[-Anna-]

Our feedings are getting progressively worse and we have had the worst 24 hours! Every bottle has become this huge battle to get though. I thought I would list some of what is going on and maybe someone can help me know what to do. I had always thought that we had a bad gas issue but now I am thinking that it might be more of a silent reflux.

-Sucks bottle a little while them screams out and cries.
-Throws hands in air and pushes back (arches back) while screaming
-Tummy grumbles like she has gas bubbles in them while feeding
-Is impossible to burp
-Some spitting up, but nothing that I would think wasn't normal.
-Sometimes gags while eating
-Gas drops seem to help some

We have been having this problems mostly at night, but they have been every bottle for the past 24 hours. She will take her bottle completely normal sometimes with no issues, sometimes we have issues with the whole 4 oz., and sometimes it's just half the bottle.

Any ideas or suggestions as to what to do? We have changed bottles to one that she sucks better, but they do not seem to have helped with the issues. We are going to try a different formula today. DH is picking it up on his way home.

[kdmommie]

Hey Anna, I was lurking and saw this. You may want to email Misti and get her opinion. Carter had bad reflux but I don't know what his symptoms were. The crying and arching sounds like it to me.

[TNTGarner]

Is it possible it is still a bottle issue? DD1 had severe reflux but did the arching and gas business after a feed and not normally during the actual bottle. IMO, it sounds like a formula/bottle issue.

[HonestMamma]

DD had horrible reflux. How does she nap/sleep? No matter what, DD could not lay down for naps at all. She had to remain upright. Lol even now still being pregnant it's the laying down that gets my reflux every time.

Other than that, she may have an allergy to what you are feeding her. I would say to change formulas first before anything else. I don't have any experience in formula, so I don't know what is in them. But, if she is crying more when she is actually eating the food I would guess it's more a reaction to that than reflux.

[SmilesAreContagious]

Carson had problems with formula as well. His peditrician recommends similac sensitive. Its lactose free and expands in their tummy to help prevent spitting up. Carson acted the same why you are discribing when we had him on progestimil and enfamil then it all went away when we switched to similac sensitive. I hope you can find the answer. Have you called her doctor?

[sunnyday3]

We had the spitting up (although not too bad) and the bubbly sound in the throat/belly shortly after eating. Valentina would cry a lot after we laid her down and would wake up frequently, crying. I ended up taking her in to the pediatrician and she was diagnosed with reflux. She is now on a low dose to help with the acid in her tummy. It seems to be helping.

I'd check with your pediatrician - it seems like you've tried different things. Or maybe just call and see what they say.

[-Anna-]

I could not take her crying anymore, so I went straight into the pedi. My pedi was not there, so I saw his partner. Luckily, she was eating (or attempting to eat) when she walked into the room, so she was able to see exactly what has been going in.

She does not think it's a formula issue since she is not having digestion issues and her poop is normal. She said that she is pretty much 100% sure that it's silent reflux and her eating issues is with the formula going down and staying down.

So here is our game plan. She wants us to thicken her formula with rice cereal for 2 days and see if that helps keep it down. If that does not work she gave us a script for Xantac. After trying that, if it does not work, she said we will talk changing formula but she believes the first two options will help.

I'm so glad to have some answers from someone else who has actually seen how she is eating. It's so hard to describe. I really hope that this helps. I can't take her being so uncomfortable any more.

Originally Posted by SmilesAreContagious

Carson had problems with formula as well. His peditrician recommends similac sensitive. Its lactose free and expands in their tummy to help prevent spitting up. Carson acted the same why you are discribing when we had him on progestimil and enfamil then it all went away when we switched to similac sensitive. I hope you can find the answer. Have you called her doctor?

Thanks girl! If things are not better by next week with the thickening formula and meds then I will look into the Similac Sensitive.

[HonestMamma]

Is your pedi sure that's the smartest thing to do? DD was with a pediatric GI specialist for over a year with her reflux. We were advised that when reflux starts this early, many times it's due to an immature digestive system. Giving a newborn something that is harder to digest when they already have an immature digestive system can do more harm then good.

Do you have a pediatric GI specialist in the area you can get a second opinion from?

[TNTGarner]

That is what we were told as well ^^ I would also suggest a pediatric GI. They are treating Jenna for silent reflux now and the consult with the GI said they do not suggest cereal anymore at all but to go straight to meds if the other avenues are not working bc there are very few side effects of xantac. We are now on prevacid and also used prevacid with DD1.

[-Anna-]

Originally Posted by HonestMamma

Is your pedi sure that's the smartest thing to do? DD was with a pediatric GI specialist for over a year with her reflux. We were advised that when reflux starts this early, many times it's due to an immature digestive system. Giving a newborn something that is harder to digest when they already have an immature digestive system can do more harm then good.

Do you have a pediatric GI specialist in the area you can get a second opinion from?

We live in a pretty small town, so I doubt that there is a pediatric GI specialist, but I have never looked. I am not familiar at all with the pedi that I saw today, I have never seen her but everything that I have read suggested adding a little bit of cereal. I don't think that it will try what she suggested and follow up with my pedi. If I see that she is having a really hard time with the cereal, we will discontinue it and move on to something else.

If you could watch her eat, the formula is not even making it down to be digested before it comes back up. I think that is why she thinks making it heavier will help keep it down.

[TNTGarner]

We are driving almost 2 hours to see specialists They are out there in the major towns... your doctors office or insurance website should have a list that will accept the insurance and all that. If she really is having that much trouble with feeds they would be the ones to help! Reflux sucks. Hang in there

[-Anna-]

Originally Posted by TNTGarner

We are driving almost 2 hours to see specialists They are out there in the major towns... your doctors office or insurance website should have a list that will accept the insurance and all that. If she really is having that much trouble with feeds they would be the ones to help! Reflux sucks. Hang in there

Thanks! I will look into and if we are still having problems Monday then I will see about making an appointment.

Does Jenna have issues when not eating? Chloe is perfectly fine when not eating. She also doesn't mind being layed down flat. We are literally only having issues getting the formula down. :/ That's why I thought it was gas this whole time.

[HonestMamma]

Adding cereal is advice that used to be given, and many people still go by the old school advice when it comes to child rearing. But, research suggests that introducing cereal to a newborn who has an immature digestive system does not help. There is also the added issue of aspiration because of thickening of the formula.

Part of DD's reflux was that my breastmilk curdled in her stomach and she was spitting up chunks. She gagged and choked many times, and one time turned blue. It was extremely scary to watch a newborn turn blue.

I hope that by thickening her formula this doesn't happen to you. Hopefully, her issues can be resolved quickly.

[TNTGarner]

Jenna quits breathing a lot. That is why they are treating her for reflux and getting her into the GI (the episodes are sleep and food triggered and the GI said the meds wont hurt things and can only help at this point). Julianna had problems alllll day long and not usually at the feed itself. It was after the feed and all day.

reflux meds neutralize the acid... not necessarily fix any spit up issues. They make it so that it doesnt burn anymore and the baby then is less fussy. If she is gaining weight fine, the spit up is fine. It typically looks like much more than it is. There is not much you can do for the actual puking :-( They do outgrow it usually, thankfully.

[NutMeg76]

Amazon.com: MAM 3 Pack Anti-Colic Bottle Boy, 8 Ounce, Colors May Vary: Baby

I saw these when I was researching bottles to se what we might get for little man. They might work.

[-Anna-]

Originally Posted by NutMeg76

Amazon.com: MAM 3 Pack Anti-Colic Bottle Boy, 8 Ounce, Colors May Vary: Baby

I saw these when I was researching bottles to se what we might get for little man. They might work.

I will have to look into those. I like MAM products. Thanks

[BeccaBee]

Just wanted to add my two cents since my son had reflux and spit up every single meal he had until he was 7 months. I want to reiterate what Taylor said, that the meds won't prevent the spit up, which is just an immature digestive system. It just makes it less painful and damaging to her, so don't expect it to go away and don't worry about it if the new formula/medication makes her more comfortable. Max was a "happy spitter" once we started the pepcid - within 3 days he was a different baby. My ped said with him (4 1/2 years ago) to never ever add rice cereal to an infants bottle, so i would definitely get a second opinion on that.

Also, while it didn't prevent the spit up, we never let Max sleep on his back until he was a little older (and we don't with Natalie either). Max slept in his car seat and Natalie sleeps in her rocker chair all night -I think it's just easier on their bodies and digestive system to not be completely flat.

[sunnyday3]

I failed to mention that Zantac was the medication the doctor prescribed, which appears to be the same as the one your ped prescribed, Anna. As others have mentioned, she still spits up a bit, but it really seems to have calmed her tummy and helps when it's time to sleep.

[-Anna-]

Actually, Chloe hardly spits up at all, that's why they diagnosed her with silent reflux instead of just reflux.

The way the Dr put it, she drinks her formula and it goes down but does not stay down. Hers comes right back up and then goes back down again. She doesn't spit it up and the pedi said she didn't think it was a digestion issue because she could tell from watching her eat that it was an immediate problem with how she was eating.

We have had 2.5 bottles with a little cereal in them tonight and it has gone great. For the first time in a long time, she is not having trouble. I hope it continues to go this way. Maybe she just needed a little extra weight to her formula to help it go down and stay down.

[acupofjoe]

Tyler has a lot of those symtoms to but she pukes...a LOT and often and she doesnt arch her back. I am going to bring this up to my pedi to. She is so hard to burp, she almost never does. Ive never heard of silent reflux before but ill deff be asking my dr because she seems so miserable especially these last few days and last night was a nightmare..she was up every half hour or so screaming and nothing would calm her down until she finally just passed out and then was up doing it again 30-45 minutes later.