Nonstop gagging & projectile vomit HELP

LoveLee85 · April 2016

okay, this can't be normal. And it's been happening for so long, months now, but has been a lot worse the past few weeks. My LO will be playing, eating cereal, sitting on your lap, drinking bottle...then he gags, won't breathe for 8-15 seconds, then projectile vomits. Scares the LIFE out of me. His mouth is wide open(like he's choking), then his eyes are massive/scared/watery/....then projectile vomits everywhere. After, he is fine. No temp. I feel like he has the strongest gag reflex in the world. It started with him hating peas a few months ago. On the first bit he gaged a little. I have another bite and he did this. Now it's all the time. I'm worried. His doctor will blow me off because he isn't 'sick'.
The thing is, I have been a nanny for random families while in school for a decade, 3 weeks old to 16 years old, and never have I ever run into this issue. It isn't normal. It's giving me horrible anxiety. I can't be away from him for a second because it happens nonstop. I don't feel comfortable even leaving him with my own mom. She panics more than I do with choking/gagging. I hesitate to call it gagging because he's not breathing. I fear every feeding. I'm always worried if the next time will be the time I have to call 911. Has anyone else ever felt with this?? It's slowly killing me stress and anxiety wise.

LouLouLove · April 2016

My DS1 had silent reflux and he would gag and choke all the time, but not vomit. And he did better on Zantac and it was done by this age. I would find a different pediatrician if yours is blowing you off, this sounds stressful and like a legitimate concern. Maybe it's a simple fix or something he will grow out of, but I'd want my doctor to take it more seriously.

laurapaine2003@yahoo.com · April 2016

Is this FPIES? They are totally fine beforehand, aren't sick, but certain foods cause a reaction about 2 hours or so after they eat it (not right away, I think FPIES happens at least 90-120 min after consuming the offending food). Read up on it and see if that sounds like what is happening to your LO!! It happened to mine anytime we gave her oatmeal - projectile vomited and gagged several hours later.

LoveLee85 · April 2016

laurapaine2003@yahoo.com said:

Is this FPIES? They are totally fine beforehand, aren't sick, but certain foods cause a reaction about 2 hours or so after they eat it (not right away, I think FPIES happens at least 90-120 min after consuming the offending food). Read up on it and see if that sounds like what is happening to your LO!! It happened to mine anytime we gave her oatmeal - projectile vomited and gagged several hours later.

I will look this up for sure. With him, it's instant aka as he's eating half the time, other half are random times!

JenLovesDesign · April 2016

You should contact your doctor and demand that he/she take you seriously, a pediatrician should not only worry about sick babies, but these kind of behaviors as well.

TechieGirl1 · April 2016

If your pedi is in a practice see someone else in the practice (mainly so you can get a second opinion but have all of the medical history right there). Just by you saying that this has been going on longer then 2 weeks, that is clearly not an illness / virus etc. I would also not go back to your normal pedi. If he doesn't take your concerns seriously then he clearly isn't doing his full job. What a jerk, having a poor baby puking for a month like that!

missliz53 · April 2016

I would definitely get a second opinion. Also ask for a referral for a clinical feeding evaluation with a speech therapist. They listen with a stethoscope while you feed your lo to r/o aspiration and can really help with exercises to help desensitize their gag reflex, but it does sound suspiciously like reflux too. Are you continuing to feed him peas? If so maybe stop for a couple of months and see if things improve. My lo's chiropractor recommends waiting until at least 9 or 10 months before doing peas because she said they are very hard for immature digestive systems to break down.

yellowbean15 · April 2016

Oh that sounds so scary. I'm sorry you're dealing with this! And I'm sorry your doctor isn't listening. My doc similar and it is so frustrating and worrisome to be blown off all the time when you have concerns about your LO'S health because they aren't even willing to look into things or even get more information from you. I have a hard time with this but I would also ask if you can make an appointment with another doctor. It would be nice to have someone to at least listen and provide suggestions as to what could be causing it or what to look for. Good luck!

bnwillia3 · April 2016

Poor baby

I second all the advice to get a second opinion. It can't be easy on the little one's body to be vomiting so frequently - and super scary for both of you! If your ped won't take you seriously, seek another opinion. Don't be afraid to be firm with your doctor - you are your baby's voice and advocate! Remember that the doctor works for YOU and so must take your concerns seriously.

LoveLee85 · April 2016

Thank you, everyone! He is what I call 'good doctor, bad bedside manor'. After talking to other people in my community, I'm not the only one he treats like this. Twice this winter LO was coughing and sick, we took him in for fear of RSV. BOTH times the doctor talked down to me. He straight up said, why are you here? It's the common cold. When I said I was worried about RSV he just said well he doesn't have it. It was a two second appointment with no advice really, or even concern on his behalf. I was kind of shocked. But when I feared he was sick a few weeks later, I got a lecture basically on, 'I can't give him medicine he's too little. He's not dying, it's a common cold. Take him home and clear his nose out and give Tylenol if needed.' I was already doing that but I was so freaked out by RSV, and I thought he was weezing. Ugh. I want to switch to his partner, a female Doctor that according to friends, it very caring and would never talk down to me. My friends can't believe the encounters I have said to have with LO Doctor.

LoveLee85 · April 2016

missliz53 said:

I would definitely get a second opinion. Also ask for a referral for a clinical feeding evaluation with a speech therapist. They listen with a stethoscope while you feed your lo to r/o aspiration and can really help with exercises to help desensitize their gag reflex, but it does sound suspiciously like reflux too. Are you continuing to feed him peas? If so maybe stop for a couple of months and see if things improve. My lo's chiropractor recommends waiting until at least 9 or 10 months before doing peas because she said they are very hard for immature digestive systems to break down.

I quit the peas all together. Then he started doing it to green beans. Quit those also. I only feed him in 4/5oz of formula at a time. He's a big boy so I'm feeding him 24/7 it feels like. I try not to over feed. I was doing two pouches a day. I cut back to 1 pouch a day. It's so stressful. I am calling the doctor in the am. I can't back down from this since it's just getting worse. It's been BAD for a week now. Thank goodness he's in good spirits. What will they do if it is silent reflux or reflux? I'm honestly just in shock how bad it's getting. He's kind of always had feeding issues, so I would have the bulb suction thingy ready at ALL times when he was brand new. We have always fed him pretty much sitting up right, or at a very high angle. The hospital nurses from when he was born said he had a strong gag reflex and might have reflux issues.

missliz53 · April 2016

If it's reflux they will probably put him on meds to reduce the acid in his stomach. The acid itself can cause nausea and vomiting especially if it is getting into his throat and sitting there. You can also try a chiropractor, they work wonders for reflux.

My lo is very gaggy with her food also. We do thin purées and give her small spoonfuls. We also place the spoon just inside her lips because I've read that the gag reflex can be triggered if food is put too far back. Have you tried a mesh feeder or offering small very soft chunks of food instead? I've read that sometimes babies do better if they feed themselves. Ours just plays in hers, but she does really well with baby mum mum teething biscuits. It's so discouraging though when they gag and puke everything back up. Our chiropractor was saying that sometimes the gag reflex doesn't go away until they are a year old.

oceanlove13 · April 2016

My LO does this when eating foods that have any bit of texture. For example a mashed avocado that is almost cream consistency, but still has a few random chunks. Peas that I put in the blender that remain thick in consistency, etc. He doesn't do it with very thin, almost water like jarred baby food (Beech Nut) or the Plum brand pouches when fed on a spoon. I will put the spoon in his mouth of avocado, he will immediately start gagging, he won't take a breath, start flailing his arms and his eyes water. Within 10- 15 seconds he has a huge vomit. Very dramatic. Sometimes if I see it coming, I pull the chunk out with my finger to prevent him from vomiting . My first baby never did anything like this. I've been linking this reaction to the foods that have more of a texture. I don't think anything is wrong with him and don't think he doesn't like the food. I think he will get over this within a month. It only happens when he is eating. He does spit up throughout the day, but not the way I was describing above. Does this sound like what your baby is doing?

coco0723 · November 2016

Not sure if this board is still active but I just came across it in searching for some answers. Three weeks ago I started my son, who was 22 weeks at the time, on some baby cereal, oatmeal. Like 2 or 3 hours later he was vomiting profusely. I thought maybe I just over fed him because he ate quite a bit and seemed to enjoy it. I didn't think anything else about it but didn't try it again until just this past Sunday, when I gave him the same cereal again and again the same thing happened! Except that this time towards the end the vomit was bright yellow. He was just getting over having bronchiolitis so I though that maybe the yellow was mucous, but after doing quite a bit of reading I am wondering if it was bile, which is totally scary. He went right back to being his usual happy little self about an hour later and has been fine since. Initially I thought that perhaps his tummy wasn't ready for cereal since he is primarily breast fed, although does take a formula bottle every now and then for supplementation since my milk supply is impossibly low in spite of my doing everything I can to boost it. But now that I have been doing all of this reading I am worried that it's FPIES and I know the only way to know is try try other foods and see if he reacts but I am totally scared to do that. Any thoughts?

missliz53 · November 2016

I would hold off until he's at least 6 months to see if his tummy is just not ready yet. You can also try something like sweet potato puree of squash or even offering just a few bites of cereal and gradually increasing the amount. I would start small and if he still isn't tolerating them, give your Dr a call.

I also wouldn't panic if there is a little bile in his throw up, especially at the end of it. It just means that his stomach is running out of stuff to get rid of.

amp61470 · November 2016

I'd call his pediatrician and talk to them. It could be an allergic reaction to the cereal or something.

LoveLee85 · November 2016

My LO has been tested for loads of things, he just has a sensitive gag reflex(like his mommy and grandpa)! He still randomly vomits all over every few weeks just because he will try to burp, then puke.

jen83mn · November 2016

I agree with the others - if your pediatrician isn't listening, find one who will! You have every right to be concerned and taken seriously! Even if he's not "sick," that is not normal and should be taken seriously. Hope you can figure something out!

amp61470 · November 2016

jen83mn said:

I agree with the others - if your pediatrician isn't listening, find one who will! You have every right to be concerned and taken seriously! Even if he's not "sick," that is not normal and should be taken seriously. Hope you can figure something out!

I don't think she called the pediatrician.

jen83mn · November 2016

amp61470 said:

jen83mn said:

I agree with the others - if your pediatrician isn't listening, find one who will! You have every right to be concerned and taken seriously! Even if he's not "sick," that is not normal and should be taken seriously. Hope you can figure something out!

I don't think she called the pediatrician.

She mentioned talking to her pediatrician who blew her off and said he wasn't "sick" and that he's talked down to her or blew things off on other occasions too, so I think finding a new pediatrician definitely might help matters!

Nonstop gagging & projectile vomit HELP

Re: Nonstop gagging & projectile vomit HELP

Choose Another Board

Search Boards

Nonstop gagging & projectile vomit HELP

Re: Nonstop gagging &amp; projectile vomit HELP

Choose Another Board

Search Boards

Re: Nonstop gagging & projectile vomit HELP