Alright, I'll take some advice if anyone has any input. Topic: Spit-up. Sophia never spit up as a baby, except for maybe 4-5 times. So, I just don't know what's normal and what is not, and what to do with a spitting baby. Alba is definitely a spitter. But, I have no idea if her spitting is pretty normal, or whether I should do something about it. Some days she doesn't really spit up at all or just a tiny bit after some of her meals. But in the last couple of days we've been back to her spitting up a lot. Sometimes it'll seem like she spit up her whole meal it's that much. Sometimes it's just a few drops (ya know, maybe a teaspoon, or sometimes a tablespoon amount...). Sometimes she spits up after we burped her, but often it seems to just come "out of nowhere" - like minutes after she finished eating, and we burped her and all. Sometimes, when she spits up a big amount, it literally seems to come gushing out and it gushes from her mouth AND nose. We haven't had the nose stuff as much anymore, but it still happens at times. Today I felt like she spit up a lot - both in frequency and amount. It seems like she's spit up after almost every meal today, and each time it seemed like quite a bit - at least 2 times where it felt like she probably spit up everything she's eaten. I also feel her nursing has gotten a bit weird/off. She'll nurse well at first, then stop at some point, and then not latch on well after that - kind of like she's looking for the nipple and can't find it, and then when she starts sucking, she kind of stops again, and doesn't really want to drink, and gets fussy.
So, I don't know...maybe it's my diet. I've decided to start cutting out dairy for the next while to see if that makes any difference. But, I'm also wondering if this spitting up stuff is normal. Is it normal for the spitting kind of baby to spit up lots like Alba does? Should it usually just be a few drops? What thoughts/ideas do you guys have on this? I'm also going to start to let her sit up more after meals for things to settle down, even though it seems that she'll spit up whether she's laying down or sitting up. Dunno. I'm open for any ideas and suggestions. :)
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
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13 comments:
First off, spit up is normal for babies. And if she's growing well, she's content and happy (not colic-y), and sleeps well, then I wouldn't worry about it at all.
It's not a bad idea to try limiting certain foods that she might have an aversion/allergy to. And since the Pattersons all are lactose intolerant, you're taking a good first step in limiting dairy. Elice would recommend going cold turkey...eliminating all dairy sources, even not eating certain breads because most breads are made with a milk product. (At least check the label first.)
Now if you're concerned about reflux, then you should talk with her pediatrician to see if you can get it diagnosed.
Dylan had reflux for his first year. He spit up for the doctor at his 2nd week appointment and she prescribed an antacid baby medication for him that he basically had for his first year. I don't really like to give my kids medications, but since he spit up so much, it gave me peace of mind that his stomach acids weren't burning his esophagus as he spit up.
My second was a surprise spit-up kid. He would do it maybe 20 minutes after a meal. Sometimes. Sometimes not at all. Sometimes a little, sometimes a lot. I would say not to worry as long as two conditions are met: She keeps gaining weight at a good rate, and she's not uncomfortable about the spit-up. My second also lost interest in nursing about the same time he started being awake a bit more. He wanted to see stuff not eat stuff. But he was gaining weight, so we were good. (The main problem was that he HAD to nurse at night because that was the only time he ate well, because it was dark.)
I haven't tried it, but have read that keeping a food diary might be helpful. Then you might be able to tell if her spit-up is affected by your diet. From my and my friend's experience cutting out dairy didn't make a difference until 2-3 weeks into a dairy free life. Just so you don't try it for two days and decide it's no good for you.
And after all that, really, if she's gaining weight and she's happy and the spit-up episodes don't interfere with her sleeping, I wouldn't worry about it too much.
There were a bunch of things I stressed out about with Dylan's reflux...I raised one side of his crib so he slept on an incline (the theory that gravity would keep his food down). I went off dairy cold turkey for 3-4 weeks (he's not lactose intolerant). And I carried extra bibs and burp cloths everywhere. I even put an extra blanket under him when he slept to catch the spit up so I wouldn't have to change his sheets so often. After a while, I stopped stressing and it was a lot easier to deal with...because it just happened.
Well, I do know that spitting up is normal for babies. The question is how much is "normal" and when is it not normal because they have reflux or they're colicy? And how would you tell if they're colic-y?
Dairy is a pretty normal thing to cause reflux from what I read, so that's just a logical step to cut it out. And I haven't heard about all the Pattersons being lactose intolerant. I think that's an AZ myth. Henry is doing fine eating/drinking dairy products. :)
If she spits up after meals mostly, and starts becoming uncomfortable during feeding, and sleeping poorly, she might have reflux. Lot of babies do; some worse than others. It's is better to have her stay upright or in a 30 degrees position after meals for about half an hour. And try not laying her down or move too much. I might be wrong. Leo has bad reflux and is on medication for it. He never sleeps flat or he'll get badly congested and get a horrible cough. His clothes are changed very often because of the spit-up, he hates the car seat, and we are always out of bibs. Even with oatmeal and solid foods, he vomits and get uncomfortable. So...I don't want to be alarmist. Alba is probably normal, talk to your pediatrician.
Alright...So, from reading all those comments, it sounds like you guys aren't surprised or alarmed by the amounts and frequency of her spit-up then, right? For now she's been gaining just fine (about 2lbs in 3 weeks, which I think is a really good and steady gain for a girl her age). I also have a baby scale, so it's easy to keep an eye on her weight gain, and I'll probably be weighing her a bit more frequently for the next while to see if she keeps gaining ok.
She hasn't seemed uncomfortable at all in anyway, not even really during feedings. During the day she sleeps like a log, and at night she usually sleeps pretty well too (once she's asleep). She does grunt and wiggle a lot when she's gassy or needs to poop, but I think that's normal. The weird fussiness during feedings has just happened a bit today and the last day or so, and not with every meal. So, I'll just not worry about that for now, and see what happens. Other than that she does seem really content usually. Mostly really, she just sleeps and then cries when she's hungry, or wants to be held.
Oh, and yes, I was going to try the no dairy thing for a month or so at least. What changes should I expect though if it's making a difference? Less spit-up? I guess that's what I'm hoping for, right?
One correlation I remember noticing about Derrick when he spit up more often was me producing more milk with his growth spurts, therefore letdown was quicker and heavier flow than he was used too. Therefore, he spit up more.
I also remember that if he would stretch meals out more, I would be pretty full/engorged and he would usually end up spitting up after the meal, because I think it just came so fast.
It seems like Alba is happy and steadily gaining weight, so I wouldn't be super concerned right now. I will say one more thing though, my mommy instincts about my kids are typically always right. I bet yours are too. If you are feeling that this is something not normal, I'd get it checked out.
My boys spit up all the time although it seemed the worst episodes were at church and down my garments. Nothing I did ever changed anything and if that's the case for you my advice would be to invest in burp cloths. Lots and lots of burp cloths. I used cloth diapers with the thicker strip down the middle because they were so absorbant. I still use them for kids I babysit.
Chloë spit up lots too. We took her to the chiropractor when she was about a week old and he suggested rubbing her tummy right at the top where the sturnum and ribcage end. Pushing firmly down in smoky strokes. He said that reflux can be caused by a bit of tummy getting caught above the lining that separates the lungs/ribcage from the stomach and intestine area. I also had to experiment with alot of foods but she was sensitive to so much of the foods that I ate that my diet was pretty restricted for a while. But I was committed to breastfeeding so I stuck through it.
Oops. Not smoky strokes... Smooth strokes :-P
You ought to mention it to you pediatrician. It may be nothing. If you talk to her Dr. about it you'll either get the assurance that it's no big deal, or you'll get an idea what you should be doing about it.
I agree with all the ladies. So, not much else to say. =) Also, I'm finding that when Talia is eating and then gets fussy/fidgety (even after 3 or 4 minutes usually it's because she needs to be burped. and so I burp her and lo and behold she needed burped. And then I put her back on to nurse.
They say when spit up comes back up that it's a lot more actually than what they ate because it mixes with the stomach fluid...which would be a reason to worry if Alba is not liking it. She just might need a little liquid antacid or anti-gas. Like our pediatrician recommended we give Luke. I'd mention it to her Dr. too next time you go. Speaking of nursing....Talia just woke up.
Good Luck to you. Also, if you're interested. There was a lady on Oprah awhile ago that can understand baby cried. It's kind of interesting. Let me know if you want me to forward a link.
I love your blog! It seems we have a lot in common.
As for babies spitting up, I've had two out of my four end up being HUGE spitters. One of them used to projectile spit up.
I don't think spitting up is a problem, even if it's a lot, unless there are weight gain problems or constant fussiness.
(Alliegator from fMh)
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