raqueljoy ([info]raqueljoy) wrote,
@ 2007-02-14 07:53:00
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Current mood: tired

ADVICE PLEASE
After the night before last, when Lucy was throwing up all night, and Asher couldn't sleep either, and last night, when I got 3 hours of sleep, I am asking the following...

Asher seems REALLY gassy and cries cries cries - is this colic or could it be something I'm eating?
He is eating every 45 minutes. My nipples feel like raw meat. Could this be a sign I am not producing enough? I never remember nursing hurting with Lucy.
We have GOT to get this sleep thing figured out - what's the best way to get him in his bassinet? Do I let him cry longer? Sometimes if I let him he will scream for like a minute and then just pass out - it's like he almost has to get the screaming out.

I am DEFINITELY calling my mom today and asking her to take Lucy.


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[info]marcid
2007-02-14 04:10 pm UTC (link)
Could be any of the above... Have you tried avoiding some of the frequent big offenders (Broccoli and onions come to mind right away...caffeine, too). but I have also heard of two Moms recently who's babes were apparently allergic/sensitive to most dairy products in the Mom's diet, and they had to essentially cut out all dairy for awhile. Just some thoughts... There are some over-the-counter drops available for gassy infants, that seem to work for some--might be worth a try with your doc's approval. Do you have Lansinoh Cream for the raw nipples? Some think it's great, some don't. Also, it seems to be quite common that some babies need to do exactly what you described with Asher...their little nervous systems seem to have a need to release tension with a bit of a cry before they fall into a restful sleep....and some struggle against snuggling at the time, and just seem to need their space by themselves to accomplish this. You are NOT a bad Mom is you lay him down and he cries for a minute or two, gradually winds down and falls asleep....especially if the usual walking-bouncing, snuggle-close routine just seems to make him more agitated. It's called "getting to know your child and how he works"...and being very sensitive to the fact that what works for child #1 may, indeed, be what makes child #2 very upset. Just looking at his little cheeks filling out like they are makes me think he is getting enough to eat...but I do know that my daughter, who is now nursing her sixth child, always, always drinks a tall glass of water while nursing...says it keeps the supply plentiful:)
Hope your Mom was able to come for Lucy today....and you and Asher both get a good nap! :)
Marcia

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(Anonymous)
2007-02-14 04:45 pm UTC (link)
Rach- It really could be either. You can try eliminating foods to see if that helps. If it is colic, swaddling worked well for us. And a litle crying does not hurt. You just have to figure out what will work! If he is only screaming for a minute, it might just be that he needs to do that. As for nursing, is he latching on correctly? That could be the issue, along with the frequent nursing. If you are unsure of how much you are producing, try pumping to find out how much he is getting at a feeding. Good choice to call your mom! Hope you get everything figured out soon.

And..... HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!!!!

Rhonda

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(Anonymous)
2007-02-14 05:04 pm UTC (link)
Rachel - I have been reading a lot of books about babies, and one stated that a baby needs to cry 2-4 hours out of the day to release energy. Just a thought, I am not experienced on this.

Kelli

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[info]cgl5f
2007-02-14 05:38 pm UTC (link)
Try eliminating dairy from your diet...that caused alot of the same problems for Chloe. Of course it took me like 3 months to figure that out...yeah, nursing hurt me for several weeks with both of them -- every 45 minutes is alot of nursing, though. It's hard on the nipples. If he is wetting enough diapers (8-10 a day or more? I think? That's from memory so not sure), he is getting enough milk...but nursing constantly like that is incredibly difficult on you. Might be that if he is so gassy, his tummy is full but it is alot of gas and so he is hungry sooner? I never found the mylicon drops to help but that depends on the baby -- for some babies they work great.

Here's some stuff about colic etc.: http://www.leron-line.com/handouts/Fussy_Baby.htm
specifically i was looking for the 'colic hold' which they say helps alot.

Try calling your local La Leche League for advice, they can give you advice on what to eat/drink to increase milk supply, and the common foods to cut out of your diet to help with gassiness/digestion. (I only remember dairy because that is what was the problem for us.) I have called them several times when my kids were new and they have always been very helpful and supportive.

Thinking of you! And wishing you some good long naptimes! And i hope Lucy feels better too. My whole family is down with something...dh took himself & Chloe to the doctor, so i have a bit of a rest now until they come back...

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Welcome To My World!
[info]pigs_n_ablanket
2007-02-14 05:49 pm UTC (link)
I am not having to nurse that much but if I was I'd give it up! LOL My nips hurt bad enough at every 2-3 hours! Our bedtime routine is still going pretty bad with this one. They are saying now what we eat isn't passed on as much as what they thought in breastmilk. I just saw that the other day. Is he bowing out his back and just acting like he's in severe pain? Or is he rooting everwhere and knawing his hands like he's hungry? We've made it a routine now around 7ish just to give the gas drops and hope for the best each evening. That's when our nightmare begins and ends finally around 11 or so. Good luck figuring him out though! It's so hard!

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[info]chiromama
2007-02-14 06:02 pm UTC (link)
Try block feeding (one breast for several (3or so ) hours. could be too much foremilk. Have you gone to Kellymom.com or ask moxie? Please don't let him cry longer. he's just a baby, and crying is his only way to communicate.
If he has enough wet/poop diapers then you have plenty of milk.

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Your the mom
(Anonymous)
2007-02-14 07:42 pm UTC (link)
Go with your gut. Your instincts are your best guide. If you think he needs to cry to wind down, give him a few minutes. If you think he needs bounced, walked, swaddled, passified, whatever, do what your instincts are telling you. Don't second guess yourself, you are doing a great job! You can always try something different... I wish Lucy could come to my house to play!

Kiki

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(Anonymous)
2007-02-15 12:26 am UTC (link)
Ugh Rach, I'm sorry things are rough! Have you tried the OTC gas drops like Mylicon, or maybe Gripe water? That might help some? It could be something you are eating, but honestly, I am just not sure. We were having the bassinet struggle with Lauren the first couple of nights too, but we figured out the trick with her is to swaddle her so tight she can't move. Also her bassinet has a thing on it that vibrates and plays music. I realized that she is used to TONS of noise (Evan running through the house making siren noises all day) and then at night we put her in a silent room, and she can't get herself to sleep in the quiet. I started turning the music on for her, and it seems to have made a big difference. Just remember, it will get easier. (((hugs)))

-Julie

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[info]praizeleeder222
2007-02-15 02:07 pm UTC (link)
My friend is having the same problem, he's 7 weeks and she says he still acts like 3 weeks! He was ok at first now... He did come early, so she thinks maybe thats why, but she was 37 weeks when she had him, same as you. She had preclampsia and they had to induce her. He doesn't want to sleep any more than an hour and half to 2 hours! And does he ever get gassy!!! she gives him those OTC drops for now, next week she takes him to the doctor, and she is going to ask bout it then. If you figure anything out between now and then, I'm sure she would love to know!! I think that will be the only solution to ask the doc!! She tried everything we could think of, no luck!!

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from Shannon at Rocks In My Dryer
(Anonymous)
2007-02-15 08:29 pm UTC (link)
My third child had colic, and this is just how he behaved. Fussy, fussy, and he ate constantly. We reasoned he was mistaking the tummy discomfort of colic for hunger. Sometimes he would just nurse until he threw it all up. Broke my heart.

Our pediatrician gave us the okay to give him liquid Maalox (the adult kind!)--can't rememeber the amount now, but it seemed to help. ALSO check out Gripe Water, available at any health store. One of my best friends is British, and there gripe water is a very common remedy for baby tummy pains. We gave some to my youngest child and thought it was a miracle drug.

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(Anonymous)
2007-02-16 02:05 am UTC (link)
Rach,

My tips are to immediately remove dairy from your diet for at least 10 days and see if that helps. Ella was very allergic to dairy until about 13 months (still cannot tolerate a lot) and once I eliminated at 6 weeks PP she was a much happier, calmer baby. If he is arching his back, gassy, and has signs of mucous in his BMs then it is probably dairy. I wasn't sure I could survive without it but it ended up getting easy once I saw the improvement in her.

Also, you should seriously consider thrush for your sore nipples. I got thrush within the first 24 hours of nursing Ella (unbelievable!!!) and we are currently on our 5th round of it. The only thing that has worked to treat it for us is Diflucan for me and Nystatin for her. We have tried every herbal remedy on the market and things just got worse. Telltale signs of thrush include: bright red nipples, feeling as if razor blades are inside your baby's mouth as he latches but the pain subsiding some after about 10 seconds, hot sharp stingy pain in your breast tissue as you let down. If you have any of these I would go to the doctor tomorrow and get checked out. For what it is worth, Ella has never shown signs of it in her mouth so I have had to DEMAND that she be treated too. If you don't treat baby they will just give it back to you. Since this is our 5th time having it if you need any more info. just email me.

Also, we got a start date for Bob in Olathe. He will be starting March 5th. I will be heading out sometime in mid to late March to househunt!!!

Jess

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crying
(Anonymous)
2007-02-16 03:40 am UTC (link)
Rhian had some gassy issues. We gave her OTC gas drops called Little Tummies. They worked great (their other products worked great as well, Little Noses, Little Colds, etc...) for Rhian. She still responds well to their cold medicine better than some of the others. Anyway, trying the gas drops won't hurt, might help.

As for bleeding and cracking nipples... I think I told you before baout my experience with nursing Rhian. She never really grasped the breastfeeding thing (and perhaps I wasn't quite as patient with it all as I could have been) and after several weeks I quit breastfeeding and started pumping. Relieved her frustration of never being able to get enough and GREATLY relieved my hurting, cracked, bleeding nipples. At first I felt horrible for not wanting to breast feed, but you know what, that was what worked for us. Having both of us frustrated and irratable wasn't helping anybody involved.

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Grumpasaurus Rex...
[info]praizeleeder222
2007-02-16 02:17 pm UTC (link)
I had one of those too. When Rachel had colic...I had to hold her and walk and bounce her around for hours!! It was the only thing that made her stop... that was not going to work forever!! I made an appointment with the doc. She gave us some miralce drops!!! It was the only thing that helped I tried all the OTC stuff... nothing worked! she was a little piggy too! (couldn't tell that now though LOL) I was at my wits end, after about two weeks ( I know that seems a llllooonnnggg time, but, I thought she was just fussy)... then i made the appointment. I was so relieved to find out she wasn't going to be like this the rests of her life :) I prayed so hard!! After the drops, Thats when I left her in the car seat(because I was sooo tired and fell asleep sitting on the end of my bed!) and she slept her first night all the way through, and me, waking up the next morning scared to death!!
I did not breast-feed, I was back to working 12 hour days and it just didn't fit the schedule. so I don't know about changing your diet, you may want to try that first!!
Praying you find an answer... SOON!!!

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[info]cgl5f
2007-02-17 02:04 am UTC (link)
coming back to this....i just found this on Moxie (which i should read more often!), may be helpful with the sleep issue:
http://moxie.blogs.com/askmoxie/2006/06/babies_and_cio.html

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