matress at head of cot (so slightly higher head)
infacol in all feeds
Extra winding half way through helped stop so much vommitting (the in the face one was the worst)
Using different methods for winding - so over lap, over arm and just plain stretching her tummy out by lifting her straight frequently but less over the shoulder as you couldn't predict the vommiting other than by looking at her face etc
Using a pat pat method rather than a rub

1st one wouldn't, tried again by going in and she reluctantly made me one for a week, saying they had no emergency appointments and to keep calling HV and told me to ask the nurse who did her jabs who told me i needed to see the dr ( no shit!) Will changing teats work? I worry about changing milk again as if her poo gets hard again, i dont want it to put pressure on her bowels (lost 2-3cm). She goes rigid, squeals,, shoves her bottle away and writhes around. Gets congestion too. Leaves anything from 30-60ml when shes bad, or when shes really bad, drinks just 30ml. Then the puke, oh the puke. Its like lava! Comes out of her nose, while pouring out her mouth, its not every feed but a good portion of them. I dont think shes losing weight, i dont drive and they dont weigh at the drs anymore, only once a week at some hub no where near my house which is equally as helpful.

Oh and I get the guilt stuff - but honestly its not that you stopped expressing for her that is causing this.

I stopped expressing when I worked out I had no time for sleeping as she was feeding every 3 hrs and it was taking me 2 plus to express and I just struggled (not well myself) I just collapsed for 16 hrs one day and woke to a flooded bed etc etc - thankfully Mum had been with us and she took over and they had fed her stored milk but we sorted some formulae after that.

There is nothing wrong with a bit of plain water to help with the constipation - I find the formulaes to be very thick and also knocked off half a scoop from each mix for the same reason myself - so more water to milk ratio. She went from 3lb 9oz at birth to 4 mths later being normal weight for a full term 4 mths old so it didn't hurt her weight gain etc

I kept getting fobbed off by drs as my DD had really bad colic. Talking about 6+ hours of screaming every night. Numerous appointments later, it was only when we took in a video of her antics that we were taken seriously.

Video it the next time and go to the drs and REFUSE to move until you have an emergency appt. They have to see children under 5 at my surgery, so hopefully yours has the same policy.

But DO. NOT. LEAVE. Until you're seen

I'm a GP and we would never refuse to see a baby that age, would always see them on the day. Ask for an urgent telephone call with the Gp and they may prescribe something or ask you to go in for an appt the same day.

Oh I remember that stage. We were under pressure to give DS as much milk as possible to keep his weight up but it would regular get thrown up all over me. We were eventually given stronger medication and it calmed down once he started weaning. I just wanted to say don't feel guilty about stopping pumping. There's too much pressure on mothers to keep going but I found it hard to find time to pump and bottle feed and I got really stressed about not keeping up my supply.

Hi OP, my babies were prem too and suffered extreme reflux. Had a similar problem with the DRs not really understanding so ended up calling our NICU consultant who emailed my DRs so that might be worth a try? One of my babies had it so severely that it caused apnea (which is apparently very common) and so NICU consultants do take it very seriously.

Now you have said she has had major bowel surgery I think you must get her seen somewhere.
Can you ring the ward where she was looked after? Or her surgeon's secretary?
Honestly, those symptoms really need to be checked and a receptionist should not be refusing you an appointment.