solutions for BIG spitters/zantac not working/baby seems in pain when digesting???

Both my boys have spit up a lot- this doesn't really worry me as much as that now Pierce is spitting up like the entire bottle it seems-out his nose, spraying everything in sight bless his little heart. we were put on zantac but i don't see it working. he strains and hunches over and turns bright red- i know this sounds common but he just seems in such terrible pain, and it is all day every feed. if i was like that on the toilet every time it would make for a VERY bad day. has anyone had any luck with something i'm not trying? do you just accept the discomfort until they grow out of it ? i hate to see him like this

 

we went through the same thing. we actually had "puke buckets" for each baby so we didn't have to scrub the carpet as much. We tried everything under the sun and every single Similac Formula. I asked the doctor if there was a difference in the way that formulas were made such as a difference between Similac, Enfamil, Good Start, etc. He said yes and to try a different formula brand. I tried Good Start Supreme with Iron and DHA and ARA and they still fought the bottle off. Then i thought, maybe it has something to do with the DHA and ARA. So i changed it to the Good Start with Iron NO DHA and ARA and since then, bottle time has been like heaven. They drink it down and are fine. They're "regular" and according to teh Nestles web site, the comfort proteins are broken down different than the other formulas which could help too. It's also a milk based formula so it's close to breast milk which helps to make them regular. Its worth a shot - I know from experience that it's not fun to have spitter uppers. Ours were like something from the exercist. But since the formula change, we're better.

Good Luck
amanda

 

My girls were never big spitters, but we had awful reflux where they were in a lot of pain and at times refused to eat. Zantac never seemed to work for them. After changing meds several time, Prevacid seemed to really help. Maybe you just need a change? Good luck, reflux is terrible, unfortuntaly the only thing that really worked for my twins was time. Hang in there!

 

From what I understand the straining and hunching over and turning bright red are all related to gas and even though they seem to be in pain it's pretty common for babies to do this when they're figuring out how to poop. Back arching and crying when laying on their backs is more indicative of reflux. Doesn't mean they don't have reflux, just means these particular symptoms are probably gas.

So a formula change may help, just give it a few weeks to work. Have you tried Mylicon in the bottles? Some people have luck with gripe water or Hyland's colic tablets. You may also want to try a ready-to-feed formula, it's usually easier to digest than powder. Good luck!

 

My Jack was like that, maybe not quite as bad. One night he got choked on his spit up, and before we could get him breathing again he turned purple on us. It was very scary.

I think you need to talk to your pedi about it, and if he/she doesn't seemed as concerned as you are, get a second opinion and find a Dr. that will. You certainly need to get things figured out.

 

Sounds like you need to switch meds. Id suggest you ask to go see a pediatric GI if you havent already. With ds we went from reglan and zantac to prilosec, it worked right away and though prilosec isnt supposed to stop the spit-up, its just supposed to relieve the pain, it completely ended his barfing days.
The girls went from zantac to prilosec to prevacid.
If you formula feed you may want to try switching around. I pumped the first few months, then started playing around with formula and finally switched to lactose free adn their reflux has been a ton better since, I dotn even medicate them anymore.

 

apparently, zantac does not work for every baby. but before you talk to your ped about trying a different med (many people here have had more success with prevacid) make sure they are getting the right dose. my dd continued to be in discomfort and was spitting up continually until i found out that her dose needed to be increased since she had gained so much weight. as for the spit up, i KNOW it is a pain in the butt. constantly having to change bibs, shirts, onsies many times a day. zantac apparently does NOT stop the spit up, it stops the discomfort/pain from the reflux. the only thing that stopped my daughter from spitting up was adding cereal to her bottles and even then she didn't actually stop but went from 10-12 spit ups a day to about 2-3. She finally just stopped spitting up about a month ago and we stopped giving her the zantac. I guess they just eventually outgrow it...some sooner and some later. Best of luck and hang in there! hope your little sweetie feels better soon!!

 

quote:
Originally posted by double-or-nothing:
Before you talk to your ped about trying a different med...make sure they are getting the right dose. my dd continued to be in discomfort and was spitting up continually until i found out that her dose needed to be increased since she had gained so much weight.


I agree w/pp. Also, you don't mention how long you've been on the Zantac. I know it seems like an eternity, but try to give it 2-3 weeks before switching. It took about 1-2 weeks for us to see results when first getting on Zantac...then 2-3 weeks for us to see results when our dosage was increased due to weight.

But, you're the best judge of your babies...if it's not working, it's not working. Good Luck.

 

Zantac just isn't for every baby. Mine out grew it and it was constantly adjusted while he was on it. Our next med. we tried was Prevacid and it has really helped. Like you said, the spitting up isn't the biggest concern and meds won't really stop that, but when they're in pain is when you're concerned. I would ask to try something new or even try to see a GI specialist. We waited way to long to demand one and we still see him for Gabe's reflux. I hope they feel better soon, it's so hard seeing them so uncomfortable.

 

My son had this problem (he is breastfed). We tried Zantac and he hated it and it didn't work. We switched to Pepcid, which is a similar class of drug, and it worked amazingly. We took him off around 9 months, and he has been fine.