Julian is sick and I need help!!! Please

I just have a few questions! First off I took Julian to the PED yesterday because he was up all night screaming at the top of his lungs, arching his back and just plain would not eat!  She said it could be a number of things because he has GERD and a double ear infection which is being treated with Amoxicillin. Also he is being treated for his GERD with Carafate and Prevacid!

Wednesday night he screamed and screamed and screamed! He wouldnt eat so I gave him pedilite per PED.  The next morning within a 2 hour peroid he had diarreah (diarrhea) 3x and in the evening once or twice on Thursday, and last night he began eating a little formula... Last night he slept a bit but still awoke in horrible pain! DH and I finally got him back to sleep. When he awoke we gave him a bottle and he went back to sleep. He was fine until about 5 and since then he has had diarreah (diarrhea) 3x and keeps arching his back! He hasot eaten any formula since 3 and I have been hiving him the Pedilite! His formula costs a ton because he is on Similac Alimentum....

I guess my question is I dont know if I should call the exchange or what this could be! He is in obvious pain and not feeling very well.. It seems since he has been diagnosed with the GERD he has not been the same baby... I WANT MY BABY BACK!!!!!

[pinkbelle]

I have been keeping up with your posts and I feel bad for your son.. I think you need a new ped.. You should not change your sons formula so often ... you are suppose to give it 2 to 3 weeks to see if there is any change... my daughter has reflux and she does all of what you are saying...  We use a wedge under her crib at night to raise her up..  I personally think he is on too many meds... maybe they are interacting with each other..   There are things to can do ( non medicine wise ) for reflux ... if you want any of them pm me...  

Give him a little tylenol for the pain ( it wont hurt him) and did you ever think he could be teething? My baby girl is teething and she has gotten diarreah (diarrhea) and she has started eating less...  

[Linzola1]

Thanks pink I sent you a PM!

[ashiepooh]

Hey Linzola- How old is your son now?  Have you tried giving him a bath, or holding him in the shower with you and let the water run down his back/stomach?  Sometimes, that helps.  With a bath, and if you have it...The Lavendar night time soothing baby wash, pour like a cap full into the water, it'll make a little bubbles, but that is suppose to help soothe your baby, make them calm.  It worked wonders with my kids.  And let the warm water just work it's magic on the little guy!  Lightly ouring water over him too.  

I agree with Pinkbelle about the formula being changed too much, and that you should give him a little tylenol.  I do think you may need to look into a new PED, cause there should be more he could have offered you.

I know sometimes my kids, when they were under 3 months.  They did all this screaming, and arching the back when they had too many bubbles in their tummy.  Especially from crying!  So I would walk them up and down the hall, just all over the house and burp them.  Just a constant motion.  It always helped make them fall asleep too.  

Now I don't know if the medicines would interact with each other.  I'm sure if they would a doctor would prescribe them together.  However, every babies reaction is different.  

I am sorry your little guy isn't himself, it's tough!  Just hang in there, and I hope some of this helps!

[Linzola1]

The formula issue is like this just so everyone knows!!!

When Julian was born I started him on Enfamil Lipil with Iron, At aprox 2 weeks I took him to the ER because he was weezing! They did a RSV test and a chest xray. The PED in the ER said I think your PED needs to send your son to a GI doctor, but I needed a referal.... My Ped at teh time swore he was fine and only had colic and changed him to Enfamil Prosobee! He was on prosobe until he was getting frequent tummy aches at 2about 3 months then he switched Julian to Enfamil Gentlease! He was weezing agian on the formula and coughing and the ped at the time refused top see him and said he was fine! I got a new ped needless to say!

The new ped ran tests and diagnosed him with SEVERE GERD and said he needed Similac Alimentum for the GERD as well as the Milk Protien allergy! The damage was so bad in his esophagus she put him on Carafate to soothe his pain and on Zantac! The Zantac made him sicker so they switched him to Prevacid!!!!

[pinkbelle]

why would they switch him from soy to milk based?  thats dumb.. he was on soy for a reason...  the gentlease probably made him worse if he has a milk allergy. Alot of babies get tummy aches... it was probably gas like ashiepooh said... babies having bubbles in their bellies can come off as other things when really it was just gas... :o) And you know with him having gerd you have to burp him after every once or so ( i didn't know if you know that )   I was also told no more than 4 ounces of formula at a time ( too much formula aggrivated the reflux) and to only feed her ever 3 1/2 to 4 hours and that comes out to 6 feedings a day...

[amy0013]

I think he's still in pain from his GERD (b/c of the arching, screaming, and refusal to feed).  I know you are concerned and trying to find answers...but untreated reflux can lead to feeding aversions and major damage of the esphagus from the acid so definitely be proactive and keep fighting for Julian until he is happy!!!

My thoughts are...is his Prevacid dose high enough?  What form of the medicine is he on?  If it's compounded (a liquid suspension) it is probably ineffective b/c it's very very very hard to make it correctly (with the exact amound of sodium bicarbonate, etc...)  I would recommend the solutabs given 30-60 minutes before a meal.  The only thing I know about the carafate is that it helps coat the esphagus to heal damage and protect from further damage...so that's good.

I wonder if the diarrhea could be from the antibiotic.  Certain antibiotics did the same thing to my daughter.  

I would get a 2nd opinion from another ped.  Although I liked our current ped, it took my daughter to another doctor to get some ANSWERS!  It made all the difference!

Hang in there sweetie...keep fighting and things will get better!  :)

[motherofan18month]

my son was sick a few months ago, he had ear infections, sinus infection, rsv, and also something called herpangina ( sores all over his mouth and throat-a form of strep throat but worse) he wouldn't eat or drink for 2 days so his ped prescribed something called "magic mouth wash" this helped coat his throat and the lining of his stomach, it also had a slight touch of lidocaine in it to numb his esophagus so he could swallow, when it coated his stomach he was even able to keep some food and liquids down! my son had 2 hernia surgeries at 1 1/2 & 2 months and has had stomach problems ever since, with allergies, and asthma on top of that, so i sorta know how you feel. as amy said you can take him to another ped. without changing his ped.
just hang in there.....we're praying everything gets better soon!!!

[Linzola1]

Thank you guys so much I had a rough night agian last night!

Motherofan18month: Is there a Medical name for the magic mouthwash?

I wouldnt even know what to say if I were to try a second ped but I know my insurance will only cover the one! MEDICAID so I dont know how that works!!!!