“Oh, no! There is something wrong with my baby! He is spitting up more than normal! He’s fussy!
He’s having mucous poop! He’s
having blood streaked poop! I need to
live on air and water!”
We’ve been there. I was there a year and a half ago. My daughter, Elizabeth, was hospitalized at 7
weeks with severe RSV and pneumonia. I
couldn’t nurse her for five days. She
was on a cocktail of antibiotics to rid her body of the crazy strain of illnesses
that were making her condition go from bad to worse. When we got home, I thought the worst was
over. I was wrong. The colic that had been gearing up kicked
into overdrive. The eczema that was just
“cradle cap” had spread and she was clawing at it constantly. She stopped
pooping regularly. When she did, it was
green and full of mucous and later tested positive for blood. My tiny baby was
still fighting for normalcy after literally being hours away from a ventilator. I was heartbroken. I also wanted her to get better,
desperately.
I was so desperate that I
eliminated just about everything and jumped headfirst into Elimination
Oblivion. Let’s talk about what happens when you enter Elimination
Oblivion. Sometimes, we become so
terrified of reactions without understanding exactly what is causing them and
we hit a point of “I can’t eat anything without a reaction, so I’ll live on
these five or whatever foods until I die.
Because it’s not like this baby will ever be able to wean!”
I was at a point where I wasn’t
sure I could keep going when I realized that food wasn’t our enemy. We had several things working together that
made life difficult when it came to nursing.
Here are some of the things we like to look at when we meet our
sensitive babies:
Is it anatomy? Posterior tongue ties are hard to
diagnose. Lip ties are greatly
ignored. And believe me, just because a
doctor doesn’t think it’s a problem that you have a gassy, unhappy baby,
doesn’t make it so. Revisions are simple
and pretty much life changing for babies and mommas who nurse them. TT/LT can cause a host of issues including
hindmilk/foremilk imbalance, sore and cracked nipples that don’t get better
with a more effective latch, the inability for baby to create a good seal or
get a deep latch, low weight gain, low milk supply, green and mucousy poop,
even gassiness! Many of the admins (and
board members!) have personally dealt with ties and revisions. We can help you find the resources you need
to fix this very common issue!
Is it a particularly
reluctant 4th trimester baby?
The twelve weeks after your baby is born are frequently referred to as
the 4th trimester. These
little things are still so new and so fresh.
Sometimes, not everything is exactly put together quite yet. Digestive systems are still immature. They
are frequently gassy and fuss or make faces when passing gas or having a bowel
movement. They don’t understand why they can’t feel or smell or hear you all of
the time. Growth spurts seem to happen
every five minutes and you’re lucky to remember what the inside of your shower
looks like. And honestly, some babies
are just really extra torqued that they had to go through the whole process of
leaving you. I know mine always
were! We have some well thought out, tried
and true techniques among us that might help you along the way.
Is it a vaccine or
antibiotic related irritation? Many
parents find that babies are very fussy and somewhat unsettled after
vaccines. Some parents find that the
world basically stops spinning after vaccines.
We see many mothers come running right after administration of 2 month
vaccines or subsequent administrations.
They can cause bowel irritation and even skin and digestive
reactions. They are pretty transient and
pretty easily “fixed.” Antibiotics are a
little more complex – when you take an antibiotic, you disrupt the gut flora
that can keep you healthy and functioning on a normal basis. I know for my kids, antibiotics mean frequent
diapers or bathroom trips for several weeks.
Many parents find that they cause very runny, problematic poops. It’s something to keep in mind when you are searching for answers.
Is it something
you’re taking? While many mothers
run to things like Fenugreek and other herbals to boost supply, they seldom
realize the impact it can have on things outside of supply. Many of the herbal preparations and teas
bring on some serious gas for baby!
Is it really ALL THE
FOOD? Just because your baby is sensitive to X and my baby or someone
else’s baby was sensitive to X and Y or X,Y and Z or A-Z, doesn’t mean you need
to eliminate the world and live unicorn tears.
Some of us do have to go deeper, but the vast majority of you will find
that a simple start with a few other trials will fix it. Don’t jump off of the deep end after a few
days of bad diapers and some eczema.
Start simple, work from there.
So much of the time, I find that
mommas are HANGRY. That’s Hungry +
Angry, and ladies – It’s so ugly. I’ve
been there. Don’t eliminate into
oblivion. Keep the mindset that you will
figure it out. You will learn to eat
around these sensitivities. You will
live to enjoy ice cream another day.
Don’t be afraid of stories of long, winding roads that involve chicken
broth and squash for months on end. We
really do know where you are and how to help you and how to support you to find
the answers!
