Need Help and Reassurance with 1 Month Old Sleeping, Acid Reflux?

Hi S.,

As others have said, you might need to have her sleep in her car seat or bouncy seat for awhile. My son is 10 months old and just within the last month was able to start laying flat for sleep. The more upright the better,greater than 45 degrees, reflux is a disorder of the muscle that closes the stomach/esophagus and then the stomach acid creeps up into the esophagus causing the pain. Reflux can also cause the congestion and other airway type issues from constant irritation, so if it truly is reflux it is important to treat. My son wasn't diagnosed and treated properly as a new born and we wound up with some scary things going on, so you are on the right track by the pediatrician recognizing and treating her symptoms. Also, there are other medications to consider if one doesn't work. What works for one baby may not work well for another. My son does really well on his medication and once we knew what it was and adjusted his sleep position he was a happier, better sleeper.

I don't know if this has been suggested yet but having you tried having her sleep in her carseat or a bouncy seat? My second daughter was different then my first one also. She refused to sleep in the bassinet for the first month and the only way either one of got any sleep was when she was in her carseat. She didn't have reflux but I have heard that when babies do it is better for them to be sleeping upright.

Hope you get some rest soon.

My daughter had the same issues. The best formula by far is nestle good start with comfort proteins. I got her off the zantac once I switched. Zantac made it difficult for her to gain weight and I never saw real improvement whe she was on it. Good luck. It will get better! D.

All 3 of my babies had acid reflux, and I can say from experience it is very hard, but it does get better. First, not every baby who spits up have problem reflux and needs medication, but it sounds to me as if your baby does need to be treated. In my experience, reflux needs to be treated if the child is in obvious pain, is not gaining weight, OR has respiratory issues/ear infections from the reflux. Some babies with fairly serious reflux will gain weight because they do what's called comfort feeding - the milk/formula feels good going down because it cools the burn, so they actually will eat pretty frequently (but sometimes only small amounts). I mention this since some docs think they only need to treat if weight gain is an issue, but the acid can still do damage so that should not be the only indicator.

I can go on forever on this subject, but a few suggestions:

-Be a strong advocate for your child. If the axid is not helping, ask for a dose adjustment and/or a change to another med (prevacid worked wonders for us). With the right meds and doses, most cases of reflux can be fairly well controlled.

-Try to get an appointment with a pediatric GI doc. You will probably have to wait several weeks to get in, but they are much better at managing the reflux than most peds since they are so much more familiar with it.

-Keep baby upright as much as possible. As others mentioned, unconventional sleeping positions may be necessary for a while. Mine napped on my chest for about 6 months and slept at night in the carseat carrier or bouncy chair (strapped in and I felt it was safer with them on the firm floor next to my bed. This will not mean they never sleep on their own. Once mine had the reflux better controlled we were able to transition to the crib.

-Don't believe everything people (even docs) tell you. I was told most babies outgrew reflux my 6 months, but mine all needed to be on prevacid until 2-2.5 years. When I actually started connecting with other reflux parents I found this was not that uncommon.

-If possible monitor how different foods you eat affect the reflux. We used formula, but I know certain things can cause problems. (And once you start solids, go very slowly to see if any cause flare ups).

Hang in there and know it will get better. I'm happy to offer more advice if needed, but hopefully this is at least a start. Good luck!

I too had a son who had bad reflux. He would cry for hours straight, it was exhausting. These are things we did that helped...

- got him on medicine, if what you are using doesn't seem to be working ask to try something else. Also, their dosage needs to be adjusted A LOT since they are constantly growing and the dosage is based on their weight

- my son slept in our swing a lot. it was a good upright position and the swinging was soothing to him

- after feeding him we sat upright for a long time, we often fell asleep like that at night for a bit while I was waiting to be able to put him down

- he ate little amounts often so his stomach was not so full, this was hard on me since I was up so much but it made him much happier so we dealt with it

- we really inclined his bassinet mattress, we had an incline wedge and then put a ton of towels under it to lift it even more

- we had him sleep on his side (buttressed by blankets to keep him from rolling)

The biggest help was the medicine by far so if you are not seeing an improvement talk to your doctor.

Good luck and it does pass in a few months, it's just hard to see that when you are in the thick of it.

It might depend on why he has reflux. I've known babies in our mom's group who had it because they made too much acid, and they were much improved in a month or two. Some of them also had to play around with medicine, some did better on Axid, others on Prevacid.

My son had it as a side effect from a hernia, he's over 1yo and still has it, and still wakes every 20-30mins in pain (so, I feel for your sleep deprivation!!). I 'wore' him as long as possible, which was 24/7 his first 4-5mos, keeping him vertical at all times. I fed him smaller meals and burped often. He got probiotics and weekly chiro adjustments. We did yoga-type exercises to strengthen his core. He went from 5 projectiles per day to about 1 per day around the 8mos mark and major improvements happened around 10mos.

Good luck!!!!!

S.,
Hang in there! I know what you are going through. Our daughter has had acid reflux since she was born. I was dead set against putting her on medication. I tried elevating her head, changing my diet (for her to continue nursing)...the only place she would sleep was in her car seat. After 4 months of no sleep for either of us, I gave in and she started zantac. She was better in 48 hours and started sleeping for 2-3 hour naps and for long stretches at night. So, you are not wrong in giving her medication, and don't listen to anyone who tells you otherwise. Acid reflux is very real and very painful...it is your job as a mother to do whatever it takes to make your baby pain free. My daughter also sounded "congested" when she was born, and our first pediatrician kept telling me there was nothing wrong with her. When I switched pediatricians and the new one sent us to an Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor(ENT), they discovered that she had a condition called laryngomalacia....it is a common congenital abnormality of the larynx that is worsened by acid reflux. It can be fairly benign, as they eventually outgrow it (at least that's what they keep telling me), but these babies are at risk for upper respiratory infections and reactive airways (like asthma)....not trying to scare you, but if it continues despite the axid you might want to see an ENT. If you aren't a nervous parent, I recommend trying the car seat for sleeping...we kept her in our room while she was sleeping in it. Good luck!
J. W

Hi there! I havent' read the other advice so forgive me if I repeat things. Hang in there. I could have written your post a year ago. Things turned around at about 2.5-3 months and he was a different baby! Just be sure to stay on top of your docs about his medicine as they are weight dependent and they gain so fast right now. I had to keep up with that and insist they check the dosage for his new weight each visit. Also, zantac stopped working for us after a few weeks and we had to switch to prilosec. He still had the congestion but it doesn't bother him. It was SO bad at first. He's 14 months and I still have his crib propped. For a long time I would sleep sitting back against pillows and he would sleep on my chest. That worked well. I actually miss having him sleep that way now! In retrospect it all went so fast but at the time I sometimes thought it would never get better--even though he was my second. I wish you some good sleep very soon but know that it will get better!! Take care.
K.

Hi S.,

Contact your local La Leche League Representative at

www.llli.org

Hope this helps. D.

Sounds a lot like my second son!! He constantly needed to be held...basically he needed to be in that upright position! I wore him a lot (all day!) in a carrier/sling/wrap & that helped us both tremedously!! As far as sleeping he slept in a bassinet w/ a sleep inclined positioner...he never was a long sleeper & I tried everything!! We didn't go the medication route b/c he had no issues with weight gain. I have to say that the first few months were the toughest but it does get easier!! I was told by 6 months things would be better, he would have grown out of his reflux, but for us it was closer to the time he was on solid foods. The sleeping did get better w/ a combination of the incline & the swaddle blanket- if you haven't tried that please do, it worked wonders for us!
When my 2 year old woke up I allowed him to either come in bed with me & watch a childrens show or try to get him back to sleep in my bed....something I didn't want to do, but hey you do what you need to!

Good luck & hang in there!!

With a newborn, a toddler, and momma, there are three people you need to be worrying about. (Dad can fend for himself, lol). If the baby is gaining weight, then the reflux is sufficiently under control from that standpoint. But if he IS gaining weight and not in pain (and the Axid really should help with pain, if not, try one of the other H2 blockers, because different ones work for different people), then you need to figure out how to get yourself some sleep, and in my opinion, a bottle is going to have to come in here somewhere. Either pump or add some formula (which DOES stay down better) and hand a bottle over to dad. I would also recommend you and your husband trying to sleep in different rooms so that at least one of you (which ever one doesn't have baby duty) is getting some uninterrupted sleep. 4 straight hours is the key... you can make the rest up in naps and be somewhat functional but you have to have 4 straight hours or you go crazy.

Not sure if your toddler is in some kind of daycare, but if not, I'd recommend finding a place he could go at least a couple days a week. That would let you get some rest when the baby is sleeping. I can recommend a good daycare and Mother's Morning Out place in the East End, if you are interested.

This WILL pass. I was doing this a little over a year ago, and it seems a lifetime away. But it SUCKS while you are in it.

S.,
I'm sure you are super busy. I can't even imagine.
I only have O. child (boy, now 6). When I think back on those first few days, weeks and months, I still shudder! It was the most exhausting (not to mention lonely!) time my life. I remember yelling (with complete seriousness) "you already slept an HOUR today!" at my husband, who was like a zombie as well! :-) Funny now. Not so funny then.
Sleep deprivation makes everything harder to do, harder to understand, harder to take. While the pain of delivery has faded, the zombie-sleep-deprived state remains fresh in my mind. To me, the exhaustion was the worst part of it all. Hang in there. I promise it will ALL get better with time.

we had this with both our boys but we found it was from sinus problems or allergies.our docter had us use a small rubber ball type surringe to suck the mucus out as needed.they sell them in the baby section at the drug store.it seemed to help them breath alot better.just clean it with boiling water after each use.i hope this helps with what you are already doing.

I have a 2 year old that still suffers from reflux, among other things, and can totally relate. My son has been tried on a laundry list of meds to help control the pain, Prevacid solutabs being the best. We also had to eliminate dairy and soy from his diet (and yours if your breastfeeding- eventhough docs say it doesnt pass through- IT DOES). Have you elevated the head of his crib? Will he sleep in a vibrating bouncy seat?
Please message me if you need anything.

You Poor thing! I went through this 2 years ago exactly and my answer was an AMBY baby bed. I am not going to lie they are expensive, but it holds the baby with her head up and body down, almost like a sling on a stand, and my baby slept for 12 hours the first night we put her in it. When I woke up I thought the worst, but she was fine, she was relieved and we were too! My little girl also had terrible colic on top of it, so a friend let me borrow a Tummy tub. I know there is another Canadian brand called....spa baby tub. And now you can order one right on Amamzon.com. The baby floats in an upright tub with her legs close to her tummy and no more colic. You can watch a demonstration at www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbrNt24eHVQ She loved it! Best of luck. When My little girl was born, my son was 2 also. I know it is hard. I can't even remember alot of the first 6 months of her life I was sooo sleep deprived! Good luck, it will get better soon.

I second the AMBY bed! Try to get one second hand on Craigslist or Ebay. Good luck honey!

I feel your pain! I just went through this a few months ago. We also put my son on acid reflux meds and it didn't help. Neither did 'gripe water' or Mylicon. It DOES pass, I know it may not seem like it at the moment. My 2 year old was also totally different than my 4 month old when she was a baby, actually from the moment he was conceived, he was a pain. (spotting, couldn't find the hearbeat a couple of times, high sugar....) It does pass. I spent many nights on the sofa falling asleep nursing him. It seemed to be the only way he would sleep sometimes. He didn't even like the swing. I wish I could give you some advice but nothing I did seemed to help. Just keep going the best you can. It does pass! Good luck!

I haven't had any personal experience with this, but I do have a friend whose daughter would not sleep on her back. My friend placed the vibrating bouncy chair in the crib and her daughter slept peacefully until her doctor said it was ok to place her on her belly before she rolled over on her own.

Hello I hope this finds you a little rested. My daughter had acid so bad she was addmitted into childrens hospital. I had to start adding rice cereal into her bottles to start. You might want to start pumping and bottle feeding this was a huge help. Also they said to never lay her down for one hour after she has been feed. My daughter slept a ton in her swing. It was one of those swings that went both directions. she slept in there til she was almost nine months old. Many people probably think i was a bad mom for allowing her to sleep in her swing but i needed the sleep and it sounds as though you do to. You should also keep a food journal of what you are eating and see if some of her worst days seem to fall on days you ate the same thing. You maybe ingesting something that is upsetting her system. with my first daughter they kept telling me it was colic but at nine months old we found out she had a dairy allergy as soon as cut back on dairy intake she was better. I will be praying for you and your family.

Hi S.,

I definitely feel for you. It is making me think of my months that were not so pleasant. My son suffered from acid reflux really badly as an infant. He also had colic. He only slept for 45 minutes at a time during the day and night. I felt like a zombie for about 6 months. This might sound bad, but I kept telling him I loved him just to remind myself that I did. Once he turned about 6 months old both the colic and reflux starting clearing up. Then it was fun to be his mommy.

So it will get better. He is now a very sweet almost 9 year old that is perfectly healthy.

L.

Dear S.,
Your sleep and well being is so important for the second child. Sometimes Moms think that they can do it all. I needed more rest and my husband helped me out more so that I could get my rest. If your infant has nasal congestion and acid reflux, I highly recommend a nutritionist, as there maybe something in your diet, or something that is not in your diet that may affect her condition. I worked closely with an Dr. who was an MD & FACP, and a nutritionist. I was extremely pleased with the info they gave me. Also, you might try the LaLeche League and their resources. If it were my infant, I would eat all natureal foods (fruits and vegetables and whole grain breads. I know my nutritionist recommended liver for any type of sinus condition....and it worked. Good luck...the adjustment phase is not easy.
E.

Dear S.,
Oh darlin', I feel your pain. My second had Acid reflux and I had a 2 year old who also awoke around 6/6:30 am. Yes, it does get better and your newborn will sleep longer. Oh, I also breast-fed.

My advice is, what worked for me, my son lived in our bouncy seat. He slept next to my side of the bed in our room in his bouncy seat. During most of the day he was propped up in his bouncy seat. I started oatmeal at 4 months with the approval of my Ped. and that made a huge difference. Once he was onto regular meals it improved even more.

In the meantime, you need to take care of you! Pull out anything in your arsenal. Lay down when your children nap, Lay in bed to read and hopefully have them both doze. A basket of books or toys while nursing. And get out in the fresh air with them when possible.

For a while, I felt like I was underwater and eventually as my son got older and the acid reflux got better and we all got more sleep; I began to surface. Be patient with your self and be kind to yourself.

My thoughts are with you. You can do this. It won't be easy at the beginning, but it DOES get better. You have it in you and don't forget to ask for help or pay for a sitter (if you can) just so you can sleep.

I'm with you in spirit and thought. Get the support around you. Don't do it alone.

Fondly,
ann m.

I have an amby baby motion bed that someone else mentioned to you and my son slept 5 hours/night at 9 days old. He's now 7 weeks old and is sleeping almost 7 hours. I actually got mine on ebay for half of what they ask for new at amby.com.

Another suggestion: consider a chiropractor. My son had his first adjustment at 9 days (coincidence he slept so long the same day he was adjusted?) and it's amazing the change in him. He was screaming for 6 hours straight until he began getting adjusted. The chiropractor actually has a tool he can use for babies and the elderly and anyone else who is fragile. This past Monday my son wasn't eating right and not pooping. When he finally did poop it was green and as you know breastfed babies are supposed to poop yellow. I took him the next day for his weekly appointment and his lower back was out which caused his intestines to bind. I know this might sound hokey if you've never used chiropractic before, but he stopped screaming in less than a minute, fell asleep and pooped his normal yellow within half an hour. By his next feeding he was back to normal as well. Our pediatrician wanted to put him on meds for acid reflux to 'rule it out' and I decided to try our chiropractor first. The best decision we made...he hasn't had any meds yet.

If you're in/near the South Hills I can recommend someone if you're open to trying chiropractic. If not, I wish you the best...I know how hard it is!

Hi S., You sound almost exactly like I did 12 yrs ago! I too had my youngest at 33 and she was completely different from her two older sisters from the frist day I knew I was pregnant! I nursed her (almost every hour on the hour) even though I had bottle-fed the older two with no problems. It was really hard...I don't know if she had reflux, that seems to be the latest popular diagnoses from doctors for babies. I find it hard to believe that sooo many babies have reflux, sooo many kids have ADD/ADHD or are austic. I realize that there are kids with health issues and very real problems and I don't mean to sound dismissive of them, but lately it's like every child has to "have something". Just like making your baby sleep on her back...with my oldest two it was all about making them sleep on their tummies. Then when I had my youngest (there's a 5 yr gap between 1 & 3) they said she had to sleep on her side. Now I'm older and a lot more skeptical and believe that babies should sleep however they are most comfortable. I also believe that some babies do better on formula vs nursing, as soon as I started my youngest on formula (around 6 weeks old) there was a big difference in her sleeping and growth. I also believe that a mothers common sense is far more accurate than any latest catch-all diagnoses. So here are my suggestions: watch what you eat and try to eat a high protien, low acid, bland diet. try supplementing her diet with formula a couple of times a day (great chance for Dad to get involved and you a nap!) and see how she sleeps on her side (roll up recieving blankets and wedge one at her back and one at her tummy) or even on her tummy. The main thing is you need help to get some rest. Pump some bottles and have ANYONE come and care for her for one night and SLEEP!! Don't feel ashamed, or a failure...SLEEP is a very important part of your health and ability to get though this tough patch. And it will pass. If you ever need to vent or have anything that I can help you with just sent me a message!! Best wishes.

s.

My daughter had similar symptoms. The did not throw up but she would scream in pain when I put her down in her crib. One weekend she was crying all the time so I started to do research. I found the book Baby 411 to be quite helpful with info on reflux. I started to make some of the changes they suggested right away and her symptoms improved - hold upright for 30 mintues after nursing, sleep with 30 degree incline, etc. She didn't need to go on meds but she did sleep in her bouncy seat, cradle swing or car seat until she was about 4 months old. After BF I would hold her upright on my chest for about 30 minutes to allow her to digest the milk in her stomach. She would usually fall asleep on me and then I would move her to her car seat. I was quite concerned that she would never learn to fall asleep on her own but she did without any problems. I also swaddled (swaddle me works great) her right before I nursed her to put her down for a nap or the night. That way she was all snuggled in, nursed, I held her upright for 30 minutes and put her down without her waking. I know it sounds like it goes against all advice about falling asleep on their own but it all worked out in the end. BTW - she also saw her pediatrician after that screaming, miserable weekend and the pediatrician diagnosed her with REFLUX and suggested all the same things in the Baby 411 book. Good luck.