Silent Reflux in Babies Pt. 2

My child’s crying was getting hard to be around, and I assumed people would be uncomfortable if I brought them into my bubble. I was running on no sleep, home alone with a screaming infant and started wondering if I was capable of being a mom. Maybe I was praying without realizing it but I remember the day as if it was yesterday. I had finally gotten the courage to send my best friend and my husband’s cousin an S.O.S emergency text. It was after my son and I sat in a chair in his room screaming at the top of our lungs together for over an hour. I held him and we rocked and cried and screamed together. I needed help, I needed a break and I wasn’t ok.

It was that night I witnessed two people unconditionally love me, and our son. They took turns walking up and down the length of my small condo while he screamed, passed out and screamed some more. They gave me a much needed break and a glass of wine. I’ve never told them this, but they were everything that night.

After my third visit to my doctor we were finally referred to a pediatrician who specializes in infant reflux. Apparently, babies with silent reflux will tend to overeat because they associate drinking milk with soothing their burning throat, think having a glass of milk after a spicy meal. Because he was gaining weight and not projectile vomiting, his symptoms were overlooked and simply classified as “silent reflux” without truly identifying the root cause.

The pediatrician was familiar with his symptoms and was pretty sure everything was being caused by a dairy sensitivity; the poor kid had been put on five different formulas all of which contained dairy and thickeners. I know I’ve mentioned how breastfeeding wasn’t going well and at this point it was non-existent. Neither of us could relax enough to get into a rhythm and I knew nothing about the impact of tongue ties.

My son was put on a Hypoallergenic formula made by Similac called Alimentum, with a protein that comes from Casen (still from cows) but that is broken down meaning the baby’s body doesn’t have to work so hard to digest the food. This means faster digestion, less regurgitation and less heartburn. Within five days he was a different baby and suddenly became what I like to call a “happy spitter” he still had reflux, but it was different. I was content packing three changes of clothes for the both of us when we went anywhere rather than not wanting to leave the house out of fear and anxiety about how he would be.

If your instinct is telling you something isn’t right, you are your child’s only advocate. You have all the right in the world to keep digging. Don’t stop doing your research, and don’t stop asking questions. If I had listened to the doctor at the hospital, I would have waited for my son to “outgrow” his reflux. Instead we got to ONE of the roots of the problem at five months he suddenly wasn’t a screaming, grumpy baby and it took almost a year for him to “outgrow” the projectile spit up. If I hadn’t been persistent in trying to address what I deep down knew was a problem, it would have been a very long hard year, instead it was a long hard five months.

- Projectile spit up followed by crying (REFLUX)

(A lot of babies spit up, this is normal. Discomfort is not normal)

or

- Gulping choking sound followed by crying (SILENT REFLUX)

- Adversion to eating and will only take in a little at a time

or

- Always showing signs of hunger and trying to eat as fast as possible to soothe

- Chronic congestion, sniffling with no runny nose

- Gasping / wheezing sounds

- Chronic hiccups

- Showing signs of pain or discomfort when burping, hiccupping, feeding

- Cough

- Arching of back and fussy when laying down on a flat surface

- Arouse from sleep cranky / hard time falling asleep

- Sour breath

- Keep baby upright for 30 – 40 minutes after they feed allowing the stomach time to digest

- Baby wear!!! (these babies are happiest in an upright position and your hands are free)

- Breastfeeding (stopping to frequently burp)

- Paced bottle feeding (upright position) stopping frequently to burp

- Do not pat or bounce to burp. Firmly run your hand from the bottom of their back to the top on the left side of the body (the stomach is on the left side)

- Elevate the change table and bassinet / crib (elevate legs of crib vs the mattress)

- Tummy time in between feeds (never right after)

- Calm environments free of bright lights and noise (reflux babies tend to be more sensitive to their environments)

- Understand YOUR child’s sleepy cues (this is where schedules need to beat it!) babies with reflux are tough, their cries all sound the same (hungry, tired, wet, over stimulated) the goal is to keep them from getting overtired. Overtired babies = crying and excessive crying = more reflux.

Reflux is a symptom and not always the problem, if you suspect your child has reflux that is causing them discomfort. You might want to check the following things.

- Latch (are they taking in too much air)

- Tongue Ties / Lip Ties (If you are suspicious they have a tongue or lip tie or they get diagnosed with a “slight” tie, hire an IBCLC who specializes in tongue ties so they can properly refer you to someone. Even slight ties can cause latch issues, sleep issues and feeding issues, this can lead to crying which leads to reflux).

- Tongue mobility (latch issues and air intake)

- Food intolerances (Are there things in your diet you can omit that could be causing digestive issues? Are there things in their formula that could be causing the issue?)

- Crying (Overtired babies cry, crying leads to large amounts of air intake which leads to REFLUX and more crying! Keep an eye out for sleepy cues and avoid letting them get overtired.)

- Torticollis – (Even a slight tilt or strain in the neck can cause issues with feeding and latch. Visiting an osteopath can help with this, they can also help with tongue ties and digestive issues)