Hello - I'd be so grateful if someone could read this and give us some help. Sorry it's so long!
A brief background of Finn's problems. He is 6.5 months old and exclusively breastfed:
3 weeks - 'colic' started (screaming from 11pm - 3am each night)
4 weeks - screaming through each feed / after feeds / frequent sick / congested
5 weeks reflux was diagnosed by doc gaviscon prescribed. I chose to cut dairy and soy (after extensive reading - my doctor dismissed this idea, but did it anway). After 2 weeks of non dairy/soy stopped gaviscon, reflux much improved. No more screaming through feeds.
2 months - Finn started straining from 3 am - 7 am, first in sleep, then would wake him up. Apart from this, a happy baby finally. Cooing / laughing!
3-4 months 3 days after immunisations Finns poo's became explosive and full of mucus. Every poo. He was crying and straining much of the day and night. Red rimmed eyes, congestion, sicky.
He would scream for an hour before passing a BM. Reflux returned, constant fist sucking / jerky movements. I was still off dairy / soy - we both though 'hmmm can't have been the dairy after all as his symptoms are back', so tried re-introducing. NOT a good idea - Finn spent 1 week screaming day and night, totally inconsolable frantic screaming. Finn stopped cooing and laughing, became noticibly withdrawn and unhappy.
3.5 months - At this point i realised some plain crisps I had been eating contained 'soy leitchin', so may have been it. Cut them out. Still sick, mucus.
Went back to docs, prescibed Gaviscon again!!!(after telling me I should not worry - he'll grow out of it)This seemed to make things worse, he started gulping and crying more. Was told mucus poos nothing to worry about. All this was just 'colic'. I hate that word. Saw another doc - it was clear I was now in the 'over anxious first time mother' category. Again told that 'he'll grow out of it'. Insisted on referral.
Referral came - they had offered us an appointment for 6 weeks later. Finn was still in considerable pain and every poo was mucus. Started to think it was possibly temporary lactose intollerance, not MSPI or in addition to MSPI.
4-5 months - symptoms calmed for 2 weeks - thought 'ha! Docs were right after all - he has grown out of it! Woohoo!' Still mucus poos though.
5-6 months All symptoms returned gradually until 1 week of day and night screaming, screaming for hours before before BM. Racked my brains as to what I may have eaten. TESCO bread rolls ( I ate these over 2 weeks) were the culprit, they have soy flour in ( I only found this out after contacting TESCo directly, not on packet. Could have kicked myself as I had been so careful looking for hidden dairy, but missed this).
6 months - saw Pediatrician finally. He diagnosed possible MSPI (or, he said, 'allergy') and that the mucus / pain with BM was colitis caused by the allergy. Prescribed Neocate, and suggested I used for 2 weeks and pumped to keep my supply up. This would confirm the diagnosis and give a good base line with which to start Finn on solids.
Tried to get him to drink Neocate - he refused, then started even refusing bottles of expressed breast milk which he had never done before.
So...... I decided to do an elimination diet (turkey, lamb, rice and millet as my grains, and a selection of the least sllergenic fruit and veg (eg avocado / pears). I haver been on this diet for a month. It seemed to work!!! He had the happiest period of 8-9 days I've ever seen - happy all day, smililing, playing etc etc. We were over the moon (strangely though, he started waking every hour at night, but TBH I was so happy he was happy that I didn't care! He has never slept through the night, normally wakes 3-5 times, sometimes more). Still mucus poo's but we thought it would take a while for his gut to heal, so though nothing of it.
BUT the last week things have started to gradually get worse again. Fussier at first. Now straining again, and today crying for ages before very mucosy khaki green coloured BM. With the peds go ahead we started to wean him on pears a week ago.
We just don't know what to do. He has now had mucus poos for over 3 months as well as episodic bouts of frequent sickiness, and crying to pass a BM. His mood has changed so much, and we just want him to be able to be the happy baby we know he is. We are all exhasted.
Is it time to try and force the Neocate again?
Could he be allergic to something in my diet still - rice perhaps (I am eating so much of it)?Could he be reacting to the pears?
The mucus poos have never gone away - is this normal?
What else could it be?
What else can we do?
If you have read this far - thank you!!!
If you have any ideas, please let us know, we are desperate for some support.
