Can I get some parent opinions vs what the Paediatrician has said?

[FTMF30]

Hi there,
I'd really appreciate some opinions from mums/dads as I feel a bit let down after my DS paediatric appointment.

For some background context my DS is 15weeks old and I'm pretty sure he has silent reflux and some serious gastro/wind/pooing issues. I also suspect he might be teething.
Symptoms are:
Constantly dribbling
Blows raspberries/builds up spit and swallows it
Difficulty breathing when laid on back
Sometimes coughs/splutters and sometimes chokes (maybe on spit)
Makes clicking sound when feeding
Has become very fussy on breast but takes expressed milk a little better
Morning wake ups consist of crying and straining to poo.
His poos recently seem very mucousy
He will cry and scream in pain some evenings.
Has a very slightly tongue tie but numerous people have said it's not problematic so doesn't need to be
He brings back up milk but then swallows

I've taken him to the doctors a few times. He'd been prescribed infant gaviscon which seemed to help the reflux but caused awful constipation. He'd also been prescribed ranitidine but reacted badly to it. So then he was referred to a paediatrician. Some things the paedi said that bothered me.
*she prescribed a new med (ompez something) I asked what the side effects where, she said there were none. Upon looking at the box at home, there were loads, including constipation! Why would she tell a blatant lie?
*I asked if his tongue tie could be the issue. She tried looking at his tongue but DS wouldn't cooperate. She just said it's not likely to be an issue as he can feed fine😐. I had already said feeding was an issue and has become worse.
*I told her he's had less wet nappies and she said it's fine as he's gotten older so he can hold his wee for

• I expressed concerns about his weight as he was 6lb 6oz at birth and is now 11lb 3oz. She said this is fine as he has not moved down a centile on the chart. However, at birth he was close to 9th centile and now he is just below 2nd centile😐. *I asked about his problems/discomfort with pooing for his age and she said it's normal and he'll grow out of it. *I asked if he could be teething as he dribbles all the time and now has suspected diarrhea. She said definitely not as he's too young.

I got the impression she thought I was a neurotic mum. She asked if DS is my first child, which I feel is irrelevant. I didn't ask to see a paedi, the doctor referred him. I'm no pushover but I felt things were becoming a bit arguementative do I left feeling quite dissatisfied.

I'm at my wits end with my son's symptoms. He cries and screams so much and I can barely put him down. The poor more seems in such discomfort most of the time and I feel exhausted. All the paedi did was completely dismiss my concerns and prescribe a medicine which I'm quite wary about.

Can any of you give experiences opinions on the things she has said. Is she correct or is she talking gripe?

Thanks

Ps sorry about the mega long post and last bit of supposed to say 'tripe' not 'gripe'.

I’ve got 4 dc ....

First of all ... ALL babies dribble at this age, completely normal. Your ds could very possibly be teething ... mine all got their first tooth at 4 months old! Early, unusual, but all 4 cut through at that young age.

Normal to blow raspberries, build up spit, swallow it.

Difficulty breathing on back ... in that case, does he lie on his tummy or sit up all day?

Coughs, splutters, chokes .... id say within the realms of normal.

Clicking noise when feeding ... again can be normal.

Fussy on breast ... again can be normal ... also happens when bottle feeding

Crying and straining to poo ... normal

Cry and scream in evenings ... normal

Tongue tie not causing problems ... normal

Brings up milk and swallows it .. normal

So, everything you describe there is normal baby behaviour. That doesn’t mean I’m saying your baby doesn’t have any problems .... I’m just trying to let you know this can be just normal baby behaviour.

I think the problem is all babies are different and we don’t know what’s right, what’s a problem that needs attention and what to expect really. My first dc was textbook ... did everything when he should, as he should, not a pick of bother. Second dc was an absolute nightmare from 2 weeks old ... cried CONSTANTLY! Third dc (with small tongue tie that needed nothing doing) was combination of the first two. Fourth dc was a bit problematic with allergies, feeding, diarrhoea.

I expected all my babies to be like the first ... what a shock to my system when they weren’t!!

I remember doctors, midwife, health visitors all saying (with dc2) “some babies just cry a lot “. That didn’t help, I was convinced there must be something wrong with her as she just cried ALL the time. Nothing made her happy ... didn’t like her pram, car seat or bouncy chair. Didn’t want to be cuddled but didn’t want to be down either. Didn’t sleep/nap through the day. Wouldn’t go to other people, wouldn’t even look at them! Eventually I realised that this is just her personality and I had to just go with it - I couldn’t change her ways, I had to learn to live with them. It was really tough. There was nothing wrong with her .. it’s just how she was.

You can always go back to your GP, talk through your concerns about the paediatrician and see what to do from there. Make a list as you have done here so you know you’ve covered everything. Your baby may well need some help, but he may also be ok and just have a few ‘normal’ troubles.

Hope you get some answers and peace of mind

DD had reflux and none of the things you’ve described sound like her symptoms. Omeprazole is the next step if ranitidine doesn’t work. There are usually less side affects of this than with baby gaviscon as the dose is much smaller but more effective. DD had ranitidine until 13 months old when she eventually grew out of it.

Have you thought about a cows milk protein allergy or intolerance. This could explain a lot of his symptoms. I’d be concerned that he seems to be unable to breathe on his back more than any of the other symptoms. Most babies get constipated at points. And they all cry no matter what you do.

What you've described could be totally normal. It could be due to tongue tie or CMPA too but impossible to say. I would recommend going to see an IBCLC. That is the only way you are going to get reliable help work the tongue tie and rule it our or get it treated. They can also observe your feed and give a much more realistic opinion.

Can you see a bf counsellor, to look at his latch? Clicking sounds like a latch issue, and a latch issue could lead to excessive wind issues.
To be fair to paediatrician, lots of babies are like this.

Hi OP, I had similar issues with ds1. He was born with a tongue tie and had very bad silent reflux. It was extremely frustrating having to deal with a poor baby that is clearly in discomfort (I don't want to say pain) and crying the whole time and doctors and midwives who told me it's normal. He had his tongue tie snipped at 9 weeks which is quite late but the feeding clinic had to refer us. The GP and the peadiatricians he saw didn't pay any attention to it. For his silent reflux he was on rantidine and gaviscon and I changed his milk to comfort milk which helped with the constipation. Omeprazole is the next one and apparently can work wonders so perhaps worth a try. With my son, I can't say what really worked, perhaps the tongue snip, perhaps the medications or perhaps just having his system mature a bit but it did get better. If you feel it's not maybe consider a cmpa allergy? Try not to get upset about comments other people make, I understand the frustration.

What the paediatrician said sounds fine. All of what you've described can be normal. I would need a bit more than what you've said to say your baby has reflux.

I'm with PhilODox, it sounds like there are slight latch issues maybe due to the tongue tie which would lead to more wind, but that's about all.

CMPA or just normal. If you want to strictly exclude dairy from your diet and see if it makes a difference try it. But some babies are just like that.

Thanks for the replies all. I forgot to mention that I have considered CMPA so try to avoid any form of dairy. Have done so for about 2months now.

@secretmum41 You mentioned crying and straining to poo is normal. Did your DCs do this at 3 1/2 months? If so, when did they grow out of it. When I said 'cry' in my OP, it's mostly gut wrenching screams until he's red in the face and I'm hoping he gets over it soon

@slappinthebass @phil0dox Is there any difference between a bf counsellor and ibclc?

@stroller15 Thank you for the understanding! I almost want a paedi to come and observe DS to get a true understanding of what we're going through.
Did DS have to have any anaesthetic when he had his TT snipped? The trouble for us is that my DS is too old to have his snipped without anaesthetic.

@stroller15 Forgot to also ask roughly hold DS was when the silent reflux cleared up?

Hi OP, at 9 weeks he luckily didn't need anaesthetic for the snip but it was not nice, I'd have preferred him to have it tbh - the other little newborns having it done was unaware of what was happening. It was over in 5 min though and the docs were great.
I remember around 17 weeks things evened out - you can also ask about early weaning as another option? My ds1doesnt like milk now and barely drink any at 2yrs old so I told myself it must have been an intolerance if not an allergy.
Good luck OP, take 1 day at a time. Someone said the nights are long but the years are short and that is so true

OP ... dc4 strained til red/purple colour n the face every time he poo’d, pretty much from birth tbh. GP and HV said this was normal, some babies just like to make a meal of it
He did get better but I’m not sure when. He also turned out to have a milk allergy. Convinced it was because of that.

While things can sound normal with your ds, that doesn’t mean it is. I’d ask for further advice/second opinion. Trust your instincts ... I didn’t with my dc and wished I’d acted sooner with various things.

Paeds only prescribe omeprazole if they think there's significant reflux going on. It's not usually constipating, and it's definitely less constipating than such as Gaviscon.

If she thought you were neurotic, why would she prescribe your son what is probably the best (and most certainly not the cheapest) anti reflux med for babies?

Maybe have a look at laryngomalacia

Pretty much everything you described can be caused by a tounge tie. There's no such thing as a "slight" tounge tie. Either there is a tie or there isn't, some babies can have a tounge that is tethered completely and have no issues, some have almost invisible ties which impact on tounge mobility.

I would suggest seeking out a IBCLC or even better a tounge tie practitioner to assess feeding properly. This can be done on the NHS but is often quicker to go private.

The difference between a breastfeeding counsellor and a IBCLC is the depth of training and scope of practice. There's some useful info here on that www.lcgb.org/why-ibclc/whos-who-in-breastfeeding-support-and-lactation-in-the-uk/

she prescribed a new med (ompez something
DS has been on omeptazole since moving fro ranitadine pre 12 weeks of age. Still in it at 3.5 years. No issues with it at all. Nor does anyone else I know whose kid uses it.
We use both gaviscon and omeptazole and he poops fine

My little one (6m) looks and sounds like her head is going to explode every time she does a poo and it’s only every 4 days. We had a lot of the above. Life changed after a move to low lactose comfort milk. She can still drool for Britain though.

@stroller15 @icclemunchy The trouble with his TT issue is that paedi says they will not snip at his age as the nerve endings have developed so he'll certainly need anaesthetic. However they don't like to administer anaesthetic to babies, which I agree with on that front. It's quite frustrating as I asked about getting the TT snipped when he was younger and wouldn't have felt a thing. DH was against 'unnecessary procedures' and doctors etc. said the TT wasn't severe enough to be snipped, despite feeding issues, so I felt outnumbered. . .sigh. pointless rant. I'm giving myself until he's 6months. If it continues past that, I may have a nervous breakdown. I'm going to try the new meds out of desperation and pray he doesn't get constipated. Thanks for the link!

@nocoolnamesleft I just got that feeling as she'd barely let me finish a sentence and prescribed it quite quickly, almost as if to shut me up. It all seemed a bit hasty.

@secretmom41 I feel like a clueless ftm but you're definitely right about trusting instincts. I'm going to see an IBCLC.

Thanks all!

Are you in the UK? How old is he? It would usually be a TT practitioner that snips a tie and they operate privately and on the NHS.

It is usually done without anesthetic as its a v minor procedure but ones they get to around 6m a general anesthetic is needed (this does vary from area to area).

@icclemunchy Yes, I'm in the UK. Paedi said the procedure wouldn't be done without anaesthetic at his age (15 weeks). I don't think she meant that they carry out the procedure, just that it wouldn't be done without anaesthetic..
I'm quite gutted as I'm sure having it snipped would have helped.

I would seek a second opinion from someone who specialises in tounge ties. General Dr's mw's hv's and even pediatricians often have little (if any) bf or tt specific training.

See here for tt practitioners www.tongue-tie.org.uk/

Or here for IBCLC's (some are trained as both) www.lcgb.org

My first child did all of those things and I was much like you are now. Convinced there was something serious going on and that docs weren't taking me seriously. We had various reflux mess but she grew out of all of the issues as she grew and is absolutely fine now.

DD2 is exactly the same and I'm much calmer about it.

Babies do not have fully developed digestive systems so gastric issues can be part and parcel of their development and they have no way of telling you what's going on so they cry. Most babies are hard work!

Thanks for the links @icclemunchy.
Thanks for the suggestion @puddinchops1. I'm definitely going to have him examined.
@mammooo Do you remember what age DD1 grew out of the issues?