Switching to a 4 hour easy with a reflux baby

[GeorgiaMom]

Hey there,
My baby just turned 4 months and I feel pressure to get him on a 4 hour easy schedule. This is hard because my baby still has bad reflux.He's already on prevacid twice a day and he has already had an upper gi to make sure it's just reflux and they said he's just reflux city.  He often vomits his entire first bottle in the morning even if I thicken it with rice cereal and I can't wait 4 hours to feed him again. He's just now gotten to an okay weight, he's had to go every 2 weeks since he as born for weight checks and he's also not a big eater so I want to make sure he gets enough and can't really afford to let him miss a feed.  So everything gets thrown off schedule and I get stressed and not sure what to do. He won't take another feeding right away or even an hour later.  I also have the problem of him getting too hungry if I stretch out feedings and then he eats so fast and that too can set his reflux off and he tosses his cookies. Ugh- my first baby was so easy to feed so I just don't know what do with this new little one. So if you have a 4 months plus 'fluxy' baby as my docotr says, I'm open to any adivice on how often you try to feed again after a big upchuck and then how you adjust the schedule for the rest of the day.  Thanks!

[LŠuren]

Georgiamom  {{{hugs}}}

My baby just turned 4 months and I feel pressure to get him on a 4 hour easy schedule.

Don't feel any pressure to change to a 4hr EASY, some babies don't change until a lot later - especially if 3hr is working for you medically.

If your current routine works for you both - DON'T CHANGE! Remember if in the future you feel you CAN stretch from 3hrs, you can always work up to 4hrs being doing;
3.25hr EASY
3.5hr EASY
3.75hr EASY

So if you have a 4 months plus 'fluxy' baby as my docotr says, I'm open to any adivice on how often you try to feed again after a big upchuck and then how you adjust the schedule for the rest of the day.

I am going to move this post to the Reflux boards, where mums in similar situations can offer your advise.

Good luck Georgiamom.

[linfran]

bigs hugs and sympathy, been there, done that, got the puke-covered t-shirt.....

my lo has had reflux really bad too and is nearly four months old too.  I started with just a bedtime routine because I wouldn't know what he would throw up and whaich meals would stay put.

Thankfully with medication it has eased but I found it worked best for my ds that if he did throw up to try feeding an hour or so later when he would be getting peckish again but not so hungry that he made a total piglet of himself.  It ended up becoming our own version of easy in that it was eat, throw up, east an hour later, play/activity, sleep then eat again.  I found it difficult to stick to set times but figured as long as he was keeping food down and knew what came next he wasn't too bothered about times either.

As his meds have kicked in it has been easier to slowly bring him onto 4hr easy but it has taken a lot of time.  The only thing that is structured is bedtime, with a bath, dressing in pyjamas and a feed in the darkened nursery before bed so he knows that's his "big sleep".  He's now teething (the first two little beasties appeared this morning....finally!) but normally he will sleep 11 hours and is becoming a lot more settled.

Please persevere, it does pass, honestly.

Big Big Hugs

[Southernbelle]

Hey Georgiamom.  I am in the same place....Lo is 15 weeks and has bad reflux.  I am starting the change to 4hr, but we'll just see how she does.  I am taking her in to the doc today because her grunting and moaning has gotten bad again (like at the begining).  She is on prilosec two times a day and still projectile vomits with every feed!!  Hang in there and do what's best for your LO.  They are all different.  My DS had reflux too and he was so different than his sister.  You have to figure out what feeding routine works best for babies with reflux.
Do you live in Georgia???  Or is that your Lo's name?  I live in Alpharetta.