Colic or reflux???

[Me2mommy2b]

This guessing game with DS is just killing me.  I remember going through the same with DD (who's 18 months and has been off Prevacid for 2 months now) but with time it was apparent that she had reflux.  I have a 1 month old who's been getting progressively worse in terms of sleeping.  He strains constantly (I can't recall DD doing that) and he has bowel movements 1x or 2x a day.  He's exclusively breastfed.  I hear him swallow and he arches his back when he's screaming.  He doesn't spit up as much as DD did but he does swallow once in a while.  The straining, the kicking with his little legs (as if having stomach aches) and the passing gas is what's throwing me off.  Do I try the meds for reflux still??  Do I wait to see if it's colic and if it passes??  I give him Mylicon drops which don't seem to be doing much.  I'm exhausted from sleepless nights and the constant nursing :((

[peasantgirl]

It's normal for breastfed babies to seem constipated when they go and strain and grunt, etc. As long as his bowel movements are normal breastfed baby BM's, then it's nothing to worry about. I nursed both my girls and you would think they were in awful pain, etc., when having a bowel movement and then it was totally normal.

It does sound like he has reflux. I would give the dairy-free, soy-free diet at least a month. It takes at least 3 weeks for dairy to completely exit the system, so you might not notice a positive difference for a while.

Also, it sounds like he needs medication at this point. I would think that with medication and the dairy-free, soy-free diet, he'll be doing a lot better in a few weeks.

April

[momoftwo378]

I know your little one is only a month.   But I am telling you to look up Colic Calm on the internet and check it out.   Like I said below in my first entry...I sent the info to my ped on this stuff and had in check it out before I gave it to my son.   You said the one month old is getting worse in terms of sleeping, this stuff will help that.  My son now takes 2 hours naps and goes to bed at 9:00 gets up at between 3-5 and eats now only 2 oz goes back down right away and gets up at 7:00.  
You also said he strains during bowel movements, you can  hear him swallow and he arhces his back... my son did the same and it stopped once he was on the colic calm.  
You also said that your son is straining, that he is kicking with his little legs (as if having stomach aches) and the passing gas, my son also did that stuff and he no longer does.   He gets mylanta twice a day and the colic calm stuff.   I stopped giving him everything else.   He is such a happy baby now.   I am able to get some sleep at night which makes me happy and not tired.   I am telling you that you should try this stuff.   It has been a life saver for me and my baby.

[ChitChatNine]

I've heard good things about Axid.  My son is older now and it wasn't around "back then" ...looking back Zantac wasn't even approved for use in infants and was scary territory let alone Prevacid .. they have come so far but I know what you mean on the $$  . Prevacid kills me in the dollar dept .. cannot wait for it to go generic one day!

This is a great community .. glad you posted!

Cheryl

[oliviasmom2118]

My daughter had acid reflux(she is now 19 months old). I read your post and I felt like you were writing about me and my experience with it. I noticed that my daughter would be worst at night when I laid her down to sleep.  I tried all the medicines that I saw listed above with not much relieve. The medicine that I tried (prescription only) is AXID. Took care of the problem completely.Your doctor may have samples. My insurance did not cover it as well like other prescription medicines. It cost me $40 or so for a 1 month supply which I was not thrilled about but by the time she was 1 yr old she didn't need it anymore. Supposely AXID has no side effects. Hope this helps. It was worth it for a shortg term expense...

[momoftwo378]

I know there is other gripe water's out there.   Babies r us carries one of them called Little Tummy or something like that.  Colic Calm is one of those gripe waters but containers a lot more ingreds than the one that Babies R us carries.   I actually went checked it out to compare.   The Colic Calm also is suppose to help for not just acid reflux but for gas, hiccups, and spit up.   Like I said I sent the web link for Colic Calm to our ped. and had him check it out before I gave it to my son.   He said it was good to go.    

[ChitChatNine]

You know the gripe water is another thought.  She isn't an infant so I'm not as concerned about it .. but will read labels and run it by her Pedi.  THANKS!  And here, at this reflux stuff for 17yrs .. you'd think I would know it all ?  Nope.

C~

[momoftwo378]

The only place that I have ever seen this stuff is on line.   I know there is other gripe waters out there but they don't contain the same ingredients as Colic Calm.    Please keep me posted.

Thanks

[ChitChatNine]

THANKS!

[Me2mommy2b]

I HAVE seen this product but cannot recall where exactly.  It could've been Rite Aid but I could be wrong.  Thank you.  I"ll definitely give it a try and I'll keep you posted.

[momoftwo378]

It's all natural ingredients, like peppermint and ginger.  It doesn't contain milk or lactose or caseine.   I believe everything in it helps.   There is several ingredients so it would be hard to tell which one exactly is helping.   It's not a perscription you have to order by mail.   If you go under google and type Colic Calm (that is what the stuff is called) you will find the web site to order it.   It will tell you all the ingredients and what they are good for.   I am telling you it has been a life saver for us.  

[Me2mommy2b]

Is it a prescription??  Or anyone can order it in the mail?

[ChitChatNine]

Do you happen to know the ingredients?  I know you cannot post the website but does it contain milk or lactose or caseine as key words?  Just curious .... actually maybe I'll try that for my 10 yr old as she awaits her allergy appt later this month but milk is a no no for her .....

What is in it that helps?  I have 4 kids and never tried it but willing at some point to try anything it seems LOL~

GREAT info .. thanks!

Cheryl

[momoftwo378]

I know what you are going through.  My son will be 4 months old come the 26th of this month.   The first month and 1/2 he struggled eating, would throw his legs up, arched his back, hard time getting him to burp.   All he would do was scream.   This painful scream.  My husband and I couldn't comfort him in anyway.   It would take him an hour to eat only 2 oz, 1 hour to get him to burp and fall back a sleep.  Than he would only sleep for maybe an hour if that.   We at first thought it was the nipple on the bottle that he didn't like.  So we tired several kinds.  That didn't work.  Than we thought it was the formula.   We went from Enfam. to Good Start.  We needed up having to take him to the hospital.   He wouldn't eat for over a 24 hour period and all he did was scream.  He had reaction to the Good Start.   So we put him back on Enfam.   We were told to try Soy formula.   That didn't seem to help either.   So we went back to see the dr.   They said that it was signs of reflux/digestive problems.   They gave us a scrib for zyntax (sp) and told us that we could give him some mylanta.   They said since it wasn't the formula not to switch him back.   We tried the medicine for awhile.   It wasn't making much of a difference.   I did some research on-line and found a web site that people were recommending this homopathic stuff called Colic Calm.   I had my ped dr investigate the web page and medicine before I started giving it to my son.   He said it checked out and it was safe to give it to him.    At first I wasn't sure if it was working or that the zyntax was working.   We was starting to eat more at once and overall each feeding.   He wasn't spitting up as much or throwing his legs up or arching his back.   Plus he was sleeping better.    Well we found out the hard way that it wasn't the zyntax it was the colic calm that was really working.   We had ran out of it and it took a week to get it in the mail.   During that week he reverted back to the same signs that he showed from the beginning.   The stuff came in mail and within two days of giving it to him he starting showing improvement.   He now drinks 5-6 oz each bottle with stoping 1/2 way through to burp.   He takes his last bottle between 7-8:30 and than only gets up once in the middle of the night, somewhere around 2-4.   I feed him only 3 oz right now to try to get him off that night feeding.   Than he waked up betweeen 6:30 and 7:00 for my husband.   He is a happier baby now.  He smiles, laughs and coo's.   It's nice to see a happy baby.  I would recommend Colic Calm to anyone.   Let me know if you decide to try it and if it works.   Also if you have any questions for me.

[Me2mommy2b]

I have eliminated milk and soy from my diet in case he has MSPI.  I know it takes a while for it to get out of my system (about a week) so we're waiting to see if that will help our situation.  If he doesn't improve in a few days, I'll take him to the dr and see if he needs to be medicated.  Most likely I'll get the "all baby go through that" b/s.  His spit up smells like sour milk.  The back arching is the only red flag for me in this situation.  

[ChitChatNine]

At one month old you better definitely ck in with your Pedi before anything stronger than Mylicon .... sorry... I know .. I know .. #2 we are all a bit more lenient, but 1mo old is tiny still and dosing, etc. very important and even more imp is to rule out anything anatomically wrong (probably not) but you know what I mean.

Does your baby have a vinegar smell to his spit? That distinct reflux smell?

When you say strain .. you mean from gas and constipation?  My son had constipation so bad it was awful .... being backed up makes reflux worse .. so now you have to figure out what came first ... could it be something in your breastmilk he is intolrant to causing the poop problems/gas or is it the age and at that fussy time after 4 weeks .. hmmm all tough ?'s ..... but I, too, thought BF babies don't have poop problems usually.

Maybe try eliminating milk from YOUR diet and see if it helps your baby a all,

Cheryl