Babies Who Can't Sleep Through Gas?

So sorry to hear about the baby's tummy problems. My daughter was born with GERD and didn't sleep for the first 3 months of her life and hasn't slept completely right ever since. There is hope though, and a little relief too. Dissolve a disk of peppermint candy in 4oz of warm water. Let it dissolve and cool off. Shake well and give this to the baby. It so totally relieves stomach problems. Also, constipation can be relieved with watered down apple juice or prune juice. A quarter teaspoon of mineral oil in 4oz of water works great too. You might also try switching her to goat's milk. I promise you, I completely feel what you're going through and all of these remedies worked when ABSOLUTELY NOTHING the doctors said would. Hope this helps.

I dont know if it will work, but I would try infant massage before bedtime. I am a firm believer in infant massage for a multitude of reasons. Unfortunately, I can't remember the names of the various strokes that are used on the torso, but many of them seem to help. Not only do they releive gas immediately, but the strokes (if done correctly) also help promote healthy digestion. The calming benefits of massage alone may also help. There are lots of videotapes and cd's that teach the techniques. Definitely worth a shot! Also, as another person responded, gently pulling the childs knees up to her chest and holding for just a second seems to help.

I'm sorry that I can't provide any suggestions other than my heart goes out to you. I have a 3.5 month old girl who struggles with sleeping but nothing like you've described. I too am breast-feeding and wonder if her constant night wakings is because of something I'm doing or not doing. Hang in there and good luck. I'm very impressed that you are still breastfeeding and functioning on little to no sleep! Hats off to you!

Hey ya. I have a bunch of kiddo's. My youngest baby had the same issue as your daughter. The gas was terrible when he was a tiny baby. He seemed to not even beable to popo either. He and I lived in warm water baths. Once he entered the warm water, he'd pass gas forever. When the water cooled down, I would drain the cool water and start over with warm. Once my little guy hit over 1 year everything has been so much better. I am glad to report that my family spends more time with a happy, giggly little guy rather than the screaming baby we once had. So, you doctor is right, it gets better. Honestly, it seems to get better once the baby can walk and run. PS... i am also a breast feeding momma.

Dear S. T,

You sound like a very interesting person and I can certainly empathize with your desperation for sleep. Our son, who is now 4, was breastfed and experienced gas, probably directly related to what I ate, and although I modified my diet to some degree, he still had gas, until a saintly woman who worked at the breastfeeding shop at Baptist Hospital recommended I give my son "Gripe Water." Please try this. You can find it at the drug store on Chenal Parkway east of Embassy Suites.
The first time we gave our son the gripe water, he made a really funny sound, passing gas, and from then on he seemed to relax and not struggle with the gas pains.
My pediatrician did give his ok to use the gripe water. You will be amazed! Good luck.

I can't help but wonder if you should add a bit of protein to your diet. Are they regular potatoes, and how are they prepared? Is it white or brown rice? Today's foods just don't have the nutrients they used to years ago, and the preservatives used are not good either.

Do you have your children on good children's vitamins? So many things can contribute to a child's misery: the food they eat, the air they breathe, as well as the cleaning products you use. They are also sensitive to our own emotional ups and downs, but with an 8 yo, I'm sure you know that already.

S., Gripe Water worked well for our third baby, who had major gas. It's organic and homeopathic, so no side effects or worries about giving too much (we used to use Mylicon and it always freaked me out that that was even a possibility!). Wellements brand is the one we use, we get it at Vitamin Shoppe. Some friends also had good luck with Colic Calm, which is also all-natural.

I would also recommend, especially with your mention of IBS, that you and the kids all take a good probiotic. We use a couple of them, but one we like a lot is called BerryDophilus (made by NOW brand) and it has four different strains of probiotic in it. I've read a lot about pro-b helping IBS.

Good luck!! {{hug}}

H.

Have you tried gripe water? My daughter had really bad gas and we started using gripe water which can be found at your local health food store or target. We also did essential pepermint oil on a q-tip rubbed on her belly button right before I breast fed which also seemed to help. I would get the pepperment at a health food store as it was around $20 at target. Hope you get some sleep soon.

My daughter was sensitive this way as well. I found after restricting diets, that it was more about protein amounts for Madi, if I stopped the white potatoes, rice and went back to more protein, chicken, beef, and green beans, peas, etc she did much better. The constipation did not let up for a while, but her sleep improved greatly. My son could not tolerate me eating white rice at all. You might Add yogurt to your mix as well, it seemed to help all fronts for us.hugs, Sweetie

My son had colic as well. The only thing that gave him any relief was a compound called "Gripe Water". I had to go to a compounding pharmacist, it was about $12/bottle, but it was well worth it! You might try that, it has dill weed, sodium bicarb and 2 other ingredients. It's completely herbal. Hope your baby gets some relief and you get some well needed rest.

I am a big believer in Chiropractic, I could go on for ever about all the benefits it's done for my family and friends, but I would highly recommend that you have your baby adjusted by a great chiro. Mine is Dr, Timothy Young. The location is off Robinson just West of the Broadway ext. off 63rd street. He is incredible with children. My 2 bedwetters have stopped wetting after hundreds of $$ of testing and medications, etc...One treatment from Dr Young and my oldest stopped wetting that same night! I have another friend whose son didn't sleep throught the night ever, he was 3 years old and she had him adjusted by Dr Young and he slept through the night for the first time! His was due to being delivered with forcepts. I have seen Dr Young hold newborns (including my 3 week old when she was 12 days old) and he just massages their little back in a way that calms colic, gas, burping, etc....Asthma, ear incetions, colds, and other minor illnesses have all been helped tremendously!

If you want more info, please email me...his website is www.dryoungsoffice.com or you could phone book or goole his number if you don't want to email.

God Bless and I hope you decide to try chiro, even if it's not mine!

Are you feeding her any solids yet? If not, then fruit and some veggies should help her regulate her system better so she isn't so constipated. I know some foods can make a baby more constipated but your breastmilk shouldn't be one of them.

I know that my son had horrible gas and stomach cramps when he was a newborn. I had to cut out milk and ice cream from my diet until he was 4 months old but was able to eat cheese and drink soy milk without causing him problems. I'm sorry that despite your best efforts that you are having so much trouble finding a solution for her. How difficult for both of you.

One other thing you could do is to help her get as much exercise as possible to help regulate her bowels. Bicycle her legs and if she is ready try a jumperoo. The jumping would be great stimulation for her and hopefully help her poop more regularly. I have a feeling that if that regulated for her the gas wouldn't be so painful that she would have to wake due to the discomfort.

One last thing that did work great with our son was to pull knees up to his stomach and hold them there for a few minutes. Doing that helped him pass gas much easier and a little pressure on his belly is supposed to feel good. We often times did this right after he ate and before we put him down to sleep. More often than not he would pas gas. Maybe if you could help her get some out of her system before sleeping she would sleep longer. Good luck as I know you are feeling pretty desperate. You are doing a great job. Please keep us posted.

Are you going to a pedi GI specialist? Have they considered dysmotility as the cause? My last 2 kiddos had very similar symptoms. My now 3 year old, finally got better at 11-1/2 months after a lower GI was performed. While they didn't find anything, that was when he got better. My now 8 year old got better after I introduced food into her diet.

The main thing that our GI doc had me & the baby do was low-carbs. He believed that the sugars slow down the emptying of the stomach, creating air and additional gas & constipation.

It was a very long, frustrating process. There were days when I wasn't sure I'd make it - truly! The best help I had was from my dr. He was understanding and supportive when others simply couldn't understand. We would joke that the weekly appointments were more for me than my child.

Good luck to you. I would be happy to give you more info if you want it.

This sounds more like constipation than gas based on what I read in your update.

My oldest boy suffered from constipation, also.

When he was an infant I fed him Prunes daily. This helped with the constipation, once he was older and we were potty training I would give him with his breakfast a 4 oz glass of prune juice it kept his stools soft so he was more inclined to use the potty rather than his pants.

I hope this helps.

I feel your pain. Although I have not seeked medical advice, my son who is 7 months old also has gas that he can't sleep through. I am still breastfeeding, but he has had gas like this since he was born. Mylicon does not work. And the doctor just says he will be okay. I sleep in 1.5 to 2 hour spurts. He has only slept through the night 4 times since he was born. And lately he has been waking in piercing screams, though he is teething now. I do not want to put him on any medication and am hoping that he will outgrow or learn to better "fart" it out.

I can't answer the question about gas, my kids were breastfed and always had bad gas too,they outgrew it by about a year, and also about the time they were weaned. It may not be diet at all, it may be a latch issue. You can talk to a lactation consultant and see if they may have an idea the Dr didn't think of. Maybe pumping and giving it to her in a sippy cup (mine drank breast milk from a sippy at 6 months cause they hated bottles and all nipples except mine were evil), or trying harder to get her to burp after feedings.

I am concerned about your diet, you (and the baby) need more protein. I don't know if you were vegetarian before, but if not get some meat, and iron in your diet or you will become anemic and the baby can too, it's not fun because I had anemia and an anemic child and it can get serious.

If you are vegetarian, finding non gas producing proteins are hard because most of it will come from beans and legumes which produce gas. You may need to go on an iron supplement, but they are hard on the body, it always made me sick to my stomach.

Good luck.

www.LLLI.org is a huge resource for breast feeding mom's with problems like these. You could also contact your local LLL group for some help. Allergy test can be inconclusive if done before the age of 3. Could the rice be a problem. I don't know if you can be allergic to it or not. Maybe get a second pediatrician to look at her. There's no reason to switch to formula unless she tested positve for PKU. Plus formula of anykind could make the constipation worse.

Did your doctor mention anything about reflux? The arching of the back, screaming and gas sounds like what my two oldest children had and they diagnosed reflux. My son actually was projectile vomiting with his episodes and the worse was when he was asleep because he was lying flat and not elevated. He actually underwent a series of tests and then started Zantac and Reglan until he was 10 months old. I also was breastfeeding him and I was told to quit and he was started on Alimentum formula. I was explained that the arching and screaming was due to the acid build up and tearing down of the esophagus from the reflux. I hope you find out what is going on. It is very hard I know with no sleep, frustration and trying to be mom at the same time. Do not give up.

try LITTLE TUMMYS gas relief drops. they only sell it at Walgreen's and Babies R Us. You can give it to her before you feed her and right after. For some reason, this is the ONLY thing that worked for my daughter. She is almost 3 now and we still give it to her.

My oldest suffered from may of the same things you are describing. She was very fussy and just seemed to not be a very happy baby. The thing I found helped her the most was a chiropratic adjustment. After the adjustment she went home and slept for 3 hours without waking. It also helped with the ear infections that my second born had. Good luck!

Have you tried infant massage? There are a couple of massage techniques to help babies relieve gas. I'm not an expert in it, I've only taken a one hour seminar, but you might look into it.

Gas is awful for babies... it is most important to get it before it travels down as it is painful. so use mylicon at every feeding.. right before the feeding helps more... but after works too. and burp your baby well after every feeding or even a few times during the feeding. the gas that makes it down will lead to pain and when it passes it will wake the baby. I encourage you to get it by burp vs. fart. And keep in mind that the way you are burping may not work for your baby so try a new way. i learn by accident how to best burp by gassy breast feed critter. she did well after nursing when she was partly asleep and still on me i just rolled the opposite way and she burped bigger than ever before. so to better explain.. i was laying in the bed with her on my left side and nursing on my left breast while she was laying on her left side against me me and facing me. she would nurse by kneeling next to me and sucking up. a postion that she actually created and made nursing easier for her. so when she would let go and begin to rest. I would steady her against me and roll to the right.. where my ribs when press against her belly just below her ribcage not her lower belly and then the huge burp would erupt. i continued to do this after i discovered it and she benefited from less gas. my rolling to the right was very slow and very gentle and not a full over .. just me going from flat on my back to on my right side by slow turning and i would roll back partly to flat and then up again to the right a few times if i did not get an immediate burp. so short stroy get a burp and spare the pain as well as interupted sleep. best of luck

maybe the breast milk is too much for in itself you may want to see about switching to a lacto-free formula... some children's stomach just can't handle it

Have you tried giving her gas drops like mylicon? Our pediatrician had us give them to our son when he was little (he's now 2) and they really seemed to help.

Are you feeding the baby an foods? Also if diabetes runs in your family that could be the problem. I am diabetic and if I eat potatoes, rice or other starches i get a lot of gas. She could have an intolerance to the starches you are eating. If that is all you are eating that could be the problem also. you should eat a balanced diet in order for her to get the proper nutrition. There is also a new kind of drop for baby's with gas and colic and it is all natural it is called Gripe water. It is a vegetable based drop that you put in their bottle or you can give themwith a dropper. It worked miracles with my grandson.

Hi, Have you tried Gripe Water? It is a natural remedy that they sell at natural Markets. It was the only thing that worked for my little one when she got farty!

My daughter had that problem as well. I do believe it is acid reflux and not colic or IBS. Alot of doctors misdiagnose that and are given antibotics that don't work and in the long run hurt them. I am fully organic and I gave my daughter GRIPE WATER, it worked like a charm. (it did help that my husband is a doctor and asked her DR the right questions.) You can my it at Whole Foods or any store that carries organic items. Good Luck.

I don't know if this would work for you or not. My little girl is a gas machine. When she was a baby I would give her peppermint tea diluted with water. Just put some in a bottle and give it to her kinda warm...I was skeptical at first to give her tea...but this works and it is all natural. You can find it at wal-mart in the tea section by the bread. good luck!!

My son had some of those sypmtons and he is allergic to MILK. Try some formula call nutrimagin (sorry I know that is spelled wrong) you can find it at Wal-Mart. It is a little expensive but it worked for my son and he started sleeping, stopped farting as much, and started using the bathroom on a normal bases.

God Bless
S. Jane

It might take a couple of weeks to see a change. This is something worth trying. I just did it one day because the doctors were not sure what was wrong with him. When it worked I told the doctor what I did and He said my son was allergic to milk if that formula work. That is because all that formula is is vitamins.

I work with a lady that has a new baby and she has been using "gripe water" and she says it works so much better than mylicon drops. She puts a small amt in the baby's bottle. I would suggest taking the baby off the medications - just because of side effects. At least to see if the gripe water works fo her. My last child had the same problem but mylicon seemed to work for him. I would lay him on his stomach and rub his back and that gave him relief..or at least stopped the screaming. The gripe water is available at Walgreens. I know its difficult and I pray this works for you.

The little boy I watch has some trouble with constipation & gas. Her doctor told her to give him prune juice. He is older, he'll be two in Aug. You might check about giving prune juice with your doctor. She might be to young?
It's a little messy if it works, but worth not seeing them struggle.

Why don't you start babies magic tea. It's very good to soothe gassy babies. I am using this tea since my child's birth and it's really working.