Early Teether - baby won’t drink milk, DESPERATE

[ComebackQueen]

Hi all

My DS will be three months in January but since six weeks he has more than halved his feeds.

First it was either ‘growth spurt’ then it was side effects of eight week jab.

Baby is HUNGRY as usual on his 3 hour feed cycles and usually took 4 oz sometimes more up to six weeks ago.

Now, it’s down to 1 or sometimes 2 ounce if I am lucky.

They suspected CMA & prescribed me simliac (has soy oil so I’m fuming based on what I’ve been told about soy & boys).

DS was vomiting non stop on CMA milk & didn’t increase his feeds.

If anything it went backwards.

My little ones poo went from yellow on HiPP organic to green, mucus and runny. Regular bouts of vomiting and, wet nappies down to 4-5 a day if I’m lucky. His nappies are completely dry overnight and, when he has been to hospital as he is getting SOME milk and having 4-5 nappies they discharge him and say speak to GP.

Paediatrician can see us mid February!!!!!! He dropped to 9th percentile after being at 25th.

In the meantime my mother insisted he was teething. HV saw him Xmas Eve and said looks like an early teether but I can give him anything until he is 3 months some products now only when he is 5 months.

I tried teething rings in fridge, carrots as HV suggested and, flannels cut up in freezer etx.

Nothing is working and I now feed him every 2 hours via a medical syringe and I wake him at night because at best I can only get 1 oz into him.

He is biting, chewing his hands, moving head side to side & just refuses to drink past an ounce. He starts off drinking so rapidly & then screams in pain.

I am exhausted, husband & mother help out and they’re exhausted because both work, husband only has bank holiday off over Christmas & he is doing the night feeds for me as I’m burnt out.

GP is saying wait until paediatrician but how can I survive until 9 Feb?

By poor baby is hungry, in pain, three adults are required to make sure we get about 12 oz into him.

This is completely unsustainable and, I’m in tears most of the day & night.

Anyone with early teether have any suggestions?

Im at breaking point.

Can you afford one private appointment to see someone?

The concerning research about boys and soya has been disproven but 50% of babies with cmpa are allergic to soya as the protein is very similar.

Join the CMPA Facebook group and ask for advice there. You need to fo back to your GP and ask for the next milk to try. Unfortunately specialist milks don’t taste great (most formula tastes odd to me) but there are tricks like putting vanilla extract in the milk to make it more acceptable.

I would say the issue here is not teething but being exposed to allergen.

Are you giving pain relief? I'd agree with PP about CMPA, teething is rough but this sounds like something more.

Silent reflux?

My son was the same. He had reflux caused by suspected cows milk dairy allergy. He refused feeds because he was in pain.

Go back to the GP and ask them for an alternative allergy milk. Ask them for medication to help with reflux as well. Baby gavisgon can be prescribed from this age. Gripe water is an antacid and can be given from 8 weeks. I gave it to mine at 8 weeks anyway.

In all honesty, the first four months of DS life was absolute hell for me. The only things that helped him were weaning at 16 weeks and getting a prescription for ranitadine.

Ask for Neocate or Alfamino. You may also need a thickener like carobel if the milk is too thin, and as others have said add vanilla essence (non alcoholic) to the milk. Also potentially omeprazole or gaviscon for the reflux.
And yes join the CMPA support group on Facebook; lots of very helpful people.

And ranitidine is no longer prescribed for babies.

You could try him on some gentle solids. 3 months is early but back in the day most babies were introduced to solids from 4 months.

Wow thank you so much.

So, it isn’t teething? I’m not on Facebook so will have to create one to see the support group.

I’ve just tried a bit of Ashton & Parsons after I made those post and, he has stopped putting his hands in his mouth but still is refusing to drink.

So, I would concur with CMA which GP and HV aren’t convinced it is.

I’ll wait a week to see if the teething granules help but I do really need to see the GP in the new year as he is still refusing the milk after using teething granules.

I agree potentially a soya allergy. 40% of children with a CMPA also allergic to soya.

My son has CMPA & a soya allergy. Anaphylactic for both.

Ask for neonate formula - GP / pead only only. It's coconut based and is broken down to the amino acids to stop any reactions.

@pollyparrot45

We are awaiting an out of hours GP to call to change the milk.

I thought I could wait until the doctors surgery reopened but he is suffering so badly so NHS direct/111 have stepped in and are arranging for a GP to see if they can organise a prescription, failing that we will be going to A&E.

Yes unfortunately my son was admitted before they figured out it was allergies. He was rushed to a far away childrens hospital as he was severely unwell.

I was breastfeeding so was able to cut out soya - I just didn’t realise I needed too.

His ended up being eggs & nuts too.

Was a nightmare to cut it all out but despite by efforts the little monkey refused bottles.

Please don’t wait & take him in if he’s suffering.

My poor DS suffered immensely before we got to the bottom of his horrific reflux. They were tube feeding & looking at surgery until a consultant pushed for allergy testing despite no family history.

Omeprozole really helped with his reflux too.

Also solidarity with you in this situation as it’s extremely difficult. There is light at the end of the tunnel & life gets better.

Hope you get to the bottom of this soon.

@pollyparrot45 your poor bubba, so glad to hear the milk & reflux medication has helped.

We were switched to neocate and, Ozzy is refusing the drink that. He drank more on Similac, he had a trip to A&E three days ago & we have started baby gaviscon which has started to help slightly but he refuses neocate and, despite not suiting Similac he would rather drink this than neocate, even if it’s still small amounts..utterly confused.

My GP won’t change him to any other branded milk as these are apparently the gold standard of CMPA.

A&E doctor said to speak to GP about Aptamil as that has a much nicer flavour but my GP said if they didn’t prescribe it on discharge than he doesn’t believe it is necessary.

The A&E on discharge summary has said my son needs to be referred over for his allergy & weight loss but due to covid, I won’t hold my breath.

The husbands private medical only covers him after six months so with me being on SMP and only having moved house about a year ago, we don’t have much spare as what we budgeted before baby covers the shortfall in our usual joint earnings but hoping by April we can afford to have him see a specialist and pay for it ourselves unless the NHS referral comes before that.

I’m getting a few free samples of allergy milk via a family member that works as a medical rep so has access to some products.

I wish I could afford to take him private much sooner, I feel like I’ve let him down.

FYI I found out the paediatrician we are seeing in Feb is just a general paediatric who comes into the surgery every few months. That is why the hospital asked for a specific outpatient referral.

Keep trying on the Neocate, you can add vanilla extract, even nesquik to improve the flavour. Fed is best - don't think about sugar. Once dairy starts to leave his system he will feel better and associate the milk with this - just now milk makes things worse so he does not want it.

Hang in there - the first few days of getting up and running are so tough but you got this.

I agree that teething is probably a red herring.

Both my dcs cut their first tooth around 12 weeks and while sleep was hell and there was a lot of crying, feeding was never an issue.

Thanks ladies, a quick update, we have suffered distribution issues in NW London with Neocate & Similac so are now using SMA Alfamino!

In the meantime our paediatric appointment has been moved to May, after a complete meltdown by both myself and my son yesterday, him due to pain me due to abject failure as a mother, a wife, everything…my husband has said we need to go private.

We are booked for 1 February as thankfully my husband is due a tax refund per his self assessment return so his accountant has submitted it this week and we should get the money in a week or two.

Oscar is really struggling with alfamino, I’ve tried to thicken the milk, add vanilla extract sugar free and alcohol free version to no avail.

He went down to less than 10 ounces in 24 hours and as there was a concern fkr dehydration we were made to do a trip to A&E but as he was producing a few wet nappies he wasn’t admitted and again thrown back for the GP to handle.

Only less than a week to go before we see a private consultant and have the testing done.
I’m literally at my wits end. HV and GP have said I can mix neocate with hipp organic to help him take some milk which has helped as he is back to about 15 oz a day.

He isn’t sleeping, he isn’t drinking properly, he is struggling poor thing.

I’m now wondering is it really a CMPA or some other allergy? If it’s the latter then alfamino is probably the only milk he will be able to take but he just doesn’t want it.

I fear we are going to be in early weaning territory as HV has tentatively mentioned this to me but she said wait until the consultant has made an assessment.

I don’t know how any of you ladies have dealt with babies with allergies!!!!

It’s hell on earth.