mummies with babies with GERD (reflux)

[epicurean]

Originally Posted by epicurean Sorry! I meant to type good programme but it appeared as good programme instead

Arggh, it's the short form thingy getting in the way. I meant the Glenn Doman programme.

[uddermummy]

the auto correction thing is irritating, isn't it? it keeps mispelling words like dont 't and won 't.

at first i thought my spelling was bad or that my keyboard was faulty!

[epicurean]

uddermummy,
Hope Eva's doing better this week

Btw, Prof Quek is quite a big shot! He was featured in last week's Q&A column about children's health & immunity in Today.

Anyway, Seb's due for his med review with Dr Aw next week ... keeping my fingers crossed for good news!

[uddermummy]

Originally Posted by epicurean uddermummy, Hope Eva's doing better this week Btw, Prof Quek is quite a big shot! He was featured in last week's Q&A column about children's health & immunity in Today. Anyway, Seb's due for his med review with Dr Aw next week ... keeping my fingers crossed for good news!

Eva is still spitting milk. It's bad but I'm become a bit blase about her spitting; I just try to see if she wants more after spitting.

She's still getting her painful burps tho, but is not as irritable as before.

Prof Quek should be quite senior cos he always has 2 housemen with him during the consultations. But the prob is that he's like so busy!

When's your appt with Dr Aw? Mine's on the 17, i think.

[epicurean]

uddermummy,
We'll be seeing Dr Aw on 14 July. Think spitting milk is ok, not too bad ... not as bad as major vom or merlion. Main thing is she's not in pain and irritable coz of the acid. Makes for happier baby & mummy

Today's not a good day for Seb ... his phlegm made him cough so hard this morning until he vom quite majorly. The phlegm-clearing exercises continue ....

[uddermummy]

Originally Posted by epicurean uddermummy, We'll be seeing Dr Aw on 14 July. Think spitting milk is ok, not too bad ... not as bad as major vom or merlion. Main thing is she's not in pain and irritable coz of the acid. Makes for happier baby & mummy Today's not a good day for Seb ... his phlegm made him cough so hard this morning until he vom quite majorly. The phlegm-clearing exercises continue ....

yeah, i think dear daughter is actually happier after she spits the milk out, and it's not as stressful as merlion.

aiyah, miss you by three days. mine is on 17 july.

*hugs* hug sebestian for me too.

[paigemummy]

We'll be seeing Dr Aw on 14 July.

hi epicurean,

our next appt with Dr Aw is also on the same day as yours.. hopefully can say hi to you and seb..

zantac seem to lose its effectiveness after the first week.. will ask dr aw on tue.. take care!

[epicurean]

uddermummy,
Cheers to the fact that merlion days are behind you! Eva probably knows she's had enough and spits out the excess.

Yeah, too bad our appts with Dr Aw are a few day apart. Anyway, hope she'll be good for Eva and that you'll feel more comfortable addressing Eva's condition with her.

*hugs back*

[epicurean]

Originally Posted by paigemummy We'll be seeing Dr Aw on 14 July. hi epicurean, our next appt with Dr Aw is also on the same day as yours.. hopefully can say hi to you and seb.. zantac seem to lose its effectiveness after the first week.. will ask dr aw on tue.. take care!

Hi paigemummy,
Yep, hope to be able to say hi to you & Paige too. Our appt is at 3.10pm. What time is yours?

So zantac hasn't been working to ease Paige's pain for most days? Her discomfort & distress is back to her pre-zantac days?

[paigemummy]

Originally Posted by epicurean Hi paigemummy, Yep, hope to be able to say hi to you & Paige too. Our appt is at 3.10pm. What time is yours? So zantac hasn't been working to ease Paige's pain for most days? Her discomfort & distress is back to her pre-zantac days?

hi epicurean,

how was seb's review with Dr Aw today?

for us, dr aw said to continue with zantac for another 2 weeks. to review after that. she referred us to another doctor for chewing and swallowing food. cos paige still cant handle texture, or chew.. she swallows whatever in her mouth, causing her to gag and vomit if it's not pureed enough.

dr aw asked me to keep trying to let her practise but every single time she would vomit.. i'm so traumatised. so i'd probably see this chewing doc hoping for some guidance.

i almost collasped few days ago, accumulation of paige's issues, unsupportive husband, burnt out body, work stress. it's not easy at all huh..

you always come to my mind when i'm feeling blue, and i tell myself to be strong like you. thanks for being an inspiration.

[uddermummy]

hi paigemummy,

how's paige and how are you dealing with everything?

i understand the stress of having a gerdling, especially when pple around you are clueless about the condition.

does your husband go with you to paige's checkups? i find that my husband will listen- but only a bit- to what the doc says, even if i've told him the exact same thing before!

hang in there! paige knows you love her and are doing everything you can to help her.

i always tell my mum that my dear daughter is my greatest accomplishment and that she's prob the one person on earth who thinks that i'm the most beautiful person she has ever seen! hahaha

[epicurean]

Hi paigemummy,
OMG you poor thing .... it must have been terrible to have everything snowballed to that extent. Plus you're juggling work some more. Do you have reliable help or support system that is sustainable?

Seb's review with Dr Aw went ok. He has put on weight but she wants to maintain his current dose of zantac coz it works well for him. But I'm to watch out for signs that the dose is too low and let her know. Seb dislikes the bitter, sharp taste of zantac so she suggested ways to make it more palatable for him ... coz he's been pushing it out with his tongue and I need to refeed him.

Feeding-wise, to continue as per normal coz she's happy with his weight gain. It's still slow-mo when it comes to taking puree ... he takes a heaped teaspoon bit by bit. If it's too tart or sour, it triggers his gag reflex so she provided suggestions to make it more bland so it's easier on his system.

If you dont't mind me asking, does Paige have any other medical issues aside from GERD? That's interfering with her chewing & swallowing. For Seb, we're training his tongue control to move food safely from front of his mouth down his throat without choking or aspiration.

Paige's choking & gagging on puree sounds very traumatic & distressing. Are you scheduled to see the chewing doc soon? Do you want to check if it would help Paige to see a speech therapist to help with her chewing & swallowing. Seb sees Ebba from the Paed Rehab to help with his transition to solids.

You're not alone in going thru' this difficult period with Paige & her GERD. Us mummies of gerdlings are here for you *big hug*

[paigemummy]

evening uddermummy & epicurean,

thanks for your very encouraging words.. it's times like this that support group does the most help. i'm blessed to find like-minded friends like you.

epicurean, yes i think i will go to a speech therapist..
your visits to the speech therapist are by appts or walk in?

paige is a premie, due to my very complicated pregnancy (placenta previa and pre-eclampsia). (i was in bed rest practically whole of pregnancy.) she was born very small, only at 1.47kg, in NICU for 30 days. however, i dont know of any other conditions except gerd for paige.. i mentioned this problem to Dr aw, so if this syptom indicates a condition, she would alert me right? you think? maybe i should ask her the next visit. paige has a sensitive gag reflex too, like seb. so i know what you are talking about. today, she merlioned once and small vomit another time. i just have to hang in there and pray for light at the end of the tunnel.


uddermummy, my hubby comes to see dr aw too.. he also only listens a bit.. he seem pretty detached from things. and we have some fundamental differences, plus the stress of having a gerdling, it certainly is trouble.

I hope the promise that God dont give us more than what we can handle still holds! cos sometimes, i really feel so overwhelmed. am sure you mummies share this sentiments..

[uddermummy]

my hubby is also like that. I think he feels that there is no point in having two persons stress over the same thing, so since i'm already doing the dirty work, he doesn't really need to find out about GERD.

have you told your hubby about how you feel? maybe he isn't aware of the stress you're going through? or maybe he's also feeling stress but he doesn't know how to deal with it?

[paigemummy]

morning uddermummy,

i so know what you mean when you say you're doing all the dirty work and no use one more person stressed with this.. it's so true.

well, i think he simply thinks i'm depressed and over-reacting all the time. so it's tough to communicate when his mindset is like that. it gets tiring when it happens over and over again.

anyways, i'm focused to attend to paige's issues and that's my current prority..

thanks for sharing and understanding..

[uddermummy]

Originally Posted by paigemummy morning uddermummy, i so know what you mean when you say you're doing all the dirty work and no use one more person stressed with this.. it's so true. well, i think he simply thinks i'm depressed and over-reacting all the time. so it's tough to communicate when his mindset is like that. it gets tiring when it happens over and over again. anyways, i'm focused to attend to paige's issues and that's my current prority.. thanks for sharing and understanding..

same here. i just want dear daughter to get better.

*hugs* do come here to rant if you're feeling frustrated.

[paigemummy]

hey uddermummy,

keep us posted after your appt with Dr Aw tomorrow.. hope you get all your questions answered.

Dr aw is very patient. and very knowledgeable.

BTW, i'm feeding zantac mixed with orange cod liver oil.. it musked the taste completely and sometimes paige goes," yummy". so you can try , since it works for me.

[uddermummy]

Originally Posted by paigemummy hey uddermummy, keep us posted after your appt with Dr Aw tomorrow.. hope you get all your questions answered. Dr aw is very patient. and very knowledgeable. BTW, i'm feeding zantac mixed with orange cod liver oil.. it musked the taste completely and sometimes paige goes," yummy". so you can try , since it works for me.

dear daughter is only 4 mths old so i can't really give cod liver's oil to her, but that's a useful tip for when she's older.

i think i may have to try mixing the meds with expressed breast milk. dear daughter also starting to push meds out with her tongue. in fact, now we keep wishing she'll cry so that she'll have to swallow!

[epicurean]

Originally Posted by paigemummy epicurean, yes i think i will go to a speech therapist.. your visits to the speech therapist are by appts or walk in? paige is a premie, due to my very complicated pregnancy (placenta previa and pre-eclampsia). (i was in bed rest practically whole of pregnancy.) she was born very small, only at 1.47kg, in NICU for 30 days. however, i dont know of any other conditions except gerd for paige.. i mentioned this problem to Dr aw, so if this syptom indicates a condition, she would alert me right? you think? maybe i should ask her the next visit. paige has a sensitive gag reflex too, like seb. so i know what you are talking about. today, she merlioned once and small vomit another time. i just have to hang in there and pray for light at the end of the tunnel.

Hi paigemummy,
Need appt via doc's referral to see the therapists. Is Paige's primary paed at NUH too? We got referred to Ebba by Seb's main paed (also at Clinic A, whom he sees for his brain damage & seizures). She diagnosed him with Global Developmental Delay (he's not meeting any milestones) so referred us to the team of therapists at Paed Rehab.

Maybe you want to see the chewing doc first? He/she is likely to be in a good position to decide if Paige would benefit from seeing the ST. Hope your appt is soon!

Yep, Dr Aw will alert you if she detects Paige having other med issues. She's the one who highlighted to Seb's main paed the need for muscle relaxant to counter his hypertone. She also came to our rescue when he was hospitalised for suspected UTI last year.

If Paige's primary paed finds that she's meeting her milestones, then no worries It's about managing & controlling her GERD.

Hang in there ... there're always good and not-so-good days for our gerdlings.

[epicurean]

uddermummy,
Hope your consult with Dr Aw tomorrow is a fruitful one! As paigemummy commented, she's really patient. I whipped out my notebook with a whole bunch of questions that hubby and I have been wondering about ... she addressed each other methodically with helpful suggestions.

It was quite funny during our session with her on Tues. Seb was crying coz he had some trapped air bubbles that he was trying to burp out and hubby was trying to pacify him. 2 housemen shadowing Dr Aw pulled out rattlers to distract and/or calm Seb who completely ignored their valiant attempts. Hubby told them "good try but he doesn't respond to such toys" ... they then pulled out other types of toys, convinced that there's bound to be one that would get Seb's attention. Hahaha ... Seb was more interesting in emitting his manly burp. Those housemen are so earnest ...

[uddermummy]

Originally Posted by epicurean uddermummy, Hope your consult with Dr Aw tomorrow is a fruitful one! As paigemummy commented, she's really patient. I whipped out my notebook with a whole bunch of questions that hubby and I have been wondering about ... she addressed each other methodically with helpful suggestions. It was quite funny during our session with her on Tues. Seb was crying coz he had some trapped air bubbles that he was trying to burp out and hubby was trying to pacify him. 2 housemen shadowing Dr Aw pulled out rattlers to distract and/or calm Seb who completely ignored their valiant attempts. Hubby told them "good try but he doesn't respond to such toys" ... they then pulled out other types of toys, convinced that there's bound to be one that would get Seb's attention. Hahaha ... Seb was more interesting in emitting his manly burp. Those housemen are so earnest ...

hahaha, i know what you mean. those same 2 housemen today were also very earnest in entertaining dear daughter cos she was starting to fuss.

i am so sticking with dr au! She's really patient and meticulous and pays careful attention to dear daughter. I was so surprised when she noticed that dear daughter was actually swallowing down regurgitated milk cos she asked me if dear daughter did that often.

we are cutting down dear daughter's ome dose to once a day. Dr au asked me to monitor her situation for 5 days and to up the dose again if symptoms get worse.

but the bad news is that dear daughter prob will still have to be on meds for some time cos her symptoms seem to be quite worrying.

[uddermummy]

btw, do i have to get a main pediatrician? Dr au asked me if I had a regular pediatrician for dear daughter, but we dont't cos we kept switching pds due to her reflux.

i feel bad tho cos having dr au as the main pediatrician means that she'll have to spend more time checking on dear daughter's milestones, as well as monitor dear daughter's reflux.

but like what you said, dr au was really patient and went thru the milestones check up with us.

what a relief to have finally found someone we can trust!

[epicurean]

Originally Posted by uddermummy btw, do i have to get a main pediatrician? Dr au asked me if I had a regular pediatrician for dear daughter, but we dont't cos we kept switching pds due to her reflux. i feel bad tho cos having dr au as the main pediatrician means that she'll have to spend more time checking on dear daughter's milestones, as well as monitor dear daughter's reflux. but like what you said, dr au was really patient and went thru the milestones check up with us. what a relief to have finally found someone we can trust!

Hi uddermummy,
I'm so so glad that you feel comfortable with Dr Aw! She is really good and perceptive, yah? Consults with her is not rushed and she takes all your questions without you feeling like a goondu for asking. Btw, did you ask her about Eva choking & gagging ... on her hands etc? You mentioned that the last time.

No choice about the meds. Try not to fret so much about having to be on meds ... could be more important to find the med that is suitable and works well for Eva (with the optimal dosage). Later can work on weaning her off when her condition improves *hugs* To allay your worries, can about the side effects of the med and things to look out for when Eva's on it.

Yep, you should get a main paed for her. Who does she see for her vaccination, regular weight check etc? But if Dr Aw has offered to be her main paed, then that's great! Or you can ask Dr Aw to refer you guys to a regular paed in Clinic A. But watch out if the regular paed turns out be Dr Wendy (Indian doc with a really long surname that I can't remember). Once she got Seb admitted coz diagnosed him with UTI and instructed for him to have an IV plug inserted for antibiotics. However the urine test results didn't clearly indicate UTI and Seb's main paed got to us in time to over-write her instructions. In the end, it wasn't UTI at all! And for the 5 days that Seb was in the ward, even though Dr Wendy was named as the attending physician, she never once came to check on him

[uddermummy]

we used to take her to a pediatrician at mt e, but decided to do everything at nuh to lessen the hassle of coordinating too many doc visits.

so now, her jabs, weight check everything at nuh. Hmmm, i think dr au tacitly agreed to be dear daughter's main pediatrician when she found out that we didn't have any.

Hee, so will take advantage of her kindness until she explicitly recommends us another pediatrician to be dear daughter's main. Wah, like what you said, it's really hard to find a doc that doesn't treat us first time parents like gong gong goondus!

aiyoh, why that lady doc so chia lak one? will definitely take care to stay far far away from her.

btw, dr au was asking us how we got to know about her, so i mentioned that a friend recommended her, and i gave seb's name when she asked for it. Hope that's okay with you.

[epicurean]

Originally Posted by uddermummy Hee, so will take advantage of her kindness until she explicitly recommends us another pediatrician to be dear daughter's main. Wah, like what you said, it's really hard to find a doc that doesn't treat us first time parents like gong gong goondus! aiyoh, why that lady doc so chia lak one? will definitely take care to stay far far away from her. btw, dr au was asking us how we got to know about her, so i mentioned that a friend recommended her, and i gave seb's name when she asked for it. Hope that's okay with you.

uddermummy,
I know what you mean about coordinating visits to the docs. Multiple visits can be so tiring ... so Seb's arranged to see both Dr Aw and his main paed on the same afternoon to maximise time.

Since Dr Aw made that tacit kind offer, take her up on it! Eva will be in very good hands
Nope I dont't mind at all that you mentioned Seb's name when she asked about it. She's probably wondering why you switched from Prof Q to her heheh. Did she say anything about Seb btw?

Yeah, it was an utterly horrible experience with the other doc. Seb had to undergo 2 painful in-out catheter procedure to obtain more urine samples coz she was insistent that it was UTI. Hubby still gets angry whenever her name is mentioned!

These few days & nights have been tiring juggling night-time parenting and work. Seb hasn't been sleeping well. Thank goodness for the existence of good solid coffee to keep my system going during the day