Is it colic or acid reflux or what? Help!!!?

Question

My boy is 3 weeks old, and has been extremely fussy for about 1 1/2 weeks now. He was fine for the first week that we brought him home, and now when he is not sleeping or eating, he cries. The only thing that stops the crying is pacing the floor with him. I don't know what to do! Some people say that 2 weeks is too young for him to develop colic, so it might be something else...? He goes to the bathroom just fine, and he passes gas from both ends regularly. The only thing I have seen that seems a bit odd is that he drools a lot. Please, please, if you've been through this or know someone who has, HELP!!!

I don't bottlefeed, I breastfeed. And he is not vomiting, but it seems like he throws up in his mouth and swallows it again a lot.

Answer 1

Have you heard of WIC? I remember a problem simular to that, which was resovled by switching formulas to a soy based formula

Answer 2

Well, Reflux typically follows more of a pattern like this:

-excessive vomiting, or at least a few times a day and/or after feeds, leads to slow weight gain
-diarrehea and/or ++gas
-fussiness during feeds

The list goes on...

Reflux is basically a type of "baby heartburn". You can ask your doctor to test for this if you think it's a possibilty. Then, if needed, drugs can be prescribed to alleviate the discomfort. usually these treatments for Reflux are only needed for a few months as most babies outgrow the issue.

If I had to make an educated guess based on your post, I would guess Colic. If that's the case, perseverance is all that can be prescribed. Try nursing your baby more often, not just for hunger, or walking using a baby carrier. Lots of fresh air, walks at the park can also help with that fussy period of the day.

Hope you find some resolutions!

HTH

Answer 3

My daughter is 9 months old now, and she went through the VERY same thing. I also breastfed.

Was he at all early? Stasha was 6 weeks early. She was in the hospital for 5 days before I got to bring her home. About a week after I brought her home, she started to fuss ALL the time. It didn't seem to matter what I ate. She passed gas like a trooper...rather amazing at times actually LOL

She fussed nonstop until she was about 12 weeks. All of a sudden, she became the happiest baby in the world.

My Pediatrician said that perhaps her digestive system was still a bit underdeveloped, which made her uncomfortable. Technically, it is not colic, but it has the same effects.

I am so sorry you are going through this. I know how it feels. Mylicon drops didn't help a bit. The only thing that seemed to help AT ALL was a warm damp towel against her belly. BE CAREFUL TO MAKE SURE IT IS JUST WARM NOT HOT!!

Have faith...it will pass. Stasha is now the happiest baby I have ever known...

PS- She was, and still is a drooler too!

Answer 4

my daughter was a colic baby. She use to cry everyday at the same time and she had acid refluxs to. I think it last about 3months. I had to hold her all the time and then if she went to sleep I could not put her down. IF he is colic then you have to go with the flow, but if he has acid reflux then he will gag when he is drinking and he will always have phlem in the back of the throat. The doctor will give him medicine to help ease his pain. MY daughters doctor gave her zantac, it helped a lot.

Answer 5

First of all, kudos for you for breastfeeding. If he's fussy, something is definately wrong, and "colic" is just a general term for undefined fussiness. Your baby is trying to tell you something. Take a look at your own diet. Are you eating things that could upset his tummy, like a lot of citrus fruits or spicy foods? Are you eating something to which he could be having an allergy to, like nuts or wheat? Try eating a more bland, routine diet and see if that helps. Also, instead of dairy, try switching to soy products. With my second-born, he was extremely fussy until I switched from milk to soy in my diet, and it was like he was a new baby. If his stool is very liquid and "atomic", this is a good indication that he has an intolerance to something you're eating on a regular basis.

As far as the vomiting/spitting up, make sure you keep his head higher than his tummy to prevent the food from spilling back into his mouth. If he seems gassy (and if you're only breastfeeding, he shouldn't be unless again, something in your diet is upsetting him), get him some Mylicon drops (a must-have for every home with a newborn) and try lightly bouncing him to get the gas bubbles out. You could try investing in one of those little chairs that vibrate. My kids never liked it but I know a lot of people who say they couldn't live without it.

He's probably drooling excessively because his stomach is upset. You know when you are about to throw up, how your salivary glands go into overdrive? This is the body's way of preventing the stomach acid from damaging the tissues in your mouth and esophagus by releasing extra saliva in preparation for regurgitation. I think once you find the cause of his fussiness, the drooling will cease (that is, until, he starts teething!).

BTW - there is NO SUCH THING as a baby that can't digest his own mother's breastmilk. It's something IN the milk that he's having trouble with. And switching to formula is not the first thing to try. Breastmilk is best if you can do it.

Good luck!

Answer 6

I am a mother of a 2 year old boy and a 3 year old daughter! At that age they were both like that! I felt like i had paced off like 30lbs in one week seriously! Its never to early to find out if there colic! But my guess is probably not! Make an appointment with your doctor what woudl it hurt?

Basicly with my kids they said my son was colic at 2 weeks old! By 6 weeks old he stopped doing it! And if your baby is already drooling it is possible he or she could already be teething! My son got his first tooth at 2 months no bs! Even my doctor was shocked! Some babys are even born with teeth! Anything is possible!
I do suggest trying at least some baby orajel! Maybe see if that will make him feel better!

Answer 7

Sounds more like colic/gas. Had similar problem with my son who started his screaming regimen at 2 weeks. I gave him Kolik (Gripe Water) and it worked miraculously. You would have to wait until baby is a month old however.

In the mean time, adjust your diet by cutting out all green leafy vegies - including broccoli. And drink lots of Peppermint tea. Peppermint is good for gas and all natural. You can also get some peppermint oil and have a drop in a glass of water daily (worked for me).

Dont worry it will be over b4 u know it. My son stopped around week 8.

Answer 8

Make sure he is in a safe position when you notice him spitting up (on his side, leaning forward over your shoulder, on your knee giving support to his head with your hand) so he doesn't choke on it. My daughter wasn't very fussy but we were warned by everyone what it COULD be like. Some advice is to try swaddling the baby ( look up swaddling techniques online or at the hospital). They've been inside a tight spot for 9 months and all of a sudden they can stretch out their arm. It's weird. Bring them back to the comfortable position he's used to and see if it settles him down. Also while he is swaddled, it'll sound wierd, but hold him on his side. Rest him on your forearm and support his head and neck. If you suspect it could be gas, even if you don't think it is, there is a product (in Canada) called OVAL which helps with infant gas. You may find a similar product at the drugstore just ask the pharmacist.

Answer 9

reflux he would be doing projectile vomiting and colic can be had by new babies it could even be a tooth if hes drooling but really where a babys concerned ask a doc or mid wife not take the word of strangers hun

Answer 10

with colic it is the rule of 3 about 3 weeks old fussy for about 3 hours and at least 3 days a week call your baby doctor he can tell youfor sure

Answer 11

1. Your baby might just want to be held close to the sounds (your heartbeat, breathing, voice) and smells (your skin) that he became accustomed to in the womb. Try wearing him in a sling or wrap (www.mobywrap.com is a good one) as much as possible during the day and see if that doesn't help to calm him down. You can get help with babywearing through your local NINO chapter (http://www.nineinnineout.com).

2. Your baby may be reacting to foods you are eating via your breastmilk. Two common allergens are dairy and gluten (the protein in wheat, barley, and rye). I would *highly* recommend that you eliminate these two food groups (I know it's hard, but if it relieves your baby's pain, it would definitely be worth it, right?) from your diet for two weeks to see if he gets some relief.

Good luck!