Mom Advice needed! RE: Spitting up

kschick96 · 06-29-2010, 05:30:36 AM

Let me first start by giving some background...

-My little boy is one week away from turing 3 months old
-Very healthy, gaining weight (currently 14 1/2 lbs)
-Has 2-3 bowel movements, and 8 plus wet diapers a day
-is formula fed and has been on the same formula since birth
-currently eats 4-4 1/2 oz per feeding about every 3- 3 1/2 hours
-has always been a baby that spits up, but not like this

In the month, my little guy has been spitting up a TON after feedings-we are talking about soaking his outfit, and several burp rags. He will continue to spit up up to 2 hours after he eats. I burp him 2-3 times during the feedings and try to feed him in a more upright position when feeding. He does not seem bothered by this spitting up and will continue on with his happy disposition.

I spoke to his dr. at his 2 month appt about this and she did not seem concerned because he was not crying or screaming because of the spitting up. She said that if it continued she would give him Zantac, but she didn't think it was refulx. I did contact her about a week after the appt and requested the Zantac hoping it may help-it has done nothing.

Here is my question for you guys-is it normal for a baby to be spitting up these massive amounts? I am concerned that he is not getting enough even though he is gaining weight and having dirty diapers. My husband wants me to get a second opinion from another dr-but I am afraid that they will just tell me the same thing as the baby's current dr.

What is your experience with this? Suggestions on what I can do to help him keep more food down? Should I seek a second opinion?

Thanks for your help, I truly appreciate it!

cintinative · 06-29-2010, 05:49:25 AM

How does your ds sleep? Does he sleep peacefully?

kschick96 · 06-29-2010, 06:02:13 AM

Originally Posted by cintinative

How does your ds sleep? Does he sleep peacefully?

Sorry, I forgot to add this in the post above.

He is a great sleeper at night. Goes down between 6-7p, get up 1-2 times to eat during the night and goes right back down with no problem. Usually gets up for the day around 7-7:30am.

He does not really nap much-we are lucky if we get 45 minutes in the morning and maybe 1 1/2 or two hours in the afternoon. Sometimes (very rare) he will go down for a 3 hour nap in afternoon. I have tried and tried and can not get him to nap more and finally accepted that he just won't sleep much during the day.

We fight the major spitting up 24/7. Last night, he ate at 2:30-we were up until 3:45 because he had several major spit ups and we soaked through 3 oneies, 4 burp rags, a swaddle blanket, and two changing pads. Just to give you an idea about how much spitting up we are talking about.

taylordvd · 06-29-2010, 06:35:38 AM

Are you using a milk based formula? Maybe he needs to be on soy? I had (and still do) major issues with milk as a baby. My mom said I would "spit up" so much that she would have to change her clothes. They switched me to soy and I got a lot better.

mama2two · 06-29-2010, 07:42:33 AM

I believe if your son had a milk allergy there would be lots more signs, crying from stomach pain etc....

Your son sounds like 1 of my twins... I was told that his "flap" (forgot the name) that closes his stomach off from his esophagus was not fully developed and as long as he wasn't crying, ate well, gained weight and had enough diapers, he would out grow it. We did switch both twins to the gentlease form of Enfamil, just b/c of gassiness (mycilon (sp?) did nothing). And my pedi (forgot what they are called, but specialize in early babies, twins came at 36.5 wks) when they were born told me to add 1 T of rice cereal to a 3 oz bottle.
By the way Zantac did nothing... except make him cry... I guess the taste.
My son used to literally be laughing while throwing up, now he's 8 mos and sits up and eats solids things are much better, just like the pedi said they would be. He still occasionally spits up a little if he gets tooooo excited or cries really hard, but no where near what it was!!!

happysaver · 06-29-2010, 10:36:09 AM

Google the term "happy spitter". This is what they call babies when they spit up a lot, but don't show any ill effects or pain from it. As far as Zantac goes, I don't think it would lessen spit up, just neutralize the acid in it.

ekoury · 06-29-2010, 11:27:30 AM

My DD has bouts of spitting up. Sometimes she is fine and sometimes she has days when she spits up after every bottle. She is almost 4 months and eats 7oz bottles. I know, some might say she eats a lot, but she is a big baby. She does not show any signs of being bothered by it. She is on Similac Sensitive and Sensitive RS(very small amount of RS in every bottle). Lactose sensitive. As one of the PP said, if your baby had a milk allergy, you would know about it by now. Believe me, constant crying and gas would let you know

If you are really worried about it, get a second opinion. If for no other reason than just to lose your anxiety.

kschick96 · 06-29-2010, 11:44:49 AM

Thanks guys! You've made a first time mom feel a lot better!

sadetom · 06-29-2010, 11:56:35 AM

My lil guy is now 6 months old. He did this also and it got very frustrating. We also went to the gentle ease formula and added cereal to his feedings. I know that different people say no cereal but I have had 6 kids and by the time they were 2 months old they were on cereal. The cereal thickens the formula, maybe the formula is just to liquidy for your baby. I hate putting any of my kids on prescription meds and I try at all cost not to do it. Try the cereal, rice, in his bottle and see how that goes. Don't give him more formula just because you think he isn't getting enough because he probably is. But then again, my guy also was on 6 ounces by the time he was 3 months. As far as a second opinion, I would do it, they will not say anything, and who knows you might find a better doc for your baby, not saying the one you have sucks, but it just depends. Some doctors just don't care unless there is a MAJOR problem that they can charge extra for. If there are no other symptoms and just spitting up, it's not worth your doctors time to look further into it. Just remain calm, maybe try a different doctor, and what others have said and see how it goes. Good Luck, but truely he will out grow it sooner or later.