Little man has decided he doesn't care to eat. Yesterday and today have been a nightmare during his feeds. He gets the first 20cc down and and then he wants no part of it - he starts sharking his head, screaming, or presses his lips closed. Volume wise he ate decently yesterday, but only because I was feeding him more often. Today, no such luck. I called the doctor this morning and she didn't really seem concerned, but told me to bring him in tomorrow (they don't have clinic today) and she'd check him out. This unwillingness to eat does nothing to calm my concerns about his weight. The scale came in by the way and I was right, assuming the doctor scale and this scale are fairly close he has only gained an ounce or two since our last doctor appointment two weeks ago. Not so good. The only thing that is keeping me from flipping out completely is that he has gained a little over a pound in the three weeks we've had him home and THAT is acceptable. His feeds are taking increasingly longer (about 40-45 minutes) and it is a constant struggle to keep him from fighting it. It shouldn't be this hard. He is usually so good at taking his meds and he won't even open his mouth for that anymore. I haven't noticed any other weird behavior, and he doesn't have a temp, so this has started me thinking of reflux again. The Zantac obviously is doing nothing that I can see, so I am going to ask to try something else or send us to get tested or I'll do it on my own. One of Rhys' primary nurses I keep in contact with mentioned this all to the head NICU doctor who took care of Rhys since his birth. He suggested Prevacid, so I am going to bring that up to the pedi tomorrow.
We've mentioned before that he has enormous hernias and I constantly hear air shuffling in that direction. I am not sure if that is hurting him and causing him to cry, is a strange sensation and is causing him to cry, or is completely unrelated to him not wanting to eat. You can usually hear the gurgling/air shuffling while he is screaming though, which leads me to believe it is in some way related.
We've mentioned before that he has enormous hernias and I constantly hear air shuffling in that direction. I am not sure if that is hurting him and causing him to cry, is a strange sensation and is causing him to cry, or is completely unrelated to him not wanting to eat. You can usually hear the gurgling/air shuffling while he is screaming though, which leads me to believe it is in some way related.
6 comments:
So sorry that you all are experiencing such a stress over Rhys's nutrition and comfort this week. I pray that your doctor's visit brings some answers, and that Rhys gets what he needs to feel well and eat well.
Praying for you...
Alicia, Levi, Mattie, and John
Praying for Rhys and parents too!
Praying right now for you guys! I am random poster but just wanted to let you know that my daughter outgrew Zantac (even with increasing the dosage). It just stopped working for her. I wanted Prevacid but we were given Prilosec. Either way it helped enough for her to eat.
Just wanted to let you know. Hope you guys can find some answers!
Candice, could it be his ears? The swallowing could definitely be painful if he has an ear infection. I know you'll get some answers tomorrow, but I remember how frustrating it can be to wait...especially when you feel he's in pain.
Debi Robert
Sorry to hear you are so frustrated. Also, a full term baby begins the whole teething process from about 10 weeks old. This doesn't mean any teeth will actually appear anytime soon, but the pain to suck seems so unbearable that they would rather starve. Have you tried rubbing bonjela on some other teething balm on his gums prior to feeding?
I agree about outgrowing reflux. Every time they gain about half a pound, the dosage may need increasing. It really depends. There is a range of acceptable dosing for Zantac by weight, and a lot of doctors tend to prescribe the lower end of that dose. That happened with Julia. Prevacid isn't so sensitive. I think she stayed at the same dose for about 2-3 months, and then it was increased at her follow up appointment. We didn't have issues with weight gain but she would just nurse EVERY HOUR. She'd nurse super fast, then she'd burp (and would reflux some- usually silent) and would be done with it. It was a total pain until she got on the prevacid!
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