Another reflux question - do these symptoms REALLY sound like reflux?

[etwahl]

Sorry for the continued reflux questions, but I've changed my diet for an entire week (no dairy, shellfish, nuts, citrus, or tomatoes - have been eating lots of soy though) and she's been on zantac for 2 days and not a single thing has gotten better. I know zantac takes up to a week, and I will definitely wait that long, but just wanting to prepare myself in case it doesn't help. I just want to know if this really sounds like reflux or if I need to explore eliminating further foods from my diet (like soy, wheat, and egg whites). Here are her symptoms:

1. frequent bouts of crying (actually "screaming" so much so that she often gets hoarse sounding) a lot during the day; inconsolable; seems in pain - usually doesn't happen at night though when we've retired for bed (the not happening at night seems strange to me)

2. tightens and straightens entire body - doesn't seem to be arching back, more like going hard and straight like a stick.

3. has a hard time sleeping at all or for very long during the day (usually max only 20-30; often only 5-10 minutes during the day) but does sleep 3-4 hours often at night. Even when she does "nap" she is fussing the entire time usually.

4. green, mucousy poops (this could however be due to a cold she currently has because it just started Sat)

5. she doesn't have tears yet. Well the other day I noticed one eye had tears but haven't seen the tears back yet. When she cries she doesn't have the tears.

6. She really doesn't spit up much at all. She has a little spit up occasionally but really not much.

7. Isn't comforted by me holding her or even having her upright. "Sometimes" comforted by the swing or by really loud white noise, otherwise nothing seems to comfort her.

8. Thrashes her body ALL the time -- bangs her head into my shoulder bone if she's over my shoulder; bangs my head; ALWAYS seems to be doing aerobics no matter what we're doing (feeding, changing, sleeping, etc.)

There are probably more but I can't think of them at the moment. Thanks for the continued support. Especially when I'm unable to give much back these days. Right now I am struggling to type this as I balance her on my shoulder and as she thrashes around. The way she thrashes and straightens her body, I'm so worried she's going to fling herself out of my arms one of these days.

Tammy,
Mom to Lauren Genevieve
03/12/2003

[emilyf]

Oh Tammy, I'm so sorry you're going through such a rough time- I know nothing about reflux, so can't answer that one, but one thing my ped told me and it was really true was that the peak amount of crying w/o a reason is at 6 weeks, and for us every week after that there was less and less. Charlie really did cry a lot at Lauren's age and didn't sleep much during the day. The only thing that consoled him was the boob and the swing. He did that stiff as a board thing and would really yell too. I'm sure having a cold is contributing a lot to her discomfort, but I think it's a good sign that she seems to quiet down at night. Hang in there, things will almost certainly start to get much better very soon.
Emily
mom of Charlie born 11/02

[sweetbasil]

Tammy,
I don't have much help at all, but I did seem to remember that babies don't develop tears for a while...confirmed that at the following site: http://www.ohiohealth.com/services/womenshealth/maternity/resourcecenter/infantdev.htm
"Babies don't start crying tears until they're about two months old." So it sounds like she's okay on that front.

When DS was a little guy and had problems with gas/stomach cramping, I'd sit on a couch, lay him on my lap (face up) with his head on at my knees and his legs against my stomach, and would slowly move his little legs like he was bicycling. That really seemed to help get that gas broken up and out, and calmed him down. The trick apparently worked on me when I was a screamy, colicy little baby....So since she's into the aerobic, moving-all-the time thing, then maybe she'll let you try the bicycling motion.

You girls are in my thoughts and prayers,

[twins r fun]

They don't sound UNLIKE reflux, but nothing that necessarily would have to be reflux either. Reflux doesn't necessarily involve spitting up (my boys both had it and almost never spit). The straightening could be reflux, but could be some other general discomfort also. It sounds to me like she is just being a regular newborn, sorry to say. I think all babies are pretty uncomfortable those first few months and you try EVERYTHING to fix them (diet, position, medicine, etc). In the end, it just resloves on its own as they get accustomed to life outside the womb and their digestive systems work themsleves out. It's definitely a hard period and there may be absolutely nothing wrong with Lauren except that her body is learning how to digest food and her mind and nervous system are getting used to a completely different environment.

As for the Zantac, give it some time and if you don't see a difference then discontinue. If she gets worse when you stop, them maybe it was helping and you can start up again. Both Jacob and Caleb were diagnosed with reflux by doing a pH study. Jacob never really had any true symptoms, just the normal newborn fussiness. When he took zantac, his fussiness didn't change. We could definitely tell a difference with Caleb on the Zantac, though-he slept better, didn't cry while he ate, ate more, stopped arching, could breathe better. He still had the crying fits and what seemed to be constipation/gas pains because that was unrelated to reflux and just soemthing that had to work itself out. If she's just adjusting, I know it's hard to just ride the wave, but that is really all you can do along with making her as comfortable as possible.

Nicole

[nigele]

Tammy,

Thomas has reflux which was confirmed by an overnight hospital test where they stuck a tube down his throat into his esophagus to monitor acid levels. The test was positive. He never spit up so this was really hard to diagnose. He also would pull off when feeding and straighten his body (he didn't really "arch".) He also sounded really congested at night, snored and made snorting noises (the stomach contents were pooling in his nasal passages as he was lying down.)

It sounds like she has a bad case of colic although don't rule out reflux even though she does not spit up. What is your ped saying?

[Annette_C]

Tammy,
Sorry to hear about all the trouble you and Lauren are experiencing.
I don't know about reflux since none of my kids had it but the banging of the head and the trashing of the body (as you put it) sound like symptoms of being overtired....which doesn't surprise me since she doesn't nap for you.
Did you have a chance to read Weissbluth's Happy Sleep Habits, Happy Child before Lauren was born? There are some good tips in there on getting a baby to nap better.
I'm sorry I don't have better answers for you but know that I'm thinking of you two.
Annette
SAHM to Sabrina 6/24/02

[daisymommy]

Oh Yeah! I'd say so. If she's not spitting up, then it's called "silent refluxe" (which is funny since the babies with this are not at all silent! LOL. Josh had all these symptoms, only he did spit up--ALOT. What finally made the difference for us was Zantac, and Alimentum formula, which contains broken down cow's milk protein so that the baby's body doesn't detect it as such. The doctor told me if I was breastfeeding they would eliminate dairy from my diet for 2 weeks to see if that made a difference.
Dr. Sears (whom I love) says that colic is just a 5 letter word meaning "Your baby is hurting and doctors don't know why." He says that when babies come in with colic symptoms to see him, he assumes that they have reflux, and/or a protein intolerance, until proven otherwise. I would also definetly check out his Baby Book (Fussy Baby Chapter), and The Happiest Baby on the Block (which was also a HUGE lifesaver for us).
I hate to say it, but the old addage--they'll outgrow around three months is so true. One week before he turned 3 months, it was like someone flipped a switch in Josh, adn he turned into a normal happy baby. Aaaah, sweet relief. Feel free to email me fro more help adn info!

[jlazx2]

Jenn