Newborn Acid Reflux

I'm so sorry to hear that your little one is suffering. Below, I listed some of the things we did to ease my daughter’s reflux symptoms.

elevated the head of her crib
fed her small amounts at a time at more frequent intervals, some days it seemed like all I did was feed her
fed her in an upright position
diligently burped her
Kept her upright after feedings, she frequently napped in her stroller (without the carrier)
limited time in car seat
often, when she was inconsolable, the best thing I could do for her was place her on her back on her diaper changer pad - I don't know why but that seemed to soothe her
little tummies - gas x for babies
changed bottles - significantly less spitting up with VentAire http://www.playtexbaby.com/Products/Bottles/VentAire.aspx
never warmed her bottles, room temp or cold right out of fridge
ran humidifier when she slept - she was always congested from the spit up
carried her in her Ergo*
swaddled her for bed time and when colicky
when I knew she was hungry but she arched her back and screamed, I just kept offering the bottle (while walking, swaying, singing) until she'd finally take it

I spent some time on www.reflux.org and found some of the information helpful. Unfortunately, the page is not very user friendly and is full of ads. However, you can talk to a volunteer via email or telephone. That was helpful for me because I felt like I finally found someone compassionate and empathetic with some helpful advice.

Once my daughter was prescribed acid suppressers, she only occasionally experienced her reflux symptoms (for example, spending too much time in her car seat). She was on acid suppressers until a little after her second birthday but has been nearly symptom free since. We limit, but have not entirely avoided, greasy and acidic foods. Oranges are her favorite fruit and she loves Chick-fil-a.

Hope this helps.
I pray that your child quickly outgrows reflux and that God will grant your family peace and rest during this struggle.

*I received an Ergo (without the infant insert) when my daughter was almost 4 months old. My daughter turned 3 in November, and I still use it. It is one of the best gifts I have ever received. http://www.ergobabycarriers.com

You may find other helpful responses under the following mamasource posts:
Sun. Feb. 15, 2009, Stephanie R: Help for friend's baby with Reflux!!!!
Sat. Feb. 21, 2009, Jenny M: Silent Acid Reflux
Sat. Aug 1, 2009 Joy H: Acid Reflux in an infant

4 moms found this helpful

My little guy had that, too - Zantac made a big difference! he slept at an angle until he was about 6 months old - when he was that little, we just let him sleep in his bouncy seat. The change in his personality was almost immediate - he went from cranky all the time to happy and content after about a week of taking Zantac. Some places sell this wedge thing (look online) that is really expensive, but supposed to help immensly. We just rigged his crib with blankets and things under his sheet.

You do have to watch the dosage - as they grow, the Zantac will suddenly stop working because the dosage is too low. So if you see a relapse in spitting and being upset, call your doctor.

I also recommend going to CVS or Walgreens and getting a medicine pacifier. You can dissolve the Zantac in water in the paci and give it to him - it saved us lots of mess and trouble.

If you search online for acid reflux in babies - you'll find lots and lots of helpful message boards set up for parents of infants with reflux. I learned a lot on those.

1 mom found this helpful

If you're nursing, sometimes your diet can make it worse. Dairy is a common culprit. Also, it helps for the baby to sleep at an angle. You can put a rolled up blanket or something under one end of the crib mattress, or do like some friends have done and let her sleep in the bouncer seat.

1 mom found this helpful

Like the previous poster said, you will need to get the dosage of Zantac adjusted regularly since it is so weight sensitive. For that reason you may ask about Prevacid instead, it worked so much better for both my boys when they were babies.

If you are bottle feeding then try sitting her up while she is eating and for at least 30 mins after she eats. Also, burp more frequently while she is eating.

If the Dr recommends thickened feeds then ask about Simply Thick. It is a gel that has no calories that will thicken the formula, much better than rice cereal and it will not make any lumps.

1 mom found this helpful

KP,
My son had acid reflux. We used Zantac & loved it. I also used Simply thick in his bottles, then carried him in a front carrier for abaut a half an hour after each feeding.

I was nursing, so I had to pump, then add the simply thick to the milk. It was well worth it!

We also elevated the top end of his crib matress, but he usually slept in the bed with me, so that didn't do a whole lot of good. lol
Good luck!
A.

1 mom found this helpful

My son was on prevacid from about 5 weeks old to a year and a half. We also used Dr. Brown's bottles which worked wonders. You got a lot of great advice!! Check out www.napnanny.com. I got one of these as a shower gift for my daughter and it's wonderful -- wish I had it for my son. Also, he did not grow out of it at a year. At 2 years old, he got put on Prevacid. This may be something that he has the rest of his life -- hope not, but at least the meds help to control it! Good luck and always keep lots of towels close at hand! lol

I haven't read any of the other posts, but if the Zantac doesnt work (cause acid reducer didn't work for us), nutrimegeon, not sure if im spelling that right, but that formula is amaaaaaaaaazing!!!!!!! It totally turned my daughter around, yea it is $25 a can, and its a 16oz can, but hey if it means no screaming kid, its totally worth it! and there's always craigs list and stuff, if ur not too leary of stuff like that. Gripe water is another thing that was great help every now and then. Also the cherry flavored mylanta, i would usually give her just a 1/4 of a teaspoon, either mix it in with her formula or just give it to her straight. Hope something helps! I understand how hard it is and its tough to make it through, my little girl got over it pretty well by 3 months, but she still has days here and there that it bothers her. Poor baby! good luck!

My experience was basically the same as the former posts, so I wont repeat! Just wanted to tell you that my son was on Zantac about the same time as your child and it made all the difference in the world! He was like a new baby! Best wishes!

Our son is now 16 months old and he screamed constantly for the first 12 weeks of his life. The websites kellymom.com and marci-kids.com gave us great advice. The medication that worked for us is Zegerid- it is not common but it works.
Please don't be distracted by people who dismiss your baby's discomfort as "the way it is". It is serious when your baby hurts and doesn't have to.

Have you tried a chiropractor? Getting your baby adjusted can help SO much! 7 weeks is so little to be on medications. I would research it online if you can and try it out. It's worked for our family.

My youngest was diagnosed with acid reflux at 6 wks and it was really rough being a single mother and all. He had projectile acid reflux. Here are the list of things that helped.
Zantac
Enfamil Soy formula- nothing else would help, I tried numerous of different formulas.
I would burp him after every ounce to ounce in a half of his formula
Keep him elevated at least for an hour(swing, carseat, bouncer)
keep his crib elevated as well.
It last until he was about 14 months. He turned 4 in May and still has the gag reflux esp if he gets upset, full from a meal and he is lactose intolerant to milk. When we were transitioning him to reg milk he would vomit(projectile) until I switched him to lactose free milk and if he drinks reg milk now it gives him diarreah.
He had a lot of ear infections as a baby and ended up with tubes in his ears at 13 months, not sure if that has anything to do with his acid reflux.
Good luck and I pray this helps.
M.

hi
my son was 2 months preemie so its very normal for these babies to have reflux! he was prescribed zantac also but we ended up having be on 2 meds for it b/c it got so bad, one was 4x/day! the other was 2x/day. They are SUPPOSSED to grow out of it by 1 the dr's told me but it wasn't until about 18 monthes when i as just SICK of him being on medicine. I will say that taking him to a chiropractor helped DRAMATICALLY!!!!! Yes, even as an infant they CAN be adjusted!!! I notice even now when he misses his adjustments he has "wet burps"....i think he is "used to" having them so he has learned to swallow what comes up....but if its not taken care of....the acid can do a lot of damage to his throat and all the way down!! :) Make sure you take care of it and find what works best for your little one!!! good luck!

My son was diagnosed with Acid Reflux at 3 months old. It drove me crazy. We tried every formula and several medications. Nothing seemed to help. I finally stopped switching his formulas and stopped all medications. I bought a lot of bibs and kept them on at all times. My anxiety decreased once I begin to accept the fact that "this too will pass." We watched his weight to make sure that he was still getting adequate nourishment and at 8 months it began to subside.

Acid reflux seems to be the latest fad with adults and with newborns. It makes me suspicious.

My six month old granddaughter had problems as well. She was not medicated. She was breastfed for several months until her mother (my daughter) developed a kidney stone which required medication that was incompatible with nursing. Within a few hours of diagnosis of the kidney stone, we were scrambling to narrow down the decision of the best formula to try. Luckily, she was at Harris Methodist HEB which has a support center for nursing mothers and they were able to greatly assist with samples and with their expertise.

It took a couple of tries to find the right formula. The baby just gushes formula as a matter of course otherwise. It doesn't seem to bother her, but one gets sick of being doused in baby formula continually.

There are several formulas on the market that are for babies with gas and with spitting up problems. The one she is on now agrees with her nicely. She's also moved on to baby foods and has yet to find one that she doesn't love.

I hate for you to have a new born on medication, I will be happy to share about a safe supplement for children that may help.

Let me know if interested.

A.