My child. Colic. Who would have thought? It's one of those "oh that won't happen to me or my baby" thoughts. I remember thinking that yeaarrss ago while watching A Baby Story on TLC. But life is full of unexpected surprises. And we have to manage it.
We spend a lot of time doing this...
Standing by the sink with the water running. Yeah, it's not very environmentally friendly but it works. Any hey, it's for a good cause.
This works sometimes too...
and helps me get things done! Like dinner.
She also has silent acid reflux. Between the two it's not very often we get sweet smiles like this...
and this...
So they're all the more rewarding when they do happen. I love those times.
We've tried and are still trying almost everything. She has started on Zantac and we've gone through 6 different formulas I believe. My last stop is Enfamil Nutramigen. We'll see if it works!
Because of the colic and reflux she's not a great eater, she nibbles a lot, doesn't sleep well, and constantly grunts and wiggles around trying to relieve her tummy. Needless to say we get worn out. And most mornings we look like this...
It's tough. The hardest thing I've ever done in my life. Sometimes I think I just can't do it anymore, but I know that one day it will get better. It won't be like this forever.
And she's so worth it all.
Any advice for colic & reflux babies? I think I've read just about everything but it can't hurt to seek more advice!
19 comments:
None except I had colic& the only thing that worked? Driving me around.
Also, I outgrew it& turned into the best child ever ..so there's lots of hope ;) My parents always said the fussier the baby the better they got with age!
Aw lady. I am so sorry to hear that. My daughter was diagnosed with colic behavior and acid reflux. The combined two, sucks.
Hang in there. I know it doesnt make it any easier, but it will get better - and while it feels like forever, its pretty short lived.
My pediatrician finally agreed to a little water (in a bottle) with a round peppermint in the bottom. Apparently, the mind soothes the stomach. A few sips. And, thats if you daughter will even take a bottle.
Im sorry.
aww...precious baby. i don't have any tips for calming a baby, but it sounds like you're doing a fabulous job. such a great mama, you are:) her little expressions are simply adorable. praying for you both!
my baby doesnt have colic but she's had some tummy/gas issues lately and i found this stuff called colic calm gripe water. it's different than other gripe waters...all natural and the only fda approved. it has worked well for us the few times we've used it...soothes her tummy right away! google it and you can read all the testimonials. we bought ours at cvs for about $20...totally worth it! good luck!!
oh man i never wish a colicy baby on anyone, it looks like you are doing your best and making it thru. I heard of a couple that had a colicy baby who would take turns in their furnace room rocking them, all they would do is scream and the furnace room was he only place with constant white noise and it prevented the other parent from hearing them while they were trying to catch some sleep.
Awe man, I'm sorry to hear you're going through this. I didn't have to deal with it with Bennnett, but I know lots of Mommies who have, and it does get better!! Hang in there!
She sounds a lot like my son did. Did all of it start around 1 month? We switched Logan on Nutramigen and it was a miracle. Complete night and day in a matter of 24 hours. It is very expensive, but so totally worth it. (My son was diagnosed with MSPI)
I say it won't hurt, and will probably make things a lot better. I sure hope it does! I don't really blog much anymore, but you can email me with any questions you have, or search my blog for what my son when through. :)
ooh I'm sorry she is collicy! Glad I can learn from your experience though! :) Is that bad? LOL
Hi there- I am a newer follower and haven't had much time to connect with you. We have a little one who's almost a year and we delt with some really nasty acid reflux and some colic when she was little. We ended up on Zantac for the reflux, after about a month that started helping with the spit/throw up. We also fed her and burped her sitting upright to help keep things down. The colic honestly took time, we gave a lot of Gripe Water, which helped. My advice is to do WHATEVER works to help get some relief. All babies are different and you will be more in tune to what she needs as time passes.
Hi :) New follower here and we have a 2 month old with reflux. He was on Zantac (which I've been told is the Pedis goto starting point for all reflux babies) but it did nothing for him. He's now on Prevacid and we're finally seeing improvements. Ditto to the Colic Calm (gripe water) suggestion, also try Mylicon for gas relief. Our little guy also sleeps inclined in a Fisher Price Rock n Play, which really helps keep the acid down at night - in fact, he's rarely completely horizontal except for tummy time... we keep him inclined whenever possible (minimal pressure on tummy) and wait at least half an hour after eating (usually spent burping, a must after each feeding) before switching to any leisure positions. I've been told that it does get better, you're not alone - hang in there!
Sorry things are so rough for you guys right now! I don't have much advice, except look into the White Noise ap for the iPhone. It has a lot of different sounds. Julia really calmed down to "Oscillating Fan," which sounds ridic now but it's what works and we didn't care! Also, keep in mind - you're still too early to be forming sleep habits and sleep associations, so do WHATEVER WORKS to get the most sleep for the whole family. You have PLENTY of time to fix any "bad" sleep habits later, when things have calmed down. (I feel like I'm harping on this point, but it was a huge issue for me and I wish I had just relaxed.) Just hang in there and do what works.
Have you read "The Happiest Baby on The Block"? It explains colic really well and recommends lots of swaddling among other things that I can't remember. My heart goes out to you I dealt with the same thing with my daughter. It's very frustrating. She loved the sound of the blow dryer so I bought a cd with that sound on it and played it to get her to sleep. Hang in there!!
Al three of my children had colic... one thing that worked wonders for each was adding a tiny bit of Metamucil to their bottle. Like 1/2 teaspoon or a lil more. it thickens formula and seems to ease tummy issues as well....
make sure you shake well .. if it gets too thick it wont go through nipple on bottle...
Good luck .. i think by 3 months they out grow it?
I second the book "Happiest Baby on the Block" as well as Colic Calm (works better than Gripe Water, IMO).
I would not "add" anything to her bottle without discussing with your Doctor first.
The ultimate hypoallergenic formula out there is Neocate, found here: http://www.neocate.com/
It takes time to notice changes when you are switching around formula. I would also try a bottle like the Playtex Nurser or Dr Brown's where she will take in less air during feeding.
Most important? Remember, it doesn't last forever!
Good luck! Your pictures of Addison are precious!
Okay, first of all, she is stinkin' adorable! I've been away from the blog world for awhile so I'm just catching up! I don't have any advice for colic -- but my daughter had silent reflux too- and it's sooo stressful and scary and exhausting. The only things that really helped were to have her sleep almost completely sitting up and burping her lots. and LOTS. We also had to get a special formula. I think we tried 6 before we found the right one. We used Similac Alimentum and that was the best for her. Oh, and for some reason going "shh shh shh" in her ear really seemed to calm her down -- maybe try that -- it sounds similar to running water. Good luck!
Aww. So sorry. Dustyn was pretty colicky. Nothing really helped at all. Have you heard of gripe water? I didn't have it with Dustyn, but I have heard great things about it.
Jess, I don't know if I mentioned this when you were over on Saturday, but I have "The happiest baby on the block" on DVD. My mom got it for me when Dominic was gouge through the same thing. It so funny to hear what other things parents do to get through colic. Looks like someone else used the hair dryer too! Anyway, let me know if you want to borrow the DVD.
Aw, Jess, I am so sorry. I used the vaccum and our bathroom had a loud fan and he loved it. Hang in there...it will get better.
Oh man....I vaguely remember these days. I had to wear addison in a baby bjorn with a pacifier in her mouth pretty much 90% of the day. thankfully, she did sleep at night. There were some days when Jon would come home from work, I would hand him the baby, and just lock myself in my room for a good cry because I was so overwhelmed and tired.
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