Top Paed Doctor has advised me to wean pre 4 mths

[Oblomov]

Went to see Top Paed Doctor in Surrey yesterday, privately through BUPA. I still haven't got an appointment throught he NHS and it has been over a month, but thats another story.
He said that he didn't think ds2 had reflux. and to stop the gaviscon, ranitidine and domperidone, immed, because he had been on theem a month and we had seen no improvememnt.
He thinks he is very windy. And there is nothing that can be done, thta I aren't already doing.
He suggested weaning him asap. Give it a few weeks he said. That will make 15 weeks. Less than 4 months.
He said that having somethig more substantial in his stomach might aid digestion and cut down on the wind.
He was very old school. And I know the 'guidelines', are for normal, healthy children, which mine is not. But...... having given it some thought, I just find this hard to accept.

You'll probably get more answers in Weaning.

That being said, is your DS2 not gaining weight? Is he unhappy? What's the probably, from your point of view?

I can't see how introducing something other than milk would help his digestion, tbh ...

If you feel the Paed has made a full and proper diagnosis and has fully answered your questions with an answer that makes sense, then yes I would go with his suggestion. But, if you think it's a case of 'well I don't really know what it is, so my suggestion is wean because I have no other suggestions', then no I wouldn't.

However, only you can decide if what he has said makes sense as I'm guessing your post is an edited version!

Also give yourself time to go over the Paed's answers/suggestions before you wean. Then if you have any further questions you can address them before you start.

hmm, that is hard isnt it...it seems so wrong but then if he is a doctor, a proper paediatrician, he should know his stuff shouldnt he??

what did he suggest giving? are you breastfeeding, could it be something in your diet?

Thank you NQC, have reposted.
By the way he is bf. and gaining weight.
He is awake from 9pm-6am , every night, crying inconsolably.

Did you challenge him at all on the guidelines? Did he seem to know them but thought that they might not apply in this case or did he bluster and give the opinion he thought they were nonsense?

I think what I am saying is if he would normally fully support the guidelines but thinks in your case they should be ignored then I would go with it (although stretch it out to 16 weeks if poss.). If he is of the opinion they are nonsense and wouldn't worry about them even with a healthy child then get a second opinion.

ILtoMitMit - it was like that. Like we don't know whats wrong, so try this. Every other MW, HV and GP I have seen and at A&E, the registrars, they don't KNOW what is wrong with him.

Oh gosh, that sounds hard.

Does he sleep a lot in the day?

I know it's not tempting, but have you considered eliminating foods from your diet? (start with caffeine and alcohol, after that consider dairy) It's very very rare that food in the mother's diet cause problems for their kids while breastfeeding, but it does happen.

It does sound like the usual 'I have no idea what to suggest, so I'll suggest something'.

The thing is, doctors don't always know, and babies are contrary little buggers.

Can you cope? Are you getting sleep?

He said that he knew what the guidleines were. He supported them. But that they were only guidleines. And did not apply to every child. And did not apply to every parent.

I had told him that we were at breaking point. And that the strain/ no sleep was sending my diabetes mad and that I had had a diabetic hypo, which required A&E admission the day before.

Other things to consider:

Does he sleep in the day?
Do you think he may have his days and nights mixed up?
If it was a problem with digestion, why doesn't happen all day?
Do you have allergies in the family?
Will a few more weeks of discomfort be better than a possible lifetime of allergies?
Have you cut out dairy in your diet?

Apologies if these questions seem flippant or if you have posted about them before, but I'm rattling them off the top of my head.

Am surprised he has recommended stopping all the meds

DS was on them for 5.5 months

also ranitadine is very weight dependent so the dose needs to be adjusted a lot

i don't see how weaning will help at all

i would get a second opinion TBH

I asked him about my diet. I told him, that I had investigated and that some schools , (say Kellymom) thought that diet played minimal difference. He agreed, saying there was no evidence.

Are you cosleeping?
Can your partner or family help?

Yes he is very sleepy during the day. Hardly alert.
Does seem to have night and day mixed up.
But saying that, even when he has been kept awake, it has made no difference to his night sleeping.

I often try co-sleeping. We co slept last night. He did not sleep. AT ALL. I mean not AT ALL. NOT for a minute. He was either awake or I was patting him , or trying to bf him , in order to stop him screaming.

To shift him around to being awake in the daytime instead of the night (if that's the underlying problem, or one of them) would take a week, maybe. You couldn't expect results in a day. It's like very bad jetlag, it takes a while to fix itself.

You'd have to keep him awake in the daytime (or let him have only small naps) and then try to make nighttimes as boring and dark as possible.

he needs to sleep with his head elevated as much as possible

my DS would feed ALL day as it was so soothing ...

cranial osteopathy is used alot in babeis who scream and cream, have you considered it?

I think diet doesn't make a difference for most or many kids, but for a small minority, it does. Cutting caffeine and dairy out would be a simple one to try, to see if it makes a difference.

(And yes, it does make a difference for some - one friend's baby would vomit if she had anything from a long list of prohibited foods. She's still very sensitive to these foods now.)

sorry for crappy spelling

I already do that NQC. Every day. Try to limit him naps. Try to keep him awake.
He has started refusing to sleep in his cot/moses basket.
He does have his head elevated most of the time both day and night. He likes sitting quite upright.

I really feel for you, DS is a non sleeper as well. He is 8 months now, and although I have weaned him since he was 6 months, the sleeping has just not improved. I even tried formula for a couple of nights, and that didn't work either!!

Is it silent reflux?? And the bit about how the guidelines don't apply to every child sounds like the usual crap that gets spouted when they don't really know!

I would probably work on the day and night thing, as whether you wean or not that won't change.

Sorry, I don't really have any suggestions how to help with the day and night sleep. But I would imagine it will take a while as he is no longer a newborn, so you will need maximum support from your partner, family and friends when you tackle it.

FWIW I think you're a saint to have lasted this long, albeit a knackered one.

Just seen your other thread. I take it that you went to this pead because of his crying? Does he have any other health problems?

Does he sleep at all?

My ds is currently asleep on his front with the hoover switched on next to him. I know sleeping on his front is not advised, but he just doesn't sleep on his back, and I can't help but feel that being exhausted is probably worse for his health.

That works for us, I appreciate all babies are different and just because it works for us, doesn't mean that it all will work for your baby.

Already done Cranial O.