Desperate / Reflux?

jroby9

Hi guys! I don't really follow on here much with the arrival of the second baby 5 months ago. I'm sorry if a similar question has been posted a million times but I am desperate for some opinions before I call the ped in the morning. My 5 month old has never really been a great sleeper. He's certainly a happy baby, but napping and sleeping has always been a problem. I chalked it up to being a baby and figured he would grow out of it. The past 3 weeks have been an absolute terror though. He is waking on average every 2 hours screaming and is very hard to settle. When I pick him up he arches his back to the point where it seems like he is going to jump out of my arms. It doesn't matter if it's the crib or rock and play same thing happens every night. I can tell he is in major pain. During the day he is pretty good. Only naps about 45 minutes. Sometimes I will hear him make a weird gurgling sound and his eyes will be very red and watery. He coughs a lot and spits up every single time he lays on his stomach. I did try solids about 2.5 weeks ago at the urging of the ped and it made it all so much worse. We tried oatmeal cereal, then prunes because the oatmeal constipated him. Haven't done any other foods in a week. I feel like he is suffering from silent reflux, but I second guess myself since the symptoms have only been this bad for a few weeks. I'm at my wits end. We have a 3 year old and jobs, and as you all know being up all night is so hard. Even harder when my baby is in pain and I can't help him! Sorry for the novel! Any advice/suggestions/thoughts?

HoosOnFirst

Hi there, if you are calling the doc in the morning, I'd say wait for his/her professional opinion instead of ours!

Our LO has reflux, and some of what you describe sounds very familiar, although ours started at month 2 or so.

I hope the doc can give some expertise! We tried both Ratinidine and Omerprazole to great success. Good luck! I know tomorrow just feel like it can't come soon enough when your baby is in pain! I called our doc on a Sunday when she was exhibiting symptoms because it freaked me out and was so upsetting.

kezdk

Agreed...work with the ped- my LO had issues and we worked through it over time trying different things. We eventually got a reflux med prescription in conjunction with prune juice. We used to use the probiotic drops but don't seem to need them anymore. We just started oatmeal and it is improving things further. I think it is different for every baby so it is all trial and error...you just have to be sure to give each solution a fair trial for it to work...or not. Good luck...the arching back is heart breaking

ashleymc09

Yeah it sounds exactly like what we've gone through with ours since we brought her home from the hospital - she has reflux, but her medicine, ranitidine, helps tremendously. We're also going to be trying a probiotic next paycheck to see if that will also help. Good luck! If it's that, then the meds should help!

jroby9

Thank you! Yes I'm definitely calling the doctor in the morning. We can't do another night of this. I just need moral support so I can quit second guessing myself! The fact that he's exhibiting these symptoms at an older age makes me unsure I guess.

KaLikeAWind

Hey there. Hope you get some info from your ped, but I wanted to chime in and say that my guy also does the things you are describing, but I am pretty sure he does not have reflux. He arches his back when he cries, but it stops as soon as he stops crying. Which he stops crying quickly enough once I get to whatever it is he wants (cuddles, food, sleep). He also coughs when lying down sometimes, but his mouth is so full of drool right now even when sitting that I'm not surprised at all that sometimes it catches in his throat and he coughs. And he also spits up pretty much every time he's on his stomach, but... There is pressure on his stomach. I would probably also spit up some if my tummy were super full and then I had the entire weight of my body on it.

Maybe your baby does have reflux, I don't know. But I know mine doesn't, and he does all of that right now. In my case, it just happens to be physical development (the increase in drool), plus we're just leaving a Leap (the total freak out arching back crying), and me having him on a very close together feeding schedule and trying to do tummy time while he has a really full tummy.
Just wanted to say that to give you the flip of the coin, a different perspective.

I hope you can figure out what's happening soon, that your ped can give you answers.

jroby9

Thank you for your comment. Everything you say is also why I second guess it! Babies are so puzzling. I would think with my second I would have this all down, but it's always a new experience. My intuition tells me he's in some kind of pain. Could be teething! Hopefully the ped can help and give some guidance.

KaLikeAWind

Mama's intuition is nothing to write off. You know him best. I hope you guys have a good night until you can talk to your ped, and that it works out soon! Hugs!

jessieR358

Just to echo what @mellymar has said. My baby does all of that too and no reflux. Mine spits up constantly but is gaining weight and fine.
Could this be a late sleep regression? I'm currently up with mine bc he won't sleep and is arching his back screaming because he's mad and doesn't want me to rock him. He wants to play! 5 months does seem odd to start reflux symptoms.

HoosOnFirst

I'll just add that per our doc the reflux should start to subside in the next 1-3 months, so yes, I agree it might be less likely to be reflux at this late of a stage. I hope your doc can help figure this one out with you!

We are on probiotics Omeprazole and Alimentum formula and will start weaning off most of this at 6 months.

Sammy K

Keep us posted. We're on the same routine as @hoodoll82 with good results but ours started in the first month. We're actually going to start weaning off the meds at 5 months. Some of what you posted sounds like what DS went through at the 4 mo sleep regression (screaming, arching, up every 2 hours after being a good sleeper). Some sounds like reflux.

But I agree, if you feel like something is wrong, trust your gut. I hope you get it figured out!

ETA We're EBF, not on formula.

virginiaunicorn11

Update?

jroby9

Went to the ped this morning and she agreed (or pacified me) that it could be reflux or MSPI. I don't do much dairy anyway, I stick to a mostly whole30 diet, but I'm going to cut all dairy and eggs starting tomorrow. She gave me some samples of nutramigen for the 18ozs of formula he gets a week. She also prescribed ranitidine. He got a dose this morning and slept for 2 hours at daycare and a dose tonight. For the first time ever I put him in the crib in a light sleep and he rolled around and put himself right to sleep. No screaming, writhing around or fussiness at all. And he's been down for 1.5 hours already! That is a huge improvement for us! I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much but I can already see a huge improvement in my little guy! Thanks everyone for the advice and support.

KaLikeAWind

Glad to hear you have some answers and things seem to be looking up. Hang out and join into the other threads when you can

mlindzz

@jroby9 we noticed a difference once prescribed medication for reflux the day following as well. He use to only nap when held (needing to be on an incline), and needed to be sat up and burped for 20 mins after each feeding. Now he's much more independent and doesn't wake up with tummy aches throughout the night.

There is lots of great advice above & nice work with trust your instincts and advocating for yourself and your babe! Hope things continue to improve for you both.

jroby9

I feel like I'm pulling at strings here but I'm wondering about a food sensitivity now. In August I cut all dairy, but started heavy on eggs. That was about the time he started pooping only once a week and I noticed eczema on his legs. Unfortunately (or maybe very fortunately) he seems to only poop at daycare so I can't always inspect it. I have seen green and sometimes mucous in his poop, but then other times it would be the seedy yellow of a breastfed baby. Most likely by the time I figure out whatever it is he will have grown out of it