I want to preface this by saying you'd be hard pushed to find someone who wants to follow the rules more than I do. I'm terrified of SIDS and have thus far done everything by the book. Perhaps to my poor babys detriment. Which leads me to my question.
My 5.5 month old has severe silent reflux. He's on a hypoallergenic formula which has helped somewhat, but he still really suffers. As such, he's unable to lay on his back without being in considerable pain. At night, he will cry and fuss constantly, and can pretty much only sleep in our arms.
My husband was starting to think that the baby just wanted to be held, so tonight I decided to try something. I put the baby down on his side, and although he was awake, he was so peaceful and comfortable, and with a bit of patting and shushing, fell right to sleep in his cot. For me, this was definitive proof that the poor baby isn't just crying out to be held because he prefers our arms, but because being on his back hurts him so much.
My dilemma is that he's not yet mastered how to roll. He shows very little interest. Mostly because, as above, he can't lay down on his back or his front because of the reflux. He's held up or sat up the majority of the time.
What do I do!? I know the sids risk is 6x higher for side sleeping babies. He can't roll yet. I also know that the trachea can distort in this positioning which is another reason sids risk increases when baby is on their side. But surely we can't carry on this way? He might not roll for months. He's not sleeping. He's in pain. We're not sleeping.
To add, we've tried medication. Both omeprazole and gaviscon. Neither worked for us. I already thicken his milk with Carobel. No other easy fixes in sight.
Should I just put the poor baby on his side to sleep? Or do I stick strictly with the rules!? Help!