Going mad, no sleep!!

[Jenny10marie]

I have a 6 week old boy and we have tried absolutely everything for colic/wind and he still will only sleep on me! He also is displaying signs of silent reflux so is currently on Gaviscon.
He screams his head off until he's hoarse, then he will have a huge poo. But then will start again. He also makes this grunting/straining noise when he is in his moses basket keeping us awake. Seen health visitor and GP, waiting for paedetrician appointment. Health visitor just thinks it's bowel immaturity.
Anyone ever experience this? help!

If had one like this and it’s tough isn’t it. Can I ask why you think it’s silent reflux?

Sorry, that should say “I had one like this”

Its hard to know what could be wrong without knowing why you think it’s silent reflux. One thing that might be worth doing though is getting baby assessed for tongue tie. Have a read of the symptoms and see what you think

Ask Dr Sears has sone information on causes of colic and how to cope with it here.

Have you got a sling? Mine literally saved my sanity as baby would settle in it and I could make drinks and food or go for a walk.

The Tiger in the Tree hold can help too

Do you think the Gaviscon is helping?

My baby was exactly as you described... it turned out to be cows milk protein allergy.
Nobody listened to me, push to be listened to, 8 weeks we went with him only sleeping on my upright or for 10 minute periods... I ended up hallucinating from tiredness. The day they prescribed him a special formula, he slept 14 hours straight

I second sling and tiger in the tree too.

And baby massage groups

Are you sure the noises at night are digestion related rather than normal baby sleep. My 11 week old sounds like a goat/gremlin/trucker and I've been assured that whilst I was completely unprepared for it, it's a very normal and important part of sleep for babies. They will keep you awake with the noises and that also very normal until the 4 month sleep regression. You know your child best but it's worth exploring if this really is all digestion related. A baby that will only sleep on you is also quite normal and may just need help learning to settle in their Moses basket. What does the HV say?

Hi
I think he has reflux due to having most of the symptoms
Gagging and coughing after feed
Won’t lie flat
Head control very good very early on
Feeding constantly
Rapid weight gain
But also there’s definitely the colic issue and going for a poo, not constipated at all.
I think it’s too early to tell with the gaviscon, he’s only been on it just over a week
Yes, my HV is letting me borrow her sling today.
He will settle when he’s lying in his tummy on me but of course, can’t risk this position at bedtime in his Moses basket

SPR1107:
We have a referral sent to the paediatrician, so I’m guessing if it is an allergy then something will come out from this appointment?

My Health visitor thinks it is just that some babies can’t cope with the sensation of having a poo and try to hold on to it. She thinks it will settle by 12 weeks, but meanwhile we are so sleep deprived.
I can’t massahe him as he screams when you touch his tummy and the same when giving him a bath. Going to try a lot of tummy time in the day

Black cat
I know what you mean about the noises at night, he does make a lot of grunting which doesn’t concern me, it’s the straining and going red and then crying.
Scenario
He screams and screams and then couple of hours later does a huge poo so you think “ah that must be it”
Then later will scream again and tummy is still rumbling,
We feed him upright and keep him upright after feed. We’ve tried all of the products for colic and changed to comfort milk.
Losing the will now, was so upset and tired the other day, nearly went and bought a packet of cigarettes and I’ve been stopped for over a year!!

Fair enough. My daughter does that sometimes when she 'has a poo brewing' more so in the afternoon for some reason. She tends to cry even if she's being winded on me but stops if I stand up and let her legs dangle down my abdomen. Have you tried propping up the cot with a pillow, cook book etc so that baby isn't completely flat? That really helped DD at night with getting reflux after feeds.

And hang in there OP. 6 weeks is really hard without all the digestive stuff. It does getting better.

Feel for you, OP. It’s weird how the tiredness makes you want to smoke cigs! I had/ have the same thing and haven’t smoked for 4 years. Thought it was dead and buried until I had a baby! Hang in there. It’s going to be ok. Health visitors not listening to you is so frustrating: you know your baby best, so try not to feel undermined by advice from others. The thing is, even if it’s a digestive issue, the chances are it’ll pass as your baby’s system matures, but keep pushing for a diagnosis if you continue to suspect something more serious is up. For what it’s worth, it sounds like you’re having a harder time than I had and I had a pretty hard time! Things got easier when I made peace with the fact that my baby’s favourite place to sleep is in my arms and I stopped worrying that I was going to irreparably emotionally damage him by cuddling him too much (as one health visitor helpfully suggested!). Also, my dp started to take baby for two hours in the early morning so I could have some sleep, and know that that rest, no matter how bad the night was, was coming. Take care.

Thank you for all advice, I will definitely try and push with GP if things don’t improve
Also can anyone recommend a good easy to use baby sling, mine is a soohoo and it’s so complicated!

From what you’ve said, my first guess would be CMPA. Have a read of this and see what you think.

Thank you Julie

Update,
No appointment until December! Will go mad before then.
Does anyone know of anywhere privately I could take
Him

Did you read the CMPA info? Did it sound like what you are experiencing?

I had the same issue with my DS. It's slightly settled down at 17 weeks but we recently had his tongue tie cut. The poor mite couldn't get a proper latch so was consuming a lot of air causing lots of symptoms similar to silent reflux.
I also have a fast let down so this, coupled with his previous tongue tie, made his feeding very problematic. Do you EBF? If so, tongue tie or fast let down could be the problem.
The new problem I'm facing is that (annoyingly!) I think DS has cows milk protien allergy. Prior to his tongue tie cut, I'd stayed off dairy thinking it could be an issue, but after amazing results with the tongue tie cut, I started having my beloved cheese and milk again (thinking dairy must not have been the issue) but now we are back to fussiness when feeding and grunting/straining in the night 😣.
Very frustrating as he is now over 4 months . I feel for you and don't hold on to potential false hope that things will settle by 3months. I did the same and was crushed when there was no signs of improvement after 3.2months.
Get his tongue tie checked though. Could be a game changer. . .if your LO doesn't also have CMPA.
Also watch out for gaviscon, it caused awful constipation for my DS.

Hi julie
Yes I did thank you, it does sound like the symptoms, but I can’t get an appointment for it to be diagnosed until December :(

Keep going back and insist to be seen, if your instinct is telling you it's something such as CMPA. Nobody listened to me, until symptoms were severe and undeniable, my baby was a different child within one day of the new milk.

Totally agree with getting him checked for Tongue Tie.

Don’t worry about making a nuisance of yourself. I can’t remember how you said you’re feeding your baby, sorry. If you are Bfing, try cutting out dairy. If you are Ffing, go back to the GP. Print out the info from Allergy UK, above, and ask for a formula suitable for babies with CMPA.

If you can’t manage until the GP opens, go to a walk-in centre or A&E. Take him while he’s upset. Film his feeds too if he’s coughing while he feeds.

Thank you,
Yes I did consider the urgent care unit as they do have paediatricians instead of waiting for referral.
I can only settle him lying on his tummy and of course, can’t do this during the night.

They also are saying at my surgery that a GP can’t diagnose this as it has to be a paediatrician

They can't, but they can send you same day referral to the paediatric referral unit. So could an out of hours doctor. Film the grunting in the night as well, as it'll be something you'll never be able to get them to see

Go back to the GP and push again. This must be having a huge impact on your mental health.

My son has CMPA and he was 8 months old when finally diagnosed. I wish we’d refused to take no for an answer.