Over winter break, we attempted to drop one dose of prevacid for Sam and Anna's reflux, to just one dose a day for each of them. Earlier in December we successfully dropped the third dose that they had been taking since the acid reflux got under control last summer and so I was hopeful that it would be the beginning of the end of dispensing medication via syringe 6 total times a day. Unfortunately, it didn't take long before Sam and Anna were spitting up lots of formula again, and it didn't take long for the bottle refusing to pick back up either. That old but very familiar frustration and worry about bottle feeding and weight gain came flooding back and I most definitely don't want to be in that place ever again, so we quickly went back to 2 times a day again.
It was disappointing that it didn't work because I had fantasies that we could finally put the reflux and feeding issues behind us for good. It also made me realize that I am not going to be willing to risk the return of uncontrolled reflux and everything that comes with it again for a long time, this time. It will be awhile before we take the plunge to try to drop a dose again.
Failure #2: At the new year, I had declared that Sam and Anna's New Year Resolution was going to be to stop using pacifiers, and, well... basically- I'm a wuss. First it was delayed because we had company and it wouldn't be polite to let your babies cry it out with guests in the house, you know? Then Sam and Anna got their second colds which seemed to hang around forever. I just couldn't take away a comfort item when they were feeling crummy. They also went back to daycare after almost two weeks at home and I thought waiting until after that transition would be better. Then my husband was out of town for work and like hell I was going to potentially endure sleep issues voluntarily by myself. Then the excuses got a little weaker- "Anna's more fussy than usual, maybe she's teething." "Sam seems to have amped up the separation anxiety- we can't take the pacifier away now."
Now here we are mid-January already and we haven't even attempted a night without the pacifiers. It doesn't look promising we'll try anytime soon, either, because my husband's next work trip starts on Monday. Eh- I'm not worried. We just used the New Year Resolution as a way to make it fun for us and give us a start date. Plus, I haven't had a kindergartner yet that still used one and I'm pretty sure my two won't be the first!
Showing posts with label reflux hell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reflux hell. Show all posts
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Growing Up and Letting Go
We're in a time of rapid changes. They both have one tooth at last. Sam and Anna are crawling all over the house, and making me fear the day they both are walking all over. Sam is pulling up/climbing on everything in sight, cruising the furniture and doesn't want to sit or be held still for a second. They interact for longer periods of time while playing together - hearing them laugh at each other's antics is one of the best perks of twins. I will have to imprint these memories in my brain to recall when toy stealing and temper tantrums punctuate their playing together more often than giggles.
Both are adding words to their vocabulary- they will say Mama and Dada, and repeat some words we say. Anna's first and most frequent word to say independently is "Bella" while Sam's is "Anna." Anna has learned how to drop food off of her tray to feed Bella. While I miss the days when this was purely accidental, it is cute (right now) to hear her call "Bella" and then uncurl her tiny fist to drop a yummy goodness from the heavens (as far as our dog is concerned) into a waiting mouth. Both babies are starting to show an increasing disinterest in eating "baby food" i.e., the pureed stuff, so our plan is to start moving towards 100% table food once daycare starts back up again next week. I am concerned that they won't be eating enough once we do that since their weight has never had any "wiggle room," but I think it is a step that Sam and Anna seem to be ready to take.
When Sam and Anna hit 9 months, we finally stopped tracking every single bottle amount throughout the day (anal of me, I know- but soooo hard to keep track for two babies at the same time when eating enough has always been one of our biggest concerns). Now this week, we are attempting to wean them off of their 3 doses a day of Prevacid (via Buffer Babies) to see if they have outgrown their severe GERD. To say that this has make me scared is an understatement. I never want to relive the days of uncontrolled reflux for two babies at the same time ever again. But I know that if we are ever to finally move on from their reflux, we need to be willing to see if the medicine is not needed any more. We successfully dropped one dose, and are now attempting to drop another. If all goes well, we'll try to stop the final dose soon, as well.
Sam is now too tall/big for quite a bit of his 9 month clothing. This is the first time that some baby clothes are too small to come in his size. This is somewhat of a milestone to me, because for so long I could pick out anything in the baby departments and it would come in his size. I want to know, though, why is it that it is so hard to find lots of footie pj options for 12 month + sizes? Why all of a sudden do the pjs come without feet at 12 months+? It's not like I can cover him with a blanket yet. While our babies sleep in sleep sacks, I still wonder if his feet will be warm enough at night without the footie pjs this winter. I wonder if I should put socks on his feet when he's wearing footless pjs?
We decided that Sam and Anna's New Year Resolution is to give up their pacifiers for good. The AAP recommends not using them after 6 months, but since our babies didn't have any teeth until this month, I figured it couldn't possibly mess up their bite. They've never been hugely dependent on them- we have just used pacifiers to make bedtimes and naptimes easier to transition to sleep. They haven't used pacifiers at daycare at all. Recently, pacifiers seem to be something that they are more interested in at any time of the day whenever they catch a glimpse of one, so we figure now is a good time to toss 'em, before they get too attached. I definitely don't want 2 year olds walking around with plugs in their mouths! I don't think it will be that big of a deal to them- I just hope that they don't decide a thumb is the new alternative.
Both are adding words to their vocabulary- they will say Mama and Dada, and repeat some words we say. Anna's first and most frequent word to say independently is "Bella" while Sam's is "Anna." Anna has learned how to drop food off of her tray to feed Bella. While I miss the days when this was purely accidental, it is cute (right now) to hear her call "Bella" and then uncurl her tiny fist to drop a yummy goodness from the heavens (as far as our dog is concerned) into a waiting mouth. Both babies are starting to show an increasing disinterest in eating "baby food" i.e., the pureed stuff, so our plan is to start moving towards 100% table food once daycare starts back up again next week. I am concerned that they won't be eating enough once we do that since their weight has never had any "wiggle room," but I think it is a step that Sam and Anna seem to be ready to take.
When Sam and Anna hit 9 months, we finally stopped tracking every single bottle amount throughout the day (anal of me, I know- but soooo hard to keep track for two babies at the same time when eating enough has always been one of our biggest concerns). Now this week, we are attempting to wean them off of their 3 doses a day of Prevacid (via Buffer Babies) to see if they have outgrown their severe GERD. To say that this has make me scared is an understatement. I never want to relive the days of uncontrolled reflux for two babies at the same time ever again. But I know that if we are ever to finally move on from their reflux, we need to be willing to see if the medicine is not needed any more. We successfully dropped one dose, and are now attempting to drop another. If all goes well, we'll try to stop the final dose soon, as well.
Sam is now too tall/big for quite a bit of his 9 month clothing. This is the first time that some baby clothes are too small to come in his size. This is somewhat of a milestone to me, because for so long I could pick out anything in the baby departments and it would come in his size. I want to know, though, why is it that it is so hard to find lots of footie pj options for 12 month + sizes? Why all of a sudden do the pjs come without feet at 12 months+? It's not like I can cover him with a blanket yet. While our babies sleep in sleep sacks, I still wonder if his feet will be warm enough at night without the footie pjs this winter. I wonder if I should put socks on his feet when he's wearing footless pjs?
We decided that Sam and Anna's New Year Resolution is to give up their pacifiers for good. The AAP recommends not using them after 6 months, but since our babies didn't have any teeth until this month, I figured it couldn't possibly mess up their bite. They've never been hugely dependent on them- we have just used pacifiers to make bedtimes and naptimes easier to transition to sleep. They haven't used pacifiers at daycare at all. Recently, pacifiers seem to be something that they are more interested in at any time of the day whenever they catch a glimpse of one, so we figure now is a good time to toss 'em, before they get too attached. I definitely don't want 2 year olds walking around with plugs in their mouths! I don't think it will be that big of a deal to them- I just hope that they don't decide a thumb is the new alternative.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Updates
Benelli (our dog): There seems to have been a little bit less bleeding in the last few days. The tumor has most definitely regrown in his mouth, but I am taking the decrease in blood as a good sign. He will be 8 years old on Friday- I see some special birthday treats in his future. :)
Swaddling: Nights 1 and 2 were rough. Our former 11-12 hour sleeper Anna was awake every hour crying and needed major soothing to get back to sleep. We had every intention of sticking it out, thinking that we were in for 3 days of hell, but I just couldn't do a third night for her. It is just obvious to me that she's not ready. I couldn't survive taking care of twins after three nights in a row of only about 3 hours of sleep either (how did we do it in the early days???). Sam, on the other hand, didn't seem fazed by the new sleeping arrangements at all. Even though his arms were free from the bondage of the miracle blanket, he slept fairly well- when his sister's frantic cries didn't wake him up. On the third night, we gave in after a few hours and re-swaddled Anna (I swear, she almost sighed in relief- or was that me?) and then slept soundly the rest of the night but left Sam in a sleep sack, and he did fine. So for now, Sam's all done with the miracle blanket but Anna's still there. We'll try again in a few weeks.
Eating/Weight Gain/That Damn Reflux: Sam and Anna have been eating a little better, and Anna gained 4 oz in a week, so that is encouraging. Sam, however, lost an ounce in the same week. I swear, they both can't just do well at something (anything) at the same time. Whether it is eating, sleeping, gaining weight, or whatever. I suspect they have a powwow in the middle of the night and plot ways to keep us on our toes!
Swaddling: Nights 1 and 2 were rough. Our former 11-12 hour sleeper Anna was awake every hour crying and needed major soothing to get back to sleep. We had every intention of sticking it out, thinking that we were in for 3 days of hell, but I just couldn't do a third night for her. It is just obvious to me that she's not ready. I couldn't survive taking care of twins after three nights in a row of only about 3 hours of sleep either (how did we do it in the early days???). Sam, on the other hand, didn't seem fazed by the new sleeping arrangements at all. Even though his arms were free from the bondage of the miracle blanket, he slept fairly well- when his sister's frantic cries didn't wake him up. On the third night, we gave in after a few hours and re-swaddled Anna (I swear, she almost sighed in relief- or was that me?) and then slept soundly the rest of the night but left Sam in a sleep sack, and he did fine. So for now, Sam's all done with the miracle blanket but Anna's still there. We'll try again in a few weeks.
Eating/Weight Gain/That Damn Reflux: Sam and Anna have been eating a little better, and Anna gained 4 oz in a week, so that is encouraging. Sam, however, lost an ounce in the same week. I swear, they both can't just do well at something (anything) at the same time. Whether it is eating, sleeping, gaining weight, or whatever. I suspect they have a powwow in the middle of the night and plot ways to keep us on our toes!
Sunday, July 25, 2010
The Things I Do For My Babies
Y'all- I don't cook. I worked out a handy (and smart, if I must say so myself) agreement with my husband long before the rings were put on that he'd do all the cooking at our house. He's in charge of the kitchen and pretty much everything that has to do with it. In return for his cooking, kitchen cleaning, dish washing and bottle making, I don't say a word when the kitchen is less tidy and clean than I would personally like it to be. He's an excellent cook, loves experimenting with food and has even reformed me from a very picky eater to a person who loves Indian, Thai, and sushi, among other foods.
Since we've been married for over 7 years, it's been a long time since I've cooked regularly. Let me tell you- when it comes to cooking, if you don't practice, you do forget how to do it; at least how to do it well. I used to be okay in the kitchen- now I have been known to even mess up mac and cheese.
Now knowing all that, it should surprise you that I decided making/cooking baby food would be something I wanted to take on.
For a baby shower gift, we got a electric baby food mill, baby food storage cubes, and baby food cookbooks. I did not register for these, and at the time, I thought: seriously? The gift giver (my MIL, who taught my dear husband how to cook- but that's enough blog fodder for another post entirely) thinks that with twins I'll have time to make baby food? Now that the babies have been here for a while, I may be singing a different tune. Maybe I won't have time to make all the baby food my little ones will eat, but I think it will be a nice effort to make what I can. It will be more nutritious for them, and less expensive. And after paging through the baby food cookbooks- it looked fairly easy and not all that time consuming. So tonight, I attempted making our first batch of homemade baby food.
I settled on carrots for a few reasons: "Yellow" veggies are typically recommended first, after rice cereal. It was a toss up between carrots and sweet potatoes, until I read that the proteins in sweet potatoes are harder to digest and then I read that carrots are one food that is suggested to be organic. Since the formula that has worked best for Sam and Anna has partially broken down proteins (and people, we've tried 5 different kinds of formula before we finally settled on this one), I was worried that the proteins in the sweet potatoes might cause problems if we attempt that first. So carrots, it was.
Now you won't see any pictures for a while of Sam and Anna enjoying the pureed carrots (although I tasted them and thought they were yummy) because we haven't actually started solid foods yet. I froze the pureed carrots, which will be fine for 6 weeks-2 months. We're waiting until closer to 6 months to begin our adventures into solid food. Call me crazy (and I'm sure this is atypical first-time-mom behavior) but I'm really not that excited to start this stage. It's not because I want my little ones to stay "babies," it's partly because feeding them formula is still a huge challenge for us daily. It takes a lot of work to get in as many ounces as they get a day, which is still not as much as they should (damn reflux and oral issues). I'm dragging my feet on adding another eating challenge into our day.
I'm also not enthused about starting solids because some foods can cause reflux flare-ups in babies that have reflux. It varies so much from baby to baby, that we won't know the foods that will cause a reflux flare-up until we try them. For that reason, babies that suffer from reflux need to be introduced foods much more cautiously and slowly than a typical baby.
Honestly, I'm scared of having more trouble with reflux. With every food we try, I'm going to be nervous that my babies will be miserable for days afterwards. I think that may be a subconscious reason why I thought to give making baby food a try: to have some control over the uncertainty that solids will be for us. And maybe even to try to drum up some enthusiasm for the milestone event that is just around the corner. I promise I'll post pictures when that day arrives. :)
Since we've been married for over 7 years, it's been a long time since I've cooked regularly. Let me tell you- when it comes to cooking, if you don't practice, you do forget how to do it; at least how to do it well. I used to be okay in the kitchen- now I have been known to even mess up mac and cheese.
Now knowing all that, it should surprise you that I decided making/cooking baby food would be something I wanted to take on.
For a baby shower gift, we got a electric baby food mill, baby food storage cubes, and baby food cookbooks. I did not register for these, and at the time, I thought: seriously? The gift giver (my MIL, who taught my dear husband how to cook- but that's enough blog fodder for another post entirely) thinks that with twins I'll have time to make baby food? Now that the babies have been here for a while, I may be singing a different tune. Maybe I won't have time to make all the baby food my little ones will eat, but I think it will be a nice effort to make what I can. It will be more nutritious for them, and less expensive. And after paging through the baby food cookbooks- it looked fairly easy and not all that time consuming. So tonight, I attempted making our first batch of homemade baby food.
I settled on carrots for a few reasons: "Yellow" veggies are typically recommended first, after rice cereal. It was a toss up between carrots and sweet potatoes, until I read that the proteins in sweet potatoes are harder to digest and then I read that carrots are one food that is suggested to be organic. Since the formula that has worked best for Sam and Anna has partially broken down proteins (and people, we've tried 5 different kinds of formula before we finally settled on this one), I was worried that the proteins in the sweet potatoes might cause problems if we attempt that first. So carrots, it was.
Now you won't see any pictures for a while of Sam and Anna enjoying the pureed carrots (although I tasted them and thought they were yummy) because we haven't actually started solid foods yet. I froze the pureed carrots, which will be fine for 6 weeks-2 months. We're waiting until closer to 6 months to begin our adventures into solid food. Call me crazy (and I'm sure this is atypical first-time-mom behavior) but I'm really not that excited to start this stage. It's not because I want my little ones to stay "babies," it's partly because feeding them formula is still a huge challenge for us daily. It takes a lot of work to get in as many ounces as they get a day, which is still not as much as they should (damn reflux and oral issues). I'm dragging my feet on adding another eating challenge into our day.
I'm also not enthused about starting solids because some foods can cause reflux flare-ups in babies that have reflux. It varies so much from baby to baby, that we won't know the foods that will cause a reflux flare-up until we try them. For that reason, babies that suffer from reflux need to be introduced foods much more cautiously and slowly than a typical baby.
Honestly, I'm scared of having more trouble with reflux. With every food we try, I'm going to be nervous that my babies will be miserable for days afterwards. I think that may be a subconscious reason why I thought to give making baby food a try: to have some control over the uncertainty that solids will be for us. And maybe even to try to drum up some enthusiasm for the milestone event that is just around the corner. I promise I'll post pictures when that day arrives. :)
Friday, June 25, 2010
We're Off To See the Wizard...
We're off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz...
That's what I felt like when we hit the road Wednesday and headed for the GI specialist. I was crossing my fingers for him to grant me what I wanted most of all: appropriate medication for my twins to completely control their reflux and make them act like typical babies, rather than the kind that don't eat enough, refuse bottles, cry in pain from spitting up, and sleep poorly.
I had to go alone because my husband has a major deadline at work right now. So I packed up the kids and made the hour long drive there by myself. (This is not an easy task when you're outnumbered by infants that don't like carrides) We survived that with minimal issues and then hunkered down in the waiting room. And we waited. And we continued waiting for an hour and 15 minutes; just me and my two 3 1/2 month old babies in the waiting room. We talked, we read, we played with toys, we watched the fish in the fish tank, we took a few strolls around the room. They were getting pretty sick of sitting in their carseats by that point, but we still had to meet the doc and make the return hour-long trip home.
Once we finally got called back, the GI specialist was fantastic. I think he felt badly that he was so far behind that I had to wait that long. He listened very attentively to all the notes I had written about Sam and Anna's reflux history so far. He even asked to hold both babies and soothed them when they got fussy. Picture a very grandpa-like man, with a quiet gentle voice. The short version of chatting with him for an hour and a half is that he is totally agreeable to the amount of prevacid we are giving the babies right now (which their pedi was not). He is completely fine with using Buffer Babies to administer it.
He also agreed with my conclusion that Sam and Anna probably don't have a milk/soy protein intolerance because they don't have most of the signs, and that being on the uber expensive Alimentum is probably not needed. He suggested trying out a regular formula once the prevacid seems to have regulated their reflux and see how that goes. He also thought that the reason they are still not eating a lot (although they aren't refusing anymore) may be because Alimentum doesn't taste the best. He told me to taste it and see what I thought. I told him I'd rather not, because I've smelled it and that's good enough for me!
The GI doc also asked if we wanted some cans of Alimentum to make the trip worth our while to tide us over until we try the switch (which of course I said yes to). So he asked the nurse to bag up as many cans as she could find. The bag held 13 cans- which would probably cost over $160 dollars if we bought a comparable amount. She said to call if the babies end up staying on the Alimentum, because she'd contact the sales rep and have him give us a full case of it. His nurse even carried it to my vehicle in the parking lot for me, since my "hands were full enough."
Sure, I left after 6 pm and still had to make the hour long drive home with cranky babies- but the trip was definitely worth it to get validation that what we are doing (against my pedi) is what's best for our babies. I hope we don't have to see him again (because that means the reflux isn't under control and the next step would be invasive testing), but if we do, at least he's great to work with!
That's what I felt like when we hit the road Wednesday and headed for the GI specialist. I was crossing my fingers for him to grant me what I wanted most of all: appropriate medication for my twins to completely control their reflux and make them act like typical babies, rather than the kind that don't eat enough, refuse bottles, cry in pain from spitting up, and sleep poorly.
I had to go alone because my husband has a major deadline at work right now. So I packed up the kids and made the hour long drive there by myself. (This is not an easy task when you're outnumbered by infants that don't like carrides) We survived that with minimal issues and then hunkered down in the waiting room. And we waited. And we continued waiting for an hour and 15 minutes; just me and my two 3 1/2 month old babies in the waiting room. We talked, we read, we played with toys, we watched the fish in the fish tank, we took a few strolls around the room. They were getting pretty sick of sitting in their carseats by that point, but we still had to meet the doc and make the return hour-long trip home.
Once we finally got called back, the GI specialist was fantastic. I think he felt badly that he was so far behind that I had to wait that long. He listened very attentively to all the notes I had written about Sam and Anna's reflux history so far. He even asked to hold both babies and soothed them when they got fussy. Picture a very grandpa-like man, with a quiet gentle voice. The short version of chatting with him for an hour and a half is that he is totally agreeable to the amount of prevacid we are giving the babies right now (which their pedi was not). He is completely fine with using Buffer Babies to administer it.
He also agreed with my conclusion that Sam and Anna probably don't have a milk/soy protein intolerance because they don't have most of the signs, and that being on the uber expensive Alimentum is probably not needed. He suggested trying out a regular formula once the prevacid seems to have regulated their reflux and see how that goes. He also thought that the reason they are still not eating a lot (although they aren't refusing anymore) may be because Alimentum doesn't taste the best. He told me to taste it and see what I thought. I told him I'd rather not, because I've smelled it and that's good enough for me!
The GI doc also asked if we wanted some cans of Alimentum to make the trip worth our while to tide us over until we try the switch (which of course I said yes to). So he asked the nurse to bag up as many cans as she could find. The bag held 13 cans- which would probably cost over $160 dollars if we bought a comparable amount. She said to call if the babies end up staying on the Alimentum, because she'd contact the sales rep and have him give us a full case of it. His nurse even carried it to my vehicle in the parking lot for me, since my "hands were full enough."
Sure, I left after 6 pm and still had to make the hour long drive home with cranky babies- but the trip was definitely worth it to get validation that what we are doing (against my pedi) is what's best for our babies. I hope we don't have to see him again (because that means the reflux isn't under control and the next step would be invasive testing), but if we do, at least he's great to work with!
Monday, June 14, 2010
Spoke Too Soon
Darn it, I should have known better. We're back at ground zero. While they are eating better, sleep is now practically non-exisitent- for both them and us. Last night I was awake around 12, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and up at 6:30 am for good. I miss my babies who at least took 30-45 minute naps and my great night sleeper Anna who STTN at around 6 weeks old.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Momma Knows Best
The reflux thing has gotten better, and we are slooooowly inching our way out of Reflux Hell (for the third time, mind you). My mom came to visit and help this weekend because my husband had to go into work on Saturday(since he's under major deadlines right now) and one more day soloing it was pretty much not possible given our status this week.
We switched the Rx Prevacid Solutab dose to before Sam and Anna's morning bottle, and both babies have begun drinking their first bottles much better. I began giving one OTC Prevacid dose (same 7.5 mg) in the middle of the day before their third bottle. It seems like each dose helps Sam and Anna drink well without refluxing for two bottles after they get the medicine. Here's how I know this: by the time we got to their last bottle of the day, all bets are off and my poor babies have been refluxing so badly they hardly drink at all and we spend hours trying to get hysterical babies to go to bed.
Gee, you think they need three doses of 7.5 mg Prevacid each a day to manage their reflux??? Our pediatrician might not know what my babies need, but I sure do!
We never had this problem with bedtime before, because we originally gave the one dose of Prevacid right before their bedtime bottle. It is so easy to tell that the Prevacid wears off, it makes me even more unhappy with our pediatrician that she won't prescribe the amount they need to manage the reflux successfully. But it also makes me very happy that I think we have found out what we need to do to make things better. So I added in the third dose of 7.5 mg and bedtime is smooth sailing again. Now Sam and Anna are back to drinking 5 oz each bottle and their weight is back to going up in an appropriate increase. Since they were weighed twice this week, we learned that Anna gained 4 oz in 2 days. This compares to the 1 oz she gained in 7 days the week before.
I'll admit, it is a HUGE pain to give the Prevacid 30 minutes before eating via a syringe three times a day. But it is a huge pain I'll happily experience to make my babies happier and healthier.
We switched the Rx Prevacid Solutab dose to before Sam and Anna's morning bottle, and both babies have begun drinking their first bottles much better. I began giving one OTC Prevacid dose (same 7.5 mg) in the middle of the day before their third bottle. It seems like each dose helps Sam and Anna drink well without refluxing for two bottles after they get the medicine. Here's how I know this: by the time we got to their last bottle of the day, all bets are off and my poor babies have been refluxing so badly they hardly drink at all and we spend hours trying to get hysterical babies to go to bed.
Gee, you think they need three doses of 7.5 mg Prevacid each a day to manage their reflux??? Our pediatrician might not know what my babies need, but I sure do!
We never had this problem with bedtime before, because we originally gave the one dose of Prevacid right before their bedtime bottle. It is so easy to tell that the Prevacid wears off, it makes me even more unhappy with our pediatrician that she won't prescribe the amount they need to manage the reflux successfully. But it also makes me very happy that I think we have found out what we need to do to make things better. So I added in the third dose of 7.5 mg and bedtime is smooth sailing again. Now Sam and Anna are back to drinking 5 oz each bottle and their weight is back to going up in an appropriate increase. Since they were weighed twice this week, we learned that Anna gained 4 oz in 2 days. This compares to the 1 oz she gained in 7 days the week before.
I'll admit, it is a HUGE pain to give the Prevacid 30 minutes before eating via a syringe three times a day. But it is a huge pain I'll happily experience to make my babies happier and healthier.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Reflux Update- *More Added
Yes, the twins are now 3 months old, but for today I'm just not feeling a celebratory post. I'll aim for their 3 month post tomorrow, complete with a cute picture, because hey- you can still be miserable and cute at the same time!
We got into our pediatrician today (Although I did get a call from her nurse saying that an appointment was not needed since the suggestion was to keep trying the Nutramigen formula for another week. I argued that I thought it necessary we meet with pedi, so we kept the appointment.). The short version is that she agreed that Sam and Anna have been worse on the Nutramigen (Now refusing just about every bottle from the get-go. We can only get them to eat a solid amount of 3-4 oz when they are sleepy and ready for a nap). And we don't have to suffer through 2 weeks of "trying" the Nutramigen. However, her suggestion was to switch to Alimentum- basically the same thing (a hypoallergenic formula), different brand (Similac instead of Enfamil). She would not agree to increasing the prevacid amount, reinterating that she's never perscribed more than 7.5 mg daily. I even told her I knew several people who were on more and showed her printed out research I had done, and no go. I STILL don't think Sam and Anna have a milk/soy protein intolerance, which would make the Alimentum pointless. Our pedi wants us to do that because its the protocol the GI specialist wants before a referral is made.
Thanks to the Reflux Rebels group on babycenter.com, I decided to take matters into our own hands. Let's face it- I doubt the Alimentum is going to be the answer, since it is so obvious to me that they need more prevacid daily. We are going to give them OTC prevacid for two doses a day, and the Rx prevacid for one dose a day, for a total of 22.5 mg a day, as recommended from the Midwest Acid Reflux Children's Institute for their age/weight.
Our pedi did say their recent weight gain is borderline, but they are still doing okay because they gained well before this reflux flare up. She mentioned the possibility of admitting them to the hospital if we wanted to for extra help with them, since she at least understands the magnitude of trying to bottle feed two infants that are refusing the bottle by myself for 10 hours a day. We are obviously not going to do that, because having two babies in the hospital is not going to be less stressful for me than going at it alone during the day, among other reasons. My mom is coming out this weekend to help us, since my husband has a lot on his plate at work right now and needs to g into work this weekend. That will help.
We did get a referral to a GI specialist and have a consult appointment in two weeks. They said they would not make any changes before doing a PH probe on both Sam and Anna though... which they cannot get us in to until the end of July. Ridiculous. Although, again, I don't think there is something else wrong here, I just think my children need more medication!
So please cross your fingers that our plan to take matters into our own hands is the right path for us to take. I feel like our history of me getting prescribed Clomid for our difficulties TTC for months without any appropriate testing for what ended up to be MFI (making Clomid for me pointless) maybe happened for a reason... so that I would see beyond what our pedi is suggesting we do and be proactive in doing what's best for our children.
-------------------------------------------------
*After reading the 7 comments so far, I thought I had typed this clearly enough, but I'll explain a little more thoroughly: I wrote that we would give the 22.5 mg/daily - meaning spread out in 3 doses of 7.5 mg each. The site I linked to explained that babies metabolize 2-3 times faster than adults, so by giving 7.5 mg in one dose a day, it is doing next to nothing for most of the day. For those of you that give 15 mg- do you give it in one or two doses? If you give it in 2 doses, when during the day? I would be willing to start at 15 mg first (two doses a day at 7.5 mg each) and see how that goes before adding in a third daily dose, but I'm not sure how I'd spread it out. Please comment asap so I can attempt this today!
From what I read, you shouldn't give a dose after 6 pm, because acid production is very low at night (due to our genetic coding) and it would pointless to give it then. This also explains why my babies sleep well at night, but so badly during the day. This is why we switched the Rx prevacid to am, because we had been giving it before their bedtime bottle. So far, their bottle after that this morning was relatively good- both drinking 3 oz before refusing. They drank 2 more oz while they were sleepy before their nap. (It bothers me that we are no longer following the Wake/Eat/Play or EASY, but we gotta do what we can to get them to eat more at this point.) Big step when yesterday morning they wouldn't drink more than 1/2 oz when they woke up- even though it had been many hours since they last ate. So yay that is is only 8 am and they've both already drank 5 oz. Small victories at this point.
Cut and pasted info FYI:
(From a GI doctor) [Prevacid] SoluTab and any of the delayed release PPIs (the type of drug prevacid is) do not work at nighttime very well. Let me clarify, from 9 pm till about 2 am there is very little acid production (this is because of ancient genetic encoding). Ate the evening meal while day light 6pm or so, then go to sleep (then acid kicks in in early am (~2 am to 6 am) to kill any bacteria that were ingested). This remnant genetic predisposition is still with us. What do PPIs require to work??? (Answer: Actively secreting acid pumps). How long is the PPI in your babies system? (for approx 120 minutes after you give it). If the acid pumps (proton pumps) are not on during that time period then acid will not be blocked.
Is it possible to give too much PPI?
The short answer is no. Fortunately, PPI drugs are very specific in where they work in the
body. They are only active in a very specific place – that is the acid secreting cell,
parietal cell. Since PPI drugs only work on the acid secreting cell the chance of side
effects is very, very low–even if you give 3 times more than your child needs. In fact, PPI
drugs are known as prodrugs because they are not active as they pass through the body.
PPIs become active only when they pass into the acid secreting cell where the pH drops
to less than 3.
Clinical studies showing that higher PPI doses are required to achieve healing in
pediatric patients:
Gunasekaran TS, Hassall EG. Efficacy and safety of omeprazole for severe
gastroesophageal reflux in children. The Journal of Pediatrics 1993;123:148154.
Hassall E, Israel D, Shepherd R, et al. Omeprazole for treatment of chronic erosive
esophagitis in children: a multicenter study of efficacy, safety, tolerability and dose
requirements. The Journal of Pediatrics 2000; 137:800807.
Iarocci TP, Tan H, Singer, J, Barron J, Pilzer E, Patel D, Bakst A. Proton pump inhibitors
in infants. [Abstract] American Journal of Gastroenterology. 2005;100 (suppl.):S273.
Reviews of PPI use in children: pharmacokinetics, safety, efficacy, and dosing
information:
Israel DM, Hassall E. Omeprazole and other proton pump inhibitors: pharmacology,
efficacy, safety, with special reference to use in children. Journal of Pediatric
Gastroenterology and Nutrition. 1998; 27:568579.
(Specifically states that on a per kilogram (weight) basis, children require higher doses of
omeprazole than adults due to different pharmacokinetics of omeprazole in children.
Discusses at length the use of buffered PPI suspensions in children as a preferred dosage
form.)
Clinical study of pharmacokinetics of omeprazole in children:
Andersson T, Hassall E, Lundborg P, et al. Pharmacokinetics of orally administered
omeprazole in children. American Journal of Gastroenterology 2000; 95:31013106.
(Pharmacokinetic study showing the relationship between lower age and higher dosing
requirments in pediatric patients: younger children require higher and/or more frequent
doses due to shorter PPI halflife.)
We got into our pediatrician today (Although I did get a call from her nurse saying that an appointment was not needed since the suggestion was to keep trying the Nutramigen formula for another week. I argued that I thought it necessary we meet with pedi, so we kept the appointment.). The short version is that she agreed that Sam and Anna have been worse on the Nutramigen (Now refusing just about every bottle from the get-go. We can only get them to eat a solid amount of 3-4 oz when they are sleepy and ready for a nap). And we don't have to suffer through 2 weeks of "trying" the Nutramigen. However, her suggestion was to switch to Alimentum- basically the same thing (a hypoallergenic formula), different brand (Similac instead of Enfamil). She would not agree to increasing the prevacid amount, reinterating that she's never perscribed more than 7.5 mg daily. I even told her I knew several people who were on more and showed her printed out research I had done, and no go. I STILL don't think Sam and Anna have a milk/soy protein intolerance, which would make the Alimentum pointless. Our pedi wants us to do that because its the protocol the GI specialist wants before a referral is made.
Thanks to the Reflux Rebels group on babycenter.com, I decided to take matters into our own hands. Let's face it- I doubt the Alimentum is going to be the answer, since it is so obvious to me that they need more prevacid daily. We are going to give them OTC prevacid for two doses a day, and the Rx prevacid for one dose a day, for a total of 22.5 mg a day, as recommended from the Midwest Acid Reflux Children's Institute for their age/weight.
Our pedi did say their recent weight gain is borderline, but they are still doing okay because they gained well before this reflux flare up. She mentioned the possibility of admitting them to the hospital if we wanted to for extra help with them, since she at least understands the magnitude of trying to bottle feed two infants that are refusing the bottle by myself for 10 hours a day. We are obviously not going to do that, because having two babies in the hospital is not going to be less stressful for me than going at it alone during the day, among other reasons. My mom is coming out this weekend to help us, since my husband has a lot on his plate at work right now and needs to g into work this weekend. That will help.
We did get a referral to a GI specialist and have a consult appointment in two weeks. They said they would not make any changes before doing a PH probe on both Sam and Anna though... which they cannot get us in to until the end of July. Ridiculous. Although, again, I don't think there is something else wrong here, I just think my children need more medication!
So please cross your fingers that our plan to take matters into our own hands is the right path for us to take. I feel like our history of me getting prescribed Clomid for our difficulties TTC for months without any appropriate testing for what ended up to be MFI (making Clomid for me pointless) maybe happened for a reason... so that I would see beyond what our pedi is suggesting we do and be proactive in doing what's best for our children.
-------------------------------------------------
*After reading the 7 comments so far, I thought I had typed this clearly enough, but I'll explain a little more thoroughly: I wrote that we would give the 22.5 mg/daily - meaning spread out in 3 doses of 7.5 mg each. The site I linked to explained that babies metabolize 2-3 times faster than adults, so by giving 7.5 mg in one dose a day, it is doing next to nothing for most of the day. For those of you that give 15 mg- do you give it in one or two doses? If you give it in 2 doses, when during the day? I would be willing to start at 15 mg first (two doses a day at 7.5 mg each) and see how that goes before adding in a third daily dose, but I'm not sure how I'd spread it out. Please comment asap so I can attempt this today!
From what I read, you shouldn't give a dose after 6 pm, because acid production is very low at night (due to our genetic coding) and it would pointless to give it then. This also explains why my babies sleep well at night, but so badly during the day. This is why we switched the Rx prevacid to am, because we had been giving it before their bedtime bottle. So far, their bottle after that this morning was relatively good- both drinking 3 oz before refusing. They drank 2 more oz while they were sleepy before their nap. (It bothers me that we are no longer following the Wake/Eat/Play or EASY, but we gotta do what we can to get them to eat more at this point.) Big step when yesterday morning they wouldn't drink more than 1/2 oz when they woke up- even though it had been many hours since they last ate. So yay that is is only 8 am and they've both already drank 5 oz. Small victories at this point.
Cut and pasted info FYI:
(From a GI doctor) [Prevacid] SoluTab and any of the delayed release PPIs (the type of drug prevacid is) do not work at nighttime very well. Let me clarify, from 9 pm till about 2 am there is very little acid production (this is because of ancient genetic encoding). Ate the evening meal while day light 6pm or so, then go to sleep (then acid kicks in in early am (~2 am to 6 am) to kill any bacteria that were ingested). This remnant genetic predisposition is still with us. What do PPIs require to work??? (Answer: Actively secreting acid pumps). How long is the PPI in your babies system? (for approx 120 minutes after you give it). If the acid pumps (proton pumps) are not on during that time period then acid will not be blocked.
Is it possible to give too much PPI?
The short answer is no. Fortunately, PPI drugs are very specific in where they work in the
body. They are only active in a very specific place – that is the acid secreting cell,
parietal cell. Since PPI drugs only work on the acid secreting cell the chance of side
effects is very, very low–even if you give 3 times more than your child needs. In fact, PPI
drugs are known as prodrugs because they are not active as they pass through the body.
PPIs become active only when they pass into the acid secreting cell where the pH drops
to less than 3.
Clinical studies showing that higher PPI doses are required to achieve healing in
pediatric patients:
Gunasekaran TS, Hassall EG. Efficacy and safety of omeprazole for severe
gastroesophageal reflux in children. The Journal of Pediatrics 1993;123:148154.
Hassall E, Israel D, Shepherd R, et al. Omeprazole for treatment of chronic erosive
esophagitis in children: a multicenter study of efficacy, safety, tolerability and dose
requirements. The Journal of Pediatrics 2000; 137:800807.
Iarocci TP, Tan H, Singer, J, Barron J, Pilzer E, Patel D, Bakst A. Proton pump inhibitors
in infants. [Abstract] American Journal of Gastroenterology. 2005;100 (suppl.):S273.
Reviews of PPI use in children: pharmacokinetics, safety, efficacy, and dosing
information:
Israel DM, Hassall E. Omeprazole and other proton pump inhibitors: pharmacology,
efficacy, safety, with special reference to use in children. Journal of Pediatric
Gastroenterology and Nutrition. 1998; 27:568579.
(Specifically states that on a per kilogram (weight) basis, children require higher doses of
omeprazole than adults due to different pharmacokinetics of omeprazole in children.
Discusses at length the use of buffered PPI suspensions in children as a preferred dosage
form.)
Clinical study of pharmacokinetics of omeprazole in children:
Andersson T, Hassall E, Lundborg P, et al. Pharmacokinetics of orally administered
omeprazole in children. American Journal of Gastroenterology 2000; 95:31013106.
(Pharmacokinetic study showing the relationship between lower age and higher dosing
requirments in pediatric patients: younger children require higher and/or more frequent
doses due to shorter PPI halflife.)
Monday, June 7, 2010
Current Score- Reflux: 2, Me: 0
If you've noticed my absence from posting in the last week, it was for a semi-good reason: our battle with reflux is in full force again.
Sigh.
I am going to type something that I thought long and hard about first- and something that may irritate several of my readers. (There's your warning in advance, just FYI. If you are infertile and presently TTC, you might want to skip this post for today. I apologize in advance if you continue reading and are bothered by my post.)
Dealing with severe reflux for two infants at the same time is harder than anything I've ever gone through before. It doesn't have the personal empty heartache of infertility, or the longing- but it has more pain and more tears. There is a worse pain than your own pain- you cannot fathom it until you see your children in pain and you can't do anything to make it stop. It's on my mind all the time and I'm wore down and close to losing my mind all the time. With infertility there were harder days, but there were good days too. Days when I could recharge, avoid the reminders of what we didn't have and pamper myself. (Not that I need pampering. I just need opportunities to go to the bathroom a few times a day.)
My babies aren't eating well and they aren't sleeping well. Every bottle and nap is a battle. I dread when it is time to feed them again. They cry every time. I dread when it is naptime. They cry every time- more than they sleep. I feel like I can't meet my babies' basic needs and so I feel like a failure at this parenting thing. Add in the psychological crap that makes you doubt that you should even BE a parent because, hey- didn't you get the hint with IF? and the whole situation blows.
The 7.5 mg of prevacid isn't enough. We switched to Nutramigen (maybe we need to take out a second loan on our house to pay for the uber expensive formula for double the babies!) and have to give it 2 weeks before attempting anything else. So far, a few days in- no change. I really don't think our babies have a MSPI (milk/soy protein intolerance), I think they just have severe reflux and need more meds! Our pediatrician said she's never given more than 7.5 mg in a prescription, but I've read about people getting more for their infants. Ever since my initial OBGyn was totally wrong about our attempts TTC, I've been a little distrusting of doctors knowing the best course of action. I don't know what to do to make this better. But my babies are miserable. I am miserable.
I want to enjoy feeding them. I want to know that they are getting what they need. I want to be able to brush my teeth or get dressed or go to the bathroom without crying in the background. I want my sanity back.
I want happy, healthy babies. Is that really too much to ask?
(This also leads me to apologize for my lack of commenting on blogs. I do read your posts every night before I go to bed, but I just don't have the time or energy to comment. Sorry for my lack of appropriate blogging etiquette!)
Sigh.
I am going to type something that I thought long and hard about first- and something that may irritate several of my readers. (There's your warning in advance, just FYI. If you are infertile and presently TTC, you might want to skip this post for today. I apologize in advance if you continue reading and are bothered by my post.)
Dealing with severe reflux for two infants at the same time is harder than anything I've ever gone through before. It doesn't have the personal empty heartache of infertility, or the longing- but it has more pain and more tears. There is a worse pain than your own pain- you cannot fathom it until you see your children in pain and you can't do anything to make it stop. It's on my mind all the time and I'm wore down and close to losing my mind all the time. With infertility there were harder days, but there were good days too. Days when I could recharge, avoid the reminders of what we didn't have and pamper myself. (Not that I need pampering. I just need opportunities to go to the bathroom a few times a day.)
My babies aren't eating well and they aren't sleeping well. Every bottle and nap is a battle. I dread when it is time to feed them again. They cry every time. I dread when it is naptime. They cry every time- more than they sleep. I feel like I can't meet my babies' basic needs and so I feel like a failure at this parenting thing. Add in the psychological crap that makes you doubt that you should even BE a parent because, hey- didn't you get the hint with IF? and the whole situation blows.
The 7.5 mg of prevacid isn't enough. We switched to Nutramigen (maybe we need to take out a second loan on our house to pay for the uber expensive formula for double the babies!) and have to give it 2 weeks before attempting anything else. So far, a few days in- no change. I really don't think our babies have a MSPI (milk/soy protein intolerance), I think they just have severe reflux and need more meds! Our pediatrician said she's never given more than 7.5 mg in a prescription, but I've read about people getting more for their infants. Ever since my initial OBGyn was totally wrong about our attempts TTC, I've been a little distrusting of doctors knowing the best course of action. I don't know what to do to make this better. But my babies are miserable. I am miserable.
I want to enjoy feeding them. I want to know that they are getting what they need. I want to be able to brush my teeth or get dressed or go to the bathroom without crying in the background. I want my sanity back.
I want happy, healthy babies. Is that really too much to ask?
(This also leads me to apologize for my lack of commenting on blogs. I do read your posts every night before I go to bed, but I just don't have the time or energy to comment. Sorry for my lack of appropriate blogging etiquette!)
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Now Returning...
...to Reflux Hell. *sigh*
We ended up making a visit to the pedi office yesterday, after discussing our eating/sleeping concerns with the nurse. (We weren't as concerned with the crappy napping, but just mentioned it as long as we were discussing the other stuff.) The pediatrician mentioned something we hadn't heard before- that reflux typically get worse as they get older, before it gets better around (hopefully) 4 months. He thought that the problems we've had lately with eating are probably due to Sam and Anna's reflux and wants them to get at least 23-24 oz in a day. Monday and Tuesday, Sam was around 22 oz, when he used to get in close to 30 oz a day. Soooo- we are to switch formula back to the one we were using up until 2 weeks ago and see if that helps. If it doesn't, we are on our way to using Enfamil's Nutramigen- one of the most expensive formulas out there. Nutramigen is a hypoallergenic formula. Too bad we just got 4 cases of free Gentlease formula, huh?
We ended up making a visit to the pedi office yesterday, after discussing our eating/sleeping concerns with the nurse. (We weren't as concerned with the crappy napping, but just mentioned it as long as we were discussing the other stuff.) The pediatrician mentioned something we hadn't heard before- that reflux typically get worse as they get older, before it gets better around (hopefully) 4 months. He thought that the problems we've had lately with eating are probably due to Sam and Anna's reflux and wants them to get at least 23-24 oz in a day. Monday and Tuesday, Sam was around 22 oz, when he used to get in close to 30 oz a day. Soooo- we are to switch formula back to the one we were using up until 2 weeks ago and see if that helps. If it doesn't, we are on our way to using Enfamil's Nutramigen- one of the most expensive formulas out there. Nutramigen is a hypoallergenic formula. Too bad we just got 4 cases of free Gentlease formula, huh?
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Now Leaving...
...Reflux Hell!
OMG- we have rounded a corner, y'all!
We left the pediatrician Monday armed with two prescriptions for Prevacid, administered the dose when we got home to both Sam and Anna... and now we here we are, two doses later, seeing two completely different babies.
Thank God for grandmothers and prevacid!
Thanks to that lovely combo, it is only 11:00 am and not only do I have two full-tummy peacefully sleeping babies, but I was able to get dressed, eat breakfast, do my hair and makeup, brush my teeth, wash bottles, pack up newborn clothes that are now too small, pick up a little, hop on the computer and I'm on my second load of laundry! I should even be able to eat lunch today! (And honestly, the grandmother was reading a book most of the time and had little influence on that list.)
My mother in law leaves today and my mother arrives tomorrow. My mom is planning on staying through Tuesday, so hopefully by then we'll have the reflux beast completely tamed before I jump back into solo parenting for 10 hours each weekday.
Best part ever- it's been two days since I cried. I've regained my sanity and my children aren't in constant pain anymore. Hallelujah!
OMG- we have rounded a corner, y'all!
We left the pediatrician Monday armed with two prescriptions for Prevacid, administered the dose when we got home to both Sam and Anna... and now we here we are, two doses later, seeing two completely different babies.
Thank God for grandmothers and prevacid!
Thanks to that lovely combo, it is only 11:00 am and not only do I have two full-tummy peacefully sleeping babies, but I was able to get dressed, eat breakfast, do my hair and makeup, brush my teeth, wash bottles, pack up newborn clothes that are now too small, pick up a little, hop on the computer and I'm on my second load of laundry! I should even be able to eat lunch today! (And honestly, the grandmother was reading a book most of the time and had little influence on that list.)
My mother in law leaves today and my mother arrives tomorrow. My mom is planning on staying through Tuesday, so hopefully by then we'll have the reflux beast completely tamed before I jump back into solo parenting for 10 hours each weekday.
Best part ever- it's been two days since I cried. I've regained my sanity and my children aren't in constant pain anymore. Hallelujah!
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Reflux Hell
About a week ago I had a post about our babies reaching a "colic" stage. Their crying has been increasing since then (especially Anna) so I took her to the pedi after we became more and more suspicious that her colic was really bad reflux. I was hoping for meds to help stop the incessant sound that happened all day long. Witching hour? I wish. When I read about babies having a bad period of day, it made me jealous. The pedi agreed that she had reflux, and asked us to try a different formula until Monday, and if we didn't see improvement, over the phone she would give us a prescription. (She said over the phone because both babies cried the entire time we were in the exam room, and I was by myself. It was so awful I can't find the words to describe how horrible that was.) We tried to give Anna the new formula a few times but we had a few issues- first, the nipples wouldn't work with the thickened formula, and once we fixed that problem, we discovered that Anna wouldn't drink it. So we stopped attempting it and were resigned to waiting until Monday.
Meanwhile, Anna's screaming reached a whole new level between Friday evening and Saturday. She literally cried 24/7. It was no longer just most awake moments, but it was keeping her from sleeping. It was keeping her from eating. We tried calling Saturday morning, but was told that our pedi wasn't the on call doctor so we couldn't get a prescription then and would need to wait until Monday. My poor baby took one decent nap all day, and that was only because she was in the Sleepy Wrap. All other "naps" were interrupted frequently by crying bouts. My little girl was in so much pain from the acid burning in her throat, that she couldn't sleep. While she had vomited a few times in the past week or so, on Saturday, she vomited a bunch of times. You have no idea what it is like to hold your screaming one month old for hours and hours, smelling the rancid smell of acid on her breath constantly, hurting so much for her. So we called again, and asked when it would be considered bad enough that we needed to go to urgent care. The nurse suggested that if she had cried for over an hour straight, she would go. My little girl had been crying for hour-long jags all day long. Off we went to the ER.
Once at the ER, we didn't get much help. Thankfully Anna was not dehydrated and she did not have a high temperature, so they didn't have an immediate concern. The ER doctor wanted us to come back in the morning to get a GI xray done (since it was 9 pm on a Saturday night- I guess the right people to perform the xray weren't there) to rule out pyloric stenosis. Apparently pyloric stenosis is rare, but more common when there's a heart murmur. If Anna had that, she would need surgery to fix it. We headed back this morning, Anna had the barium drink, got the xray and short version: does not have pyloric stenosis (I didn't think so after consulting Dr. Google when we got home from the ER last night, so I wasn't overly concerned). So she most definitely has severe acid reflux. They sent us on our way, and now we are just getting through the minutes trying to get to Monday.
Sam's reflux is not as severe, but he definitely has it too. His level of discomfort has been increasing too.
One baby with reflux is really hard. I remember reading all about Blair's adventures in Reflux Hell a few months ago. Two babies with reflux- especially when one of those is as severe as Anna's, is insane. My husband call his mother in tears yesterday asking if she could drop everything and come stay with us for a while- because when you have two babies constantly crying that need to be held nobody ever gets a break. My husband and I were crying off and on all day. We were past the breaking point.
I can say that today is better though. My most-amazing-friend-ever came for a few hours after I placed a hysterical phone call so each of us could get a small break. I used earplugs to get a glorious nap in silence. My husband's mother should be here within an hour. We don't know yet how long she can stay. The doctor's appointment will be tomorrow, and although I know we won't get an instant, magical cure- it is still helping me see the light at the end of the tunnel. I know this won't last forever. I have gone through a lot of tough things, and I can get through this too.
Meanwhile, although this blog has been my sanity-saver, I don't think I'll have much time to post when there are two babies that need to be constantly consoled and held, so I may not blog much until some relief is found for my babies. I hope to be back with good news very, very soon!
Meanwhile, Anna's screaming reached a whole new level between Friday evening and Saturday. She literally cried 24/7. It was no longer just most awake moments, but it was keeping her from sleeping. It was keeping her from eating. We tried calling Saturday morning, but was told that our pedi wasn't the on call doctor so we couldn't get a prescription then and would need to wait until Monday. My poor baby took one decent nap all day, and that was only because she was in the Sleepy Wrap. All other "naps" were interrupted frequently by crying bouts. My little girl was in so much pain from the acid burning in her throat, that she couldn't sleep. While she had vomited a few times in the past week or so, on Saturday, she vomited a bunch of times. You have no idea what it is like to hold your screaming one month old for hours and hours, smelling the rancid smell of acid on her breath constantly, hurting so much for her. So we called again, and asked when it would be considered bad enough that we needed to go to urgent care. The nurse suggested that if she had cried for over an hour straight, she would go. My little girl had been crying for hour-long jags all day long. Off we went to the ER.
Once at the ER, we didn't get much help. Thankfully Anna was not dehydrated and she did not have a high temperature, so they didn't have an immediate concern. The ER doctor wanted us to come back in the morning to get a GI xray done (since it was 9 pm on a Saturday night- I guess the right people to perform the xray weren't there) to rule out pyloric stenosis. Apparently pyloric stenosis is rare, but more common when there's a heart murmur. If Anna had that, she would need surgery to fix it. We headed back this morning, Anna had the barium drink, got the xray and short version: does not have pyloric stenosis (I didn't think so after consulting Dr. Google when we got home from the ER last night, so I wasn't overly concerned). So she most definitely has severe acid reflux. They sent us on our way, and now we are just getting through the minutes trying to get to Monday.
Sam's reflux is not as severe, but he definitely has it too. His level of discomfort has been increasing too.
One baby with reflux is really hard. I remember reading all about Blair's adventures in Reflux Hell a few months ago. Two babies with reflux- especially when one of those is as severe as Anna's, is insane. My husband call his mother in tears yesterday asking if she could drop everything and come stay with us for a while- because when you have two babies constantly crying that need to be held nobody ever gets a break. My husband and I were crying off and on all day. We were past the breaking point.
I can say that today is better though. My most-amazing-friend-ever came for a few hours after I placed a hysterical phone call so each of us could get a small break. I used earplugs to get a glorious nap in silence. My husband's mother should be here within an hour. We don't know yet how long she can stay. The doctor's appointment will be tomorrow, and although I know we won't get an instant, magical cure- it is still helping me see the light at the end of the tunnel. I know this won't last forever. I have gone through a lot of tough things, and I can get through this too.
Meanwhile, although this blog has been my sanity-saver, I don't think I'll have much time to post when there are two babies that need to be constantly consoled and held, so I may not blog much until some relief is found for my babies. I hope to be back with good news very, very soon!
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