BabyWhispererForums.com
EAT => Bottle Feeding => Topic started by: Fudge on June 25, 2006, 18:12:29 pm
-
I just started my DD on this formula about 5 days ago and shes got he most runny,foul nappies I've ever seen.Its so runny,it comes up at the back of the nappy and onto her clothes (and mine if I'm holding her).I knew it would cause bad dirty nappies,but I didn't expect it to be this bad.Has anyone else has used Omneo Comfort?Do the runny stools get better after a while once they've adjusted or is it set to stay like this?
-
i used omneo with my second child and although she never got the runs she had the most awful smelly gas. I dont think i left her on it long enough for it to cause bad nappys, i couldnt stand the smell ;D
Emma
-
Hi there!
I have used Omneo Comfort for William since he was about 6 weeks old. Its fantastic stuff and truly heped to transform him from the colicy baby he was.
Yes we did get a couple of weeks of very eggy nasty smelling wind - and incredibly runny nappies - but as it suggests on the box it is perfectly normal and it didnt last for long - things will settle I assure you.
Persevere with the Omneo Comfort - its well worth it and William has gone from strength to strength on it. Any more questions about it please shout!
Helen xx
-
OMG......
Put t this way, on occasion I've had to breathe through my mouth to change my ds because of Omneo Comfort, but hey, it does the biz...
My dh has nicknamed the nappies "weapons of mass destruction" - says it all really.
-
lol ;D ;D
-
We're the same here.
Soo smelly and runny for a few weeks and then it definately settles down. Luke still has some smelly wind and smelly poop from time to time but definately not runny any more.
It definately helped his gassy tummy and he is so much more settled with it.
I just use alot more air freshner than I did afew months ago! :)
Michele x
-
Hi all
I'm considering using the comfort formula to help with dd's reflux/regurgitation. Please could you tell me why you decided to use it?
Cheers
Shanaz
-
Shanaz I have posted loads of info and my opinions on Omneo Comfort in past months.. I will give you some links to have a look at as soon as I can as the search function isn't working at the mo.. but if you scroll back through past posts in this board you should come across some posts about it!
In general my William had colic and was lactose intolerant when he was tiny - before his digestive system matured and the colic symptoms decreased. He suffered from incredible wind too!! I chose to use Omneo Comfort (or just Comfort as its now called) for two main reasons...
Its thicker than most so goes down more smoothly preventing a LO from swallowing too much air.. decreasing wind.
Its got partially digested proteins in it.. which makes it lower lactose and far more easy for a LO to digest...
I am a huge advocate for it.. its made things so much better for William .. along with the use of colief and Dr Browns / B-free bottles it was nothing short of a miracle.
I'll be back with links when I can!
Helen xxx
-
Hi Helen
Thanks for your reply. Seren also suffers from bad wind, we use Infacol but the HV has mentioned colief but said that you have to put it into the feeds in advance or something? Do you make the feeds up in advance & store in fridge? I wasn't sure if she was lactose intolerant because she was on breastmilk (expressed) for the 1st 4.5 weeks with hardly any problems at all, it all kicked off once she went onto formula full time. SHe was on Aptamil but she was so sicky on it we changed to SMA Gold which seemed to calm things down for a while but it's worse than ever. I've just been reluctant to try something else because I feel like I'm constantly chucking different things at her: Gaviscon Infant, Antacid, SMA Staydown (which was awful). I am willing to try it if she carries on feeding so badly.
Thanks
Shanaz
-
I meant to ask - what are B Free bottles? I've heard of Dr Browns, we use Avent at the moment, but may try the Dr Browns to see if it makes any difference.
Shanaz
-
Hi all
After another highly unseuccesful feed I have decided to go & buy the Comfort formula. My lo has expensive tastes, she will only feed quickly and her whole feed when taking the carton milk - anyone else found this? Also, do they do the comfort milk in cartons, it's handy when out & about, especially seeing as this milk has to be made up with hot water & then kept in fridge until needed.
Shanaz
-
Hi there
Regarding the colief - yes you do have to make the bottles up and let the colief work in the milk for 4 hours prior to drinking it. With Omneo comfort this has never posed me a problem as we make the bottles up at night for the next day (added the colief when making them up when he needed it) and they are just fine for all of the next day. To be hinest the change in William outweighed the having to make feeds up in advance.. colief was excellent in helping him to stay less colicy and windy in those early months. If you do use colief get it prescribed from the Dr - that way its free and not £10 a bottle which lasts about a week and a half!
Sadly they do not make ready made Omneo Comfort due to its nature... but as I said I used to make bottles up at night and take a baby bottle coolbag with me when I went out to keep the bottle fresh for when I needed it.. it was never any hassle.
I changed William from Aptamil - he used to spit this up a lot and I found it harsh.. it used to sting my skin when I got it on me!! But omneo has been brill.
Lastly have a look at this website it will show you all about the bottles and why they are good.. they do as they say! There are one or two tricks with them that Ive learned on the way - so if you decide to use them with Omneo give me a shout!!
http://www.babybfree.co.uk/
HTH
Helen xx
-
Hi Shanaz:
I've just been catching up with all the posts on the March/April 06 thread and have read that Staydown didn't work for you. :(
I think I was talking about Omneo Comfort a while back on that thread. I just wanted to reiterate what Helen has already told you - it really is excellent stuff! :)
We always make the bottles up at night as well for the next day and take one in a bottle coolbag when we go out - it's always worked really well for us that way.
The only time Luke ever brings any milk back up now (and even then it's only a tiny amount) is when his daddy has been bouncing him on his knees too soon after a feed or playing 'aeroplanes' with him!! (Some men never learn!) ::)
Any way I really hope this works out for you - I'm sure it will!
Take Care
Michele x
-
Hi Miche & Helen
Thanks for your replies. I have bought the Omneo so will make it up tonight & start her on it from tomorrow morning. What do you do re: night feeds? Do you just warm it up in a bottle warmer? Also, if you take it out during the day already made up how does that work as I thought you had to use it within 1 hour of being out of the fridge or am I just confused? I have read so much stuff & tried so many different things I don't know whether I'm coming or going!
Helen, I will let you know if we decide to change bottles, I'll see how she goes with the Avent ones. I don't know if she will need Colief, I thought that the Comfort helped with wind etc as well?
Miche - it was because you had recommended it to me that I looked into it & decided to go for it!
Cheers
Shanaz
-
I use the Omneo and at niht I just heat it up in the bottlewarmer.
If I've heated the bottle up I would use it within the hour - I reckon it looks a bit odd after that but that could just be our water (or my eyesight.....).
I would also just keep made up bottles in the fridge for 24 hours.
-
Yes comfort will help with the wind etc.. it has reduced levels of hard to digest proteins and lactose.. but it is not lactose free.. so if your LO is intolerant to lactose while tiny colief may still help too... we used them both together..
I had a disasterous time with avent bottles and teats.. more milk came back out than stayed in... with Dr Browns the nipples are a lot softer so the LO can latch onto them better.
When I used to go out with William in the day and we needed to take a bottle I used a cool bag with ice packs.. in there the bottles were safe for several hours as they had the ice packs there to keep them cold enough. I then used to warm them when I needed them whilst out either in hot water or if places had a bottle warmer. If we were going somewhere where I doubted the availability of the hot water etc I would take a flask of boiling water and warm Wills bottle in its cup.
With night feeds - just get it out of the fridge and warm it as normal - in a bottle warmer or whatever - I use the microwave now Will is older! (40 seconds on full power for a 9oz Br Browns... give it a good shake to avoid hot spots - and microwave with no lid or anything on it!)
H xxx
-
Hi lin
Does that mean if you have it out of the fridge but don't heat it you can leave it longer? I'm not sure if the milk would be ok after an hour.
I presume you go & get the milk from the fridge at night & then heat it.
Shanaz
-
No - if the milk is out of the fridge you should use it within an hour - whether it has been heated or not..... stops the risk of bacteria etc multiplying in the milk.. bugs love milk!
If you have the bottle out of the fridge and put it into a cool bag with ice packs it will stay cold enough to be safe.
Yes - we came down to the fridge in the night to get the milk to heat.. then go back up and feed him.. We also had a tiny fridge upstairs in the beginning and a bottle warmer.. lazy we were lol...
Helen xx
-
Thanks for that Helen, I'm glad my mind seems to be retaining some information correctly!
I see you are in Worcestershire - where abouts? I'm in Bristol.
We start the Comfort formula at her next feed, probably around 4am so I hope she takes to it ok!
Sleep well
Shanaz
-
Remember to give it a good chance.. she may take a little while to get used to it.. persevere - it will be worth it.
Be prepared for the foul nappies for a little while and the eggiest trumps you will ever smell lol.. but it all goes away in a couple of weeks and you will prob find a more settled baby as the box of powder suggests.
Good Luck.. if you need any more info about it shout.. I'd be interested to know how you are getting on so keep in touch!
Helen xx
P.S. I am in Redditch
-
Hi Helen
I will persevere. We gave her a bottle of it at 5am and she took 3 fl oz in about 6 mins! She went back to sleep for about an hour between 5.30 - 6.30 and we fed her again at 7am but she wouldn't take more than about 1.5fl oz. I'm hoping she will last til 10am so she doesn't go too much off routine. Did your lo still regurgitate on it - she has puked a bit but it has been clear liquid instead of milky, I hope this is ok. She seems contented in herself and we haven't been able to give her infacol as we've run out & I forgot to get some at Tescos yesterday so hopefully she will be ok.
I will keep you up to date and try & keep going with it for the next few weeks.
Cheers
Shanaz
-
Hi Shanaz :)
I've got my fingers and toes crossed that this works for you both!!
I think all babies will 'spit up' at some time or other. Luke does at least once a day. Sometimes it is clear like Seren's this morning I guess and sometimes it is more milky (but this is normally when he has been overactive straight after - see previous post ::)).
I think the main thing is though he is contented on it and doesn't seem to have any pain from wind/colic/gassy stomach or trumping etc. Even when he does 'spit up' he isn't distressed by it. I can honestly say that he does sleep better at night since he's been on it as well because before he was definately suffering from a gassy stomach and squirming around in pain, and he used to bring up alot more after a feed during the night from lying down - we had to raise the head of his cot so that it was on an incline. This stopped once we switched as well though. I've even put his cot back down flat this week and he is still absolutely fine at night (of course this might also be because his system is abit more maturer but at the end of the day he is still only 3 months).
Anyway, Take care and 'speak soon'
Michele x
-
If it's out of the fridge for an hour (heated or not) I wouldn't use it unless its been in a coolbag.
The coolbag I have (an Avent one) keeps stuff for four hours.
-
Hi all
Well, she's had her 3rd bottle this morning and she guzzles it for about 10-15 mins & took 3 3/4 fl ozs and then didn't want anymore. I'm hoping this is just her adjusting as she's had very little in her 2 feeds of the day (the other one was her 5am night feed). I'm not worried about her sitting up as long as it's not all day every day like it has been.
Thanks re: the cool bag lin - I'll see if I can find one - can you put ice packs in it too?
Hope you are all well, I'm feeling optimistic about today, might even try & get out for a while (shock horror! :o)
Take care
Shanaz
-
:) ;D :-* !
-
Keep on going.. you are doing well!
Helen xx
-
Hi guys
Well, today has been wonderful. She has generally been pretty calm although I messed up her nap in the afternoon by going out (how dare I!) and she only slept for a short while. She has taken to the formula well although she is bringing up a lot of clear liquid still, I'm hoping this will settle down, if not I will phone the C&G Careline and check it's ok.
Hopefully tomorrow will be more of the same. Hope things are good with you.
Shanaz
-
Shanaz, I've never tried putting ice packs in - it's quite a small bag with a thermal type lining in it (so you can heat up bottles before you put them in and it keeps them quite warm (which is what I use it for and my lo has no complaints!). It holds two Avent bottles quite snuggly or one bottle and a couple of little Tommy Tippee containers with my ds's food. It also has a front pocket which I store bonjela in for his gums.
-
hi lin
Thanks for that, I had a look at them on a website and it says that they're made out of special material that means you don't have to add packs.
Cheers
Shanaz
-
Glad it's going good for you!! ;D ;D
Take care
Michele x
-
Hi all
Things are going well, some mnor sleep issues and she is not taking as much during feeds (averaging about 3.5 - 4 fl oz) but she seems to settling into it well. Just a quick question, how do you cool your bottles quickly in order to get them in the fridge asap? It seems to take me about 5 mins per bottle to cool them running them under the cold tap and it also seems like a huge waste of water - any suggestions?
Hope you are well and enjoying the sunshine. It is very hot here (Bristol), about 31 degrees which has made me a bit worried about lo and sleeping. During the day when she's awake we just have her in her nappy but when she goes to sleep she needs to be swaddled otherwise she wakes up hitting herself, flailing her legs about etc. We did try to use the 0.5 tog gro-bag but the same thing happened. I would feel alot happier if we were able to have the room nice and cool but our little terraced house is like a furnace at the moment, the bedroom is about 29 degrees and we have an air cooler blowing at full blast. It's a shame she's so young coz she can't even go outsde properly either.
Oh well, I managed to sit outside for a few hours while she was having a marathon snooze (2 hrs 35 mins!).
Take care
Shanaz
-
Shanaz
For cooling bottles I fill up the kitchen sink with cold water and put the bottles in it so the water just covers the level of milk. Takes a bit longer maybe but saves on the water.
The hot weather can really mess up their sleeping can't it? We're in Northern Ireland and its not too bad but we had a few scorching days last month and it really made my lo miserable. We got a SPF factor 50 tent from the Early Leearning Centre so we put it in the shade and let our ds sit in it for a little bit - I hate keeping him cooped up indoors.
Glad your lo is settling weel, fingers crossed it continues!
-
Hi Lin
Thanks for that, I also put the other bottles in the bowl in the sink with water covering as you do while I run others under the tap, I just thought they had to cooled as quickly as possible as the milk would be going off as they sit there, or does it reset once they're in the fridge and you can then count down from an hour when you remove it to feed them? Sorry if that doesn't make any sense.
I'm going to get one of those tents as we're going on holiday next week to the Gower peninsula is South Wales and we'll need some shade, just not got round to it yet! Glad to hear they're good.
How long does your lo take to feed? My lo is taking about 3.5 fl oz in about 4/5 mins but then doesn't really seem to want anymore than that a lot of the time. I'm just assuming that's ok and leaving her. If she is still refusing after 30 mins I don't bother anymore!
Shanaz
-
I do the same - leaving the bottles in really cold water for about 10 mins to cool enough to be put into the fridge.
They are not going off as they sit there so don't worry. They are fine. The hour rule is only a general guide so don't get too hung up on it.. just as long as you don't reuse it after about an hour you'll be fine. You will find that Omneo begins to separate if you leave it standing unchilled for too long anyway so you can see if its been left a bit long.
It sounds as you are doing the right thing with the feeds to me. Your LO will only take as much as she wants - William could never be convinced to drink more than he actually wanted. At your LOs age he was taking about the same every 2 hours. If your little girl is still putting on weight steadily and is staying hydrated on what she is having.. having wet nappies etc.. then she will be fine.
Keep going - it sounds as though the change has suited her tummy and she will go from strength to strength you'll see.
Enjoy your holidays!
H xx
-
Hi guys
Did the standing in cold water thing, in fact, I added some ice tonight coz it's been so hot I wanted to get them chilled asap. I aim to put them in cold rather than body temp, is that what you do?
She's doing ok on it but she is still puking A LOT, it's just that clear liquid as opposed to creamy/curdled milk that she had on SMA. I phoned the Careline and they said to add Carabol (or something like that) to thicken it but I think I'll give it a few more days before doing that to see if she calms down.
Helen, you said your lo was taking that amount but every 2 hrs, my lo can go up to 3.5 hrs between feeds, she only had 18.5 fl oz yesterday as she didn't have a night feed. Oh well, I'll see how she goes!
Far too hot for her, she's been a bit grumpy today and living in her nappy only. I get a bit worried about swaddling her in this heat but she just won't sleep properly unswaddled, she wakes herself up with her flailing arms & legs!
Cheers
Shanaz
-
Ah but William has always been a big boy... even at that age he was HUGE so needed to feed that bit more frequently til things evened out. As I said dont panic unless your LO stops adding weight or starts to become dehydrated.
If I were you I wouldn't thicken Omneo any more. Losing a bit of colourless fluid after feeds isn't too bad. William used to have some spit up.. its just part of it all.. and unless its truly huge amounts I wouldn't worry too much. If you are worried about it give your health visitor a call and get her to have a look and see what she thinks... better than the cow and gat helpline as its personalised advice for your LO.
I put the bottles in the fridge luke warm..
Poor baby in this heat. Is she just in her nappy and swaddled with a sheet? Thats what we did with William in the early days. He was born in July last year when it was VVVVV hot lol... We've got a fan running in William's room at night now and its still 28 degrees in his room.. hes in his nappy in a cotton sleeping bag so seems comfy enough.
H xx
-
The heat can really screw up mealtimes - my lo has been fussing today as well, it's been so warm here.
Regarding chilling bottles in cold water, I haven't poisoned my ds yet so it must be OK! I would put them in the fridge slightly warm - if they're too hot I notice they start to separate (but have just given them a good shake and used them, ds hasn't complained, he seems to eat anything you put near his mouth).
Carobel was prescribed by my dr because my son's reflux was so bad and I put it into the formula along with Infacol drops (he was colicky too - yay!). The bottles were like sludge but believe me, everything stayed put!
-
Hi All,
We do the same here - bottles go into fridge luke warm.
Luke also spits up clear fluid, sometimes an hour or so after he has had his bottle. It's weird, but we've noticed that when he has had a good session 'finding his voice' so to speak (shrieking and laughing and making all those experimental baby noises! ;D) he always seem to bring up some fluid then. It's almost like the exertion from that creates loads of saliva in his mouth and he has to spit it out!
It's so hot here...upto 30' during the day and it's 27 in our room (where Luke still sleeps at the moment). We've just got a fan today which we have set up in there so hopefully it will be cooler tonight. Luke is just in a sleeveless vest, no covers at all. we haven't swaddled him since he was about 6 weeks old - he hated it. Sleeps with his arms above his head and his legs in a 'frogs legs' position! So cute...Bless! :)
Take Care
Miche x
-
Hi all
Miche - you lucky thing not having to swaddle your lo. I wish it were the same with Seren, we've tried the gro-bags but she just goes nuts with her legs. It was 30' in the bedroom yesterday and it's 28' tonight.
We just cannot get her to take a full feed. She's 13lbs and therefore should be taking an average of 32.5 fl oz a day, I'm lucky if I can get her past 25 at the moment. She really fusses during her feeds, she feeds for about 3 - 5 mins then comes off having taken about 3 - 4 fl oz. It's then a battle to get anything else in her, she goes on & off over about a 20 min period, feeding for 1 min bursts. She gags when the teat is put in her mouth, arches her back etc. I just wonder if this will ever end, I hope she doesn't get a feeding complex.
I keep hoping this will all settle down over the next week, she's been on the Comfort formula since last Fri so.... She must puke at least 8 - 10 times after feeds, basically right through til she goes down for a nap. Don't know if it's related to the chatting thing, she is also going great guns in this department, hasn't stopped nattering to me all day!
Hope you are all well, I'll keep soldiering on!
Shanaz
-
Hi Shanaz :)
Tried to post this last night but the darn thing wouldn't go through >:(
Anyway, was just thinking, is Seren on 3 hr EASY and if so does she still seem to be hungry at every feed? I know when Luke wasn't really hungry he would fuss with his bottle and not take very much. We've got him onto 3.5 hr EASY now and he is more consistent in taking a full feed (about 7oz) although sometimes still (especially his mid morning bottle) will only take about 4oz. We will probably try to ease him onto a 4 hr EASY over the next couple of weeks because he is starting all the fussy signs again and he can stay awake for 2 hrs at a time now (although he won't sleep longer than 45 mins-1hr most times, 1.5 if we are lucky!)
I don't know if this might help you at all getting Seren to take more at each feed. Does she still seem generally content and is she putting on weight still?
I'm sorry that I don't have much advice re the back arching and gagging - does it seem to be part of her general fussiness with the bottle?
I know that some babies do seem to puke more than others and this gets better when solids are introduced. I'm not suggesting that in a flippant way though because if I remember rightly, your lo has reflux doesn't she, which is obviously a separate issue in itself.
I hope things are better today and the temperature cools down as well - that can't help settling and feeding I'm sure!
And aren't they the cutest when they are chattering away and pulling all these faces 'discovering' new sounds, and then realising that it was them that produced the sound!! ;D
Take Care
Michele x
-
Hi Michele
Thanks for your post, I've had problems with it too, about 2 or 3 of my messages disappeared!
I have sort of tried the 3.5 hrs EASY but I'm not sure if it's made any difference. I also can't quite get the evening timings right on it - how do you structure your day? I've kind of been doing a 3 1/4 EASY. I thin it's all tied into her reflux, although it does seem to be a bit calmer today so perhaps the heat was making it worse.
Thankfully it's a bit cooler now, bedroom is still about 27 degrees but it's much more bearable. We want to wean her off her swaddling and put her in a gro-bag (sheets are no good as she just kicks them off) but not really sure how to go about it!
I love all of her chattings, she's sooooo funny and will hold 5 - 10 min "conversations" with me, usually when I'm trying to feed her though!
I've got to go & do her bath etc. It would be great if you could post your 3.5 EASY if you get a moment.
Shanaz
-
Hi Shanaz :)
I have to admit that I do tend to 'wing it' when it comes to Luke's feeding as like you, I wasn't quite sure how to work the evenings.
Anyway the last couple of weeks have gone something like this:
6.30am Wake - isn't hungry first thing
7.00am Eat - 6-7oz
8-8.30am Sleep - usually 1hr, sometimes 1.5 hrs
10.30am Eat - 4-5oz (normally fusses here)
11.30-12 Sleep - 1-1.5 hrs, we try to get him to stay asleep til 1.30pm
2.00pm Eat - 5-7oz
3.30-4pm Sleep - 45mins - 1.5hrs
5pm Eat - 5-6oz (he won't normally sleep again now)
6.15pm Bath and Wind Down
7pm Eat - takes about 2oz, falls asleep, wakes up 20min later for 4-5oz
7.45pm Out for the count! ;)
3.30-4.30am Eat - 6-70z (back to sleep until 6.30am)
HOWEVER, last night he didn't wake back up after his 7pm bottle and so I gave him a DF at 11.30 (although I don't normally do this but I knew he wouldn't last until 3.30am)- he took 5oz. Then he woke at 5.30 and I really didn't want to start my day then so I feed him and put him back down, fully expecting him to stay awake...next thing I knew, it was 7.30am! :o
I knew he wouldn't be hungry then because of the 5.30am feed so instead he had his morning bottle at 8.30am (6oz), then 11.30am (5oz), 3pm (8oz), 6.30pm (8oz) and asleep in bed by 7.15pm. I imagine he will wake as normal between 3.30-4.30am so hopefully we should be back on track tomorrow.
I don't know if that will help you at all, like I said, I do just tend to tweak each day if need be but aim for Luke's bedtime bottle about 6.30-7pm because I know that he is ready for bed by 7.30- 7.45 at the latest.
It is definately all trial and error in getting a system that suits though!
I don't know what to suggest re weaning Seren from swaddling as you're right - we were lucky that we didn't have to do that with Luke although for a time things were abit fraught because of his flailing arms and legs. He still kicks out like crazy now when he is waking up but what I found helped with his arms was to encourage him to hold onto a small soft sheet which he snuggles his face into. I used to just put it into his hand and he automatically grasped onto it when I was lying him down (bedtime and naps), especially if he was actually quite tired. He would then put it up to his face when he went to rub his eyes etc and seemed to like having it there as he would hold it still against his cheek while he was going off to sleep. It even seems now as though he takes this as his cue for 'sleeptime' because when I give it to him (most times), he gets all excited, snuggles into it and starts to close his eyes. I've also noticed during the night when he starts to stir, he will reach out for it if it has fallen from his hand and put it back upto his face and settle himself back down.
I know it probably sounds abit scary but he dosn't cover his face with it and like i said, it is only a small, light sheet so it's not going to hamper his breathing. My older boy also had a 'blankie' which he cuddled to sleep and used to carry around with him in the same way that other lo's attach to a special teddy or something similar. He never needed a dummy after he was about 6 weeks old because he was able to self soothe as long as he had his blankie. Any way I digress!!
Here's hoping things are calmer again for you tomorrow
Michele x
-
Hi Miche
Thanks very much for that, it was really useful to see your routine, it's similar to what we do, give or take 1/2 an hour here or there!
I loved your descriptions of Luke with his sheet, it was so cute! Me, my mum & dh all went "aaww". I like this idea better than her dummy which she doesn't seem to take very well anymore. She has a tendency to try & shove her entire fist into her mouth, I think she may be starting to get twinges in her gums as she's drooling a lot too - so lovely! She kicks a lot and scratches her face which tend to keep her up.
I was interested to see you don't do a DF - any reason why? Seren took 5 oz last night at DF, the most she's had in one feed for quite a while now. I may try her on a 3.5 EASY tomorrow and see how she goes.
Hope you had a good day, great to chat!
Shanaz
-
Hi Shanaz
How has today been? Did you try a 3.5 EASY?
Luke had his bedtime bottle at 6.30pm last night and slept until 5.15am!! Fed him and he went back to sleep until 7.00am. He wasn't asking for a bottle until about 8am though so I fed him 8.15 so our times pretty much followed the same as yesterday. Bed time bottle was 6.15pm so will wait and see how long he goes for tonight! ;)
The reason I don't do a DF is that TBH it didn't really make any difference to the length of time he went afterwards. We also noticed that he tended to wake up more after having a DF. When I stopped it for a couple of days to see just how long he would go before 'naturally' waking for a feed, he would sleep until about 1.30-2am, fed and then back down, waking about 5.30-6am. When I gave him a dream feed at about 11pm, he would wake at 2am, 3.30am, 5am and so on.
A couple of weeks ago I reintroduced it because I figured that if he could go from 7.30pm until 3.30am, if I 'topped' him up at 11pm he should be able to go until approx 6.30-7am without needing to be fed again. However he wouldn't sleep straight through when I did this and even though he didn't need feeding he still woke about 2.30, 4.30, 6.30 and needed to be resettled.
Without it he sleeps straight to 4.30(ish), feeds and then straight back to sleep until 6.30am (apart from the last 2 days ::)).
It just seems to work best for us that way I guess.
Luke is so cute with his little 'blankie'! It's just a small flannette sheet (moses basket size rather than cot size) so it's soft enough to be comforting but not heavy or 'woolly' which would probably be cumbersome IYKWIM.
Luke also shoves his fist into his mouth. He hasn't quite managed to find his thumb yet and ends up either sucking his fist (which usually results in him gagging on it ::)) or he sucks the first two fingers on his hand. When he went through the stage of scratching his face we put some of his socks on his hands and pulled them up so that they reached up nearly to his elbows! They stayed on much better than scratch mitts and he looked so funny sleeping with his hands in stripey socks above his head! ;D
I don't know if Seren is the same but when Luke kicks during the night, he pushes himself down to the bottom of the cot and ends up kicking out against the walls, sometimes he even managed to get his feet between the bars and this definately woke him up!
I put another cot bumper around the bottom end of the cot which meant he couldn't get his feet stuck and also rolled up a blanket and put that along the bottom end of the cot so that when he reached the bottom and kicked out he wasn't hitting the hard wood but softer padding. Although I still hear him moving around in there, it dosn't seem to disturb him as much and he dosn't wake from it now. When I take him out to feed him I just reposition him at the 'head' end of the cot and then retrieve him from the 'bottom' end again when he wakes in the morning! ;)
Any way it looks like I have written another novel so I will sign off as it's coming up to the Big Brother Eviction time and I need to start swearing at the TV! (I don't know why I'm addicted to it, they all drive me mad with exasperation!)
Hope you had a good day and a lovely evening! Will 'chat' again soon!
Michele x
-
Hi Miche
Sorry I haven't replied sooner but as I'm sure you know, the site has not been working too well! Well, we have been doing the 3.5 EASY and I'm not sure if it's helping or not. I'm also not sure whether the Comfort formula is right for her either.
For the 1st few days using the formula she really seemed to settle down, was sleeping & eating better, less spitting up etc. Now, she is a nightmare. She spits up all the time (at least 6 - 8 times after feeds, sometimes even during her sleep, but not at night for some reason) and it's still the clear liquid. Since being on the 3.5 EASY we are averaging between 4 - 5 oz per feed but she is still taking 3.5 a lot, usually her 1st feed which I think is wierd as you would think she would be hungry after not eating for about 7/8 hrs. She is sleeping very badly again, waking anywhere between 4 - 5.30am but is not consistent. Not sure whether to feed her or not at this point as when I have in the past she usually only takes about 2 oz. She's averaging a total of 24 - 26 fl oz a day but she went as low as 18.5 oz on Monday. She naps very erratically, waking after 35 mins sometimes, sleeping for 2 hrs another. We are trying to keep her in the cot but it really becomes a battle.
Today she has basically screamed all day. I don't know if something is bothering her tummy but she is VERY windy, grumpy and sicky. I feel like I can't leave the house because she doesn't sleep well when we're out, she wakes up after about 30 mins/when the car or pushchair stop moving and I can't get her to go back to sleep. Because of this I feel completely house-bound and frustrated.
The reason why I'm not sure if the 3.5 hr EASY is working for us or not is that due to her short naps, she very quickly gets everything back to front. She will wake up so early that there can be another 2 hrs til her next feed time and then she is knackered by then so doesn't feed properly or wants to go to sleep during it. I can't tell whether she is tired or hungry and feel very confused by the whole thing. The problem is is that she just doesn't seem to be hungry after 3 hrs either - GOD, I just don't know what to do.
Sorry for the rambling essay but I have had an awful day, feel like a complete failure and am totally confused. :-[
Hope your lo is doing well, he's a real cutie by the way! i'm looking forward to when Seren can hold things in her hands properly, they're still little fists most of the time.
Take care,
Shanaz ;D
-
https://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=34256.0
Hi Shanaz
I'm so sorry to hear that things have gotten worse for you. PLEASE don't feel a failure. It is very confusing when babies don't eat or sleep very well - you never know which need to attend to first - if they're hungry but you manage to get them to sleep, they don't see their full sleep out and if you choose to feed them first, they fall asleep half way through, don't finish a feed and then are hungry earlier than they should be!
Although things are getting better for us and more consistent, we do still have days (on a weekly basis) where things are definately more erratic. Just this morning Luke woke at 6.50am, had a bottle at 7.50am, managed to get him to sleep at 9.00am after some screaming, he woke up at 9.30am bright eyed and bushy tailed (apparently) and there was still two hours until his next bottle so I knew that some where along the line he was going to have to have a sleep before 11.30 otherwise he would fall asleep when he feeds then. As it was, he started rubbing his head around 10.00am and I managed to get him to sleep by 10.30am after some complaining because he was obviously over tired. So we have had two short naps in this 3.5hr segment and I think it was pure luck I managed to get him down the second time.
I really am no expert on any of this and I totally understand your confusion and frustration. I'm just going to suggest a few things randomly so bear with me as my thought process is not always logical! ;)
Feeding seems to be (in my eyes) the big factor here. I've put a link at the top of this post that is about something that appears similar to reflux, babies can have both (from what I've read) but they need different treatment. I'm not sure whether you have read it or even if it is applicable to you but I have been looking around the site for things similar to those youe describe (as I'm sure you have too!) and just thought that I would throw this into the mix. Please don't think I'm assuming this is what could be causing Seren to have 'problems' feeding and if you think I'm sticking my nose in too much then please do tell me! :)
Another thing I was thinking about and again, I personally don't know much about this, symptom wise etc and would have to look into it myself, could Seren be lactose intolorent? I know if that is the case, there are different formulas that are better for babies who suffer from this.
Have you got her on any other medication for her reflux? I know you tried Gaviscon which if I remember rightly didn't agree with her. I'm sure that there would be something else that the doctor could prescribe for her if that doesn't work. I know you feel that you are shoving so many different things down her throat and I can really empathise with you, I would feel terrible too but equally I would want to get to the bottom of this and find out why so that I could put it right.
When you say that she was windy yesterday in her stomach, did she seem in alot of pain with the gas or was she able to pass it easily? What have her BM been like over the last couple of days - could she be abit constipated? I know that when Luke has been like that, he has seemed reluctant to eat ( I know that I wouldn't want to eat very much if my tummy was feeling full and uncomfortable) and it's only been after he has had a good poo (sorry if TMI!) that he has settled back to eating without fussing. I ALWAYS give him some water during the day now inbetween feeds just to help things along. I know some people say not too because it might affect their appetite etc but personally, I've never found this to be the case and TBH I worry about him getting thirsty and too hot as well, especially in this recent weather, I normally let him drink about 1-1.5 oz at a time about 3 maybe 4 times a day if need be.
I think (and again I'm no expert) that if Seren was more content and consistent with her feeds, then it might follow that her naps become better and more consistent too. Have you posted on the other forums to see what they suggest about naps etc?
Where you mention that Seren wakes up when the car or pushchair stops moving - Luke does that too despite how tired he is and he will be a right pain then until I can get him back to sleep. Sometimes when we have been coming home from somewhere in the car and he has only just gone off despite the fact that he should have fallen asleep ages before, I've asked my DP to drive around for an extra 20 or 30 mins so that he gets alittle longer, hopefully is in a deeper sleep and then less likely to wake back up when we stop - sometimes it works, sometimes it doesnt and obviously sometimes this is possible due to time etc. I think some babies are just like this - some can sleep through anything once they are off and some wake up at the slightest disturbance. Maybe she is just really inquistive, senses that she's stopped and thinks 'right, we're somewhere else now, what's going on, what am I missing' and wakes up!
Have you worked out whether she is Textbook or Touchy or what ever? That can affect how they nap and how to read their signals, different ways of putting them to sleep that are more effective depending on what their stronger characteristic traits are?
I'm sorry that I've rambled on so long, I really hope this helps alittle. I know I haven't provided much advice, I just don't want you to feel bad at yourself that Seren isn't settling very well at the moment. It isn't anything that you are doing, believe me. The things above are just some things that went through my head reading your posts and are things that I would look into to see if they made any difference.
I hope things have settled today and you are both feeling better.
BIG BIG HUGS to you both :-*
Take care
Michele x
-
Just quickly I promise!!
Something else I've thought...is she on the right teat flow? Maybe it's not fast enough and she is getting fed up trying to feed?
HUGS again
Michele x
-
Hi Miche
Thanks so much for your reply, sorry I couldn't reply sooner but as you are probably aware the site has not been working. I had a look at the link and it was very interesting, a lot of the symptons sound similar to Serens.
Strangely enough, she has calmed down over the last 2 days. I don't know if she is having a growth spurt but she has suddenly started guzzling her bottle - draining it completely at many feeds. This means she has been having 6.5 fl oz at each feed (I make them with 6 oz of water but when the formula is added it makes it 6.5). I'm going to up it to 7 tonight for tomorrows feeds so I can be sure that she's getting enough.
She is still spitting up on a large scale and there is some crying about this, but all of the gagging on the bottle has gone. Her BM have slowed down a little, only 1 a day for the last week until today when she had 2. She is the same as Luke, much better after having a poo!
Fingers crossed she has turned a corner, the main problem still is the puking, going through so many bibs, muslins and tops - it's unbelievable! I've had to put throws on the sofa & armchairs as she is just a puking machine! Her sleeping has got getter too.
We've just found out that her cousins who visited her on Sunday have got chicken pox, the rash came out today so in 10 - 21 days time we could have a pox-ridden baby. I know it's good that they get it when they're young as the symptons aren't as severe but I don't know what it's like for a 3 month baby.
I'm feeling a lot better and I really appreciate your thoughtful message. I hope you & your family are well.
Shanaz
-
Hi Shanaz
No worries, your very welcome! :)
I'm really pleased to read that Seren has settled so much over the last couple of days. She's going great guns with those bottles now! I suspect 3 months is possibly another growth spurt (they seem to happen all the time! ::)). I'm glad that you are feeling so much better now that she is feeding so well!
Maybe she was just feeling alittle out of sorts, adjusting to a new formula, the heat etc, maybe she just like to keep her mummy on her toes!! ;D
I wouldn't worry too much about the puking, if she stays settled, feeds and sleeps well, I guess it's just that she might be a pukky baby. My friend's little boy was the most laid back baby and guzzled all his bottles all the time. He was a big, tall boy too and put on weight consistently but he ALWAYS projectile vomited at every feed! I swear it looked like he brought up at least half of what went down but it never upset him, the HV wasn't concerned and as soon as he went onto solids (about 4.5 months) it cleared up completely.
Fingers crossed Seren doesn't get the chicken pox. I have no idea what that is like for a lo - just make sure you have alot of calpol in the house - just in case!
Take care and speak soon
Michele x