| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 556.1 | been there, done that | NEWPRT::NEWELL_JO | Don't wind your toys too tight | Mon Jul 19 1993 14:14 | 29 |
| Cindy,
I really feel for you. Our daughter Amber suffered from reflux
and at 10 weeks was hospitalized for tests to verify the condition.
After all the tests were run, and the reflux, comfirmed, she was
put on Reglan before every feeding and she wore an apnea monitor
when she slept. The hospital explaind to us that the acid that
comes back up the esophagus sometimes hits a nerve in the throat
that can affect the heartrate. The monitor keeps you aware of
any problems with the heart and breathing (apnea).
The Reglan was tricky as it was required 30 minutes before each
feeding for it to be effective. Try telling an infant that has
just woke up at 3am with hunger pains that she has to wait a half
hour to eat. Not a pretty picture. We eventually got the wait
time down to about 18 minutes through trial and error.
You might want to ask your doctor to try Reglan, it may work
better and be more compatible during episodes of illness.
The good news is that reflux will almost always go away as the
child learns to sit. The spincter muscle that is giving her all the
trouble with strengthen as gravity pulls the muscle into place.
Good luck and remember...
"This too shall pass"
Jodi-who's daughter, Amber is a very healthy 8 year old now.
|
| 556.2 | Reflux also | XCUSME::SHELTON | | Tue Jul 20 1993 12:24 | 18 |
| Hi Cindy,
My daughter is 9 weeks old and was diagnosed a few weeks ago with
reflux. I know what your going through and it's so hard to watch her
in so much pain. She is also on medication now and is finally on a
formula that agrees with her.
I found it very difficult going back to work in the middle of all this
and leaving her in somone ele's hands knowing she was miserable. She
is also thriving now, and is a totally different baby. She does vomit
frequently, but not as bad as it used to be.
I hope your baby is feeling better soon. I know it's easy for the
doctors to say "She'll outgrow this" but in the mean time, we feel
helpless!!
Regards,
Mary
|
| 556.3 | I'm sorry it just isn't easy! | SALES::LTRIPP | | Tue Jul 20 1993 14:04 | 19 |
| I had experience with Reflux. I know I can't give you a doctor's name,
but contact me off line for a wonderful pedi gastro specialist.
As a couple other have, we used Tagamet liquid and had fairly good
succcess. The other thing that helped the miserable screaming from
pain was Mylicon drops. Yes it's expensive, but well worth the relief
it gives.
Also, if the doctor hasn't told you elevate the head of the crib a
couple inches. I used two methods, first was a landscape timber 4"
high under the head (remove the wheels obviously), and then what seemed
to work even better was putting a nice firm pillow, like a sofa throw
pillow, between the mattress and spring.
It really does get better, unfortunately usually not until after they
start walking... 8-(
Lyn
|
| 556.4 | more suggestions | DELNI::GIUNTA | | Tue Jul 20 1993 15:59 | 21 |
| My son also had reflux, but didn't have the pain you've described --
just the vomitting. Some of the things we did were to give him
Tagamet as well as Reglan 1/2 hour before eating every other feeding
(this one we timed so that we didn't need to give it to him at the
2:00 a.m. feeding), feed him every 3 hours instead of every 4 hours,
added rice to his formula to make it heavier and keep it down (we
added 1 teaspoon per ounce, but I imagine that would depend on the
baby), burped him after every ounce, and elevated his crib. We
found that by putting one end of his mattress support on one rung
and the other end on a lower rung or two down was sufficient to
elevate his crib without putting the whole crib up on something.
I was worried that a board under the front of the crib wouldn't
have been stable enough, so we elevated by playing with the mattress
supports instead. And we put a few rolled up towels around him in
the crib to make a nest of sorts and keep him from sliding down.
We only found him once down at the bottom of the crib with his little
legs dangling out.
And they do grow out of it, it just seems to take forever.
Cathy
|
| 556.5 | I thought Soy was expensive.... | LEDDEV::DELMONICO | Jim --<Philippians 4:4-7>-- | Mon Sep 26 1994 15:58 | 13 |
|
Our little premie guy is having a tough time. He's got reflux
big time and may be milk intolerant. When we hone in on a
treatment he responds to - I'll update this note.
In the meantime - does anyone know of a place we can get Meade
Johnson Nutramigen formula cheaper than $14-$16 per can??!!
We've tried the grocery stores, CVS, & Brooks - all expensive.
BJ's, Toys-r-US, and Walmart don't carry that formula. Help!
Thanks,
Jim D.
|
| 556.6 | don't forget a change of clothes for yourself | PCBUOA::GIUNTA | | Mon Sep 26 1994 16:10 | 16 |
| I don't know of anyplace other than the ones you mentioned in your
note, and hope that he can tolerate that one. They only get more
expensive as you have to change them! We used Progestimil [more
commonly called Projectimil in our house for obvious reasons] and we
had to get that at the pharmacy.
Are you also doing all the standard reflux-prevention measures? We
sloped the crib by putting the mattress support in a higher rung on one
side. Burp him every ounce or every 5 minutes, whichever comes first.
Do they have you putting rice in the formula yet? I can remember one
scoop of rice per scoop of formula per two ounces of water to mix the
formula and make it heavier so it would stay down. And we also went the
Reglan/Tagamet route in the medication department.
They do usually grow out of it. Good luck, and keep a change of clothes
for _you_ in the diaper bag.
|
| 556.7 | exit | LEDDEV::DELMONICO | Jim --<Philippians 4:4-7>-- | Mon Sep 26 1994 17:16 | 25 |
|
>>Are you also doing all the standard reflux-prevention measures?
Ugghh, yup. The poor little guy. He gets rice thickened formula
with frequent burping (which annoys him when he's hungry). In fact,
they just asked us to do two tablespoons per ounce which sounds like
about what you were doing. The challenge is to modify a bunch of
nipples so that he can eat the stuff effectively.
His little cradle is inclined like a rocket launcher :^), and he's
still launching his meals :^(. We're going to see a GI specialist
this week and I bet he'll want to explore medication options. He's
already had an upper GI series done which was fascinating to watch.
We just want him to be comfortable. This reflux is making him
miserable. We're hoping he grows out of it fast if nothing
else. In the meantime, I think we'll eat cabbage and potatoes
to afford the $$ Nutramigen $$ formula - anything to ease his
discomfort.
A new parent,
Jim D.
|
| 556.8 | watch that medication schedule | PCBUOA::GIUNTA | | Tue Sep 27 1994 09:45 | 24 |
| Jim,
How old is your little guy? You said he was premature -- any other
problems from that that could be making the reflux worse? Is he the
first boy? Did they check the duodenum [I have no idea how to spell it
-- it's a condition that affects first-born boys more so than other
babies and is that part at the base of the intestines right before the
stomach that sometimes constricts to cause reflux]? My son's reflux
was a lot worse due to his other problems from the prematurity, and
once that stuff cleared up, so did his reflux. All that came together
at 6 1/2 months when he finally came home from the hospital. I was
just wondering if maybe there's more than one thing going on in which
case it will be tougher for the doctor to find it.
Also, the medication they usually use is Reglan, but you have to give
it 1/2 hour or some amount of time before you feed him. You want to
keep that in mind so that if you do start that, you're not scheduled to
give it to him at a 2 a.m. feeding. Typically, they don't get Reglan
at every feeding, so you should be able to work a schedule.
Hope they find the right formula/medication combination for him. It's
not fun for the little guy, but they do usually grow out of it.
Cathy
|
| 556.9 | Just a thought.... | GLR02::MACARTHUR | | Tue Sep 27 1994 09:58 | 8 |
| Jim - you might want to try contacting the manufacturer of the formula
directly - they may give you a discount. Or try asking your insurance
company - my sister said hers gave her a coupon for a free case of
formula!
Best of luck!
Barb
|
| 556.10 | Reflux? | STOWOA::STOCKWELL | Mad about Moos | Tue Sep 27 1994 10:24 | 4 |
| What exactly is reflux?
|
| 556.11 | quick description | PCBUOA::GIUNTA | | Tue Sep 27 1994 10:52 | 9 |
| Reflux is a gagging action where the baby gives back what they've just
eaten. It is not the same as spitting up. It tends to be projectile in
nature and comes basically immediately after/during eating. Generally,
the way digestion works is that the stomach contracts and pushes the
food through the digestive tract, but with reflux, it takes the
opposite path [which may be easier] and pushes the food back out
instead of down to be digested.
|
| 556.12 | Projective vomiting = reflux? | NAPIER::HEALEY | M&ES, MRO4, 297-2426 | Tue Sep 27 1994 11:58 | 11 |
|
Re: -1
Does that mean that any baby with projectile vomiting on a
fairly regular basis has this reflux condition? Lauren used
to projectile vomit about once a day in the first couple
of months of her life. It eventually dwindled to once a week,
and hasn't happened in a couple of months now (she is almost
10 months).
Karen
|
| 556.13 | been there..... | HOCUS::CUFF | | Tue Sep 27 1994 12:15 | 25 |
| We're just coming out of the woods with reflux with our second. It
does decrease over time, take heart. With age and food, less and less
spitting up. I found the only thing that keeps clothes anywhere near
clean is Vivid nonchlorine bleach, pre-spot before washing. Nutramigen
is REALLY NASTY stuff!!! Try to wash each night, I find if I leave
bibs or tops with spit-up around for a day or so, it almost smells like
it has fermented! YUCK.
Nutramigen: Call the 1-800 number, they have a mailing list which will
send you some coupons ($1-2 per month, better than nothing) I think
the manufacturer is Ross Labs?
Do calculations whether ReadytoUse is cheaper than concentrate. Here
concentrate is cheaper (Long Island), I have drug store order by the
single or double case to save me time. When I tried to negotiate with
the drug store they laughed at me, literally! However, shop it as I
found up to 50cents per can difference. Tried the powder, it is
actually more expensive per ounce than Concentrate, plus doesn't mix up
well at all.
Best of luck, it does go away with time, all of a sudden you'll notice
the baby isn't spitting up all the time. Also, this one having
reflux doesn't mean siblings will!
|
| 556.14 | no | PCBUOA::GIUNTA | | Tue Sep 27 1994 12:16 | 10 |
| Re: -1.
No. Reflux is a condition that occurs at every feeding during or
immediately after the feeding. Everything, or at least it sure seems
like everything, just comes right back up. And there are different
severities of reflux, so some are fixed by just the standard things
[rice in cereal, frequent burping, tilting the bed] whereas others
require medication.
I'd just call what your Lauren did spitting up which lots of babies do.
|
| 556.15 | | NAPIER::HEALEY | M&ES, MRO4, 297-2426 | Tue Sep 27 1994 13:29 | 12 |
|
>> I'd just call what your Lauren did spitting up which lots of babies do.
Well, she probably didn't have reflux (not that it matters now
anyhow), but she definately wasn't spitting up. She still spits
up on occasion but this was differnt. When she THREW up, it
was generally the contents of an entire bottle and was quite a
sight to see (projectile). Quite messy...
Karen
|
| 556.16 | Not reflux, but sounds like your daughter! | HOTLNE::CORMIER | | Tue Sep 27 1994 14:34 | 11 |
| re.15
That's why I used to burp my son over the sink - a LOT easier to clean
up!
My son was pretty bad, but didn't have reflux (a diagnosable
condition). He just didn't always keep his formula down, for no
apparent reason. Something came up at EVERY feeding, so I fed him in a
chair by the kitchen sink and aimed him towards the sink when burping.
I also went to work just about every day with a burp cloth still over
my shoulder - "let's see, I've got my earrings, briefcase, burp cloth,
yup, fully accessorized!"
Sarah
|
| 556.17 | Try this to enlarge the nipple holes | CLOUD9::WEIER | Patty, DTN 381-0877 | Tue Sep 27 1994 14:36 | 14 |
| re - Back a few .... you might try this w/ the nipples .... boil them
(just long enough to get them REAL hot), then while the nipples are
still hot take 2 toothpicks and insert them in the nipple hole. Let
the nipples cool to room temperature, naturally (don't pour cold water
or anything on them). This will increase the size of the hole in the
nipple. Adjust the width/number of toothpicks as needed for your
situation. This should 'stay' this open for 2-3 'hand washes', without
boiling the nipples. You MUST use the toothpicks every time you boil,
otherwise the holes will get progressively smaller.
Hope this helps! I remember trying to cut one bigger once! HUH! May
as well have used a funnel for the poor kid (-:
|
| 556.18 | Another method to enlarge nipple holes | ASIC::MYERS | | Tue Sep 27 1994 15:03 | 8 |
| Another thing you can do with nipples is to make an X cut to enlarge
the hole. Our babysitter suggested this and it worked great, Sarah was
getting much less air into her stomach since she didn't have to work so
hard sucking.
We used an exacto knife to make the X.
Susan
|
| 556.19 | Does reflux return?? | OOYES::WEIER | Patty, DTN 381-0877 | Thu Feb 22 1996 11:19 | 36 |
|
This is sort of weird, but thought I'd ask in here anyway ....
when Jonathan was a baby, he had reflux. He got over it - I don't
know, somewhere short of a year. Maybe 9mos?? It was later than I
thought it should have been anyway, BUT he had whooping cough at 3 mos,
so for quite a while it wasn't completely clear if it was the coughing
or the reflux that was making him puke.
ANYWAY, over the past couple of weeks, I've noticed that quite
frequently, when he sits down to eat, he'll cough a tiny bit, and
*plop* there's dinner. It's WEIRD and REALLY sudden. It's especially
bad if there's anything "liquidy". A 1/2 cup of juice, and it's over for
him. He can manage about 1 1/2 freeze pops (what's that - a couple
oz?), and he'll lose it. It's happening about once a day, and
otherwise he seems to be pretty healthy.
The problem now, is that he's basically stopped eating. I think he's
put 2 and 2 together, so if he's hungry, he might have a bite of
something, but he won't eat much more than a couple bites. And if he
does decide to eat more, he pukes.
So, the question is --- can/does reflux recur as they grow older? He's
2 1/2. He's really bummin' at this point (and going to the Drs soon!),
because I'm POSITIVE that he's really hungry, but you can also see that
he plain doesn't WANT to (dare?) eat. He'll pick something up to eat
it, look at it, and put it down. He'll even TELL you he's going to eat
it, fully meaning to (not aiming to please), and change his mind at the
last minute.
Any ideas?? It seems to me it's this or bulimia (-; .... and it's been
going way too long to just be a virus - he's otherwise completely
healthy.
Thanks!
Patty
|
| 556.20 | Don't read this if you're eating, just ate or.... | BOBSBX::PENDAK | picture packin' momma | Thu Feb 22 1996 13:03 | 25 |
| Boy does this sound familiar, Patty. What Aaron is doing now is very
similar. On Saturday he was sick (late at night, I found him throwing
up when I looked in on him before I went to bed), I'm pretty sure it
was a virus since he had diarrhea, though he was on an antibiotic.
Anyway, Monday afternoon after eating some applesauce (the only thing
we managed to get into him since Saturday afternoon other than a some
formula and a few cheerios). Tuesday afternoon he did the same thing
after having some yogurt, and then this morning when I was giving him a
bottle of formula he just sat up straight and cut loose on me. A
minute or two afterwards he was all smiles so it must have made him
feel better. But he has a cough also.
We have a 2:10 appointment to see his pediatrician to have his ears
checked (he's had 2 colds this year and with both he ended up with ear
infections) as well as to discuss his problem with throwing up (the
diarrhea seems to be over). I also want to make sure he's not becoming
dehydrated even though we're pushing as many fluids as he'll take.
As a side note, I'm starting to think he's aiming for me. He's thrown
up 3 out of 4 times on me, the other time he was home with his dad and
he was thoughtful enough to do it on a afgan that my husband could just
toss in the washer! Maybe Aaron just enjoys the baths he and I take
together afterwards! He has excellent aim though!
sandy
|
| 556.21 | Aaron is much better | BOBSBX::PENDAK | picture packin' momma | Fri Feb 23 1996 10:01 | 13 |
| Well, after worrying about Aaron for the past week he seems to be
almost back to normal. We took him to the pedi for an earcheck
yesterday (he hasn't been sleeping well through the night and has been
pulling at his ears some) and all was clear. This is the first time
I've been wrong about a suspected ear infection. Anyway his stomach
seems to be returning to normal as well. His appetite is coming back
and he's keeping everything down. Now if *I* can go back to sleeping
through the night life will be good!
Patty, Aaron's stomach problems lasted about a week. I hope your
little one is feeling better.
sandy
|
| 556.22 | A parasite perhaps ? | OOYES::WEIER | Patty, DTN 381-0877 | Fri Feb 23 1996 10:04 | 10 |
|
Well, I took him to the Drs last night "Hmmm, well, gee, he seems to be
fine. BUT I wouldn't ignore it either!" The Dr seemed to think that
his symptoms are similar to those of someone with a parasite, and to
get in touch with his regular Dr, and probably want to start getting
stool samples. NOW I'm happy he's still in diapers!! (-:
We'll see how it goes ....
Patty
|
| 556.23 | does it happen every bottle??? | RDWOLF::KUPIEC | | Mon Jul 29 1996 11:22 | 12 |
|
Does the baby get upset after every feeding or is it just every
so often? My 1 month old Travis will take a full 4 oz bottle at
one feeding and then may or may not be very upset at another, where
he will take the first 2 oz and then fight with the bottle, where
he wants it then takes a little then pushes the bottle away and
starts screaming. We've taken him to the Doc and she doesn't think
it's reflux but colic. Any words of advise?
Thanks
Chris
|
| 556.24 | | HAZMAT::WEIER | Patty, DTN 381-0877 | Mon Jul 29 1996 12:43 | 13 |
|
>We've taken him to the Doc and she doesn't think
>it's reflux but colic. Any words of advise?
Get a swing. Get a car you don't mind driving in a lot (the car seemed to
calm mine). Get a set of earplugs. Set the baby in the baby seat on top of
the dryer to calm him (or the final spin on the washer!) Make sure that
you're not using iron formula - constipated babies don't act a lot different
than colicy ones (at least mine didn't).
Pray long and hard. And remember that they DO outgrow it!
-Patty
|
| 556.25 | | HAZMAT::WEIER | Patty, DTN 381-0877 | Mon Jul 29 1996 12:45 | 10 |
|
Oh yeah .... and there's some type of drops - Myacin? that are designed for,
essentially, infant indigestion. The name is very similar to that antacid
that comes in the large turquoise bottles, and it's found in the same section
in the pharmacy. They cost a fortune, and you'd happily pay 10 times as much
when you see how well they work! We used to give Jonathan a couple drops just
BEFORE he ate, and it helped him keep his bottle down, and be more comfy
afterwards. CVS sells their own brand, but they taste more acidic.
Good luck!!
|
| 556.26 | Mylanta | BIGQ::ACKERMAN | | Mon Jul 29 1996 12:56 | 6 |
| The drops mentioned in the last note are called Mylicon put out by
Mylanta. They are pink drops that taste like sugar and they contain
simethicone which breaks up the gas bubbles into smaller bubbles which
do not hurt. They do work wonders. If constipation is a problem ask
your dr about malt supex, cost a REAL fortune but it is a natural
molasses-like fiber which works wonders.
|
| 556.27 | Massage | CASDOC::CHARPENTIER | | Mon Jul 29 1996 13:17 | 8 |
|
Consider talking with a massage therapist
about methods to use on your baby. I know of
at least one massage therapist who teaches
mother-infant classes.
Dolores
|
| 556.28 | | DPE1::ARMSTRONG | | Mon Jul 29 1996 13:18 | 17 |
| We used simethicone in some form (I forget) and it worked
wonders for our Katie. SERIOUS milk (and everything else)
alergies and Colic. Burping her was impossible. Simethicone
breaks down the large bubbles into tiny ones that easily rise
to the surface and allowed her to burp.
We also found that putting her (in her basinet) on top of the
dryer worked wonders for helping her sleep. She would generally
start crying at supper time and reach a peak of screaming at about
2AM, whereupon she would be so exhausted she would actually
sleep for a few hours. This was until she was almost a year old.
We were quite thankful that we had two other kids already and knew
that ALL kids weren't like this...and that we were older and a lot
more patient than we had been when in our 20's. I could not imagine
what this would do to a young couple with a first child.
bob
|
| 556.29 | | CSC32::M_EVANS | watch this space | Tue Jul 30 1996 13:39 | 9 |
| I think I posted a survival guide for me for colicky babies at one time.
Along with everything else, get an understanding relative or friend,
preferably someone who has been through colic before to watch the
little one while you get a BREAK!
My oldest had awful colic for the first 6 weeks of her life. Having
someone take her for a walk was an absolute life and sanity saver.
meg
|