Support thread for all parents with reflux babies...

[PosieParker]

Just thought a pooling of ideas would be useful. Any ideas about meds, symptoms, coping strategies, things to make a baby quiet!!

Symptoms:

Arched back and crying/screaming after feeding
Fussy on/off breast or bottle
Frequent feeding
Little sleep
Constant crying/screaming

(please add)

Meds:

My memory is a little rose on this and I can't remember

Coping

SWING,
pushchair walks
accepting help
Sometimes putting your baby somewhere you can't hear them whilst you have a large gin cup of tea.

sorry another question do dummies help?

hi, we always just placed the head of the moses basket on a pile of books. We have a Graco baby swing which is fab, and for us no a dummt didn't really help but then DS has never really liked his dummy.

Separaetly I just wanted to add my voice to this will get better. At the end of August I was at the end of my tether, DS was struggling, I had no more than 2-3 hours sleep at a time for nearly 6 months and was tearing my hair out.

Fast forward 3 weeks, DS is sleeping through, he is in a routine, and on the advice of the paeds we are weaning him of domperidone (but not ranitidine) as apparently it actually only has a benefit for 12 -16 weeks after which the impact declines. DS has never been much of a chucker so we have gone with that. I think weaning is also helping.

I suppose the point of this post is to say hang in there

Hi all.

Things here are improving. Slowly, but improving.

Dummies are thought to be helpful as they produce extra saliva to neutralise the acid.

We have a Graco Loving Hug swing. Got it on Kiddicare and would recommend it and Kiddicare too. Doesn't always work, but when it does it is great to have half an hour of quiet.

Just a quick post but dummies really help my DS, was unsure about using one but have never looked back!!

Saw paeds again yesterday and DS is losing weight now so we are being readmitted on Thursday..... They think they may be missing something so want to do more investigations (DS also has hypotonia and some problems with deep chest recession so possibility a heart problem too, great)

Feeling sad but relieved as much as I hate being in at least each visit is a step closer to finding a solution.

All the best to everyone in the meantime and hope all the improvements keep on getting more and more x

Thank you for your tips. Just back from the doctors they have prescribed domperidone and ranitidine. DD has now stopped gaining weight so hopefully this will help.

What do domperidone and ranitidine do? My GP says that IG is the only option and as he's not having a problem gaining weight he won't refer him to a paed.

emmylou we give IG before feeds not after, in a bottle made up with the minimum water we can and topped up with EBM. Ours is exclusively BF - it works ok.

organic - IG is the only one my gP would give (you can get it OTC too, btw) as the others are not licensed for wee ones so usually need to be prescribed initially by paed. SOme GPs prescribe them, but none here do.

If ther reflux is caueing your child discomfort then there is basis for referal. Weight gain is only part of it. Many refuxers are big as they comfort eat.

Ranitadine is Zantac - H2 inhibitor, reduces acidity. DOmperidone speeds things through the gut so less comes up. There is also Omeprazole a ppi inhibitor which reduces acidity in a different way.

Oh I've been looking for a reflux thread, I thought there must be one.

Dd2 (9 wks) was diagnosed with silent reflux last week and I'm friggin shattered

She is on ranitidine. She's not so bad in the day, sleeps mainly in the pram or her bouncy chair. Nights are hard though - waking 6 or 7 times sometimes. I've done all the cot-raising stuff and she's sleeping on her side in a wedge-y thing.

First few nights on ranitidine she was much better but last couple of nights not so good.

Have to go as dd1 wants me to do a puzzle..she is nearly 3 and doesn;t sleep in day any more...so no breaks for me!

How long did ranitidine and domperidone take to work for you? Gp has just prescribed them both but she didn't say how long they would take to work/when to go back or anything.

Give them a week to establish effects.
DD is on Omeprazole and Domperidone. Ranetadine didn't do much for her, but works well for others.
Also google AR sleep wedge. It's the only thing DD sleeps comfortably in/on.

ooh lost the thread.

ds saw consultant last fri. he was happier and smilier than he has ever been, whilst we sat there saying how unsettled and unhappy is is!

she said to try him on enfamil ar, has anyone had any success with this, for silent reflux?

so far he has screamed more than ever, and every time he has a bottle it is like i am torturing him, but maybe it will take a while to make a difference?

IG caused bad constipation. GP given laxative and refused a paed referral. I've not had it made up and have stopped the IG, dropped dairy from my diet and are seeing what happens.

Bub seems fairly settled but V sicky. Maybr dairy-free makes him more comfy. I can handle the sick if it doesn't bother him - don't want to medicate for my convenience.

Thoughts?

help,anyone - please

ds screamed all night and is screaming still, tears pouring down his face.

this can't be right, right?

hazey - posted on your other thread

Hi Hazey,

No,that's not right you poor things. Get to the docs and get them to refer you up to the hospital. I wish I'd been more assertive sooner

Big hugs xxx

Thankyou for your replies.

Have stopped giving ds the milk, and am now going back to just formula, until we can see the dr and see what she says.

Dh and I have been tying ourselves up in knots trying to stop ds crying, it is horrible and exhausting. When he smiles it is like the sun coming out, but he doesn't smile very often.

I don't want to wish any time away, but I so want ds to be happy and comfortable.

Hope he improves soon Hazeyjane. It's horrible seeing your baby in pain.

Hi hazeey.

Hope things are better soon.

SOunds like he needs tha acid-reducing meds like Ranitadine/omeprazole. You may need to push for them though. It sometimes seems that unless a baby has something life threatening, some medics are content to leave them and their parents to it. I have to say we have been very lucky, but lots of people really struggle to get taken seriously.

Hi - if anyone can help at all with the following, I would be v grateful. I have a 10 week old DS, who was diagnosed with reflux (not the projectile kind, the other one) last week, and was prescribed Infant Gaviscon.

He is EBF, and we are using a syringe to dose him half way through or after a feed.

IG has done a very quick job of sorting out the unhappy regurgitation, and we see very little of that now - however, since day 1, it's made him constipated.

Previously he poo-ed frequently (10 times a day plus), and very explosively, and it often seemed quite distressing for him. |I wondered if it was related to the reflux. During the 1st 24 hours on IG, he stopped pooing completely before painfully producing a bright green thick pastey poo(I kid you not - Kermit coloured). We have reduced the dosage, so he's now taking a 5 ml squirt of IG after each feed, which just about keeps the reflux under control. He had a few days of one poo a day - a fairly happy korma-style effort.

However, we are now on day 3 of no poos at all now. I have a straining red faced baby who starts crying after each unproductive straining session. Can't blame him. He is farting normally, which keeps sending us scurrying hopefully to the changing table - but no poo.

Has anyone else had a constipated baby on IG, and did you find anything helped? I am going to the doc this morning about my 2nd bout of mastitis (it's all fun in this house...), so will mention it then, and it may be that the antibiotics I'll be on will loosen him up a bit. I dunno.

All thoughts gratefully received. TIA.

bark, yes, ig makes them do pastey poohs. Made my ds so constipated that it became no good as the more he strained, the more he refluxed. Some people use lactulose to balance this out with success.

Thanks nicky - will investigate lactulose. GP recommended a small spoonful of orange juice, so we'll see what that does....

Well, we've had a breakthrough here.
Most of the acid had cleared up although we were still getting lots of sick, even with Omeprazole, Domeridone and IG. I'm dairy/soy free and DD is entirely BF, started some basic weaning.
I've now cut wheat and gluten out of my diet and made sure there is none in her weaning diet. We seem to have stopped all the windy cramping that she was still struggling with.
Still sickly, but sooooo much happier and now sleeping 10-6 straight through!

aah, lost thread for a while

ds seemed so settled for about 4 days, then suddenly started screaming like a banshee, and hasn't stopped. Thankfully, during his settled period the dr prescribed Ranitidine - just in case.

We started giving it to him last night, does anyone know how long it takes to work? Are there any side effects to look out for - wind? constipation?

It was so lovely seeing him smiling in those few days when he was all settled, it reminded me that babies can be happy to be put down.

He has started to slip down the centiles, because he will only take a couple of ounces a time. Hope everyone else is ok.

BTW if anyone uses Enfamil AR, I have a couple of unopened tins, I can stick in the post - message me if anyone is interested.

Just found your lifeline... thank you so much. For the first time I don't feel like the worst Mum in the world cos our dd cries so much. DD is 8 weeks and diagnosed 10 days ago - she's not sick so we didn't put 2+2 together, but most of the other symptoms are soooo familiar. She also beats me with her fists while screaming cos I can't stop the hurting. So feeling good about myself so far. Went to a parent group for a bit of cheer up and support but loads of smugs who explained how easy, happy or cry-free their babies were. Came home and cried.
She's BF and on Gaviscon, the purple faced screaming and constant liquid poo has stopped (in fact, all poo:) but other symptoms still here.
Will definitely keep a 'cry log' cos I know it's not all the time, but it feels like it - fab idea, thanks.