Update/Open Forum

[amy524]

Good morning everyone!  I posted last week about my fussy baby.  We went to the doctor on Friday and were given a prescription for Zantac.  The doctor did not think it was necessary to do any official testing (yet) for reflux because she said we would know in 3-4 days if the Zantac will work.  We are starting day 3 and I haven't seen a whole lot of change in her fussiness.  I'm not giving up hope yet though.  The doctor didn't think it could be colic because that doesn't generally start until after 3 weeks old and we will only be 3 weeks tomorrow.  (Could it still be colic?)



Does anyone have any experiences with Zantac and their babies?  I am surprised that it hasn't helped much with the spit up.  She doesn't seem as upset everytime she spits up...but she still spits up quite a bit!!  



I also bought gas drops over the weekend and have used them twice, but no miracles yet there either.  She just CANNOT be content to sit in her swing, on the floor, in her papasan...she still has to be held and bounced. (And as I said before, she still cries even then)



Anyway, thanks again everyone for your advice.  It is so nice to have a place to come for support (and sanity!)

Amy

[first time mama]

Hi Amy,

I didn't read your prior post but I assume she is having a lot of spit up?  Some ideas you have probably already heard.....

feed her upright

keep her upright for 30 minutes after she eats

don't hold her around the abdomin after feedings

don't bounce her for 30 minutes after feedings

These are just some ideas I got in my infant swallowing class in grad school.  They talked to us about GERDs with babies and that it happens b/c their esphagus isn't fully developed yet so it is really painful for them if it goes back up, which it often does b/c it isn't long enough yet. So that could be why she is really fussy b/c she is in pain.  

I hope I haven't totally misunderstood your situation, just wanted to offer some help if possible.

Congrats on your baby girl and I hope things get more relaxing for you!

[tony'sgirl]

Hi amy! I Know what you are going through.  It is a horrible feeling knowing your child is sooo uncomfortable!!! My son suffered in this same way.  We changed his formula, set him up straight and he was also on zantac.  It did help some, but did not totally stop his suffering.  You asked about colic, I do believe that he had colic.  Around 4 months old, he totally changed!  He was like a new baby.  He seem to feel great and he was the best baby in the world!!!  Dr. had informed us that colic usually subsided around 3 or 4 months and it did!!  Anyway, he remained on the zantac until his first birthday.  So, good luck and hang in there!  Your baby will probably outgrow this!!!  



P.S.  Trying letting baby sleep in infant car seat some!  This was only way my baby would sleep for awhile.  I think it has something to do with the way the seat props them up.  Good luck!

[mom@homenow]

Hi are you nursing? A friend of mine had the same thing happen with her second child, he spit up a lot and was fussy. She was nursing, and when he was about 5 months old she went to visit relatives for the weekend who served much different (blander) food than she was used to eating. Her baby stopped fussing! When she returned home she continued to eat stuff without a lot of spices for a few months until she stopped nursing, and that seemed to make a huge difference. It never had occured to her because she was initially eating the same as she had with her first child, and it didn't effect that baby. Just a thought! I nursed my son and he was fussy after I'd eat strawberries, I thought for sure he would be allergic to them but no, now he loves them. Go figure! Good luck & I hope she settles down soon! :-)

[trekchick]

Hi

When you baby spits up...is it projectile?  My son was a happy baby but had projectile vomit and the doctors looked at me like I was stupid.  I finally got a good pediatrician and she ran some test and it turned out that he had a stomach problem...unfortunatley he was too old to do anything about it...they said to just let him grow out of it.  He wound up taking only 2 bottles at day at 6 months and by 10 months was off the bottle completely...had to give him formula in a cup but that was even hard to get down.  He will be 3 next month and he is only 27 pounds...and he was an 8.5 lb baby...on the small side.  Don't know if this helps.

Linda

[AndiJ78]

If you are nursing, I agree that evaluating your diet is a good place to start. With both my boys, I switched to lactaid milk and it helped quite a bit. I also watched some of the other suspect food items like garlic, spices like cumin (found in most mexican food) cabbage, radishes, etc.



Now my youngest was a fussy boy despite changes, the colic tablets helped, but didn't eliminate the problem completely. He was a different baby, he just needed mommy time in the beginning. Once he hit 3 or 4 months, he wanted to eat and then play on the floor. He was mobile really early and laying still was not for him. I started really early with the tummy time and that was when he was happiest. The more time he spent on the floor, the more mobile he became and the happier he was.



Andi

[JDLAWSON]

You may need to evaluate what you eat like the other person states.  My girlfriend had a baby that she tried to nurse--he was upset all the time. He is now six and it turns out he is very allergic to wheat and gluton problems--that what caused him to be sick and fussy all the time after feedings.  Good Luck with your little guy.