Reflux or forceful let down

[@llli*penneylane]

I had my baby on 2/15 and have been ebf which has gone extremely well. About a week ago she started spitting up every once in awhile which I put off as normal since it wasn't very often and it wasn't a big amount. Then a few days ago she started projectile vomiting and having a lot of spit up after every feeding. We went to the doctor and have had testing done because they thought she had pyloric stenosis (sp?). And as of right now she does not have that but they are now thinking she just has severe acid reflux and want to start medicine. I have been thinking that she is just over eating or that my let down was too fast making her puke a lot more.

So I guess my question is, is there any way to feed her that would make it easier for her to eat without her eating so fast? Or that would help out with the vomiting?

Please help!

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

You can try laying back and letting her latch herself. Gravity will slow the flow down and help her out. I also used to start the milk and then let it flow into a towel then letting baby nurse.

[@llli*lovemygirlso1]

A2 did this really bad. She threw up (completely emptied her stomach) like 5 times a day. It was horrible. I found that letting the initial let down of milk stream into a burp cloth (gerber cloth diapers work great) helped some. But also she was overeating because even if she was full and I offered the second side she'd eat until she was too full. So if she seems satisfied and content after the first side you could always see if that helps. It also turns out that A2 had/has severe acid reflux. We tried all combinations of medicines. Zantac has worked the best. She is now 6 months and sooooooooooo much better. She rarely even spits up anymore at this point. So there is a light at the end of the tunnel!

[@llli*lllmeg]

Trust your instincts. oald can certainly cause those giant spitups. Try the various ideas for dealing with oald and if that is the issue it will likely improve.

But I just want to add that frequent spit ups and even the occasional massive spit up are also completely normal and do no harm at all. A child with pyloric stenosis vomits up everything and thus does not gain weight. If baby is gaining well, it's not pyloric stenosis and it's not a problem unless it is causing baby discomfort. What I am trying to say is spitting up is common & normal and usually not a concern at all.

Reflux is indicated by baby being uncomfortable/in pain when burping or spitting up, or being very uncomfortable being laid dawn after nursing. Spitting up, all on it's own, is not an indicator of reflux, in fact a child can have painful reflux and not spit up at all. There are ways of dealing with reflux that do not require meds if you want to avoid that, also reflux is notoriously overdiagnosed.

http://kellymom.com/bf/supply/fast-letdown.html

[@llli*irishlake]

My babe has also been doing this, and she's 7 weeks tomorrow. She does it to the point where she doesn't take any breaths for about 20 seconds and the spit up is coming out her nose. A lot of times, the spit up is clear with little bits of white in it and it's an hour or more after she ate. It's not a daily occurance so I'm not going to stress too much about it. Though I freak out a little bit when she doesn't breathe and it comes out her nose, so I always grab her and put her up on my shoulder, which seems to help her expel all the spit up, lets her cough and then she's fine.

[@llli*penneylane]

well i have been pumping and letting her bottle feed so i know how much she is eating. and after about every half ounce i burp her and this is working out extremely well. she spit up but not a lot and not massively.

[@llli*joe.s.mom]

well i have been pumping and letting her bottle feed so i know how much she is eating. and after about every half ounce i burp her and this is working out extremely well. she spit up but not a lot and not massively.

If possible, try to get her back on the breast, mama. At least some of your feeds should be at the breast; otherwise she may forget how to nurse at the breast, and in the long run, pumping rather than nursing is a TON more work. I would try nursing again - babies grow into OALD with time. Lying down or lying back while nursing can really make a difference. The pumping and bottle feeding route is a REALLY tough one, and unless you have no other conceivable choice, it's not worth it.

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

well i have been pumping and letting her bottle feed so i know how much she is eating. and after about every half ounce i burp her and this is working out extremely well. she spit up but not a lot and not massively.

you are headed down a very, very hard road. Exclusively pumping is MUCH more difficult in the long run than just nursing. I have done it both ways, and I would much rather breastfeed.

I bet you have an oversupply and/or overactive letdown causing this. If you ride it out, both will resolve, and they are blessings in the long run. I absolutely promise this (as I go to pump for the 5000th time....and I'm so sick of it!). Breastfeeding gets easier and less messy -- and spitting up, as long as baby is happy and not painful, is a laundry issue, not a baby issue -- while pumping actually gets harder and harder. Last night, my baby was unplugging my tubes, crying for me to hold him, messing with the settings, and it was awful.

Please check out the oversupply and overactive letdown forum for sme ideas. You can breastfeed successfully through this.

[@llli*penneylane]

Thanks ladies. Today I breast fed a few times instead of bottle feeding and I think were working something out. We just have to find positions that are easy for us and that won't drown her.

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

Yep I had this problem with every baby, and that is all it is. Baby will get bigger and better able to cope, and you won't always have a firehose letdown.