GI said to stop BF for 3 days

[Anonymous]

Our GI asked me to stop breast feeding for 3 days and feed my 4.5 month old son Neocate only. He has reflux that was bad but now it is beyond bad! I have been dairy/soy free since February and it never really seemed to make that much of a difference, however, I was always too afraid to go back. He was on Prevacid for about 3 months and it was really making him scream! We switched to Zantac and the screaming right after naps stopped! The doc said he wants us to go back to Prevacid. I gave him 1/2a solutab the first night and 1/2 the next a.m., sure enough, the screaming came back. I have decided to not give him anymore and have continued the Zantac. He is SOOOOO miserale since on the Neocate….should I just go back to breast milk? It is of course, the weekend and the Dr. is closed. The Dr. thinks that my son is reacting to something in my milk…..ugh, I am so confused and I HATE this disease!!!

[hellbennt]

hang in there! ME, no I would not quit breastfeeding because what if the formula doesn’t help? THEN what? I’m not mad at YOU, it’s your bleepin’ doctor…

how are poops?

Reasons a breastfeeding mother might think her baby is reacting to something in her milk:

*poop that is not ‘normal’ mustardy yellow, seedy breastfed baby poop

*mucous in poop; mucous can look like: snot, jelly, cottage cheese, stringy like the inside of a banana

*foul-smelling poop

*stinky, foul-smelling painful gas

*straining and grunting to poop and, when baby finally does poop, it’s soft

if you think it’s something in your diet, it’ll take two weeks to make your milk like the neocate & it’s the SAME AMOUNT OF TIME it would take to see the full effects of switching to formula.

is the zantac dose high enough? how much does baby weigh?

was/is the prevacid dose high enough? were you giving the solutabs on an empty stomach, followed by a ‘meal’ 30 minutes later?

when you say you’re dairy/soy free, are you checking labels? are you reading ingredients, looking for ‘hidden’ dairy and soy?

YOU CAN DO THIS!!!

there’s a LOT TO READ but it will help you!

Prevacid 101:

scroll to the last page of this post, (it’s actually also about other PPIs like prilosec, too)
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1936&PN=0&TPN=1

Misconceptions about how Neocate & Elecare work: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6013

[Anonymous]

Thank you for all of the info! Yes, I have been very diligent about my dairy/soy elimination……it’s been tough because it seems like EVERYTHING contains soy! I pretty much stay away from all processed foods.

So, he says allergy because of the following;

Waylon has been incredibly fussy, gassy, constipated and unhappy since about 3 weeks old

Green/black mucous poop, smells BAD! Every once in a while (like 5 times since he turned 3 weeks, if that) he gets out a yellow seedy poop

Chokes, gurgles and cries when laid flat

Distended and hard belly

Poor weight gain (4 oz in two months)

VERY poor sleeper

Cries when he eats, which is not often

Arches his back and turns his head side to side when he cries

Bad breath, SUPER sour smell all of the time

He RARELY spits up

Had a seizure like episode that he was hospitalized for 2 days, they think it was a “reflux episode”

I recently went back to work full time (I HAVE to : ( ) and the day care lady calls often because he just screams and is so unhappy, especially in his car seat!

Zantac is 1ml 3x/day, he weighs 14.6 and the solutabs are 7.5 2/day….attempted to give on empty stomach, followed by a snack/meal 30 min after, which most of the time is pretty hard because within 10-15 minutes of taking Prevacid, he freaks out, every time!

It’s so hard! I cry everyday and I hope that my husband does not divorce me! We can’t even imagine what it would be like to be normal again, like go grocery shopping together or out to eat! I feel so bad for my LO, I feel like he is such a bubble boy but I can’t bear to take him anywhere because of the screaming!

Sooooo, should I just go back to BF’ing? I don’t understand the poop situation!

Thanks again!!

[Anonymous]

HI Waylon’s mom,

I just wanted to tell you that my heart truly goes out to you! I’m so sorry that you and your little one are suffering so much!!

I hope that you soon can find some relief for your little one!

Love and prayers!!

[Anonymous]

Thank you Martha : ) I am so thankful that I am not the only going through this, but I do not wish it upon anyone!!!

[hellbennt]

Martha has a lot of great info! It’s in the ‘probiotics brands used’ link, below!

OK, so you can do this!!

First, I’ll calculate zantac dose for you & then I’ll give you some more light reading, lol! No really, I know you can do this!

maximum zantac dose is 10mgs per kilo (don’t just believe me! read

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=8288&PN=1 )

your baby weighs 14.6lbs = 6.5kilos

since maximum dose is 10mgs per kilo, then

6.5 x 10 = 65

that’s 65mgs of zantac a day

your bottle of liquid zantac says 15mgs/ml

this means that for every 1ml of liquid you give, there’s 15mgs of the medicine zantac in that 1ml of liquid

so then you divide 65 by 15 = 4.3mls a day, total for the day of zantac

this is a 1.3 increase from what you’re now giving…

you can divide into uneven doses & give a higher portion at the ‘worst’ times, like evening/night

ok now for the prevacid:

prevcid dose for 3-6 months: 1.25 to 1.5 mg/kg three times per day

I’ll calculate the highest dose – you can always back down!

1.5 x 6.5 = 9.75

9.75 x 3 (a 9.75 dose given 3 times a day) = 29.25mgs of prevacid a day

just round this up to 30, it’s easier…

THIS IS DOUBLE OF WHAT YOU’RE GIVING NOW!

Please read about this! I’m not a doctor! YOU are the MAMA!

scroll to the last page of this post: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1936&PN=0&TPN=1

I know I sound like a drug-pusher!!! But I know what it’s like! ME, I’d go for the highest meds, work on diet & then, once things are better, work on lowering the meds. My baby was on all these meds (more, actually!) & is now a Gifted 3rd Grader! Healthy! Smart! Athletic! Funny! Loud!

OK now here’s more about diet:

the TED takes two weeks and then you start adding foods in to see what you CAN eat.

Research all you can! You are your baby’s best advocate!

THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT:

Erin‘s sticky: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12948&PID=105126#105126

More Erin: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13175&PID=106395#106395

Erin post: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13576

Great anne post: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9242

Exposure to foods & blood testing: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12993

Sheri’s allergy/intolerance explanation: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10223&PID=87638#87638

Another Sheri explanation- intolerance/allergy post:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=11579&PID=97442#97442

Accuracy of allergy testing & great post by sherri explaining IgE and IgG (intolerance/allergies) https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10815

(sue again, replying to gina- breastfeeding info to (TED)https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=11324&PN=1

probiotics, brands used:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=8970&PN=1

erin posts that mentions enzymes:
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12781&KW=enzyme

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12610&KW=enzyme

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12227&KW=enzyme

Post from me:
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=12200&KW=enzyme

[Anonymous]

Laura…you are AMAZING!!!!! Thank you for taking the time to help me! Okay, bumping up the zantac!! I am still a bit leary about the Prevacid though. He wakes up from all naps SCREAMING when he is on that stuff, even when he was on it for 2 months solid. I am so scared to administer it again. I think I will call the GI in the morning and ask for either a suspension (un-flavored) rx, capsules or maybe Prilosec???? I know the whole lactose reaction thing is rare but this kid is rare! Everything during this whole process has been rare! I make CRAZY amounts of lipase and my milk smells like vomit within 3 MINUTES if it is not refrigerated in GLASS. I had a 2nd placenta come out after he was born (TMI??), he was breech and sunny side up….very painful vaginal birth, also, they THOUGHT my water broke until I started pushing and they saw the bag of waters intact! The nurse called several nurses in to check it out….nice huh? Anyway, sorry, I don’t put anything past this kid now.

Afternoons seem to be his worst time (11-6) so I am super excited to bump up his afternoon dose! I will give him 2 ml in the middle of the day!

I caved in last night and breastfed my little man : ) It felt amazing, we were both so much happier, until he woke up…pissed! He was happy for about 30 min(since 6 a.m., it’s now 12:30) and the rest of the day he’s been soooo fussy! Yesterday was way better….so now I am soo confused : ( I already did the TED and it was exhausting! It’s so hard to maintain that diet while working full time, pumping every two hours and getting an average of 4 hours of sleep at night. I could not function and seriously started to loose it! My milk went WAY down too even with a rented Symphony (this helped a lot!), Mother’s Blend, Mothers Milk tea, fenugreek, fennel and blessed thistle, oatmeal, guiness and carrot juice…whew.

I HATE formula and am feeling sooo guilty but he actually ate 27 oz yesterday! That is HUGE for my little monkey! I am lucky if he takes in 8 oz while I am at work (away from him for 9 hours). Also, today, he was happy to nurse when he woke up at 6. Then I tried to feed him again and again and he was not having it, screaming, arching etc. I caved in (again) and gave him a bottle of formula and he took it…WTH??? My husband gets so frustrated with my constant crying, Waylons constant crying and now my flip flopping back and fourth formula to BM. I know, I sound like a huge whiner…sorry : ) THANK YOU SOOOOOO MUCH for all of this information! I am just going to keep trying, that’s all we can do right?? Why didn’t anyone tell me motherhood was sooo hard??

[Anonymous]

Oh yeah….what about goat’s milk? Ever heard of anyone using Gastrex? Waylon’s chiropractor suggested I use it. Oh man…..reading some of the links you posted, um yeah, had no idea Hyland’s Calms Forte and Teething tablets have LACTOSE!! No wonder he SCREAMS when I give those to him! I could not figure that out….duh! I have been so diligent about checking labels and somehow those slipped threw!!

[Anonymous]

When Jackson was over a year old I tried rice milk but that made his reflux worse. Someone told me it was acidic and gave me a list of acidic and alkaline foods. Unsweetened soy is alkaline so even though I didn’t think he would tolerate it, I tried it. It was better for reflux but he got constipated. Goats milk is normally nuetral or alkaline so we got some fresh from a goat farm. Jackson definitely did better with that but once when we ran out, he started sleeping at night much better. When we bought more and gave it to him he cried 2 hours after drinking a few ounces. We finally excepted the fact that he would be happiest just drinking water. I didn’t think it was the healthiest but decided I’d just give him water for awhile until I decided what to do next.

Their are several reasons why goats milk is easier to digest and there is a ton of info on line about it but here is a link that tells a little bit about it. http://suite101.com/article/milk-a35006

I have heard say that straight goats milk doesn’t have all the proper nutrients for a child under a year old but there are recipes out there to make goats milk formula.

I’m sure that Laura can tell you more about this. I think her middle name should be “Knowledge”. 😉

You maybe already read this but here is something I wrote for someone else on this site.

When a baby is still in the womb it has no probiotics in it’s system. Probiotics are the good live bacteria that coats and protects our entire digestive tract. A baby picks up these while traveling the birth canal and from nursing and physical touch. If the mom has the baby naturally, eats a healthy diet with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, has taken no antibiotics while pregnant or nursing (and baby hasn’t taken any either), and there is no history of digestive problems in either side of the family, then the baby will most likely develop the probiotics quite quickly without any reflux or tummy troubles.

If the mom or baby has taken any antibiotics they will not only kill the bad bacteria in the body but also the good bacteria(probiotics). And if there is any history in the family of any kind of digestive problems it is most likely from a pancreas that is not working properly. And this can be passed on to the baby. The most common cause of the pancreas not working like it should is from something called “Pancreatic Exhaustion”. This means that the pancreas is unable to produce enough enzymes to put into the stomach to break down the food. And this is often caused by our poor American diet. All foods have enzymes in them to aid in digestion but they are killed when cooked or processed. When there is not enough enzymes in the stomach to break down our food then the stomach will start producing excess acid to try to break it down. This excess acid will kill probiotics and also cause acid reflux and other digestive problems. In my children it killed the probiotics thus leaving their intestines raw and bleeding. Also without the probiotics to protect their esophagus and throat, not only did the acid push its way up but it burned and caused them to scream in pain. For some babies eating temporarily coats the throat and esopahagus and they want to eat constantly but for some babies everything hurts so badly that they refuse to eat anything.

One of the hardest things for a baby’s (and an adult’s) stomach to break down is protein. This is why babies with digestive problems often do better with hypoallergenic formulas. These formulas have the protein in them broken down extensively.

If a mother will take a probiotic/enzyme supplement while pregnant and nursing she can pass these on to her baby. Also her own breast milk will have the proteins extensively broken down in it so that her baby will have no problem digesting it. I was impressed that when I mixed some of my pumped milk with rice cereal, the cereal became runny quite quickly. I thought it was strange because normally rice cereal thickens when it sits. After adding more and more cereal I finally realized that the enzymes in my milk were breaking down the cereal faster than my baby was eating it. 🙂

If a baby is formula fed then the supplement can be given directly to the baby.

For my children and myself we take “Digestive Health” from http://www.corehealthprodcts.com

If you want to learn more you can go to my blog, My Journey in Finding Answers to my Children’s Acid Reflux and Milk Intolerance help4acidreflux.wordpress.comHappy Mom2012-06-03 23:44:58

[hellbennt]

so much information to share, lol!

no TMI, here, HA!

OK: do both. give the formula and breastfeed. you say you’ve already tried the TED but, after you read/skim through the links I gave you, let me know what you think…

the ‘usual’ TED most likely didn’t work for you for all the reasons you’ve stated…so, it’s at that point of the TED (when it’s not making any difference), when you stop something (perhaps stop the turkey or stop the rice) and see if it gets better, etc – again Erin wrote everything out for us (all the links I gave you above)

As for the prevacid, you’re probably right that thesolutabs are upsetting him! It could be the aspertame…or the lactose, who knows? anyway:

if you can’t get a higher dose from the doctor, just do it yourself. (I can’t tell you to do this! you need to research all you can!)

I would NOT get a rx for a compound, unflavored or not. It’s next to impossible to get it made right, unless you get your doctor to write out EXACTLY how to compound it & I doubt this doctor would? anyway, I’d get a rx for capsules and buy one of the products (tummy care max or something) to make your own compound (that’s what I did) – also this way you can buy capsules, OTC, to increase the dose on your own (from what the dr prescribes), if you get desperate & decide to try increasing the dose on your own…in the meantime, you still can buy otc prevacid capsules and give them now, instead of the solutabs – or in addition to the solutabs.

OTC w/ applesauce, pedialyte, etc:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=14642&PID=113339#113339

Some OTC capsules have a little tablet in it along w/ the ‘beads.’ You discard the tablet and administer the beads. You give the beads alone, given w/ apple sauce (give on an empty stomach w/ 1/2 tsp applesauce & follow w/ a ‘meal’ 30 minutes later).

I bet that with increasing the zantac, trying another form of prevacid and perhaps adding in MORE prevacid, giving the formula (babies seem to like formula/bottles because it’s EASY – my lactation consultant said it’s like eating McDonalds drive-thru – easy & yummy, LOL!) and breastfeeding and really looking at your diet and perhaps adding in probiotics & enzymes you’ll have a new baby in no time!

as for goat’s milk…I wouldn’t mess with anything like that w/ an infant…that’s just me…

as for gas medicine: you most certainly can give

some mylanta cherry supreme. You actually can’t find the brand Mylanta anymore, but mylanta cherry supreme was the one variety of mylanta that does not contain aluminum. The good news is that you CAN find store brand equivalents; try rite-aid, cvs brand, walmart, target, Bartell Drug (West coast), Dollar General: brand name Geri-Care, Geri-Lanta Supreme

, meijer, etc- just look for one that does not list aluminum in the ingredients. you can give 1ml up to 5 times a day- it’s safe, even for newborns. if you see loose stools back off.

make sure you space the zantac & the prevacid 4 hours apart!

you CAN give the zantac w/ the mylanta! if you give plain mylanta (not mixed w/ the zantac), you need to make sure it’s spaced 4 hrs from the prevacid.

[Anonymous]

Okay, so I wil ask for Prevacid capsules in the morning!!!! Thanks you!

So…..formula is wrecking his stomach right now! He is arching like crazy and has been crying for about 3 hours…he finally fell asleep poor baby

We were on probiotics for a while but I thought that they might have been making him worse so I stopped. I read the link to the “bomb” probiotics though and I will order some first thing in the a.m.!

Why are all of the doctors so clueless?????? I am SOOOOOO thankful that I found this website!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you thank you thank you!!!

[Anonymous]

A friend from Canada took a short article that I had written to her doctor. Here is what he told her, “I encourage you to look into this more. We doctors aren’t taught about these preventative type medicines, I guess because there is so much more money in conventional medicine,” I really admired his honesty.

Someone else made the statement that doctors are taught to REact to problems and to deal with and treat symptoms. They are not taught PROactive medicine and treatments or how to prevent illness.

I am not at all against doctors and love the pediatrician I have now. But I do wish they were taught some things differently.

[Anonymous]

That is true Martha! I should not take my frustration out on them : ) I know there are soooo many diseases they have to study. I just get really bumbed about the whole thing sometimes but I do know that it could be WAY worse and I AM thankful for the health that he does have!!!!

[Anonymous]

Don’t get me wrong… I’ve been really mad and frustrated with the whole medical world numerous times but it helps to keep me calmed down if I tell myself that it isn’t really their fault. 🙂 Happy Mom2012-06-04 01:08:20

[hellbennt]

oh! it’s their fault! well, not the pediatricians (I had to correct my own- that’s how I even learned I was ‘right’ about proper zantac dosing!) – but the pediatricians who won’t refer & think they can cure everything (or just want to keep receiving your co-pays!)- THEY make me angry!

and the ped GIs who won’t listen to parents & the latest research! THEY make me angry, too! Thank G-d our ped GI LISTENED and was fine w/ the higher dosing of PPI and using the product to compound it (now called tummy care- then it was called caracream)

Anyway: you can keep breastfeeding- really read about the TED and how to ‘measure’ how it’s working and how to take away foods & add them in, using gas & poop to ‘measure’ (use as a ‘baseline’)

it sounds so hard, but really it’s JUST TWO WEEKS – try to stay positive & think of what you CAN EAT and not what you can’t – there’s a lot of recipes and food ideas in the TED Forum…you can do it!

[Author]

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