Colic?

Carrie6OD

8 week old with trapped wind, loads of explosive nappies (tmi - sorry!), crying when not in my arms, sleeping for 30 mins at night then waking up screaming, infacol not doing anything, not taking bottle properly (gulping, spitting it out side of mouth when he's feeding) - is this colic? If so, are there any other mammies out there who have gone though this? Any tips? Thanks!

farmchoice

ya probably colic or whats referred to as colic. id love o be able to give you the solution because god love you its a nightmare. as far as i can see though there isn't one, or at least not one that works for everyone.

you will get a 100 different bits of advice and you will try them all, some will work for an hour and some will work for a day and eventtually one will work all the time, coincidentally at the same momemt your little one out grows the blasted thing ( could be tomorrow could be in a month)

the only practical advice is go to your gp and see what they say. out from that try and get away completely on occasion. If your partner is on baby duty dont sit in the next room listening to the wailing, leave the house, go for a walk, a drive, a pint, anything, because otherwise you will go mad.

it will pass and the kid will be fine. forget about whatever type of parenting you were planning on, if the only way the child will sleep is in your bed then in your bed he/she goes. if you need to strap the child to your chest all day to keep it quite then do that, you can worry about routines etc later.

good luck.

theLuggage

Infacol isn't the only thing out there. consult with pharmacy. Try colief maybe?

Carrie6OD

farmchoice wrote: »

ya probably colic or whats referred to as colic. id love o be able to give you the solution because god love you its a nightmare. as far as i can see though there isn't one, or at least not one that works for everyone.

you will get a 100 different bits of advice and you will try them all, some will work for an hour and some will work for a day and eventtually one will work all the time, coincidentally at the same momemt your little one out grows the blasted thing ( could be tomorrow could be in a month)

the only practical advice is go to your gp and see what they say. out from that try and get away completely on occasion. If your partner is on baby duty dont sit in the next room listening to the wailing, leave the house, go for a walk, a drive, a pint, anything, because otherwise you will go mad.

it will pass and the kid will be fine. forget about whatever type of parenting you were planning on, if the only way the child will sleep is in your bed then in your bed he/she goes. if you need to strap the child to your chest all day to keep it quite then do that, you can worry about routines etc later.

good luck.

Thank you so much! That is the best advice I've got so far! And it made me feel much better on this sh*tty colic-y day

Sligo1

I found gripe water gave my little girl amazing relief pretty much immediately fr trapped wind etc. we have it to her via syringe. It's not nice giving it that way as you will find they do resist and cough and splutter a bit. But literally as soon as she got it she relaxed.

uck51js9zml2yt

Sligo1 wrote: »

I found gripe water gave my little girl amazing relief pretty much immediately fr trapped wind etc. we have it to her via syringe. It's not nice giving it that way as you will find they do resist and cough and splutter a bit. But literally as soon as she got it she relaxed.

Gripe water works wonders.
Also used an ounce of warm water with the tip of a spoon of brown sugar. It was recommended to us by our GP.

fall

Another one for gripe water. My baby had permanent wind no matter how much we winded her and she is breastfed. The day we gave her gripe water the burp she let sounded like it came from a man! She has been a different baby since. I found infacol works better since we gave her gripe water. Gripe water seems to get her wind up and infacol seems to help her poo. Hope you are feeling ok Carrie6, the days can seem very long when they don't sleep very long. It really does get better.

Carrie6OD

fall wrote: »

Another one for gripe water. My baby had permanent wind no matter how much we winded her and she is breastfed. The day we gave her gripe water the burp she let sounded like it came from a man! She has been a different baby since. I found infacol works better since we gave her gripe water. Gripe water seems to get her wind up and infacol seems to help her poo. Hope you are feeling ok Carrie6, the days can seem very long when they don't sleep very long. It really does get better.

Thanks a million... It has been such a long and hard few days. I no longer feel like myself :-( I have an 18 month old who has a cold too so he's not really getting the right attention either. I never had any colic/wind issue with him. I guess all babies are different. I'll go to chemist in the morning and get some gripe water. I thought you couldn't get it anymore for some reason. Thank you all sincerely, I so appreciate your help and advice xx

Sligo1

Carrie6OD wrote: »

Thanks a million... It has been such a long and hard few days. I no longer feel like myself :-( I have an 18 month old who has a cold too so he's not really getting the right attention either. I never had any colic/wind issue with him. I guess all babies are different. I'll go to chemist in the morning and get some gripe water. I thought you couldn't get it anymore for some reason. Thank you all sincerely, I so appreciate your help and advice xx

They stopped doing gripe water years ago as it contained alcohol. But they stopped putting alcohol in it but then it was only available up the North. Recently they have started selling it again in the south but a lot of chemists still don't have it in yet or even know you can get it in the south now. If you have trouble getting some perhaps people here could tell you where is nearest to you that have have it? Of you can't find it anywhere and are in Dublin I have a bottle you can have all else failing

cbyrd

Maybe try some lactase drops in the bottle, sounds more like your little one has a bigger problem than colic. Colic is usually pain, drawing the knees up sometime with wind. My now 5 year old has a problem with dairy in general and when I went from breastfeeding to bottles he was like this too, explosive nappies and screaming with pain. the lactase drops sorted him after trying about 5 different types of formula.
If it's not that, the drops won't do anything harm and you can rule out that problem before going through weeks of trying different formulas. Also have a look at the teat it might be too fast flow if your baby is having difficulty swallowing.. It's a trial and error time.. best of luck with it!

jopax

I feel for you,, in a similar situation with a 7 week old.
He had very bad wind, I found it impossible to burb him.
He stopped going for poos and after 2 days of not going there would be a massive explosion, then it all started over again.
We changed feed from normal aptimal to aptimal comfort for colic and constipation.
We ordered gripe water on line and use before each feed.
And lastly we got bigger teet the no 2. Size.

This has definitely helped for us.

I hope you find something that works for you, its very distressing to be coping with.
Good luck!

bean14

I've been there and now with a 13 month old it feels like a distant memory. It's hard going but remember it doesn't last forever. My nephew had it and I tryed infacol and gaviscon for infants just like he had. I found the gaviscon helped. Remember its not your fault and it won't last for long

Carrie6OD

5.50am and I've been pacing up and down with him for an hour! He's definitely in pain poor thing. Has had 2 explosion nappies since midnight. His body is all tense and he's trying hard to push down or fart. Reading your comments has helped a lot just knowing that it's not all my fault!

He's sucking a soother now which is keeping him quiet for a few minutes. I'm going to try all the things suggested. I'll send husband to chemist first thing!

uck51js9zml2yt

Gripe Water can be got from Amazon.co.uk

Just use Parcel Motel to get it sent over.

mirrorwall14

Westin Some Yardstick wrote: »

Gripe Water can be got from Amazon.co.uk

Just use Parcel Motel to get it sent over.

It's available in Ireland, I know my local pharmacy stocks it

Moonbeam

It sounds more like reflux in my non expert opinion.
Tak to the PHN.
Lactase is worth a try too,it might be a dairy intolerance.

Carrie6OD

Thanks for all your help.

Started him on colief on Wednesday. He had a great day Wednesday and Thursday and back to normal (screaming, not sleeping etc) Friday! Started him on comfort milk on Saturday afternoon and didn't see much of a change in him but he did sleep better last night so we'll see. I think it's reflux too now. Will see how he gets on and maybe go to gp about reflux if it doesn't work out. Hate messing with his little system like this but also hate seeing him in such discomfort.

Carrie6OD

Also couldn't get gripe water anywhere. All I got were filthy looks from pharmacists telling me that it was unlicensed in Ireland...

Sligo1

Carrie6OD wrote: »

Also couldn't get gripe water anywhere. All I got were filthy looks from pharmacists telling me that it was unlicensed in Ireland...

Eegits. It wasn't licenced in Ireland but has recently become licenced. Those pharmacists obviously aren't up to date. Lol. Hope you guys are doing ok.

Typer Monkey

Sligo1 wrote: »

Eegits. It wasn't licenced in Ireland but has recently become licenced. Those pharmacists obviously aren't up to date. Lol. Hope you guys are doing ok.

Sligo have you seen gripe water in shops/chemists anywhere since it became licenced? I'm putting together a box of tricks for a friend who's due soon and I'd love to stick a few bottles in. I had a load posted over from the UK by my sister in law when my daughter was a newborn!

Sligo1

Typer Monkey wrote: »

Sligo have you seen gripe water in shops/chemists anywhere since it became licenced? I'm putting together a box of tricks for a friend who's due soon and I'd love to stick a few bottles in. I had a load posted over from the UK by my sister in law when my daughter was a newborn!

I'm in Dublin but I haven't seen it in Dublin as haven't looked for it. I saw it in 2 pharmacies in sligo. I did ask once I mccabes in dundrum and they said they didn't have it because it wasn't licenced (that was a couple weeks ago). I informed tjem it was now licenced according to another pharmacy. We have a stash from up the North so I can't say I've really been looking for it tho. It's a lot cheaper up the North I think. But I remember someone on here saying somewhere in blanchardstown had some. There's a thread you could post on to see. I'll see if I can find it.

Sligo1

Typer Monkey wrote: »

Sligo have you seen gripe water in shops/chemists anywhere since it became licenced? I'm putting together a box of tricks for a friend who's due soon and I'd love to stick a few bottles in. I had a load posted over from the UK by my sister in law when my daughter was a newborn!

Have a look here and maybe ask
http://touch.boards.ie/thread/2057238466/1/#post91024753

Typer Monkey

Thanks Sligo

Carrie6OD

Sligo1 wrote: »

I'm in Dublin but I haven't seen it in Dublin as haven't looked for it. I saw it in 2 pharmacies in sligo. I did ask once I mccabes in dundrum and they said they didn't have it because it wasn't licenced (that was a couple weeks ago). I informed tjem it was now licenced according to another pharmacy. We have a stash from up the North so I can't say I've really been looking for it tho. It's a lot cheaper up the North I think. But I remember someone on here saying somewhere in blanchardstown had some. There's a thread you could post on to see. I'll see if I can find it.

I rang ever pharmacy near me (in Kildare) and none of them have it. Londis in clane stock it but they're out of it for now.

Sligo1

Carrie6OD wrote: »

I rang ever pharmacy near me (in Kildare) and none of them have it. Londis in clane stock it but they're out of it for now.

That's a pity . I have 3 sealed bottles here and I wuda helped u out but we in Dublin. But it does sound like it could be a bit of reflux. The gripe really does help for wind tho. Hope u get sorted soon.

It prob bad me saying I would give u a bottle? Lol... I'm not dodgy but just realised you prob wouldn't want something from a random internet stranger! Lol

Carrie6OD

Sligo1 wrote: »

That's a pity . I have 3 sealed bottles here and I wuda helped u out but we in Dublin. But it does sound like it could be a bit of reflux. The gripe really does help for wind tho. Hope u get sorted soon.

It prob bad me saying I would give u a bottle? Lol... I'm not dodgy but just realised you prob wouldn't want something from a random internet stranger! Lol

Haha!! Even if you were dodgy I probably would've taken it from you I was so desperate for the stuff!!! Thanks so much for the offer!

So far the comfort milk seems to have made a difference and he's definitely more comfortable but still has the bad wind. But I have a smiley baby today for the first time in 8 weeks!

Rubberchikken

It's truly awful isn't it?

My son had it from about 10 weeks to about 20 weeks. It stopped as suddenly as it started but while it happened i never realised a baby could cry so much:(

Massage tummy, warm bath, walk around with baby, gentle rocking, drive in car.
I think these things were just to distract me while the poor baby just wailed, but it did end and he survived;)

Carrie6OD

Rubberchikken wrote: »

It's truly awful isn't it?

My son had it from about 10 weeks to about 20 weeks. It stopped as suddenly as it started but while it happened i never realised a baby could cry so much:(

Massage tummy, warm bath, walk around with baby, gentle rocking, drive in car.
I think these things were just to distract me while the poor baby just wailed, but it did end and he survived;)

Ah thanks. It's so good to hear advice and that I'm not the only one to go through it! It's truly awful for the poor fella but hopefully like your little baba it'll end as quickly as it started.

Ocean Blue

Sligo1 wrote: »

Eegits. It wasn't licenced in Ireland but has recently become licenced. Those pharmacists obviously aren't up to date. Lol. Hope you guys are doing ok.

No product with 'gripe' in its name is listed on the HPRA website as licensed in Ireland. Can you provide me with a link to the source of your information? Thanks

Sligo1

Ocean Blue wrote: »

No product with 'gripe' in its name is listed on the HPRA website as licensed in Ireland. Can you provide me with a link to the source of your information? Thanks

I don't have a link. As I said previously it was a 2 qualified pharmacists who provided me with this information in 2 different pharmacies. I'm hardly going to go and research this after they've provided me with this information if I'm happy with it. I would only have looked into it more if I had reason to suspect otherwise.

jopax

Hi carrie06, posted here last week, I thought my little fella had settled down, but not the case now.
it feels like back to square one with the wind and constipation, some days he will just cry on & off for the day.
I am finding it hard to manage on the bad days.
I am beginning to think that its just going to be like this until he grows out of it.

Sligo1

Ocean Blue wrote: »

No product with 'gripe' in its name is listed on the HPRA website as licensed in Ireland. Can you provide me with a link to the source of your information? Thanks

Also to add, if you are wanting to research this yourself the ingredients are dill herb and sodium bicarbonate. You could try this as your search criteria and it may possibly bring up something which gripe didn't? I can also give you the number to the pharmacies if you would like to question them on this matter further. Unfortunately I'm not a trained pharmacist so can't really provide any further information.

Ocean Blue

Sligo1 wrote: »

Also to add, if you are wanting to research this yourself the ingredients are dill herb and sodium bicarbonate. You could try this as your search criteria and it may possibly bring up something which gripe didn't? I can also give you the number to the pharmacies if you would like to question them on this matter further. Unfortunately I'm not a trained pharmacist so can't really provide any further information.

I am a pharmacist, one of the ones you have branded an eegit! I can't find any information to indicate it's now licensed. So, maybe the two pharmacists you spoke to were wrong and all the other pharmacists that posters enquired with are actually correct. I'll look into it further anyway.

Sligo1

Ocean Blue wrote: »

I am a pharmacist, one of the ones you have branded an eegit! I can't find any information to indicate it's now licensed. So, maybe the two pharmacists you spoke to were wrong and all the other pharmacists that posters enquired with are actually correct. I'll look into it further anyway.

Apologies, however, I didn't brand you personally an Eegit. Only the ones who said it wasn't licenced when I had been told by 2 pharmacists it was. And if that is a mistake and I have been given incorrect/false information from 2 fully qualified pharmacists then I take my statement back. Would you like the contact details of these pharmacies?

fall

Jopax have you tried colief? Or changed formula? Hope you are doing ok.

cyning

jopax wrote: »

Hi carrie06, posted here last week, I thought my little fella had settled down, but not the case now.
it feels like back to square one with the wind and constipation, some days he will just cry on & off for the day.
I am finding it hard to manage on the bad days.
I am beginning to think that its just going to be like this until he grows out of it.

I have a little one with reflux and she used scream and scream and scream. It's so difficult to cope with... Constipation is a curse. Could you go to GP and look for something to deal with the constipation? It's very painful and it might help. You have to mind yourself too... I was very guilty of not doing that and I needed to: especially if they aren't sleeping.

Ocean Blue

Sligo1 wrote: »

Apologies, however, I didn't brand you personally an Eegit. Only the ones who said it wasn't licenced when I had been told by 2 pharmacists it was. And if that is a mistake and I have been given incorrect/false information from 2 fully qualified pharmacists then I take my statement back. Would you like the contact details of these pharmacies?

Thanks buy the same info is available to all of us so I'll check it out myself! Like any area though, pharmacy can be rife with rumours..........so 'X manufacturer are planning on applying for a licence' can easily turn into 'I definitely heard it's officially available'. I'll report back if I find anything out.

Sligo1

Ocean Blue wrote: »

Thanks buy the same info is available to all of us so I'll check it out myself! Like any area though, pharmacy can be rife with rumours..........so 'X manufacturer are planning on applying for a licence' can easily turn into 'I definitely heard it's officially available'. I'll report back if I find anything out.

Yes do, I'd be really interested to know. And apologies again, I really didn't mean anything personally as such. I know first hand how rumours and different information can circulate in all health professions.

Carrie6OD

jopax wrote: »

Hi carrie06, posted here last week, I thought my little fella had settled down, but not the case now.
it feels like back to square one with the wind and constipation, some days he will just cry on & off for the day.
I am finding it hard to manage on the bad days.
I am beginning to think that its just going to be like this until he grows out of it.

You poor thing. It is so hard to manage the bad days. I changed to comfort milk and now a week later I have a different baby. Smiling, chilled out and more importantly, sleeping at night. He still has bad bottom wind which I manage by gently pushing his legs to his chest and that usually relieves him. The wind wakes him up sometimes which is a pity but he's never great at getting it up with a burp. I never got hold of the gripe water in the end but don't think I'll need it if things continue as is. Maybe you could try changing the milk (and bottles and teats) and see if that improves things? And as they get older of course the easier it will get

Carrie6OD

Carrie6OD wrote: »

You poor thing. It is so hard to manage the bad days. I changed to comfort milk and now a week later I have a different baby. Smiling, chilled out and more importantly, sleeping at night. He still has bad bottom wind which I manage by gently pushing his legs to his chest and that usually relieves him. The wind wakes him up sometimes which is a pity but he's never great at getting it up with a burp. I never got hold of the gripe water in the end but don't think I'll need it if things continue as is. Maybe you could try changing the milk (and bottles and teats) and see if that improves things? And as they get older of course the easier it will get

Sorry Jopax, just realised you've already tried the comfort milk. I'm using the cow and gate but doubt that makes any difference. Pharmacist strongly advised aptimil but I was already on cow and gate after breastfeeding and didn't want to do too many changes. Colief, infacol were useless for us too. I really hope your situation improves. All the best

jopax

fall wrote:

Jopax have you tried colief? Or changed formula? Hope you are doing ok.

Hi fall, yes I changed to the comfort formula which seemed to help for a while. I have been using gripe water too. I will get the colief and give that a try, thanks.

jopax

cyning wrote:

I have a little one with reflux and she used scream and scream and scream. It's so difficult to cope with... Constipation is a curse. Could you go to GP and look for something to deal with the constipation? It's very painful and it might help. You have to mind yourself too... I was very guilty of not doing that and I needed to: especially if they aren't sleeping.

thanks cyning, that is a good idea, I actually have the 2 mth vaccine next week so I will ask the nurse about the constipation.

cyning

jopax wrote: »

thanks cyning, that is a good idea, I actually have the 2 mth vaccine next week so I will ask the nurse about the constipation.

My first suffered awfully with constipation so I know the pain it can cause... Have a chat with them: they can normally reccomend something.

jopax

Carrie6OD wrote:

Sorry Jopax, just realised you've already tried the comfort milk. I'm using the cow and gate but doubt that makes any difference. Pharmacist strongly advised aptimil but I was already on cow and gate after breastfeeding and didn't want to do too many changes. Colief, infacol were useless for us too. I really hope your situation improves. All the best

thanks carrie06, I'm of the same mind about changing the formula, I've done it once and don't want to be chopping & changing, so I will just stick with it & hope it stops soon.

jopax

Carrie6OD wrote:

Sorry Jopax, just realised you've already tried the comfort milk. I'm using the cow and gate but doubt that makes any difference. Pharmacist strongly advised aptimil but I was already on cow and gate after breastfeeding and didn't want to do too many changes. Colief, infacol were useless for us too. I really hope your situation improves. All the best

thanks carrie06, I'm of the same mind about changing the formula, I've done it once and don't want to be chopping & changing, so I will just stick with it & hope it stops soon.

fall

Try cooled boiled water to help with constipation too. My first had terrible trouble, we actually had to use a suppository he got so bad.

cbyrd

A spoonful of sugar for every oz of water. The best constipation cure given to me by my old Gp 16 years ago. It's only a temporary cure, the more I read the more important sure it's not the type of formula your baby is having difficulty with but just formula in general.
You need to get to your gp, write a list of baby's symptoms and tell him you want a referral for lactose intolerance testing. Don't be fobbed off. I was told to my face by a consultant that I was just over anxious and go home. Discomfort in a baby after eating is not normal, some babies don't produce the lactase enzyme that breaks down cows milk sugars. This causes wind, pain and either constipation or diaherra. The lactose will ferment in the gut cos it can't be broken down. SMA have a lactose free formula, you can get it on supervalu and tesco, it's €8.99.