Beyond Frustrated with night time
christinasullie37
member
My LO is 10 days old and since we have been home, she screams relentlessly at night. She if formula fed and on occasion gets a bottle of breast milk when I can produce enough to pump a bottle. During this time she arches her back, goes stiff, or tightens up into a ball. I am so beyond frustrated. I had to have a c-section and have yet to be able to get the rest I need.
I have been thinking about changing formula but and waiting to ask the doctor on Monday. Due to her weight loss, she is on 2-3 oz every 2-3 hours and curently on Enfamil Newborn. Burping is difficult and my LO has the hiccups all the time. I think she is suffering from acid reflux or even worse colic. ( I hope not colic!!!) In the mean time, all I want to do is cry because I don't know what to do for her. She appears to be in so much pain adn there is nothing I can do.
Anyone else experiencing similar issues?
Re: Beyond Frustrated with night time
*Lurking* I had the same issues with my DD. I would not change the formula just yet (just my opinion). It's hard on their little stomachs. I would put a call into the doctor and get her looked at ASAP. He/She will advise about switching the formula. All the things that you're saying is pointing to Acid Reflux (arching of the back, stiff, tightens up). My DD had the same thing and was put on Zantac for the first 8 months. She was a completely different baby afterwards.
Keep your head up. Things will get easier. Try not to get frustrated. Your baby can sense it. Good luck!
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I could have written this post except my little guy is 8 weeks old now. In our case, our baby did end up having reflux and was put on baby zantac. He was a different baby after the meds kicked in. Just be aware that most baby's don't like the taste of zantac even if they flavor it with grape flavoring, but its better they cry for a couple of minutes and not have reflux pain for hours. He still is a little fussy at times and spits up, but he's not in pain like he was initially.
Some of the things that have helped along with the meds are keeping him upright as much as possible. He sleeps in a swing or his car seat, and spends a lot of time in them because it helps him feel comfortable. Something I wish I had known about earlier was the fisher-price rock and play. I just got one from a friend, but this is a bassinet like sleep contraption that keeps the baby upright and allows you to rock them when they need it. I wish I had known about this and had never heard of it prior to my friend suggesting it. It travels a lot easier than our swing, which we have literally taken with us to places because it was the only thing our baby would sleep in and we were desperate. I also tried five different bottle types and found that the regular neck dr. browns were the best for our baby. This is very specific to the baby so these might not work for you, but they worked for us. My doctor also suggested Tomee Tippee, but our baby would invert the nipple while sucking and get frustrated so they didn't work for us. Other bottles I tried were Avent, Born Free and medela. We use baby smithecone for his gas and he seems to like the taste of this med. We also break up the feeding and burp him after every ounce or two ounces. I rock him a lot when he cries and is uncomfortable, and this seems to help. Again, I've found that movement really helps reflux/colic babies in our experience. Literally, when I have tried everything and know he is ok and is just being cranky, I turn on the vacuum cleaner...sometimes I don't even vacuum just run it for the sound because it calms him down. I thought this was crazy and an old wives tale, but the loud "white noise" really makes a difference for our baby.
Good luck and hope things get better for you soon. I was seriously going crazy the first couple weeks after having my baby. The constant crying and sleep deprivation started to really take a toll on our bonding and I was at wits end. I had a c-section too and really needed rest, but wasn't able to get it. At the same time, I could tell my baby was in pain from the reflux and felt horrible that I could not help him feel better. I'm so sorry you are going through this. Hope you and your little one get rest soon.
Happiest Baby made a huge difference for DD! WE use gripe water occasionally too if she's really fussy and looks uncomfortable.
Back arching and frequent hiccups sounds like reflux to me too. Our LO has reflux, but it took about a week after we started Zantac to notice improvement, since his esophagus was burned from the stomach acid and needed time to heal, so if you start this, don't get alarmed if it's not an immediate turnaround.
Keeping him upright 20 to 30 minutes after feeding, sleeping in an inclined position (gotta love the rock and play bassinet) and small frequent meals help too.
Good luck. I know how heartbreaking it is to see/hear your little baby screaming in pain and not be able to do a darn thing about it.
lurking - but try putting some gas drops in your LO's bottles until you can get to the doctor to get a DX on reflux.
Chin up Mama, hang in there and try to get your DH/mother/MIL, etc. to help so you can get some sleep - even if its during the day.
DS had reflux (is on alimentum and zantac). He is also very colicy.
However, I can say...things are getting better. For the 1st 6-8 weeks, ds was either sleeping or screaming. He was never awake and content. For the past 2-4 weeks, he has become a new baby.
He still has his fussy moments, but I am finally able to comfort him. We have more good times than bad.
Hang in there...it is tough....really tough, but it does get better.
~after 34 cycles we finally got our 2nd little bundle of joy~
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