I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It is definitely one of my favorite holidays. I love all the yummy food! This year, I had a wonderful new thing to be thankful for: Hadley Jo! I love that little turkey!
Speaking of food, Haddie sure does love to eat. I am also just as thankful that I can keep up with her demands! Right now, we are at about 4.5 ounces every 2.5 to 3 hours. We have never had problems with it going in, but it seems coming out and everything in between is proving difficult for her. Gas, no bowel movements, and possible reflux are proving to be rough on my little piggy.
Things were flowing "smoothly" until about a month ago. Having worked in daycare, I was aware that the diet of a breastfeeding mother can affect baby's tummy. So, from day one, I was careful. I even avoided dairy just to be safe. The weekend after Halloween, I ate a bowl of chili. Prior to that fateful meal, Haddie was pooping, no spit up in site, and for the most part, not one bit fussy. Shortly after the chili, this all changed. I was prepared for her to be a little gassy, but things just kept piling up.
After hours of fussing and several diapers with no poop, I began to wonder if it was more. It was almost like someone had switched my baby for another one. She was no longer content, and always seemed to be in pain. Drawing up and squirming. I tried some baby yoga and bicycling her legs, but nothing would happen. She would occasionally have a small squirt, but no true bowel movement. She had also began spitting up and had a bit of a stuffy nose. After a few days of this, I decided to make an appointment just to check things out.
The pediatrician, who is amazing, asked several questions about my diet and how Haddie was behaving. She told me to try a few tricks to get her bowels moving to see if that would clear up the spit up and fussiness. Right before we left, she decided to get a stool sample to test for a milk protein allergy. To do this, she used a finger to make Haddie poop. Tons came out. It was loose, not hard. She was not constipated at all. I told the pediatrician she hadn't pooped that much in almost a week. She said that her "muscles" seemed to be tight. Who knew there was such a problem? Again, she suggested to use Q-tips are a thermometer to stimulate her to go. Also, she said to try a suppository to try and stretch and relax her muscles.
On the way home, I grabbed a humidifier for her nose and some suppositories for her bum. The suppository did nothing. Strangely. After a while, I decided to try the Q-tip again. This time, poop shot across the room faster than the speed of light! Literally, across the room. To this day, this is the only way we can get Haddie to have a large bowel movement. However, this stresses me out. I do not want her body to become dependent on this. I try to wait it out and give her a chance, but I give in once she starts to show signs of discomfort. I hate for her to hurt when I can fix the problem. My next question for the pediatrician is whether or not I should be concerned that she is already relying on me.
So, we had a temporary fix for the lack of poop, but she was still having bouts of fussiness. These seemed to take place immediately after a feeding. She was still spitting up, and I had noticed that she was frequently swallowing liquid. I think she was spitting up quite a bit, but swallowing most of it. I suspected reflux, but I knew that it was overly diagnosed. At her one month checkup, the pediatrician decided to try Zantac to see if might ease some of those symptoms. I thought it was worth a try.
The day after her first two doses, she slept most of the day. This was a major improvement. She has always been a decent night time sleeper, but had written off daytime sleeping. She had turned into a catnapper. She would only doze from about 11am until 6pm. So, by the time late evening rolled around, she was in a mood. I was hesitant to believe the Zantac caused that much of a change. I was partially right. The next day wasn't as successful, but over time her fussiness and spit up have greatly decreased. Whether or not she has reflux, I don't know. But, I have noticed a change since we started the Zantac. So, I suppose we will stick with it for the time being. Her milk protein allergy test came back negative, but I am still being cautious with dairy.
Haddie started daycare this past week. She has done very well. Apparently, she found being at home all day boring. I am glad that she has adjusted well. I can't believe she is already six weeks old. I plan to post again soon, but if not, be on the lookout for her Two Month Old blog! Thanks for stopping by!
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