3 month old with formula problems

[Peaches2018]

Okey so I've been a bit cheeky and copied and pasted my message from Behaviour / development (I thought that was the right place for my message ) to here since a very kind Mumsnetter told me I might get better answers / advice / help here on my message and problem!

Hello to all the moms here

Warning: very long post / bit of a rant coming!

I'm in need of some help / advice / ideas for my lil one. He's 12 weeks old and was since birth on Hipp anti reflux. LO had around 6 to 8 full nappies a day, dripping down his legs soaking his socks or going up his back and shoulders. Me to the gp and got told this was normal hmm. Lo had more signs of reflux, throwing up, not settling, farting like crazy, sounding congested all day long. Got told this was all totally normal and actually looked at as if I was crazy because I was worried.

My dh wanted lo on hipp normal formula so lo doesn't have to wait for it to set and it's easier to buy at stores. Lo only drank a few oz instead of his normal 6oz, wasn't settled at all anymore, slept a lot less especially in the afternoon and goodness me the nappy blowouts

We went back to AR formula(lo refused it), then onto SMA lactose free(was told that was better for lo) then had Aptamil pepti 1from gp (worst nr 2s ever) and now Similac Alimentum(with a scoop of Carobel) from gp. Coming Monday I need to tell the gp how the Similac is going and I got no idea what to say Lo is still not really settled/ ready to nap like normal, feeding is taking half an hour for him to finish about 4 oz, his farts stink worse than ever and he still has diarrhoea. He dropped on the percentile chart and I was told that he shouldn't lose any weight if possible (that's why i feed him ever 2 or 2,5 hours). When he was born he lost quite a bit of weight twice in a row and had the hardest time for him to put it on.

Gps have ruled out any infections, say that lactose intolerance is very rare in babies and testing could go both ways: positive when it's negative and negative when it's positive. So helpful
I'm a bit at the end of my line, feeling really horrible to put my lo through this, can't see my HV till half Sept. when lo is weighed again and I'm not sure what to ask for anymore or what to do except cuddle my baby, try to comfort him as much as I can and talk loads while he's feeding to distract him from the smelly nasty formula I try to get him to drink!

Any advice, kind words or I've been there, done that and this helped messages are more than welcome!!

[Peaches2018]

Happy update: Baby boy is almost a week on Neocate and (thank god) a different babyNo more diarrhoea, no spit ups and a much calmer baby overall. Until he starts to play a bit and shows he's got lots of energy now and is really more interested in what mommy & daddy now do with him. We're up for a review in 1.5 weeks and I hope we can keep on continuing with this formula and thickener for a very long time
A huge thanks to everyone who responded or gave advice, it really helped this mommy

[thelionsden]

Hi again

Yes neonate tastes bad! But we recommend adding vanilla essence drops to begin with and slowing reducing the amount until baby is used to the taste. Some babes never come off the vanilla essence and that’s fine! It’s harmless and baby needs milk.

The poo explosions are NOT normal. The gut and bowels are showing you how much pressure they are under. If your GP doesn’t want to comply present at a and e. (That’s the honest advice we give.)

[ShakeVigorously]

Hi @Peaches2018
I would go back to your gp and ask for a paediatrician/dietician referrral.

My ds has suffered with cows milk intolerance and reflux since birth.
He's 17 weeks old almost and it's only now we are starting to actually have nice days!

Ranitidine really helped us with the reflux and also nutramigen milk with carobel to thicken it up to keep it down.
I also feel that time has played a big part, his tummy is now maturing and he's not a screaming fussing baby so much anymore.

It's so frustrating isn't it, heartbreaking to see your baby distressed and downright exhausting but it will get better.
You need proper specialist advice and support, and the right combination of medication and milk.

What bottles are you using and teats?
is your baby having to work too hard to get the thickened formula through the teat? They tend to give up exhausted then, rather than when they are full.
Reflux is painful and babies learn that, and refuse to feed.
Also things like infacol, gripe water etc can really aggravate their tummies making things worse.

Keep pushing until you get it sorted, don't let them fob you off, it isn't normal and your baby is obviously struggling poor chick

[Peaches2018]

Hi thelionsden by any chance do you mean neocate? I've heard about that a little bit especially babies not drinking it due to the taste of it and my lo already has a problem with the Similac taste (can't blame him it smells YUK)I also read that gps don't want to prescribe this formula due to cost I use carobel since the thick AR formula he was on for so long he doesn't drink anything thin so I need to thicken every formula up for him.

[Peaches2018]

Hiya Pamdoo yes he just didn't keep anything down and started throwing everything up hence his weight loss twice in a row.
Oh goodness I'm glad to hear that the normal Hipp worked for you, I tried the normal one for 2 weeks as well but I couldn't keep on washing / cleaning up my lo anymore a few times a day He was weighed last week and that showed he didn't gain enough and dropped in the percentile in the chart

I've read the book the wonder weeks!! Absolutely fabulous!! You definitely could be right but I think my lo still not feeling a 100% might have something to do with it either.

[thelionsden]

Typo! Something for reflux

[thelionsden]

Baby needs necoate, carobel and soryninh for reflux

(GP HERE)

[Pamdoo]

I'm sorry you're having a tough time.

With regards to feeding times, my little one at 12 weeks was taking about 6oz every 3-4 hours, and he's a big lad so his intake sounds about right, maybe try feeding him on demand and offering if he hasn't fed after 4/5 hours as he may just not be hungry.

Is there a reason he was on AR from birth? With the formulas they can take a week or two to have any effect, so stick to one as it could be upsetting him changing them. I sympathise as we had so many problems with colic and keeping milk down. I also found when i tried my son on the hipp comfort and aptamil comfort milk, he had awful nappies and worse wind, and would wheeze when laying down. I switched to hipp normal and he eventually settled.

With not settling/ naps it could be due to growth spurts. Download wonder weeks app, it helps explain a lot!

As PP said if he's losing weight etc call the health visitors and tell them you need to speak to them ASAP. Don't suffer in silence! Hope things get better for you.

[Peaches2018]

WooYa HV said SMA LF but gp said something different due to the nr 2s not sure who is right in that case. I'll definitely see if I can see my HV sooner than the week after this one because the gps here are very busy!

thank you very much

[Peaches2018]

Thank you spacepoodle I really appreciate the reply!
He wasn't keeping anything down at all since birth and it was recommended that we put him on anti reflux so he could gain weight. That's the reason he's being fed every 2,5 hours (and really asks for a feed as well) at this time.

He was a lot quicker to finish his feeds on the AR and went 3 hours inbetween feeds but the too loose nr 2s were a big concern especially since he didn't gain too much. The problem is since the first switch where he was on 6oz he doesn't take anymore than 4 oz max right now.

I haven't looked at awake times (good tip thanks) but only napping for 10 minutes and than going for 3 hours without sleep with tired signs didn't seem good to us. My lil guy loves his dummy and I'm thinking I'll have problems getting him off the dummy later on but it does help him

[WooYa]

It can take a few weeks for a baby's stomach to settle on a formula so you need to pick one and stick to it. You can take your baby to any clinic to chat to a HV, not just every month to get weighed... if I was you I'd find the first clinic near me on Monday and go and talk to a HV.
WRT the lactose intolerance - DS has it and GP diagnosed him and the SMA LF formula worked straight away.
Hope he feels better soon

[spacepoodle]

Sorry you and your little boy are having a tough time.

It can take newborn babies a few weeks to adjust to changes in their diets as their digestive systems are so immature. It sounds like he's been on a lot of different formulas so I'm not sure how you can tell which one (if any) has been right for him. Why was he on anti-reflux formula from birth?

Half an hour to finish 4oz at 12 weeks sounds fairly normal to me. You say you are feeding him every 2 hours so perhaps he's just not hungry? I would expect a baby of his age to go 5 hours between formula feeds and, depending on his size, be taking 5-6oz a time.

Sleeping less in the day also sounds entirely normal. In my experience babies tend to nap for shorter amounts of time from this age until around 6 months when naps get longer and less frequent. Have you looked at average awake times for babies? I found this so useful to make sure my baby wasn't overtired and was therefore more settled and easier to get to sleep.

Both of my babies have/had reflux and both have behaved differently but I would suggest:

• holding upright after every feed for 20 minutes
• using a dummy
• carrying baby in a sling during the day
• trying naps in different places e.g. pram, swing, bouncy chair and getting baby to sleep wherever they can as often as they can

My second baby (11 weeks old) has been prescribed Infant Gaviscon which has made her slightly constipated but she is taking her milk with a lot less screaming! She is also much, much more settled sleeping on her front - I know this is against SIDS guidelines but sometimes you have to do what you need to keep sane and get some rest.