Vomit and gulping milk

PIa - posted on 01/01/2010

My daughter has acid reflux as well and Her doctor informed me to keep her upright for 45min to and hour and I have her bed slightly elevated so that she is sleeping at a tilt instead of flat. This has help her alot and now she is no longer on the Prevacid for the reflux.

Shelly - posted on 12/31/2009

What looks like a huge amount of vomit may only be a little. Looks like your little one has acid reflux to boot. When my daughter was born she would gulp down 2 ounces at a week old, that was just too much for her & she would refund the whole bottle all over me. At 4 months she could handel 2 ounces, at 6 months she could take 3 ounces, & at 22 months she takes 8 ounces. I swear if I gave that baby 1 1/2 ounces she would hurl all over. Try giving her just a little less formula at a time. They put my girl on acid reflux meds (prilosec) & they didn't do a thing. Just make sure to check that the baby is having enough wet diapers & that the fontanel (soft spot) isn't way sunken in which would mean dehydration. I had to feed my baby more often because of the smaller feedings but it worked. Also if you are bottle feeding check the speed of the nipple. My girl was gargling her formula & I couldn't figure out why & when I looked at the nipple it was a stage 3 & it should have been a stage 1. Godd luck.

Brandi - posted on 12/31/2009

Quoting Crystal:

Vomit and gulping milk

My 12 week old seems to get a lot of milk come up when I put her to bed. whether it be on her side or her back. She cries and I go in to check on her and her nose also seems a bit sniffly, but she is gulping down milk and sometimes just vomits everywhere..she wakes up alot coughing it all up.. I pick her up and it continues to happen while she is upright but only starts when she has been laying in bed. It happens up to 3 hours after her feed also..

She is on Losec for reflux, I have her cot elevated and always hold her up for 20 mins after every feed. It seems to be getting worse, has anyone got experience or advice for me, it concerns me a little..

She is on lactose free formula as she is lactose intolerant..

Francine - posted on 12/26/2009

Talk to your pediatrician about it. My daughter did the same thing, she is 15 now, but back then he recommended a sleep board for her, and my insurance paid for it as it was part of her esophigal reflux condition (she was born without the little flap that covers our esophigus (sp) so when she lays on her back bile, acid, food can potentially all come back up). It's a little firmer than propping her mattress, and she will sleep just short of sitting up, until the board came in the doctor recommended I let her sleep in her carrier/carseat. My daughter still sleeps with an army of pillows under her but grew up with normal height and weight for someone her age.

Gayle - posted on 12/24/2009

i would say to get back to the pediatrician about the problems if they are continuing, it sounds to me like the medicine isn't helping much with the reflux. there may be other things that they can tell you to do. sometimes a pyloric stynosis can happen, where the valve at the bottom of the stomach that leads to the intestines can close up, and that is a very serious problem that sometimes needs surgical correction. i's more likely to happen in babies with tummy issues. i hope yur little one feels better soon!

Marisa - posted on 12/24/2009

My son was the same and sometimes still struggles with gulping... is your supply strong? I found my son had the most trouble if my flow was fast so sometimes I had to feed him while he was on my chest... a bit of a pain but certainly helpful to help stop the gulping. Funny how we react when they seem fine... My son would projectile vomit, I'd get upset and he want to keep feeding! Hope all goes well. xM

Debora - posted on 12/24/2009

Hi there. I would still totally feed on demand. Never feed on a schedule, per say, but take cues from baby. Also try the burp every 2-3 ounce method. I notice my kids always spit up less when I would burp frequently while feeding. Just out of curiosity, how was it determined your baby is lactose intolerant? If it was the spitting and that is not getting better, than maybe she isn't?? Just a thought. Hope I have helped.

Precious - posted on 12/23/2009

My granddaughter, she is always got a thrush on her tongue and on the side of her mouth as well and on her lips inside her is breastfeeding and 3months and two weeks and she weighs 8.20kg please i need some help.

Janee - posted on 12/23/2009

My daughter had the same issues, there where some differences though my daughter had colic due to formula with cows milk, and she had an severe allergic reaction to soy, talked to her drand he put her on enfimal nutramigen and it has worked wonders, she still spits up but not 2-3hrs after she eats like she use to, check with your dr and ask if it could be an allergic reaction to the formula

Chelsie - posted on 12/23/2009

Hi Crystal,
I was wondering if when your daughter spits up if it is projectile. My little man had projectile vomit and had to have surgery. I don't mean to scare you. The docs told me that is more comman in boys than girls, but if the vomit is projectile and comes out of her nose forceful than I would take her to the doctor and see. My little guy had pyloric stynosis.

Bec - posted on 12/23/2009

We had the same thing with my 8 week old. Hes now on Karicare HA and we use the Karicare thickener in each bottle as well. This has made a huge difference, we still get a little bit of vomit when burping but no constant leaking, no huge vomits and no vomits 3hrs later. He still drinks his milk quickly but hes not gulping it anymore. If its really concerning you then maybe speak with your GP or community nurse. Good luck :)

Katie - posted on 12/23/2009

After feeding her try putting her in a pumpkin seat on her left side for about a half hour. My pediatrician recomended this and it worked.

TRACY - posted on 12/23/2009

also my son had really bad accid reflux

TRACY - posted on 12/23/2009

i went thru the same thing with my soon.. when he was and infant he was lactose also this is what i did i let him sleep in his car seat and that help also...after he got away from formula he couldn't drink regualr milk..he also was allergic to all the formulas out there...when he got to be 11 months old i put him on soy milk and he kept it down really good... i hope my advice works for u..

Jessica - posted on 12/23/2009

It might even be her formula. My son wasd like that when he was on lactose free soy based formula. So I spoke with his Dr. and he told me to try Similac Sensitive. I dont know what brand she takes, but I would certainly check into it. It helped my son out soo much. Good luck I hope she gets better!

Amanda - posted on 12/23/2009

Have you checked your bottle nipples that the holes are not too big. So that too much liquid is coming out at her every time she sucks, which would cause a gulping on her part to try and swallow it? Then, of course she sucking a lot of air in at same time, causing bubbles in her stomach. Does she burb well? when you are feeding her hold her head and body up higher, so her head is just above your boobs, and her body is angled with feet sitting in lap? If she is still quite small maybe put a pillow on your lap to make it more comfortable. Are you sure she is not allergic to the Losec? Seems like her digestion is off, if she is vomiting 3 hours after you feed her? How often are you feeding her? The vomit is it solid like curdled milk? Like it has been sitting in her stomach for hours not digesting?

Christina - posted on 12/23/2009

I have a friend who's son had the same problems. He was a reflux baby as well. Her doctor said it was simply a case of severe reflux. Formula will also aggravate the reflux, but that is not the main issue. My daughter has mild reflux, but the more severe cases are often exactly what you described. Hang in there. It usually eases up around 6 months and just gets better from there. Another thing you might check is to see if the formula is also soy and gluten free. Those can also irritate a reflux tummy.

Mel - posted on 12/23/2009

my daughter was put on thickened bottles at 3 and a half months but with a thickenr because in Australia we dont use rice cereal in bottles. It helps to line thier stomach a bit better. They made us feed her solids before the milk to because that also helps but she did not get put on solids til nearly 4 months

Crystal - posted on 12/23/2009

No I had not thought of that, I don't think I can thicken the formula she is on unfortunately, I didn't realise thickening helped with vomiting, I might google that one thanks :-)

Mel - posted on 12/23/2009

Have you tried doing her feed in 2 settings? I used to have to give her the first half of her milk then wait abou 20 mins then the second half. You could try thickening the bottle with a thickener or rice cereal it helps with reflux

Crystal - posted on 12/23/2009

Thanks, you are wonderful :-)

Thea - posted on 12/23/2009

Quoting Crystal:

One thing, if she has vomited quite a lot about half an hour before her next feed, would you still feed her on schedule?

yes, but not much - I'd keep her feedings smaller until the vomiting lets up a bit.  Also, keep giving her plenty of water - dehydration is the thing to be concerned about, not feeding.

Crystal - posted on 12/23/2009

oh ok thanks for your help! Yeah she is in no pain, she does cry a little when she is laying down and is about to vomit, but I think it's due to discomfort more than anything.. it definitely bothers me more than it bothers her! She is definitely gaining weight too haha little chumbawumba, so no cause for concern there..

I guess I just hate seeing her vomit and it scares me she may choke on it.. we love to take on our babies pain don't we :-)

She vomits usually a few hours after her feed, but I will try and slow down her gulps, I definitely know the less she drinks the less she vomits.

Thanks guys, I feel much better :-)

One thing, if she has vomited quite a lot about half an hour before her next feed, would you still feed her on schedule?

Thea - posted on 12/23/2009

If she is crying when she spits up, that would be cause for concern - try keeping her upright as long as possible after she eats. Also, try giving her the formula in smaller servings, take the bottle away frequently and interact with her in some way for a minute or two and then continue the feeding - if she fusses (and she probably will) distract her for as long as possible - you don't want to get her upset, just let her swallow her food completely. Do this several times during the feedings and see if it helps.
Some babies can inhale a full 8 oz and hardly spit up at all - other babies spit up no matter what. As long as it is not projectile, just keep those burp cloths handy!
My daughter vomited like this until she was walking... tiresome, but healthy. I didn't use burp cloths, I used bath towels!
Your baby's vomiting will probably start to lessen in frequency and volume in the next three months.

Andrea - posted on 12/23/2009

My doctor says that spitting up/vomitting is all normal, since they have not developed that part of the body that holds food down....is your baby still gaining weight? I think the only time to worry is if weight is not being gained...you are doing all the things my doctor told me to do...I would go in and see your doctor so they know this is happening and can monitor the weight gain...i know its hard to hear all the time...yes, this is all normal...I freaked out when my daughter first vomitted...but I am learning to calm down, and just get past this time....one more thing, is your baby a happy spitter/vomitter? ie; spits/vomits and then seems perfectly fine? This is what my daughter is like...doctor told me that it doesnt phase the baby, but Mom and Dad are the ones who are concerned. Have you tried a nipple for 3 mo that might make it harder for baby to gulp? Hope you feel better...