HELP! 1St Time Mom with Gassy/fussy Baby

My son had this, too. He outgrew it. Their digestive systems just take a while to develop. You could also try rubbing her tummy in clockwise circles.

Too early for nighttime sleeping routine.

I had similar problems with my first, seeing a lactation consultant really helped. I discovered I had an oversupply and the baby was getting too much foremilk which is not as fulfilling and has more lactose causing gas and somtimes reflux. I worked it through it with the help of the consultant and my pediatrician. When my second repeated the pattern I switched to formula right away and I must admit it was so much easier.

What works amazingly well is to take a pice of peppermint like a candy cane and swirl it around in warm water then give some to the baby. They just need to drink some of the water and it just works miracles.

Here are my main questions:

Hi M.,
Not too worry I think we all go through something like this with our first baby.

1) Who uses Mylicon and is there something better for a gassy baby. Is gas really the issue when you exclusively breastfeed? How do you know when it’s Gas? Only occurs b/w 1-5am

I used Grip water and found it to be helpful.
It is also possible that at night when the baby is overtired at night and maybe try a soothing cd or reading her a story. (In some ways I found this help is just keeping me calm by just knowing I had a plan.)

2) Does anyone have issued with sudden choking reflexes when at the breast, baby was a great latcher before?

My guess is that your let down is a little faster at night and she will get used to it. As your milk supply increases the speed at which it comes down also increases. It might just be taking her by surprise.

3) Does anyone have any tips on how I can start getting the baby on a night time sleeping routine?

Our night time routine which began at infancy and we still do most of it is;
1. Warm bath
2. pjs (with a bedtime cd playing)
3. When they were still nursing we would nurse
4. A few stories (Sandra Boyton (Dogs was always a big hit), and anything from Barefoot Books especially the Cleo books and Bear in the Square)
5. After which we would just cuddle

BTW-I've eliminated milk and all other gassy foods from my diet that are thought to be the culprits.

We had the same problem with our son and after a few weeks on no diary (including any milk proteins) he was much better. After a yr of no milk we were still breastfeeding and reintroduced milk in my diet and it went great. He is almost 8 and has no problem with dairy now.

I hope this makes sense I am typing while running back and forth getting my cuties to bed :)
Best wishes,
R.

Hi M.! And welcome to the trials of motherhood!

I wouldn't worry about giving her mylicon. It doesn't interact with the body, just the gas bubbles in her digestive tract.

Yes, babies can make lots of weird noises....gasps, sputters, regurgitations, etc. It's their job to freak us out, and they can be really good at it. I would mention it to your pediatrician, watch her complete lack of concern, and feel comforted.

Nightime sleep routine? This baby is going to go through so many changes in the next few months that any routine is likely to change anyway. You can try, but don't make yourself crazy over it. Just stay relaxed, take lots of naps, and let her grow up a bit. There are a few good habits you can adopt yourself, such as taking your nipple out of her mouth before she falls asleep (so that she doesn't think she's got to be latched in order to go to sleep). Things like that can be helpful if you can keep yourself from expecting results, such as a solid night's sleep. Goals only make us tense and frustrated. Stay loose. Do what you think is best, and don't expect too much. You'll have more fun that way.

Lots of love to you and that precious burpy gurgling thing in your arms!

Hi M.,

I am a wellness consultant. I see many children wih similar conditions. She has an imbalance that she developed and you may correct it naturally without medicine.

My granddaughter had the same problem and I put her on living water to drink a magnetic pad to sleep on and wholefood supplements and she never had any other problems since. She is 7 years old today.

If you are interested in more info let me know.

Happy New Year.

N. Marie

Hi M. - I'm a mom of a 3.5 month old and a 2nd time mom. Don't worry about the gas thing, they all go through it. Try to get her through it by rubbing her tummy move her around to try to get the air to move ( I would twist her back and forth gently) to get her to burp better. They get better at burping (at about 2 months) and soon they burp on there own with very little patting. She might have colic or have a night time fussy or full blown crying time and that will end by 3 months.
My daughter would choke and throw up almost every time she ate. come to find out she was just over eating and their sphixter (sp) isn't developed to hold their milk down and I had a lot of milk in the first two months.
As far a sleeping at night don't have baby in the room i would wake up every peep with my first and pick him up thinking he needed to be fed. With my 2nd i let her sleep till I know she is truly up and hungry. And don't worry about a day schedule it seems the night works it self out when you just let it go.
Good luck
K. from LG

Hey M.,
First, hang in there. I remember those sleepless nights with getting up several times at night to breast feed, but that will soon pass atleast for the night time feedings. Unfortunately your baby is too young to really have a consistent night time routine except if you bathe around the same time every night then read a book. I think if you start that you will be better off down the road. I used Mylicon once or twice and it seemed to help my daughter. Since you are breast feeding make sure your daughter is latched on properly as that could make her gasp too much air as well. Try rubbing her stomach in a downward motion lightly and see if she passes gas out the other end...maybe even use some soft smelling lotion to help you massage her. A night time sleeping routine may not happend for some time, so keep that in mind and dont feel bad for "over reacting" you are just doing a swell job with keeping in tune with your new bundle of joy. Hope this helps and enjoy every moment of your time off and being a mom, daughters change your lives forever and kids are absolutely priceless.

Try this stuff called cocyntal for colic. My son had colic and I tried the mylicon and it made it worse. I finally found that stuff mentioned above and had great success, you can find it at Whole Foods or places like that. Its all natural and my pedi said to try and keep using it ot worked, and it does many of my mom friends have used it w/ their little ones and love it. I still keep it around for when my kids get gassy and they are now both 4 1/2 and 6 1/2. Good luck...

Having struggled with sleep a lot with my baby, i think the most important thing is to start putting your baby in bed when drowsy, not fully asleep -- as early as 1-2 months if you can. My advice -- don't nurse your baby to sleep! If you create that habit, it can be very difficult to break later on. I'm still struggling with it with my daughter at 13 months! I've found that if she falls asleep at the breast she will wake throughout the night & want to nurse to fall back to sleep, whereas if she falls asleep on her own she tends to sleep thru the night without calling for me.

It looks like you've gotten some great advice so far.
My daughter is almost 7 months old now and she was colicky and had reflux pretty badly for her first 4 months. The mylicon helped some of the time. She also coughed and choked her way through half of her feedings for the first three months, but my let down was very fast and some of it was just the reflux. I'd have to say that the things that helped the most were feeding position, burping position and sleeping position. Also, a warm bean bag on her belly swaddled with her.
We opted to not do the Zantac medication because it made her so constipated. The constipation was worse for her than the reflux.

So 1)Change your feeding position so she's more upright on you.
2)Put a thin pillow or a folded blanket under whatever she sleeps in so she's on an
incline, and change the burping position so she's on her belly across your lap
with her head in your knees. This works in bed or on the couch with your
knees up and bent too and Dad can do this also.
3)You have an advantage because it happens at the same time every
night/morning. This time period is the only time period you have to worry
about trying these things. Although, she'll probably change it as soon as you
think you've got it down.

As for the sleeping routine, that won't come for a few more weeks. When my daughter's pediatrician said she could start sleeping however long she wanted to (we wouldn't have to wake her up to feed her), we began a more rigid bedtime routine. However, you can begin picking a "bedtime" for her now.
We chose to try to have our daughter be in bed asleep by 8pm at the latest. So between 3-4pm we'd go for walk around the block, then we'd feed her at 5pm and play with her for a few minutes while we snacked or ate. She'd get a bath around 6 or 6:30pm, eat again and then we'd put her to bed right after that. Even if the bath is just a little baby sitz bath, it counts in the routine. The routine didn't really begin to work until she was 4 months old and wasn't so colicky. Before 4 months, instead of putting her to bed we'd just have to go outside with the bouncy seat and take turns walking her around until about 11pm or midnight because it was the only way to keep her from crying her poor little head off. BUT, she knew what to expect. By the time she was 5 months old, she would get fussy if we varied from the routine too much. We also moved her to her own bed in her own room when she was almost 5 months old. She sleeps better and so do we.
So, at 4 months she was in bed and asleep by 8pm. Now that she's almost 7months old, she's in bed and asleep by 7pm. It's such a set time for her that even if we're out she falls asleep at 7. We are currently replacing the post-bath feeding with a bedtime story as she is less and less interested in eating right after. We still have to get up and change her diaper or soothe her in the middle of the night on occasion because she's teething, but we take shifts so we both get a block of sleep.

Good luck, you'll be fine.

We tried Mylicon and gripe water. Didn't help much. One of my twins had terrible trouble with gas after feeding. My night nurse identified the problem as being acid reflux... after eating,the baby would arch her back or crunch up her belly because of the pain of the reflux and it would be difficult to get her back to sleep after feeding bc she would cry / fuss for hours. I resisted this diagnosis bc the remedy was medication, but finally went to the dr. and asked for a prescription for Zantac. Within less than 2 weeks (that's how long it takes for the meds to take full effect), I had a much happier baby.

I don't know if this is your baby's issue but I just wanted to share the story. I understand that you don't like the idea of medication, I felt the same way. My husband and I are both happy we made the decision we did because we didn't want to see our tiny little baby in pain anymore. BTW, we weaned her off of the medication at about 6 (?) months. Good luck!

The first couple of months are SO hard - congratulations on your new baby, though! (She has a lovely name, too.)

My daughter was the same way...

I would cut out really common allergens like dairy and chocolate from your diet for a couple of weeks to see if that makes any difference. My daughter was intolerant of dairy, eggs, and soy and it made a huge difference when I cut those out. (I'm allergic to chocolate, so not an issue!) I also had to cut out gassy foods, but eggs and soy were big contributors that it took me some time to figure out.

I found Gripe Water to be much more effective than Mylicon for gas.

Ask the pediatrician about reflux - choking when nursing can be a symptom. Also look out for throat clearing and hiccups. I think it's under diagnosed. It made an immediate difference when my daughter started medication for GERD. I would be hesitant about Reglan, though, really concerning side effects. They usually start with Zantac and then move onto Prevacid or Zegrid. Marcikids.org has great information.

It's also just a very gassy age. It's rough to see them struggle.

The No Cry Sleep Solution by E. Pantley is a great book for sleep issues and establishing a routine. The thing is that it can be anything as long as it is consistent. We did quiet evening time, bath, and rocking in the glider and nursing before bed. Keeping it dark at night and bright in the daytime also helps.

Of course - some kids just aren't great sleepers. Mine is 16 months and has never slept through the night! ;)

Hang in there - it gets much easier for you and for babe.

She may be gagging from your milk let down. You should call the Dr. if you're concerned about the crying. I dealt with this issue with my twin boys when they were infants and it turned out they had acid reflux. Best of luck and congratulations on becoming a mom.

M.,

I learned the hard way with my 1st that Chocolate is a HUGE culprit in making babies have "hard gas" as I call it.. He screamed and had a really really hard time passing gas, and even pooping when he was in his first few weeks of life.. Since then I haven't eaten Chocolate while breastfeeding and none of my other kids have had a problem, my 4th is now 2 and a half months old and she had hard gas not to long ago, I found out that Aloe Vera ( I was taking it so that I could have a decent movement.. *L*) also caused it for her, and I had gotten a piece of candy that had chocolate in it that I didn't know about (it was one of those old fashoined hard candies)and she was miserable for 2 days... if you rub your babies tummy clockwise it helps to move the bowel, go up the right side across the top, down the left and across the bottom it helps them to move gas and poop better...

As for choking at the breast, sometimes Tyler (my 2 and a half month old) will slurp the nipple in to fast and hit her gag relfex, or she will create a really good let down and be sucking more milk than she can handle at once and that will cause her to choke and cough.. it just takes time, she will learn to handle your let down and flow and soon she will be able to handle it all.. Its just as much a learning process for her as it is for you.. just be patient.. if it is a flow problem try pumping a little before you feed her to make your breast a little less full, then she will have to work harder for the milk but won't be overwhelmed by how much there is once she finally gets it..
Good luck!! And congrats on your sweet baby angel!!
X.

I used Wellements Gripe Water which is completely organic so I felt it was safer. People seem to have the best luck with the Wellements brand. It doesn't work as quickly as the Mylicon but it still works extremely well. Sometimes, you need a second dose. Plus, it helps with more than just gas. To me it sounds like gas or maybe possible colic since it happens at the same time each day. My son was also exclusively breastfeed and we dealt with a lot of gas. Refusing to eat and screaming was always our signs.

The choking thing could be because you have a strong let down or lots of milk so the milk is coming to fast or strong. I didn't have the problem but my good friend did and she would just take away the breast for a second and try again. Eventually, her baby was better at dealing with it.

At this age, I feel, you just have to do what your baby ask so a sleep schedule just doesn't happen. When the baby hits 3-4 months then you have some options. Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth is a fantastic book to read. He does have some suggestions for the early weeks and months. This book helped me to get my son to sleep 12 hours at night at 4 1/2 months and has continued it since. He is now 2 1/2 years old. Good Luck!

First of all, take a deep breath! Exclusive breastfeeding is fantastic and you should keep that up! Breastfed babies tend to be less gassy because of the easier to digest nutrients. You should find out where your closest Lacation consulant is. We had ours on speed dial for the first month. If for some reason you can not locate an LC, then search for La Leche League in your area. You are asking great questions and a professional can help answer them. I can tell you are a wonderful mother, let your intuition guide you. As for the sleeping routine...My husband also commutes to the Bay Area so I understand the need for sleep. I found that letting my son adjust to his own sleeping routine worked wonderfully. I did not fight his needs to sleep or time them to our day. He adjusted naturally to day and night sleeping quickly because we did not add stress to it. Your sweet girl is only a couple of weeks old. She will continue to need to nurse throughout the night for a bit. Having her in your room will make this easier. Around 3 or 4 months you will notice a big change in the sleeping, eatting and playing schedule and you will begin to feel human again! This is an amazing time that can very draining. It will get better. You will get more sleep, breaks and more time to gaze at her. My hubby and I also worked out a deal that he attends to the wake ups until 10pm and then I take over completely. You guys will find your grove and your daughter will settle into it. Oh and I used infant massage along with bicycle legs to help work out the gas.

Hi M.,

I am a mother of 3.....When my first child was born, also a girl, she cried for about 3 months straight....wait....wailed for three months straight. I also thought that gas the culprit. To this day, I don't know for sure but one of the things that I found that worked to help the gas out, was placing her on her back and either inserting the tip of a supository or the tip of a rectal themometer so that she would have the urge to push. You need to be ready when you do this with protective gear as sometimes they can push so hard that poop comes flying out. My best friends daughter who was born 3 days later, liked to projectile vomit after eating. We believed that it was somekind of reflux. Nobody's baby choked...but my guess is she is trying to eat too fast. Does it take awhile for your milk to let down? Maybe you need to sing to her when you feed her so that she slows down a bit or rub her temples....what every spot on her you find relaxes her the most. I would not sweat it too much. Lots of things happen for a short while with babies and kids because they are natural and they naturally work themselves out. There is always a new bride to cross. My daughter is now 22 and a Nursing Student. Some things can not be solved medically. Go with your gut, your intutition, and you will see that this will either solve itself out or you will find a way to ease both of you through it. You sound like an awesome mom! You go Mama!

Hi M.,

I just had my second baby, a boy, and he was very gassy, and I too breastfeed him. One of the things that I was forgetting to burp him immediately after he feed. That created a lot of gas, and ironically during the same times that you mentioned (1-5am). Any ways, it has gotten much better, as I have had to supplement him with powder milk because he was just too hungry, and he really started to do well. Hardly spitting up, no gas, and just very playfully.

Congratulations on your new baby, new community and newfound love for the freedom of being on maternity leave. It is wonderful.

A little about me:

In the process of going back to work, will finish my second doctorate degree this year, completing my clinical hours for licensing in the next 6 months (psychologist), and putting my kids in daycare (bummer). I love life, and I sing. Currently living in the Brentwood/Antioch area, preparing myself to commute to work as well.

our doc said mylicon doesn't really work and i have to agree. it could be the foods you are eating. try omitting dairy first and then other gassy foods like broccoli. i don't have any advice on choking or sleeping schedule. 17 days is young to have any set schedule. our daughter didn't fall into a regular routine until she was 8 or 9 weeks old. good luck and congratulations!

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this! My little boy is 12 weeks old and I had the exact same problems with him. He would be up in the middle of the night for hours with gas pains and nothing seemed to work. Like you I took milk out of my diet, tried burping him, mylicon, but nothing seemed to help. He also had that gagging problem. He would choke on my milk after let down or sometimes a few minutes into the feed. Here's what I learned:

The biggest thing that helped was time. Mylicon, diet changes, burping, never really affected his gas. Bicycle legs helped a little, but not much. I was utterly exhausted, getting only 3 hours of sleep a night. Eventually I would try to make him feel better and then I had no choice but to put him in his crib, put earplugs in and I tried to sleep while he cried. I knew that I needed to sleep to be able to function (I also have an 18 month old). I was having headaches, couldn't hold food down, was getting lost driving to the grocery store, etc. I felt awful, but there was nothing else I could do. Things started getting better around 8 weeks, and now at 12 weeks he almost never has gas. He still gags on my milk from time to time, but it's usually because he's not hungry.

Here's my responses to your questions:
1) I never really used mylicon much because it didn't help and my dr. said it really doesn't work for fart type gas, only burps. But if it would have worked, I definitely would have used it as I've read that it is not absorbed like a drug. From what I've read, gas can definitely be the issue even if you only breastfeed. It took me some time to figure out when gas was his issue. He'd usually cry sharply for a few minutes, pass some gas, be quiet for a few minutes and then start all over. He would also get sweaty and red and just seemed to be in pain. As for it only occurring between 1-5, I don't know. My little guys usually had the hardest time either from 9-12am or 12-3am.

2) Like I said, we had the choking issue and still do occassionally, but its much better. I think it's just a maturity issue as they learn to feed better.
3) For a night time sleeping routine, here are a few ideas, but again time is a huge factor and there's only so much you can do with a gassy baby. I would swaddle your baby, even if she seems to hate it at first. Also, try not to feed her too much. The more you feed, the more gas. Obviously feed if she's hungry, but don't feed just to console. Lastly, if don't feel guilty if you need to let her cry and you try to sleep. You need sleep to be a good mom.

I hope this helps. Just try to remember that it won't last... it will get better with time. Hang in there.

try to rub lavender oil in her stomach and see if it work . I'm asian and I used to rub camphor oil when my kids were younger and it calm them down and also lay her down on her stomach on your lap and rub her back at the same time. good luck

Hi M.,
I am sure you have already recieved alot of responses but I thought I might just suggest Infant Massage. My Aunt is a Certified Infant Massage instructor and she taught me before I had my daughter (now 6). I used it on her and it helped with us bonding but I have noticed the other benefits of massage with my son (now 22mos). He was very gassy when he was a baby and I was breast feeding and supplementing, I changed the formula to soy and changed my diet which made him eat more which made him start choking as well. Then I stopped breast feeding as my supply could not satisfy him anylonger. Anyway, long story short I know what you are going thru and my suggestion is after her bath and just before bed utilize either baby oil or a lavender lotion (if she doesnt have sensitive skin or you know she will not react to it) and rub her stomach in clokwise motion 5-10 times then use the scoop method starting at the top of her stomach and scoop with the pinky side of your and to her pelvic bone, then after 5-10 scoops do the bicycle leg or just put her knees to her chest. I did 20minutes every night with additional massaging and that seemed to help. ALso rub the bottom of her feet from heel to toe and rub her whole feet and both of those massage methods should help her sleep better, longer and have less gas or general discomfort. I also started young putting my son in his crib and singing to him then kissing him and walking out, he would cry and I would go back in and pat his back then leave again and eventually it worked. I dont stick to it all the time and I would recommend doing whatever will help you get the most sleep and what you are comfortable with. I would also massage him and I still do as he is stil sometimes has problems b/w 1-5am also. I do it for 2-5 mins and he goes right back to sleep and it happens less and less now. There are alot of great benefits to infant massage and if you would like more information or are interested in joining a class, let me know as I will start teaching classes here very soon. I am starting my training next month. I am in Tracy so we are close. I hope this helps and also look up Fussy Baby products and there is this lavender infused baby oil that goes in the bath water that helped also. Enjoy and goodluck! I would like to hear how it works for you! Thanks.

i know you got a lot of advice and i dont want to repeat, but i just went through the same thing with my second kid and all i can say is try to relax! it really helped us get to the bottom of it. i realized that he was not colicky, not sensitive to foods, not a reflux kid, just gassy. my kid also choked a lot on my milk (fast let down -- some say you can slow it down by pressing on the breast to slow the flow, not really sure) and had terrible gas pains. i dont use mylicon -- check the ingredients. too much stuff. try gripe water. it worked for us. just make sure to give it to baby nice and slow as they will get real mad if they choke on that too. i also think that my childs gassiness was related to too much movement after feedings (chasing after 3 y.o.) so now i just make sure to sit with him upright, talk gently to him, and try to help him to feel calm. i am actually not a big burper. it seems like sometimes it aggravated his situation. i just hold him upright with slight tummy pressure and let it take care of itself. we get lots of spit-up around here! i have never burped much in the middle of the night. i dont do any diaper changes either -- unless poopy or wet to the point of leaking. i like to keep the baby in sleep mode. also, do not worry yourself with your husband. he can deal with this reality for a short period. as can you. honestly, unless you are at wits end, you have everything your baby needs in the middle of the night, so try to let hubby sleep and just use him when you want to freak out.

I had the same problem with my daughter when she was an infant except she cried every evening from 7 - 11. My aunt would take her on the weekends to give me a break and she did the same thing for her. I thought it was gas a first, but then I thought why would she have gas at the exact same time every evening and no other time? Didn't make sense to me. I unfortunately never really figured it out - I just endured it with the help of family and friends who would come over during those hours to help. There were several mothers there and no one ever had a fix for the problem. I know this isn't encouraging, but just wanted to let you know what my experience was.

Wow ,you've gotten so much great advice. I have just been through this with my now almost 3 month old. I think when they wake and have tummy problems at the same time repeatly you might be able to trace back to something you've eaten earlier in the day. I wonder what is the time between food eaten ,to produced into milk? I think maybe 12 hours. A lactation consultant could tell you. At this age my baby also had a gassy tummy and I did have help from the mylicon. Life would have been miserable with out it. Do you notice it helping or not. If it helps and your baby is able to sleep then I'd use it. I noticed the choking too. I found this happened on one breast more than the other. It just seemed to let down to fast for her. I would change positions to try to help, more of an up right. For my baby the tummy problems faded out by 7 or 8 weeks. the choking also around 8 or 9 weeks.My body seems to be regulating to how much milk to produce. Just a heads up of what might come up for your baby next, lack of pooping. At around 9 weeks old my baby stopped pooping every day. I guess it's normal but it sure is worrysome.Best wishes to you. oh a little p.s it seems to the first borns right to be the most fussy. none of my other babies have come close to being as fussy.

Hi M.,

I had a very gassy newborn and I did use the Mylicon drops, and yes, I think they did help. My baby seemed to be very uncomfortable from gas in the middle of the night. If I remember right, we knew it was gas when he'd arch his back and then later pass gas. Babys will often arch their backs when in pain. Try different burping positions, too. An advice nurse suggested burping him sitting in my lap, and applying light pressure on his belly. I also read in one of my books that when burping a baby, you should pat them hard enough that you can hear it across the room, but not so hard that you can hear it in the next room. You can also try a warm compress on the baby's tummy. I think most newborns have a lot of gas, unfortunately!

The choking might be from when your milk lets down. This happened with my son, and only during his middle of the night feedings--maybe after longer periods between feedings. Try taking her off the breast and putting her back on.

As far as sleep, at 17 days old, I don't thinkyou can get your baby on too much of a schedule. Some things you can try--make day time sleep different from nighttime sleep, try not to let your baby sleep more than a 2-3 hour stretch at a time during the day. You can probably start implementing a bedtime routine (bath, nurse, story, etc.), though she won't quite "get it" yet. A few books on sleep that I really liked were The No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child (I think that's the title), and The Sleepeasy Solution. These book will have different but good tips when your baby is older, but they all have a few ideas to help with newborns.

Hi M.,

Don't worry, this too will pass! What you're experiencing is very typical for a newborn. Their little digestive systems aren't fully functional for a while, so this is common for the first two months or so, then you'll find they go away on their own. To get through it, though, we used Mylicon a lot. No need to feel guilty about it--the active ingredient in Mylicon can't be absorbed by the baby, it just helps break up gas in the baby's system. That's why pediatricians recommend it. We had a really tough time with this also, and found the leg-bicycling worked well if we kept it up for several minutes. We also wrapped her midsection in warm towels, used Gripe Water, and sometimes I just held her and sang to her, which worked just as well as anything else because it would distract her! Late in the game I discovered "Happiest Baby on the Block," the DVD not the book, and those methods worked GREAT to calm her down. But basically, nothing will cure the underlying problem but time. It will get better each week, and by two months she should be over it!

The sleeping thing is something else. There are as many opinions and advice for sleep habits as there are stars in the sky! I read nearly all of the advice books, and I liked "Sleeping through the Night" by Jodi Mindell the best, because it offered several different strategies to suit different types of babies and parents. Her advice was not to try to get the baby on a schedule until between 2 and 4 months. I took that advice, though I threw in the daytime routine from the Babywise book to help her start sleeping more at night and less during the day (feed, play/awake, sleep; no feeding just before naps, and no naps over 2 hrs). Then I used the "put her down nearly asleep" method (from Mindell) at around 3.5 mos, in order to train her to fall asleep on her own and get her on a nighttime schedule, which worked great for us. Bottom line, get lots of ideas, then use the one that feels best for you and your baby. Have confidence in your own judgement--no one knows your baby better than you!

J.

Congratulations on the newborn. I know you are exhausted so I'll keep it brief.
1. All babies have varying amount of gas, many will grunt or cry when trying to pass it, and most babies have some sort of reflux (spit up).
2. If your baby is growing well, don't worry, he/she will grow out of this phase.
3. Breastmilk is the best for your baby, I wouldn't change to formula. The spit up may be increasing because your supply may be increasing. Don't worry. Spit up can be a teaspoon to sometimes over an ounce. My son did this all the time.
4. Around 2 weeks of age, the babies start to learn to sleep more in the night. Just keep encouraging sleep w/ dim/darkness at night.
5. Take him in to the pediatrician if he starts vomiting too much, refusing or decreasing feeds, develops a fever, any troubles breathing other than the occasional cough w/ spit up.

Enjoy and congratulations

J. Timm, MD

The gagging me be the result of a strong letdown of your milk. When nursing our milk comes gradually until a few minutes after they start nursing and the a small surge (letdown) as our body releases more milk and starts to produce more. Some babies handle this better than others. When my daugher had some gagging for a coupl of weeks I was told to try nuring her on her side. So make sure she is on her side so an overflow of milk can just run out of her mouth. The easiest position was side-lying with a cloth diaper under her head on the bed. She would let some excess milk just run out of her mouth rather than have it forced into her throat. The position can take a little getting used to when they don't help hold there heads but try it a few times. Another recommendation (to help determine if it is a let down problem) is to pump for a couple of minutes and then after your milk lets down but your daughter on to see if she avoids the gagging.
You will get LOTS of sleep advice. Formula suggestions will just complicate the issue if she is having gas. As a parent with a now 21 mth old but historically a horrible sleeper. Take the advice but remember every kid is different and you need to try a method you are comfortable with...Cry it out didn't work for us. Two good books, No Cry Sleep solution is very accepting of different styles and Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth is helpful for explaining how they sleep.
You should look for signs of reflux, arching the back and signs of discomfort. The arching is key. The other very common problem is just being tired. My daughter was very difficult and fussy from 7 pm to 11 pm. They are tired and don't know how to get themselves to sleep. You daughter is coming out of the stage where they just fall asleep easily and almost by reflex.
As for burping. When nursed from the breast babies do not typically swallow as much air as from a bottle. They get a really good vacuum. So the old tradition to pat until they burp is always required. But some breastfed Babies are gassy. Try lots of positions. My daughter would need to be more upright to Burp. Almost sitting her up with one hand on her upper chest under her chin sitting on my knee and a few pats would help. So try different position and note if her behavior seems painful or fussy.

Hope some of this is helpful.

Hi M.,

Aw I feel your pain, sister! My daughter (2nd child) was just like yours sounds. She would be up from 1am - 5am just screaming almost the whole time. This started about week 3 and lasted a week or two. Feels like a lifetime, doesn't it? What I had with both my kids was "overactive letdown" while nursing. My kids would choke/gag when I let down and it would inevitably lead to gas and screaming. With my first child they recommended pumping through my first letdown then nursing. It worked but it was SUCH a pain pumping with a screaming teeny babe there. So with my daughter they recommended a few things. First they said to lay back about 45 degrees while nursing. This is like spraying a hose up in the air - it will still spray but not quite as hard. They (lactation specialists) also recommended nursing using the football hold. This way the baby is more upright and has an easier time swallowing. My kids were trying to slow the milk by clamping down which led to extremely sore nipples for the first 6 weeks or so. I found that using a nipple shield not only helped the pain, but it also slowed the milk down considerably. I don't know if you want to use a prop or not, but it helped so much with my daughter. The only problem was I had to use it (on and off) for another 6 weeks or so. If she was tired and wanted to nurse she would get so mad if the milk came too fast and would only nurse if I used the shield. So in some ways it was a lifesaver, in other ways it was a nightmare. Now she's almost 4 months and nursing just fine, but still chokes sometimes during letdown.

As for Mylicon, it never worked for us, either. I also tried Gripe Water (it only made her spew!) and Bio Gaia drops. Nothing seemed to help.

For the choking, it really sounds like overactive letdown. I hope some of the tips I used will help you!

Night time routine - my pedi and lactation specialist both said feed more during the day (we fed my daughter every 2 1/2 - 3 hours). They also said don't let her nurse to sleep, help her learn to fall asleep on her own (we use the pacifier and swaddling, so I'm not sure that really counts as her sleeping on her own!) Finally they recommend the dream feed. We have been using that and my daughter will go to bed around 8 pm, I'll do the dreamfeed around 11, and she sleeps until 7 or 7:30am! It's Heaven. At 8 weeks she started sleeping from 8-4 or 5am, then right back to sleep until 8 or 9am. It was really hard weeks 3 and 4, but got gradually better with the sleeping and now she's a champ.

I hope any of this helps and if you want more info, feel free to email me! Good luck!! This too, shall pass, right? :)

Check out this link about Overactive Letdown - very useful!
http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/breastfeeding/a/colic_2.htm

Try massaging the bottoms of her feet. I leanned it from a Mom and Baby Fitness video and it seemed to help. Use your thumb to massage the arches and balls and then gently put pressure under each toe. Hope it helps!! We also used the gripe water and the mylicon.

I had read that new breastfeeding research shows that the mother's diet doesn't really cause the gassiness, but that switching breasts too often can. The first milk is lighter; the second milk is thicker and if the balance is off it can cause gas. The advice they gave is to repeat the same breast twice to make sure the baby is getting plenty of the hindmilk. Both of my babies were gassy (especially in the night), but the second one was less so and we moved through it quickly. I did use Gripe water; there's an organic option available at the health food stores. We used it when they were obviously uncomfortable, but with both of them they outgrew it pretty quickly.
I do have to add that I think diet does play some role; I noticed that if I had chocolate it would cause more trouble than worth for the baby.
As far as establishing a night time schedule; I have no advice. I've had no luck there. I will get the baby on a nice rhythm , but then any change, like teething, sickness, travel , etc, causes us to have to start all over again.
Hope this was helpful.

I can't help with the feeding problems, but I tried mylicon with my son and it was useless - gripewater worked much better. (He had acid reflux). If you aren't swaddling Madisyn already, I'd highly recommend it. It was really soothing for my son, we swaddled him for sleeping until he was about 5 1/2 months (and could get out of the blanket). The Happiest Baby on the block was really useful with the '5s's : swaddle, sway, suck on pacifer, lie on side (when you're holding them) and shush (sounds like being in the womb). I think for now, your focus should be on helping her learn to go back to sleep quickly after a night feeding. I believe it depends on the baby, but it sounds like she is a bit young for a routine per se. By which I mean thinking 'feed at certain time, sleep at certain time' rather than a flexible routine: feed when hungry then sleep. If that makes sense!

Good luck,
E.

Could it be possible that it is not a gas issue and not milk that is the problem?

Possibly another food or drink you are consuming that she is "sensitive" to? Or maybe she is just telling you she is very tired and wants to go right back to sleep, not so much burping time in the Am hours?

Grains, eggs, nuts.....?

Have you checked her Mouth for thrush ?

Just some ideas.

Here is a lifesaving tip: Keep a journal of what you eat each day. also keep track her sleep/eat/cry patterns. You will start to see clear patterns emerging, especially her sleep patterns. (this works best right from day one, but you might be able to still catch the natural pattern.) Sometimes us grownups lose track of time and forget to put them down, then when you see her journal and she is crying you will see she is "past" her normal up time, because she typically only stays up for xxx amount of time. Most people are blown away when they see how much time a new baby really needs to sleep. My new babies only stayed up for 5 minutes after a feeding,if that. They probably need 23 hrs out of 24 hr period to sleep. Much crying is due to fatigue. They WILL cry when they are tired. In fact the two most common reasons for infant crying are hunger and fatigue. These are their two biggest needs. They must have that sleep time to grow, and they grow a lot in that first 6 months.If they are up too much during the daylight hours they will have fatigue at night. if your baby is staying up after feedings in the daytime for 20 -30 minutes to play or whatever, she is up too long. With my first baby I walked, I bounced,I rocked, I rubbed, and everything else until she "fell" asleep. What I actually did was create so much stimulation -it caused her exhaustion- the inability to relax so that she could sleep. So she would just pass out, eventually. My next two babies I put down when it was time - per their natural pattern. They would cry for 5 or 10 minutes(that's normal..In fact if the baby doesn't cry when they are laid down to go to sleep it might be ab-normal!) and then they'd fall asleep. Those two are my best sleepers, to this day! You can add 5 minutes to their up time for every month or so of age- if I remember right. One of my other tricks was to put a heating pad under the sheet,and when i picked up the baby to feed her I would switch it on low, so that when I brought her back it was nice and warm (switch it off before you lay the baby back down.)This trick only worked for 3 weeks or so, but the baby liked it, and so did I. (0:

Please do all the research you can on Reflux meds before you allow a pedi to advise you to put a baby on them. The prescription of reflux meds for babies is up 600%...and most of them are given off label, which means they have not gone through clinical trials with babies. Almost all of these meds can deplete b12, calcium, manganese, zinc, copper, and more, which can cause severe absorption issues, failure to grow,and developmental delays. Zantac can cause pneumonia in babies, and the ones that have aluminum in them, like Mylanta for example,are neurotoxic to the brain.
Iv'e seen doctor testimony that said most GERD symptoms are caused by food sensitivites or allergies and meds are not required when the food is taken out of the picture.

Wishing you well,

Gail

M.,
My first suggestion is to contact an IBCLC certified lactation consultant. I utilized one and she helped me SO much. It is worth the $. Mine charge $125 and stayed with me 3 hours to watch him nurse, weigh the baby before and after to see how much milk he took in, help with burping. You know, don't wait until after nursing to burp. Between switching breasts burp in between. Keep doing bicycle legs. It will pass. We tried mylicon but it didn't work. The gripe water seemed to work a little. Wear your baby in a sling during the day to calm down fussiness from gas. Swaddle for sleep. You can bend her legs up a little and swaddle that way. That should help with cramping. The lactation consultant can see if you have a fast let down that may be causing her to choke too. Now about sleep. Im sorry - but in my opinion (and I am sure many other moms) you can NOT and should not sleep train a 17 day old baby. I don't even think the harshest of pediatrician's would recommend it. Babies need maternal contact all the time. They thrive in close proximity to mom (and dad). you should co-sleep or bed share to get more rest. That way all you have to do is rollover to offer your breast and then both of you fall back to sleep. Look up James McKenna online and read how to do it safely. Your hubby may need to sleep in another room to get extra rest he may need for work. Remember, you chose to have a child - a wonderful blessing - sacrifices will need to be made. Your life is going to change and that does mean sleep deprivation. You will adjust. Babies do not have the same sleep patterns as adults and should not be forced to sleep through the night. Read Dr. Paul Fleiss's book called "Sweet Dreams" and congratulations on your baby girl!

Hi M.,

I'm afraid that you have a colicky baby. All three of our childern went through a phase of this. The doctor will say that is it fairly common and that it will probably pass by 12 weeks. That was true with all but one of our babies. He was diagnosed with "silent reflux", which caused severe sleep issues. He continued to be fussy until he was 2.5 yo, when he was diagnosed with food allergies. The reflux and fussiness (and diarrhea and rashes) went away once we knew what foods to eliminate from his diet. And he did have these issues even when exclusively breastfed. But, it is extremely difficult to figure out what foods need to be eliminated from the mom's/baby's diet. And allergy tests are not usually reliable in babies/toddlers.

So, I would suggest an experiment to see if it is reflux. Does the baby sleep better sitting up/reclined in a car seat or swing? If so, then consider letting her sleep that way during the night too. Our third child spent a few weeks sleeping in the car seat which I put on the floor next to our bed. You can also put the car seat in the crib. I know it sounds strange, but even buckled in, a baby with reflux is much more comfortable this way than laying prone in the crib in pain.

I think you also have to try some different positions to get out a burp after every feeding. Our second child was a difficult burper. Try sitting her up, facing sideways on your lap. Hold her upright with one hand and whack her back with the other. You might really have to whack her harder than you would like/think. You can also try laying her on her tummy across your lap. Then you can rock/swing your legs. That was one position that almost guaranteed to stop my son from fussing. And sometimes it helped get a burp out too.

Do you have a relative or friend you could ask to come stay with you to help once your husband goes back to work? I always found it hard to ask for help. But really, it would make a huge difference for you.

Talk to your doctor about reflux and colic at your daughter's next regular check-up. And watch out for rashes and diarrhea, which are common allergy symptoms. But even if it is allergies, children typically outgrow them by 3-5yo.

Good luck! I hope she outgrows this sooner rather than later!
-D.

Hi M.,

I'm sure a lot of other mom's have replied to you regarding the Gripe Water. I am also 33yrs old and a first time mom of a 12 month old baby boy. I nursed primarily when he was born and struggled with it for almost 3 months. It was such a rewarding feeling and it broke my heart when I had to stop "unplanned" because I started running low on milk around 2 months after he was born. During the time I was nursing, one of my friends as well as my son's dr. told me about Gripe Water. It was amazing and worked wonders for my son. I could either add a little to a 1/2oz to 1oz of water in a bottle, or I could give the recommended does with a dropper. 9x out of 10, that was the only thing that not only calmed him down, but ALWAYS made him give me a good burp. He was REALLY hard to burp in the first place and I always felt like I had to burp him a little too hard, but until he started burping on his own a couple of months ago, that's what I had to do. Eventually, when I had to start supplementing with formula, my friend told me about the Enfamil "gentlease" formula and to this day, he is still on it. He has not had a gassy tummy since.

As for the night time "up all night" syndrome, I would suggest you try pumping a bottle from time to time to get an idea of how much your baby is getting. That's really the only way to make sure she's getting enough to hold her over for a few hours extra at night.

Good luck and get some rest before your hubby goes back to work! :)

M.

My Mamma M.! I knew it was you! There's a lot going on, and what I forgot to tell you is that it's incredibly important to get them on a schedule/routine. At 17 days it's typical that in the third week they go through a growth spurt and become more "fretful" during the evening! I'm going to copy some pages from a book regarding schedules, routines and typical behavior of a 2-4 week old and email it to you to read. Please call me so that we can talk! My baby kind of gags too at the breast, but nothing to worry about! I'll email you my cell number.

Big Kiss....you're doing fantastic!

S.

Hey M.! I totally understand how you feel when your baby chokes on the breast. My daughter; who is 9 months now; did that when she was about 5-6weeks. I went to a latch clinic and they told me to hold her while I am feeding her with her head up above her body. Basically so she is not lying flat while eating and this way the milk just streams down to her little belly. I also asked them why she is doing that and they said because I have a pretty good milk flow going. LOL. Hey At least we know that our babies have more then enough to eat. Don't panic it is totally normal. Now with the gas my daughter was having that issue too so my WONDEFUL Pediatrician recommended the Mylicon also and she also recommended burping her between switching breasts and that seemed to really work for her. Sometimes I would stop her after eating for a little bit on the breast and burp her beacause I could just her her swallowing and it sounded like she was getting air and she'd burp and I'd put her back on and then do the same thing again. My daughter too is a great latcher but I think it was more from my milk flow being so heavy. I wish you luck. ;0)

My son had reflux (GERD), and I had to push his pediatrician a bit to take it more seriously. He referred us to a pediatric GI who was really able to help (our son was a few months old at this point and put on Reglan and Zantac). Having more difficulty at night, when your baby is lying down and, therefore, gravity is not providing any help, is not unusual with reflux. I agree with the poster who suggested seeing if your daughter sleeps better strapped into her car seat. Just be sure she is strapped in and on the floor, not in the crib or on any raised surface. Our son slept this way for many months, which led not only to better sleeping but also to my not worrying so much that he would choke on spit-up in the middle of the night. Your daughter might not have reflux, but being dismissed by the ped the way you were isn't helpful either way. I also found Mylicon to be useless and Gripe Water only slightly less so. I do not think you are overreacting, btw. Have you told the ped that the things he recommeded have not helped? If so and if your ped won't take you seriously, find a different one. I'm not saying that your daughter has anything seriously wrong with her but rather that feeling like your child's ped takes you seriously is important both now and in the long term. All of this aside, congratulations on your new baby!

To get baby to burp try this. Hold baby under her arms supporting her head and let her feet dangle, getting her to stretch completely out will open the diaphram and release gas,jiggle her a little, give a few pats on the back and she should be relieved. Also if it is really gas pain cradle her abdomen to yours for warmth or lay her down with a hot water bottle just warm against her tummy works really well if you have a side sleeper to hold it in place. As for the choking your milk is probably just letting down faster than she can keep up with they don't know that those super suckers they have are making that happen :-) You may want to burp her at that point if she takes in too much air trying to keep up. She'll get the hang of it and the fussiness will pass too.

Hi M.,
Sorry to hear of your troubles with Madisyn - I'd recommend a visit to the ped with documented symptoms and the things you have tried (and results or lack thereof). It sounds to me as if your baby may have infant GERD (reflux) - our baby did and we really struggled until we could get it under control with the correct type and dosage of meds. What peace once we did, though!

The choking reflexes could be due to this (sounds very typical), or also could be happening if you have an overactive letdown (OAL) to where your milk is gushing forcefully and is too hard of a flow for baby to handle all at once - if you suspect this, let your flow gush into a clean diaper for a little bit before you let baby latch on again, and see if that helps with the choking. Also, try keeping your baby elevated on an incline while nursing (head higher than feet).

FYI, 17 days is way too young to expect a sleeping routine as yet - she needs to nurse and sleep at will and that unfortunately means many nighttime wake-ups for you and her both. It will pass though, I promise! Once her digestive system has matured and calmed down, and she has grown a bit, she will start settling into more of a routine. Sleep is VERY important to babies and children as I'm sure you well know, so the biggest thing I can say that worked well for us is GUARD HER NAPS and NIGHTTIME SLEEP and be sure to give her early bedtimes (VERY early) for at least the first year. She will flourish! Resign yourself to a very limited social life for at least a year, and no "night life" to speak of. This is very normal, and you'll adjust (we did) and will find a whole new level of living that is centered around home life and baby's ever changing ways and needs. :) It's a season of life and in a few years you'll barely remember it, trust me (my little girl is now 4).

The book that we found most helpful was "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. It's available at the library if you want to check it out before deciding to buy.

Hope this helps in some way - be patient with yourself and your baby and enjoy her new little life. :) I hope you can find a way to be a SAHM or at least work locally to where you live, so you can really get to be with your daughter during these crucial early months and years! Once we have kids their wellbeing and life becomes our career (at least that's the way h and I feel - nothing is more important!).

Blessings,
S.

Wow - sounds like the experience I just went through. I had my 2nd daughter on Nov 5, 2008 so she is now 2 months old. Her first 6wks were horrible. She cried EVERY NIGHT starting at 9:30pm to 1:00/1:30am. Talk about frustrated and tired. My husband stayed home but eventually had to go back to work also with a commute time. My first childs pediatrician told me to expect alot of crying and fussiness the first 6-8 wks due to an immature digestive system which is going to cause alot of gas. A book I read said expect it due to an immature nervous system. To me, it all makes sense. Both my girls were very gassy and fussy for 6wks and then boom, it stopped. They both choked on my breasts when feeding because I have fast let down and alot of milk comes out at first. They have to learn how to handle all that milk. My newest child nurses alot better on my left breast than my right. She is constantly on and off while feeding which of course made me sore but its getting better. I did Mylicon with no real results. I truly believe it is a matter of time and you will see a much happier baby at the 6-7 week mark. Just give it time. It will get better.

Hi M.,
I am a grandmother who has just returned home after sending a month with my newborn granddaughter. She has acid reflux. My grandson had it when he was born and we didn't know what it was. My granddaughter does take medicine for this as my grandson finally started when we found out what was happening. He cried non-stop most of the time. After the medicine, he stopped. My granddaughter also stopped except from abut 7-10PM. My guess is that this is probably colic. No one can really tell us exactly what that is but it's been around for a long time. My daughter only breastfeeds and watches her diet closely as well. My belief is that you have a very sensitive child with a sensitive digestive system. Both you and she will need to feed yourselves by listening to your body. I think that it is best put this way. You and your daughter are lke a fine tuned sensitive race car. You will not be able to eat tlike a Chevy truck. At this point I am 64, eat largely fresh food, fruits mostly and greens, very few soaked nuts. I feel great, have almost no gray hair and the energy of a 20-30 year old. Your child is leading you to another way of living that will provide you both with a better life and it is not just about food. Check inot the acid reflux with your doctor and don't be afaid of a small amout of medication if it brings peace. You don't want scar tissue on her food pipe into her stomach.

My daughter had similar gassy issue, starting about 2 1/2 weeks after her birth, until 8 weeks. I did/do use Baby's Bliss Gripe Water (made from fennel and dill), and also used Hylands Colic drops (homeopathic) - she got relief within 5 minutes from both. Tummy and leg massage also helped her to pass the gas. For my girl, it got much better after she was 2 mos.

On the choking, your milk may be letting down faster than before, and is filling her mouth faster than she is used to swallowing. Keep her upright a little while feeding until she gets used to it; my girl still chokes sometimes when the milk spurts to the back of her throat! I highly recommend that you find your closest La Leche League group and go to the next meeting, or have one of the leaders come to your house for a visit. Going to the meetings has been enormously helpful to me.

On the sleeping, I have little advice for you. My girl still eats every 4 hours at 4 months old, and we feed mostly on-demand, although she has settled down into a schedule of her own. So there's no 'sleeping thru the nite' for us yet. I'll be interested to hear what other moms say!

Hang in there! You're doing a great job if you've got the time and energy to post such a thorough, well-thought-out set of questions - when my girl was 17 days, I could barely summon the capacity to brush my teeth...

M. - you've gotten some great advice! The letdown problem sounds very logical. I'd also be careful about jumping to the reflux conclusion - it could be that but I'd focus on the other possibilities first.
As for sleep routine - don't expect one for AT LEAST a few more months - maybe even 6. The most important thing is to let her sleep and feed on cue. Sleeping with you (or at least in the same room) will make this MUCH easier for the nighttime feeds and they will continue for many more months. My 8 month old still has a feed in the middle of the night (thankfully, it doesn't much phase me since we're both pretty much sleeping through it).
Also - every baby is unique so that's why it's so important to listen to YOUR baby's cues. My baby ate every 30 minutes for the first 3 months! Good thing I didn't listen to anyone telling me to only feed her every 2-3 hours. I would've been wondering why she was crying so often! Instead, I fed her when she told me to (by crying, of course).

Anyway - speaking of baby - she's awake now so gotta go! Good luck! You're doing great!!!! And, awesome that you're exclusively breastfeeding! Don't let anyone talk you out of it!!! : )

For my second, it was all dairy. Everything. cheese butter everything. It made a world of difference.