[icarryyourheart]

How much does your LO drink?

Colton has always been a big drinker... he was on the boob constantly, around the clock, until I weaned. Now at 20 months, he often drinks two, sometimes three 7oz cups an hour. At night he wakes up demanding a drink, and will chug 2-3 cups at a time then go back to sleep (and wake up an hour later because he's peed out of his diaper.)

It is mostly water, with a splash of juice.

I think it is weird, and took him in to see the ped about a month ago. She kind of blew me off and told me to see a sleep therapist..... that maybe he's just using it for comfort. Which I get, but, he's drinking almost 3x the amount that is recommended for a kid his age, daily.

He's also stopped gaining weight, and I've tried pushing food as much as I can, to be sure he's not substituting his sippy for eating, kwim?

Maybe I'm just hugely oversensitive and overprotective (I'm pretty sure I am) but I can't get the nagging feeling that something seems off out of my head.

He has had a fever for the last 5 days, 103-105. I had him back in to the doc today but they can't pinpoint it. I wouldn't say he's drinking any more this week than he usually is, despite the fever. It is like the kid is never hydrated enough or something!

Oh, edited to add, I think his urine has a very stron, yucky "pee" odor despite it always being very diluted due to all the drinking.

Thoughts?

[icarryyourheart]

Just wanted to add, I sound like a total crazy person, given the bizarre-o health issues myself and kids have had the last year.

By posting I'm hoping some of you can tell me yep my kid drinks a sh!tload too... lol.

[Kobain's Mommy]

Wow I thought C drank a lot. No that doesn't seem normal to me. I would really get him to another Dr for a second opinion.

[icarryyourheart]

Yeah I think I'm gonna.

We've gotten so used to it that we kind of just ignore it, but recently again I've just been like... this is not normal. He goes through almost a 2 liter of juice in about a day and a half, and he's only getting a splash in his cup, most of it is water.

[edgeofelise]

Whoa. That's a lot. Eliza doesn't consume much of anything in general, but she only nurses 3x a day (no idea how many oz of BM she gets at this point) and has maybe 6-8oz of water or milk in a sippy. I'd definitely get a second opinion, but don't freak out or anything. They're all so different!

[Brookem]

I don't want to scare you but drinking a lot (polydipsia) and being very thirsty is a sign of diabetes. It has to do with carbohydrates and the way they carry and expend fluid.

It could be a number of things but I DEFINITELY think it's worth checking out with a second opinion.

The test is covered by insurance, in Oregon it's $40 without insurance. Here is a link to help you with other symptoms.

Don't panic, just have him tested

KUP!

[MrsLMB]

The pee smell probably worries me the most. Drinking that much he should have totally clear and smell free pee. We all should have clear pee if we are drinking enough. Something sounds fishy. The not gaining weight worries me about type 1 too. Has he been cranky at all?

Definitely go for a second opinion.

Claire doesn't drink enough IMO. She only has 2-3 cups of milk a day and about 2-3 sippys of water.

[PurpleStar]

Ditto the girls...def get 2nd opinion. Better safe than sorry...and it will give you peace of mind, however it turns out.

Vaughn drinks a crap load of water too...about 24+ ounces a day. But they are so active running around and stuff, i'm sure they just blow through it. And I worry about dehydration (humid tropical weather year round), so he has water available to him all day plus I also make him take water breaks from playing.

I hope it turns out OK...KUP!

[-erin-]

yeah that doesn't sound normal definitely get another opinion

[survey77777]

Wow, that's a lot of drinking. GG still nurses before, mainly just before naps and at night. Other than that he really hardly drinks much at all. I'd be taking him in and being pretty insistent about the situation. If it were me I'd keep a log of exactly how much, what, and when he drinks for a few days and take it with you as well as a list of anything else you can think of that might be a sign or symptom ie. the fever, fatigue levels and how much he's sleeping, activity levels, appetite, rashes, smells (urine, breath, sweat, bm), bowel activity and anything else that, as a mom, seems off to you. I say trust your gut with this one.

I would be worried about the significant fever for 5 days too though. However, that being said, G seems to go through long periods of fevers fairly frequently and they seem to be idiopathic too.

Didn't you end up with some good specialists at the hospital when he was ill before? That would likely be my route.

Please KUP and I hope you get some answers soon.

[sarahp]

Does his breath smell "fruity"? Has he had any other weird stuff going on? Dizziness, running into things etc?

I would also be worried about Type 1 diabetes. A friend's little girl just got diagnosed with it at 16 months old, and their first signs were when she was sick, she started throwing up, her heart rate went all whacky, she got mega lethargic, then her lips turned blue from lack of oxygen. It was all pretty sudden though.

If he's drinking that much, it doesn't mean Type 1 diabetes, but it may mean that *something* is going on. Keep us updated!

[momoftwins]

Yeah, I agree. That is a LOT for a little guy to drink! And the strong pee odor is odd too. You would think it'd be coming out just about as clear as water with as much as he's taking in.

I'd definitely get that checked out. Does he not have any other symptoms with the fever? I don't think you are being overly paranoid at all. With your autoimmune history, it definitely makes ya wonder. I worry about my kids' health with my autoimmune stuff too, if that makes you feel any better! Worrying too much is far better than not worrying at all and blowing off what could be something serious! Hopefully all is well though. KUP!

[icarryyourheart]

Yeah ok I thought it was a lot...... I'm definitely going to log it, along with his wet diapers (we sometimes change diapers 4-5 times an hour) and anything else that seems odd.

His pee is very diluted, yet still smells weird... like... salty? You can literally tell when he's peed, because you can smell it first.

I've been telling them since last spring that I thought he was having tummy aches, especially at night, but we all kinda chalked it up to the allergy. However he is now off both milk protein AND soy, and he still seems to have these bouts of abdominal pain/lethargy and then the constant excessive drinking.

The doc we saw yesterday made me kind of nervous because he was like "well I don't want to go looking for anything unusual so hopefully his fever is just a virus" ok well what does that mean?? I'm coming down with a cold though so hopefully it IS just a virus.

N he sees an allergist and his regular ped. We went through the gamut of docs with DD though so I know who to get in touch with if we think we need to see a Ped. Rheumy or something of that nature. Luckily DD is 100% fine and healthy now, knock on wood!

[survey77777]

How are both of you doing today? I hope it's something that passes quickly. Like I said earlier, G has a really tough time with fevers etc. (and it was one of my main AI symptoms too).

If you have a minute look up familial or periodic fevers. I actually don't know a lot about them but our paed suggested that it may be our issue over here and the fever conversations we've had reminded me of that. Not suggesting it's his issue, but just shows that some kids are just more prone to lingering fevers etc.

[rebeccabaltimore and more]

That is a LOT of fluid. And in untreated diabetics, urine does smell bad because there is an excess of ketones in it. If I have a bad sugar high, my pee will smell like ketones after it. I would ask his ped to check for diabetes. In adults it's done with a blood test, checking the level of hemoglobin A1C in the blood. I think it's the same test for kids. I know in adults, waking to drink is another diabetes symptom, but kids are different since they only just weaned.

[Cathy =^..^=]

Something is definitely not right. We might change Addyson once every hour, sometimes two. Hope you find the answers you are looking for. And always, always get a 2nd (or 3rd) opinion.

[lunarmagic]

No, that doesn't sound normal to me either. And if you feel like something is off then keep asking until you get answers. They shouldn't be blowing you off.

[icarryyourheart]

Thanks guys, good to know I'm not totally crazy. I am not thrilled with the ped practice. They mishandled some of my DD's stuff last year when she had Kawasaki's, but we stayed because I liked the one doc a lot. However there's just been too many slip-ups. I asked them repeatedly about a Milk Protein allergy w/Colton, as early as when he was 1 month old, and they kept telling me he didn't have "all" the symptoms. It was only the trip to the allergist after the anaphylactic reaction that we found the allergy.

So I guess I don't trust their judgment. I took him in about a month ago, to discuss the drinking and general irritability and feeling that something was "off" and like I said, they just kinda blew me off and told me to take him to a sleep therapist, that it is probably behavioral and he's waking at night, thus he's tired during the day and crabby. Ok but that still doesn't explain the 70-90 oz a day he is drinking, and the fact that he wakes up screaming for something to drink, and pees through his diaper at least 2-3 times in a 24 hour period. Sigh.

My cousin was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 4 years old, so I guess that does make me nervous. Especially since he's lost weight, and is eating like a horse, too.

I dunno. He's having another crappy day, despite sleeping well last night (minus waking up in a puddle at 4am)

I hate doctors. And my instincts are ALWAYS right. But nonetheless I still feel like a hypochondriac. I'm definitely going to push them on this one though. I just have a nagging feeling something is not right.

[-erin-]

is there another dr practice you can go to? I really think it's time for a change I know that's hard since they know you and have all your records, but it really doesn't sound like they're doing their jobs

[lunarmagic]

Yeah, I think if you don't trust their opinion then you need to switch to a different doctor. You're paying them for their professional opinion, KWIM? I really do believe that mama instincts are usually right. They need to be listening and following up. It does not sound at all reassuring that they missed things before.