Reflux Check-In (8/11)

giggler25 · August 2014

This is a new weekly check-in for mamas of babies with reflux. I thought we could start by each giving a brief intro of our LOs/how old and also....

1 - When was your LO diagnosed?

2 - How are you treating the reflux (meds, etc.). Is it working as you'd expected?

3 - Any tips for other reflux mamas?

4 - Anything else you want to share or ask others.

manna1212 · August 2014

1 - When was your LO diagnosed?
DS was diagnosed around 6 weeks.

2 - How are you treating the reflux (meds, etc.). Is it working as you'd expected?
We started out with me switching to a dairy free diet, which I am still on. We keep him elevated for 30 minutes after eating. He sleeps on an incline. He is also on Zantac, which we just increased the dosage of.

3 - Any tips for other reflux mamas?
Don't be afraid to ask for the meds. Our doctor was hesitant at first, but I knew DS needed something. We had a completely different, much happier baby with meds!

4 - Anything else you want to share or ask others.
For those on meds- do you LO's hate them? DS gets really upset each time we have to give him meds. We even tried the grape flavoring, but that didn't help.

biscuitsgirl2007 · August 2014

1 - When was your LO diagnosed?
Discussed the possibility at one month check up. Asked for medication at 7 weeks because of worsening symptoms.
2 - How are you treating the reflux (meds, etc.). Is it working as you'd expected?
Zantac. For the most part but thinking we need to increase dosage since symptoms are worsening.
3 - Any tips for other reflux mamas? The medicine is a horrible peppermint flavored liquid. He wouldn't even swallow it. The grape flavor added didn't help much but I've added the medication to an ounce of breastmilk in a bottle and he seems to take it just fine.

4 - Anything else you want to share or ask others.
Not really. Just surviving and hoping he'll grow out of it and stop his screaming fits in the evening before his medication.

mrsbtobe20122 · August 2014

Hi! I'm Mrs. B, proud mama to baby B. I'm a labor and delivery nurse, and DH is a pharmacist. We've been married for 2 years and live in CO.

1 - When was your LO diagnosed?

8 weeks after struggling with over supply and OALD and cutting out dietary "triggers", turns out LO just had silent reflux. It's not so silent these days as I'm currently covered in half digested milk-- ew

2 - How are you treating the reflux (meds, etc.). Is it working as you'd expected?

We are doing Zantac twice a day and carafate three times per day, as well as the gerber soothe probiotic.

We are having success with this regimen... For now. He still spits up but the screaming and arching/discomfort are gone--- I'll consider that a win.

3 - Any tips for other reflux mamas?

No tips, just empathy.

4 - Anything else you want to share or ask others.

I really feel like we saw the biggest difference with the probiotic and carafate--- not the Zantac.

dogsombrero · August 2014

Jules is 13 weeks Wednesday. He's a mostly happy guy. He's EBF (well pumped BM).

1. Diagnosed at 4 weeks had projectile vomiting/symptoms at 10 days old.

2. Currently on 2ml Omeprazole 2x day. He's also getting a swallow study due to choking, continued forceful (through the nose) spit up and projectile vomiting. Pedi suspects reflux combined with an anatomical issue. We hold him upright for 30 minutes after meals, elevated head while sleeping and he'll start solids early (4 months). At this point we are at a stable but not great point.

3. Using saline nasal drops along with the nosefrida will get out all the vomit from the sinuses. Zantac is less minty when cold, storing it in the fridge makes it a lot easier to give.

4. Fingers crossed for a definitive answer 8/27 at the swallow study.

dogsombrero · August 2014

@manna1212‌ Yes J hates his meds.The Omeprazole is just salty but the Zantac was awful it tasted like Schapps. He cries and does his best to spit it out.

hbird0723 · August 2014

My LO will be 3 months in Wednesday.

1 - When was your LO diagnosed?
She was diagnosed at 2 months.

2 - How are you treating the reflux (meds, etc.). Is it working as you'd expected?
She's on Zantac and it's helping but she still has some trouble. She's on the highest dose for her size though so the doctor wants me to try going dairy free. We think that's the underlying issue and could possibly end the reflux all together. That's my hope at least.

3 - Any tips for other reflux mamas?
I guess I don't have any tips yet. This is my first time dealing with it.

4 - Anything else you want to share or ask others.
@manna1212 my LO didn't seem to like it at first but now she's a trooper I think because I just tell her she's doing a good job and I always let her know when she's all done. She's learning how to use her tongue to swallow better. The first couple times I squeezed her cheeks to help her I saw the nurse do this with one of the vaccines. She doesn't need that now though.

fairytalewed · August 2014

DS was diagnosed at 6 weeks old. He was started on Zantac .5 2x a day and is now taking 1ml 2x a day. He also started 1 tsp of rice cereal per bottle. He is on alimentum...we tried similac blue, similac fussiness, gerber soothe, and soy and after 23 hours of straight screaming and an ER visit...we been on the alimentum. He still has a lot if issues and screams often. He is going to be 3 months this week; doctor thinks we should start to wean off alimentum and I am scared!!! It has seemed to help a little (i should mention he started it on 7/7) but then again I don't know if he is just growing out of colic...all so confusing and such a guessing game!

I don't have much advice, but it sucks we are all dealing with it and hopefully it gets better soon!

giggler25 · August 2014

My DD Emily will be 12 weeks old on Thursday (wow, how time flies!).

1 - I'd suspected for a while that she had silent reflux, after reading about the symptoms from many people on this board. I'd asked our pedi about it, and her reply was that all babies have some reflux to a certain extent. Alas, her reflux became "loud" in July with projectile vomiting and on 7/21 the pedi agreed that Emily should start taking medicine. What tipped the scales towards the meds was the choking and gagging in addition to her projectile and nose-exiting spit-up.

2 - Emily was originally put on Zantac twice a day. The first time I gave it to her she was smiling. After that it was a fight every dosage, to the point where she'd gag herself with her tongue to try not to swallow it. I'd have to try to guesstimate how much she spit out and give her more to try to ensure she got the complete dosage each time. Not only was it a PITA to try to give to her, but it also didn't seem to be working. After about a week, the pedi called in a Rx for Prevacid, which she's been taking since 8/1. The Prevacid (knock on wood) seems to taste better/go down easier, and seems to be working a bit better as well. Although this morning was the first day she spit it out, and she's had a really cranky day today. Hopefully tomorrow will be better...

3 - If I notice that DD is drinking quickly, I try to stop her to burp every 5 minutes or so, so as not to allow too much air to get stuck in there. I notice that when she has bad gas, the reflux symptoms appear worse as well, which makes sense. One tip I have for administering the meds is to put a clean finger in LOs mouth to suck on and then squirt the meds in with a dropper next to your finger. That may get them to swallow it easier without trying to spit it out.

4 - Reflux sucks!!! I really hate that my DD has to deal with this. She is such a happy baby and to see her struggling with discomfort and arching her back when she's experiencing bad reflux is such a stark contrast to her normal bubbly personality that it makes me angry.

@manna1212 - Before we switched off Zantac, I tried mixing it with a little bit of gripe water, which she liked the flavor of better. She certainly didn't drink it down but it was a little less of a struggle. Maybe ask the pedi if that's ok and doesn't alter the effects? The pedi also mentioned that I could mix it with some milk in a bottle if that would help (but my LO doesn't take a bottle so I never got to try that).

@mrsbtobe20122 - What is carafate and what is it meant to do? Haven't heard of that before. I also have OALD which I'm sure does not make poor DD's reflux any easier.

@ljbreck - Your poor little guy! Good luck with the swallow study on 8/27, I hope it gives you helpful info. If there is an anatomical issue, could it be corrected?

@anniemore - My LO had similar symptoms to yours; in fact I think I recall that one of your posts helped me realize at the time that my LO might have reflux! SO happy to hear that your LO's 3 month birthday brought him (and you!) some reprieve! Such good news!

@Ocoma - So glad that the Zantac is the magic cure for your LO! I honestly don't understand why they make a medicine that is meant for babies with throat/spit-up issues taste so nasty!!! It makes no sense to me.

@Hbird05 - I have been dairy and soy free for almost 2 months now. It is tough in the beginning but so worth it if your LO is going to feel better!!

@becole42 - I hadn't heard that chin tickle tip before.... thanks for sharing that! When I got desperate with the Zantac I would gently blow in DD's face, which also gets LOs to swallow but I felt mean doing it bc it looked like it kind of scared her. It got the job done but I cringed each time I did it.

@fairytalewed - Good luck!!! It totally does suck having to deal with this.

Fingers crossed that it gets better soon as our LOs get a bit bigger and their digestive systems mature.

momthatlifts · August 2014

giggler25 said:

This is a new weekly check-in for mamas of babies with reflux. I thought we could start by each giving a brief intro of our LOs/how old and also....
1 - When was your LO diagnosed? Diagnosed at her 1 month check up
2 - How are you treating the reflux (meds, etc.). We are taking Zantac (1.3 ml twice daily) but it isn't working anymore
Is it working as you'd expected? Zantac worked wonders in the beginning, but now she is back to choking constantly.. She is visiting with a GI tomorrow to take further action
3 - Any tips for other reflux mamas? Np tips. I'm lost at this point
4 - Anything else you want to share or ask others.

mrsbtobe20122 · August 2014

@giggler25‌ -- my doc explained it like this.. The acid makes rug burn on the belly/ esophagus and carafate is like putting noesporin on it.

dogsombrero · August 2014

@giggler25‌ At this point I have no idea if they would correct any issues they find or not. Pedi seems to think a rear palette issue which would make sense. He had latch issues so we never BF he's an EP bottle baby. The waiting sucks!

giggler25 · August 2014

@ljbreck‌ - I can only imagine! Just out of curiosity did you ever get him checked for a tongue or lip tie? My DD has a minor lip tie but the ENT we brought her to didn't think snipping was necessary since we don't have nursing issues. But there are large groups of people out there (LCs included) who think such ties aggravate reflux, and definitely create latching issues.

hbird0723 · August 2014

My doctor never told me to give her the meds a certain amount of time before feeding. Did any of yours suggest that?

giggler25 · August 2014

Hbird05 said:

My doctor never told me to give her the meds a certain amount of time before feeding. Did any of yours suggest that?

Yes -- My pedi instructed to give it 20 minutes before feeding, but I've heard others say 20-30 minutes. The point of this is to allow the medicine to get absorbed before any spit-up that occurs during/after feedings.

hbird0723 · August 2014

That makes sense! Not sure why he didn't tell me that!

momthatlifts · August 2014

Ok So we went to the GI today and she prescribed her Prilosec which she wont be able to start until either tomorrow late evening or the next day because my husband works 12 hours and we only have one car. Unless I am able to find a ride to walgreens. She also suggested putting some stuff called "thick it" in her bottle of BM to help with the spit up. So we tried that tonight and we will see how it helps. Anyone else on Prilosec? She will be taking 3 ml. How does it help?

dogsombrero · August 2014

@giggler25‌ I personally have a lip/tongue tie that I narrowly missed having clipped at 5 years old and it runs in the family. 2 LCs and the Pedi said it was so minor on Jules that it wasn't worth pursuing, only one LC was gung-ho but I didn't really care for her and went with the group consensus. He is able to stuck his tongue past his lips, he just doesn't use it correctly while nursing. We tried the suck training technique and nipple shield with no success so after 5 frustrating weeks we went to EPing.

momthatlifts · August 2014

Does anyone have any experience/luck with prilosec? I just started dd on 3 ml twice a day last night. I'm beyond desperate at this point. I'm sick of hearing her gasp for air and cough/choke. She is so sweet and deserves to be in comfort. Plus she is really cranky lately and fussy to the point of tears and I have a huge gut feeling it's the reflux. Can I rely on the prilosec?

momthatlifts · August 2014

@ljbreck‌ is he on Zantac and omeprazole?

dogsombrero · August 2014

@JKBMA2014‌
No just Omezaprole/Prilosec. It worked when the Zantac wasn't cutting it. It takes a few days to see anything with it and one if the side effects is diarrhea BUT it has made a huge difference it the amount of through the nose spit-up and projectile vomiting.

I can tell when we aren't on time with the meds I think this one must be given at 12 hours pretty much like clockwork. We cutoff food 30 min before and 30 min after at the suggestion of our Pedi. We also find he needs burped after the meds because he gulps in a bunch of air when taking it and will spit-up if we don't. I believe Zantac is supposed to keep acid from burning the throat vs Prilosec is an acid reducer so you should see a lessening of symptoms because there should be less acid to cause them.

momthatlifts · August 2014

ljbreck said:

@JKBMA2014‌ No just Omezaprole/Prilosec. It worked when the Zantac wasn't cutting it. It takes a few days to see anything with it and one if the side effects is diarrhea BUT it has made a huge difference it the amount of through the nose spit-up and projectile vomiting. I can tell when we aren't on time with the meds I think this one must be given at 12 hours pretty much like clockwork. We cutoff food 30 min before and 30 min after at the suggestion of our Pedi. We also find he needs burped after the meds because he gulps in a bunch of air when taking it and will spit-up if we don't. I believe Zantac is supposed to keep acid from burning the throat vs Prilosec is an acid reducer so you should see a lessening of symptoms because there should be less acid to cause them.

Yeah I was worried she would spit the medicine up. I'll feed her and give her time to digest before giving her the medicine. She would spit up her Zantac sometimes. I also read that the prilosec can help hear any damage. I'll try to find the resource

momthatlifts · August 2014

She actually constipated because of the "thick it" i put in her milk at night. I JUST started her on the Prilosec last night though so I will see if it makes a difference in her pooping. If not, they told us to lessen the amount of thick it and 1 oz of children prune juice. But I'm going to give it a while before I change anything since it's all very brand new.

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