After struggling feeding the boys since they were born and believing its wind im starting to think there may be another explanation. After anything from an oz to 3oz they cough and splutter and then, although theyre hungry, they just cant seem to swallow. Its like theres a blockage. Theyre rarely sick. They cant be laid down and arch their backs and cry in pain when feeding.

Please help. Feeding finds us all in tears at the moment

Gemma, Ryan and Alfie (10+2)

[Modified by: Gemmiebaby on 16 December 2009 20:29:50 ]

Reflux is where the valve to the stomach is weak and allows milk/stomach acids to come back up. Symptoms are sickness (but not always present), unhappy when on back after feed, arching back etc, difficulty feeding. If you think your los have it then take them to the drs, as it really isn't nice for you or your babies.

ahh hun i dont know the answer but it seems from what the other ladies have said it sounds like they hay have it. Get some bay gaviscon and give it a go. I hope you get sorted hun it must be so hard xx

Well, went to the drs tonight as Alfie has only taken 4oz all day and most of that went on his bib as I was having to force feed him. Guess what his nugget of wisdom was - rather than feeding them 4oz every 3hrs, feed them 2oz every 2hrs!! I tried to tell him that it takes me an hour and a half to get 1oz into them! I really dont know what to do. I tried buying some infant gaviscon but they refused. When I asked Dr he said it sounds like reflux but theyre too young to be putting things in their milk! So I have to carry on force feeding them while they scream, only now I have to do it more often. I feel like ive spent all day in tears

The girls had reflux too. I think our feeding issues were a mixture of wind and reflux to be honest (they're still windy babies now but it doesn't cause any problems).
We went to the GP with our feeding problems and I asked if it could be a lactose intolerance or reflux. He said a lactose intolerance causes A LOT of sick and we were only getting a bit after each feed, however, they were sometimes sick 2-3 hours after their last feed. We were prescribed Infant Gaviscon but it didn't have any effect. I knew going back to the GP would mean trying stronger drugs (Ranitidine etc.) and I wanted that to be a last resort so we tried SMA Staydown. I noticed an improvement within 24 hours, There were still some difficult feeds but probbably 80% less screaming than before.

Interestingly, my GP did say that wind and reflux often come hand in hand but one of the biggest enemies for a refluxy baby is over-winding. Too much rubbing/patting can encourage the acid to travel back up and cause them more pain than the wind itself.

As marnb said, you can get Infant Gavison over the counter (you have to ask the pharmacist for it though). Failing that, you could try SMA Staydown. I know changing formula is not to be taken light-heartedly but it worked for us and no tummy problems as a result of the change.

xx

Hi Gemmiebaby,

I don't normally post here on baby but just wanted to say that that seems like a ludicrus suggestion from your GP! I can't believe thats the best advice they could offer!! I have known friends that have brought infant gaviscon over the counter at our local boots so maybe try a different chemist? I hope you get hold of some soon and that it makes a difference to your boys. I'm sorry you are having a tough time at the moment

Gem x

Isnt SMA Staydown for sicky babies though? The boys arent really sicky, they just gag a lot and theyve now stopped swallowing the milk. I dont know what to do and I know that my mental state is really not going to help them. It just feels like an uphill climb all the time. The GP's advice is pointless. How can I feed them 2oz every 2hrs if they dont take the 2oz and are crying with hunger??

Tried Boots for Gaviscon and she refused. Will try another pharmacy. How long was it bad for in your girls T4BM?

Thanx Bubbletoes! I thought so too but he was happy they were healthy so no budge. Im happy theyre healthy too but they wont be soon if I cant get any milk into them and they scream all the time until theyre exhausted and fall asleep??!!

Well, went to the drs tonight as Alfie has only taken 4oz all day and most of that went on his bib as I was having to force feed him. Guess what his nugget of wisdom was - rather than feeding them 4oz every 3hrs, feed them 2oz every 2hrs!! I tried to tell him that it takes me an hour and a half to get 1oz into them! I really dont know what to do. I tried buying some infant gaviscon but they refused. When I asked Dr he said it sounds like reflux but theyre too young to be putting things in their milk! So I have to carry on force feeding them while they scream, only now I have to do it more often. I feel like ive spent all day in tears

That is the same sort of reaction I got from the doctor when I went to her for Michael. I know Boots will sell you infant gaviscon over the counter. We have been buying it for a few weeks and only recently stopped it. I know some other chemist might be a bit different with selling it, but if you want to give it a try you can go to boots.

We never tried SMA staydown, but heard good things about it. It is heavier so doesn't come up at all, it might be that some milk is coming up but they don't really sick it up. (does that make sense?) You can also try comfert milk or easy digest milk from the brand you already use, it is slightly heavier on the tummy so is less likely to come up. (but again it is more used for sicky babies than screaming babies)

The gp did suggest thicker milk. Going to have a look. It was Boots I tried. Thinking that reflux is stomach contents coming up, whether they come far enough for sick or not, so if we can stop that I might be onto something

The boys stomachs also gurgle and grunt constantly, like listening to the milk goin down. We always thought this was wind but could this be another sign of reflux?

No, Staydown is just thicker milk We tried Comfort milk but they didn't need the benefit of it being easy to digest IYKWIM so it just produced awful nappies. The Staydown tin actually says "for babies with severe reflux". I wouldn't say the girls were severe as we never had any projectile vomit but they were definitely in pain.
Unfortunately, we didn't discover Staydown until they were over 3 months old so had a terrible time until then. Once we switched, we saw an improvement. At 6 months we moved to normal follow-on milk and have had no problems.
BTW - the girls stomachs also gurgled (and still do sometimes)

Well, have bought some Comfort milk as this is the one Aptimil do and didnt want to change makes just yet. Will try next feed. Would you just give them the new formula? Im thinking that, as the make is the same they should be ok?

Lara and Chloe - It was yourself and T4BM that made me think of Reflux in the first place as I hadnt really thought of it as an option as thought they had to be sick. Boys have got prigressively worse and are now vomitting more and more but werent before.

It CERTAINLY sounds like silent reflux - I wouldn't change their milk personally I would go back to the GP and either see the same on or a different one but DON'T let them send you away without a prescription! My HV prescribed it for max at 10 WEEKS (as you know he was prem too so he was only 4 weeks corrected - same as your boys) so there is NO reason why you can't have it to add to their milk.

The refusing milk, the gurgly tummy, the arching back, the screaming are all PERFECT symptoms - REALLY TRUELY DO NOT BE FOBBED OFF OVER THIS, WE WERE FOR AGES COS MAX WAS STILL PUTTING ON WEIGHT ETC ETC BUT HE WAS LIKE A DIFFERENT BABY ONCE WE HAD IT!!!!

Hope you get sorted!

Just wanted to say that I have given the boys their first taste of Comfort milk. (had already started when I read your post Maximum but will be speaking to HV on Mon about Infant Gaviscon)

It was the best feed weve had in the last 3 days. They took 4oz in 15 mins and could probably have more but im going to leave it unless they cry for it. Theyre happier than they have been, although still grizzly but then after the day weve had I wouldnt expect anything else. Thing is they took the bottle without arching their backs, crying or spitting any out. That has to be an improvement on before!

Lets hope we get somewhere with this. Thankyou for your help...much much better that the bloody GP!

Ive also been having a rough time with my son who is only 25 days old. 2 trips to the gp, the hospital and a paed... finally today I walked away with a prescription for 1 months worth of Ranitidine. So I am trying this as of tonight. GP said it's better than Infant Gaviscon, which I did try today as hubby came home with some last night from a pharmacy that would give it to him. Maybe the gaviscon would make a difference but I only got to try it once today and will be stopping now that I have the Ranitidine.

I hope things improve for you and your boys cos I know how stressful it is with one having this problem, let alone having 2 with it. My HV had to scream at the gp surgery today for something to be done so maybe they can help to get you some much needed help too.

xx

sounds like a good step Gemmiebaby and it does make it sound even more likely that it is the silent reflux!!! Good luck with it all!

We tried SMA staydown and it didn't work for Lily. Milk was so thick she couldn't get anything out the teat bless her, but we had heard good things about it. In the end I changed milk and that seemed to help but that was against my HV's advice. HV and doctor told me to put up with the sick as she was putting on weight! I went through so many bibs and changes of clothes it was unreal. She used to feed every two hours in the day and only take about 2-3 oz at a time, I was constantly sterilising bottles.

Really hope HV helps you out with the gaviscon on Monday! xxx

I rreally had got to that point. I didnt care anymore, just wanted the boys to be well and happy. They were never content and it made everything so much harder. Theyre grizzly now but I know many babies are grizzly in the evening so putting it down to that. Going to make a 5oz bottle at 11pm and see how much they take. Not going to force it but they sunk the 4oz bottle so might take a bit more??

Just to say comfort milk might be a bit thicker for your teats so if they don't finish it it might because they are finding it too hard to suck it out and you might have to go up a teat size, just bear it in mind if it doesn't all go later! Hope this is the answer for you!