reflux and MPSI intolerance

my LO was diagnosed with reflux and was put on .5mL of zantac 2x/day

she also was diagnosed with a milk protein/soy intolerance and is drinking alimentum with rice cereal. she drinks 1tsp of rice cereal per oz of formula.

she gets very fussy at times and the only thing that consoles her is when she is straight up and down. is it bad to lay her on her belly for napping purposes?

also - how much spit-up is TOO much?
she spits up ALL THE TIME! went through 2 outfits and 4 bibs already in 2 hours this morning.
its not always while she's eating; sometimes its much later.
TY :grouphug:

 

As long as she's still gaining weight, the spit up is more of a "laundry" issue. My oldest spit up all day every day until he was 18 months old. We would pack 3-4 extra sets of clothing for him, several burp cloths, a clean shirt for dh and I and a warm wet washcloth just for an afternoon out. He was happy, he was gaining weight fine, so they dr and pediatric gastro weren't worried about it.

As for the napping on the tummy, a dr is going to tell you that's a big no no. As a mom, I did it with my kids. In fact, none of my kids slept on their back, it was on their side or tummy. My oldest son choked while sleeping (something "they" say will NEVER happen). Thankfully he was on monitor's in the NICU and they helped him quickly. He choked on reflux. And he wasn't old enough to cough it out. So all my kids, from that day forward, slept on their sides. I only put them on their tummies when i was supervising them (like napping on the couch beside me). However, I don't think her sleeping on her tummy is going to help, she's still horizontal whether she's on her back or on her tummy, and you said she sleeps better upright. I'd try letting her nap in her carseat, or a swing or bouncy seat, those will keep her more upright. Or you could get a good sling or baby carrier and hold her upright after she eats for at least 30 minutes.

 

TY for this response!!

we've tried the swing, carseat - everything.

to be honest, at night she sleeps in her boppy. and yes - i know what you mean about choking on the reflux...its happened here, too.
she loves being on her belly on my chest - upright.
i just 'assumed' it was her belly she liked. lol

 

It's probably more upright than belly that she likes, that and your warmth will help her if she has an upset tummy.

 

Sadly, spitting is a laundry issue, not a health issue. (well, I guess that's good actually) So as long as your baby is healthy, you just have to do a ton of laundry. We found that when we kept Piper upright for 30-45 minutes after feeding, her spitting was reduced, but it would get bad for a few days (maybe growth spurts?) and then die back down again. For sleeping, you can get a reflux wedge if you find nothing else really works. The one we bought was from the Tucker Sling company www.tuckersling.com. Not cheap - but it really helped, and now my kids use it for climbing and as a prop for their dolls.

 

I feel for you because both of my boys had reflux and MSPI. The first few months were really, really rough, and I did TONS of laundry. Some days it seemed like they spit up everything they ate, but somehow they still gained plenty of weight. As long as they are gaining weight, the pedi didn't seem too worried about the spitting up. It sure was messy, though, and I was really glad when we got past that. I hope the Zantac will help for you - we ended up having to do Prevacid (plus Nutramigen formula).

As for the MSPI, our guys outgrew the milk problems before a year old and we were able to switch to whole milk and add in cheese, yogurt, etc. They still haven't outgrown the soy part, which is a pain with food. It is in SO many things, stuff you would never even think of - I end up making them separate meals most of the time from what we eat, taking food when we go to family meals, etc. It's manageable, but annoying. Our pedi said if they outgrow it, most kids do so between ages 2 and 6. I am thankful it's not a life threatening reaction, and I've learned to manage it okay.

You won't be thinking about solids for awhile yet, but when you do, feel free to message me and I can give you some tips that might help. For example, if something says it contains mayonnaise or vegetable shortening, it is very likely that there is soy in it.

Hang in there - it's miserable for awhile, but things WILL get better.

 

I started putting Sierra on her tummy at 3 months when she started rolling over and waking herself up. I found it actually helped with her gas issues as she would bring her knees under her, she still sleeps on her tummy (and unlike Liara doesn't have the flat head!)

I've read in other posts that it's not recommended to put reflux babies into car seats as it squashes their diaphragm or something like that.

I would definitely keep her upright after all feeds, I do that with mine as a standard because of their difficulty in getting burps out, it really helps.

Also try elevating one end of the crib, this was recommended to me a lot although because she started moving around her crib, I never did. You can put rolled up towels under the mattress.

HTH in some way. GL!

 

I feel for you! My oldest and one of my twins both had pretty bad reflux. If your DD's acid levels are not controlled, the spit up is more than a laundry issue. Repeated spit up can actually cause damage to the esophagus. If the zantac doesn't provide relief soon, you may need to try something stronger. My oldest had success with Prevacid, while Nexium was the miracle drug for my twin. Also, check the cereal you are using to thicken the formula, some contain soy. Good luck and I hope you both get some relief soon!