So Confused!

[GrumpyBaby]

Hi, after reading alot of the posts on this site, I decided someone might have good advice out there. My son's pediatrician isn't very helpful in this situation and I'd almost do anything to get relief for my poor baby. He was born 6 weeks premature and was in the NICU for 3 weeks. During that time he had problems with his intestines being enlarged and was taken completely off of food for one week. He didn't even get a feeding tube. Just a blend of fat and nutrients directly into his blood stream so he wouldn't lose weight. After that week he was giving mostly breast milk, of which he thrived on. Unfortunatly when I wasn't able to come to the hospital to nurse, they were giving him bottles. Due to this, he became nipple confused and refused to nurse. At that time the Doctor at the hospital said to give him Enfamil Enfacare for preemies. I did and that seemed fine. Eventually I went to only formula because pumping was becoming time consuming and he refused to nurse. He did fine for about 2 weeks. After that he became VERY gassy and VERY irritable. He whines or cries pretty much all of the time. I've since tried Enfamil LactoFree, Enfamil Lipil, Isomil Advance, and now we're trying Enfamil Nutramigen. I'm praying it works. I tried thickening his formula with Rice cereal, but he seems to be spitting up a lot more with that. Has anyone gotten that reaction with cereal? I don't know what to do at this point. I have decided to try and relactate. It's been about a month since I stopped, but I have very supportive people around me and I'm willing to give it a try. Until I can produce enough milk though, I'm worried he'll just be in pain.

Sorry this was so long, but I'm just at my wits end and I don't know what else to do. I know they grow out of it, but I don't want to wait for that.

Any and all advice is SO greatly appreciated.

[cary]

Dear Grumpybaby,

Sorry to hear about your troubles. Good for you for trying to relactate! I didn't even realize that was possible. This is one suggestion that I had read about.

Apparently it can work well if you place a bottle nipple over your own nipple if a baby won't breastfeed. And I guess (at least I have read) that it can be very effective to stimulate let down and they get the breast milk only still through the bottle nipple and it will be more stimulating for your milk production than pumping.

I read it in the "Mom Book" tips section. Perhaps you could ask your lactation consultant if they have heard of such a thing.

Good luck with everything. I really hope that you find something to ease your babies discomfort.

Take care and hang in there,
Cary

[atwitsend]

Dear Grumpybaby,

Your story sounds so familiar. I've had the same issues with my daughter who was born 8 weeks early. We have tried Enfamil Enfacare, Isomil and Alimentum. The enfamil caused a lot of gas and the Alimentum caused my daughter to reflux really bad. The Isomil seems to work but I'm not sure. She is still figity after feedings and I'm not sure if it's a result of the reflux or the formula. She is currently taking zantac and reglan. I have noticed an improvement in her reflux but she gets very irritable at night. I pumped and tried to breastfeed for 3 months. I wasn't successful at relactation and certainly hope you have better luck than I did. I'm curious about the Nutrimigen. Maybe I should give that a try. I did try adding oatmeal cereal to the formula and my daughter did not take very well to that. I've heard from many Mom's that they experienced the same problem.

Having a preemie can be so challenging and frustrating. Wish they would have prepared me for this in my birthing classes.

Would love to know how things work out.

Best of luck.

Tracie

[GrumpyBaby]

Hi Tracy

Yes, having a preemie is definately a lot more challenging than a full term baby. We've actually switched back to the LactoFree, and he's doing okay. Still fussy in the afternoon and evening, but we've adopted ways to help him. First is the Fisher Price Aquarium Cradle Swing. He LOVES this! He'll sleep in it and just sit in it for the longest time. Sometimes he actually cries when I take him out to feed or change him. Big Lifesaver! Second is Dr. Brown's bottles. They are expensive, but worth EVERY penny. These were recommended by the emergency room doctor we ended up seeing while on vacation for Thanksgiving. He screamed so bad all day, my mother insisted something was wrong. When they did the X ray of his abdomen, there was a cloud of gas about the size of my fist on his left side. After mylicon and Dr. Brown's, the gas has subsided greatly. One of the best things I've found is these things you can get right at your local Wal Mart in the hunting section. They're called HotHands 2. If you don't see them, ask someone. They are WONDERFUL! They are used my hunters and such in very cold climates to put in your gloves to keep your hands warm. You just take them out of their pack and shake them and in about 2 minutes you have a portable heating pad the perfect size for a little tummy. They stay heated for 10 hours. I wrap one in a cloth diaper and lay my son on it when he sleeps. It gets me about an extra two hours. They come four in a pack for about a dollar and fit perfectly in your diaper bag. When I'm on the go, I wrap one in a cloth diaper and put it between his onesie and sleeper and he loves it. Just make sure to wrap it so he doesn't get too warm.

Well, hope this helps. I've heard they out grow this by three or four months, but for us it's longer because we have to consider their "adjusted" age instead of the "actual" age. But I'm sure one day, it will all just be a memory! :-)