Bad Stomach Virus

It kind of sounds like he might have roto virus. My daughter had it around that age as well. I was doing so much laundry everyday becuase she kept going potty and throwing up on everything. anyway it lasted about 2 weeks and than she was fine. She also lost a couple pounds, but gained it right back once she was better. Have you tried differnt flavors of pedialyte? My daughter would only drink certain kinds, also maybe water it down a little. I actually drank some once and it had an interesting flaavor! Anyway good luck, it should pass, but if it gets worse call the doc again. Good Luck!!!

try giving him jello water make the jello like the box says but keep it out. I have had pretty good luck with this for my 5 children.

My kids once had what was called the Roto Virus. It lasts like 11-14 days and just when you think it's gone, it comes back. It felt like an eternity but after about 2 weeks everything was back to normal. Maybe this is what he has?????
Good luck.

Sounds like rotavirus to me. For both my little ones, it started with vomiting (just once) and then the diarrhea started. It lasted for 10 days. My kids hated Pedialyte so I mixed half Pedialyte and half Gatorade -- I was getting nervous about dehydration. If your little guy does have rotavirus, I hope it is a short bout! Good luck!

Sounds kind of like rotovirus. Did the doctor mention that as a possibility? I think it could take a couple of weeks to get his stools back to normal. I would just make sure he isn't getting dehydrated. They need to have a wet diaper AT LEAST every 8 hours. Good luck.

I am a mom of 3. 2 girls 4 and 3 and a little boy 14 months. My oldest at the age of 2 got the Rotavirus which sounds like what you are describing. She never got the diarrhea but she was vomiting for 16 hours straight about every 45 mins to an hour. She could not keep anything down. She was at the age where she would take pedialite. When she was and infant she got sick and the Dr. told me not to take her off the formula but just water it down so she stays hydrated and has the calories. You might want to try that if he is not taking anything else.

The napping part is all part of it. Things are passing right through him and he is not keeping all the calories and nurshiment in. Which will make anyone tired. He will be cranky here and there because it is uncomfortable and makes them feel crampy.

Look up the Rotavirus online and see if some of the info helps.

Good Luck.

Amanda

This sounds like it might be rotavirus. Does his poop have a strange odor? My older son had it when he was a toddler, and I will NEVER forget that smell.

Regardless, fluids are important. My kids hated pedialyte, too. What worked for us was to take ice cubes (made of either water, or even a flavor of pedialyte he would be most likely to take), and put one or two in one of those mesh feeders. He can hold it himself and suck/chew on it, swallowing the liquid as it melts. You can find mesh feeders at Target in the baby/feeding section. Typically they are used for choke-ables like fruits, but I got the most mileage out of them with ice cubes (great for teething, too!). Good luck.

It's gotta be Rotovirus. My daughter hates to drink anything but milk, but we took it away for a few days and the diahrrea cleared right up. keep trying to push water though so he doesn't get dehydrated. I wouldn't worry about nutrition right now. If he's wants to eat he will, but don't push it. As soon as he is feeling better he'll put the weight back on, and the sooner you stop the milk/dairy intack the faster he'll get better.

Both of my boys had something similar last December (right at Christmas, yuck!). We went to the doctor and they recommended not to change his diet and it would improve on it's own. I thought it was a little odd but they were right. I followed the BRAT diet and continued my youngest's bottles because he wouldn't drink the Pedialite either. (My youngest was 10 months and my oldest was 25 months at the time) and within about 6 days they were both back to normal. As long as he's still taking his bottles he won't get dehydrated and if ne wants to sleep let him. Lots of rest will get him better sooner than keeping him up.

My nephew lucky food of all a ortho dr that dignosied his daughter.
Have him /her get their stoolds checked and ciolon etc.
And see if there is any rodent droppings in any inviromental area.
From the local places to where the formula is made,stored,shipped and sold.
Also if you use plastic bottles and nipples try non latex ones.
If it is a latex allergery you need to catch it fast.
Something from a cold,allergry, to a tied intestinal area can do this.

Also if some has rodents or has pesticides and cause this even years later.

My son did thid and we found out he is allergic to me...who knew...i had to special bath etc...my body and his is so alike his young body thought I was a enemy trying to invade him.
D.

I would suggest pedialite. I know some babies may not like it but pedialite has the elecrilites that your baby needs. My whole family just got over this and it lasted for almost 3 weeks. I have a baby the same age and he was the only one in the family who actually wasn't sick, but that is because I am nursing him. It is a virus and it needs to run it's corse. You could try some chicken broth or even try some warm water with a little bit of jell-o. The jell-o
should coat the stomach and reduce vomitting. Let me know if any of this works. A.

hi A.,
sorry to hear about your ill little one. i went through the same thing when my boys were small. they would not touch pedialyte. they did however like the pedialyte popsicles.
just a suggestion,
michelli

Have you considered that it might be rotavirus? It something that the doctor can test his stools for, though a warning...it can be dangerous. My oldest son had it 3 times and 1 time ended up in the hospital for dehydration. He couldn't stay hydrated. Between the diarrhea, vomiting, and fever no amount of liquid was enough. It runs it's course, but can be a hellacious week. Just something to consider!

A., this sounds like rotavirus to me. But I would think your doc would have diagnosed it as such. I think the other symptom besides endless diarrhea from he** and vomiting is that they sleep all the time too. When my daughter had this I think she was about a year old. At that time I drank out of water bottles a lot but didn't let her drink because of all the baby backwash. So while she was sick I let her drink out of water bottles which was a big treat for her because it was something I didn't normally let her do. I gave her extra bottles just so she'd stay hydrated. It lasted two weeks. And it was terrible!
The nurse also said to me that many times other people in the family will be a little sick around this time but don't connect it with the rotavirus because the symptoms are so mild esp in adults...probably because we've become somewhat immuned to the virus. I thought back and sure enough right before my daughter got so ill my husband and I had both been down for a day with exhaustion and a little diarrhea.
I hope your little guy recovers very quickly. I think you just wait it out and make sure he's hydrated. Good luck!

My daughter when through that bought as well. I would suggest stop giving him so much fruit, that would not help the diahrrea. Also try giving him some tylenol then alternativing to Motrin every 4 hours to soothe his discomfort because with the stomach flu you have abdomenal pain, I am sure that is what he was crabby about. Just try getting to continue drinking plenty of fluids. Have you tried a sippy cup or just a regular glass? Sometimes they think it is pretty neat to drink out of the same thing you do & that could get him to be drinking more water, etc. Does he have all of his teeth? He could be teething & that could be why he's been having so much diahrre lately besides the stomach flu. Hang in there, I know it is frustrating! Hope this helps!

A 1 pound weight loss in one week, call the doc and ask about giving him a anti-diahrrea medicine. Take away the apples for a few days too, they tend to add to the problem. Try 1/4 tsp of sugar in an 8oz bottle of water, he needs to be kept hydrated. Babies can dehydrate quickly. Any signs of him being lethargic would be signs of dehydration.

My little girl had the same thing and we put her on lactose free formula which seemed to help. If he is not drinking anything else but his normal formula, our pediatrician said it is better to give them that and have them have more diarrhea than having them not drink anything at all. Try the lactose free formula and see how that goes. Our little girl liked that and it seemed to help right away.

I feel sorry for you, and I hope he gets better soon! My son hasn't had that yet, but when he was sick with RSV and after the Dr and hospital had me making his formula with the unflavored pedia lite. This seemed to help keep him hydrated.
Good Luck! Keep strong!!

Acidophyllous!!!!!
Someone else also mentioned it, but called it something slightly different. I don't know why doctors don't tell people about this! Any chronic diahrrea can be at least helped this way (esp. from antibiotics). It comes in capsuls that you can dump out into formula or milk. You can't get too much of it either, so no worries. It is that same "active bacteria" that is in yogurt, but in higher doses. It gets the digestive system back on track when either antibiotics or a virus have killed off all the good bacteria in the gut. Try it - you have nothing but a few bucks to lose. You can find it in the refrigerated organic department at Cub (by the soymilk) or in the pharmacy section at Byerlys/Lunds. Target doesn't have it. Good luck!!

I would mix his formula with the pedialyte so he gets some of the essential electrolytes that he needs.

www.buyactivatedcharcoal.com Mix 1 Tablespoon activated charcoal powder with 8 oz. water. Stir and let charcoal settle out. Pour charcoal water off the top of the settled charcoal and have your son drink the "dirty water". Charcoal is great for vomiting and diarrhea. Also, you might try apple/grape juice. Grape juice is an antiviral. Also, make sure the juices are 100% juice with no addatives (ie: high fructose corn syrup or sugar).

try baby food such as bananas and applesauce that might work, i did for my little guys

We have a 23 month old that has had a few bouts of this. The last time she vomited for 8 days and had diahrrea for 3 weeks. We used Alimentum formula (lactose free) so easier to digest. I don't know a kid yet that will willingly drink Pedialyte. You can try their popsicles that kids seem to take more willingly or even Crystal Light (watered down). We tried to get our daughter to take an ounce per hour to help from getting dehydrated. Good luck!

It sounds like the rotovirus my 2 kids got that when they were younger. Have you tried gatoraide? Also you could mix 8oz. of water with a teaspoon of karo syrup or sugar. That was the only way I could get my kids to drink water when they were young, & they still won't drink pedialite! If that doesn't work I would really water down the formula, dairy products can make the diarrea worse. I hope your son gets to feeling better soon.

Hi A.,
I am a 41 year old mother of a 5 year old and a 2 year old. I have had many things like this with my son who is now 5 years old. It is giving your son the break from the milk to settle the stomach it is also so he doesn't get dehydrated. It is important to get some piadalyte or water into him. I was told to make sure my son was peeing and had tears when he cried. If he has non of these then he is getting really dihyrated. Best thing I found was to give a tespoon dropper full of the piadalyte and water every 15 minutes or so just to make sure he was getting something into him. I hope this helps some. I know it is hard when they are sick I feel for you. Good luck with his recovery. A.

FYI Pedialyte has freezer pops which he might accept better...

Try yogurt (Activa, etc.)

I don't really think it matters whether it's a tummy bug or Rotavirus, since treatment is the same. Either way it can just take a while for it to run it's course. Seriously, several weeks. Anytime my son has gotten diahhrea, he ends up developing a temporary lactose intolerance, which perpetuates the diahhrea. We've had to stop formula for a couple days, and now diary products. When he was on formula, he would not take Pedialyte or Gatoraide. It was difficult. We actually ended up finding that he would drink the plain Pedialyte. Nasty! I belive we found it at Walgreens, as their brand. Worth a try. As he got older he stopped drinking that and we had to dilute Gatoraide for him. Finally, now at 2 1/2 he will take Gatoraide straight. He never would drink Pediolyte!

We were told water can also cause diahhrea. I don't remember why though.

As for the BRAT diet, we'd give him applesauce, bread anyway we could get it in him, rice cereal, crackers, bananas in the jar or mushed. Personally I find the rice and bananas work the best.

I would highly recommend getting him off the formula, as that was our only way to get back on track. It's hard to contemplate stopping his main source of nutrition, but it's probably not getting absorbed well anyway. If you'd like to chat more about what we've learned, please feel free to contact me privately.

Good luck!

Hi A.,

Listen to your doctor and stop the formula. Try pedialyte popcicles. Or even just regular popcicles. If things are getting worse or he is not peeing enough, return to the doctor. Good luck.

my 16 month old had stomach flu then the influenza. He lost almost two pounds, but was able to eat little bits all day and was great at drinking water. Our Dr said to do propel for water as this has the stuff the kids can use when sick. We couldnt find unflavored and bought other stuff and the on-call Dr said that he could actually get sick from it, I think it was smart water. This is because it has the right stuff for a healthy adult working out, not for replenishing what children need from being sick. So, be careful about the water if doing other that regular water. We dont drink the pedialite or any other juices so we were lucky in that he drank regular water and ate ok for being a sick kid. He even painted a picture while he looked absolutely horrible! He chose green paint :)
I have never seen a child look so sick and miserable. I ended up sleeping with him on my chest for naps and with him at bedtime. Unfortunately now I am sleeping with him every night. Plus he got his molars in while sick and I think he even had a growth spurt to boot!! Maybe it looks like it because he lost so much weight.

Good luck! There is another flu virus out there so you could have another bout coming later if he gets it. I do know that an infant ended up in the hospital when the parents thought the smart water was good for their child with the extra 'nutrients' in it, so really pay attention to what he is eating and taking in.

Our naps went from one to two/three a day for about four days. We cought something else just after that and had cold stuff again, so we have been doing this for a while. We are finally past most of it but we all seem to have a runny nose just now.

Again, good luck. I hate this time of year!

you really need to get off of dairy for a few days & give his stomach/intestines a rest.
you mentioned apples...applesauce is probably easier on his system...if he won't drink the pedialyte then apple juice also has good electrolytes....gatorade - i use the berry rain variety which has less sugar...anything to replace his electrolytes...i would definitely go back to the dr again - not sure how long its been since you've seen the dr. good luck.

does your son's diarrhea smell really bad, if it does it could be Rotavirus. It is gastroenteritis, just google it and you will find tons of info on it. My daughter had it last year, it lasted about a week, They actually vacinate for it now.

Hope he feels better.

Hello, A.. My heart hurts for you because I have been dealing with a similar situation for 4wks now! The end of Feb my 11 month old started with diarrhea. We went to our 4th dr, this time a pediatrician last thurs. We have made tremendous progress over the weekend! We were recommended to try Florstor (Florastor), which is similar to culturelle. You mix it in the bottle. We were also recommended to switch to Isomil DF. The DF is the important part, it is formulated for babies with diarrhea. My baby switched fine to it, it only took an afternoon to convince him. We have gone through 2 containers now. With the persistant diarrhea, we have also been battling with diaper rash. We were advised to use Triple Paste, we found it in our pharmacy, only about $2 more than Desitin Creamy and we like it so much better. It is easier to wipe off and coats just the same. We were to the point of 2nd degree burns from diarrhea, so I truly believe in everything I have just told you about. Another thing we have done the past week is yogurt. 1/2 a full container per day. Good luck...make sure the doctors check his enzymes in another week or so if this hasn't cleared up,that could prolong this also. ~S. Mother of 4yr and 11month old boys.

Have you tried to dilute the formula?? That may help his tummy yet still give him calories. Time is what he needs but staying hydrated is important. Try diluting the formula. I hope he feels better soon. Good luck!

Hi A.! So sorry to hear about that nasty stomach bug. It went through our household last week. First it was my husband, then my daughter (19 mos.), and finally me. My daughter experienced the exact same thing as your little one. Vomiting, followed by the diarrhea. Yes, I do agree with your doctor...you should stick to pedialyte and water. He needs to stay hydrated. I used the apple pedialyte singles for my daughter. She really likes those. She wasn't too keen on the orange pedialyte in the bottle, but did drink it. Try a little koolaid powder mixed in with the pedialyte if he still won't drink it. That will give it a better taste. My daughter hardly ate anything for 3 days. Just pedialyte, 1 or 2 saltine's, and a little cheerios. She did not want to eat anything. She also slept a lot more than usual. It took her a good 5 or 6 days to get back to her normal self. She did have diarrhea for the 4 or 5 days, but not as severe as the first couple of days. Your son's stools will go back to normal. It will just take time. Anyways, I hope your little guys gets better soon!

A., I am in the same boat you are but I have triplets who are 20 months. Granted we don't have the formula issues, but they do drink milk. They had the bug for 48 hours, then it went away and now they got it back Sunday and today. I've been doing the toast, bananas, applesauce and pedilite. I have to set the alarm through the night every hour to get up and check on diapers and change them because their butts get so sore. Using cornstarch each time helps and I've been using the hair dryer to blow them dry. But I feel your pain. We have a doctor appointment today. I am hoping they can shed some more light or prescribe something. I will let you know if I find anything else out. Good luck with your little one. I am afraid they're just going to say "it takes time".

Get some lactobacillus, like Culturelle. It comes in capsule form, so you can open it up and dump the contents into his food. It doesn't taste at all, so you can mix it into rice or applesauce or whatever he'll eat. Works like a charm for me! One tablet, once a day for two days, and he should be all better.

yogurt is always good no matter what the age when they have diarhea. it replaces the bad bacteria with the good in the yogurt. i always got the yoplait whips or yoplait thick and creamy b/c it does not have the chunks/pieces of fruit that regular yogurt has. they also have "baby" yogurt. i am suprised your little one doesn't like pedialyte. my kids loved it b/c it was sweet. make sure you are getting a flavored one - there is grape, bubble gum, orange. this just helps with the dehydration they get with diarhea. need to replace the lost fluid. good luck!

Hi A.,
I feel for you, my son had the exact same thing. To the point where his butt was bleeding. I recommend sprite with pedialyte, if you cannot get him to drink it. My son didn't want anything to do with it. So gatorade, works like a charm, and he loved the flavors. Also, try Lactaid, lactose free milk, that and or soy formula worked for me. Cornstarch/ or baking soda in the bath tub helps with the sore butt. Hope this helps. Also, have Dr. check for C. dif.
C.

Has your son been checked for Rotavirus? Here is a great site with good information: http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/infections/bacterial_vir...

Both of my children had this-at the same time and it is nasty but there is help! If his Doctor hasn't done the test I would insist on it.

Hi A.,
I went through something very similar to this in January. My daughter, then 6 months, started with a cold which then led to an ear infection. We were at the doctor's office almost every single day, and from being at the doctor's office so much, she somehow picked up Rotavirus (at least that is what her doctor diagnosed her as having). Her temperament was so-so, at times she would be just fine, but other times she was very hard to console. She had upwards of 10 bright green, runny stools over a 24-hour period (she would usually go about an hour after eating). This lasted for almost 4 weeks. It was very stressful because I didn't think she would ever get over this. At the time, I had just started her on cereal (and she was solely breastfed) and my doctor recommended that I stop giving her the cereal and just breastfeed her until she got better. Unfortunately, there was absolutely nothing I could do to help her get over this. My doctor said it just had to take its course. I'm not sure if this is what your son has, but it sounds very similar to my situation (except for my daughter did not have the vomitting part of it, which is also associated with Rotavirus). Good luck and hang in there; it will eventually get better.

My daughter must have the same virus because our story is exactly as you have described. She is 13 months old and was vomitting one night and has had diarrhea for a week or more. We took her off of the whole milk she had been on and gave her just water. We noticed this made the diarrhea go away. So then we tried lactose-free milk and that has worked. We too have been trying the BRAT diet (sort of). I read somwhere that kids can be lactose intolerant for a while after they ahve had an intestinal virus. I am wondering how long it will last.

S.

My 19-mo-old son had diarrea and loose stools for about a week and a half. I just fed him the BRAT diet too, and our doctor recommended trying Gatorade, or any sports drink, instead of juice. That was hard, because he loves his juice. Also yogurt has the good bacteria too. You could try that. Eventually his poops got back to normal. I'm sure your son's will too. Poor little guy! There is so much going around this year!!! Good luck.

Hi A.,
I have 5 children, and I think every one of them got the similar symptoms around that age. They had Rotavirus. It lasted almost 3 weeks with my son. Not much to do other than keep giving them liquids. They learn to love popsicles!!! Ask your doctor if that could be the case. They can go quite some time on a liquid diet. Amazing how babies bounce back, but again....ask your doctor.
N.

Sounds like what my daughter and I had last year. We started out vomitting and then the diarreha and it lasted my 5 year old about 5 days straight, and me it lasted me 11days straight. We did everything imaginable, and both ended up in the hospital on IV's for dehydration. I've never been so sick for so long in my entire life ever.

I would stop the formula, give him anything but no formula. Try juice, water, pedialyte, anything but formula. That's what worked for my daughter I took her off ALL dairy and didn't give it back for like 3 days following being all better. It's ok to loose a few pounds, it's ok if he won't eat. Food isn't important. He needs to be hydrated though. Your suppose to slowly reintroduce liquids like a sip or two every 15min. Not a entire bottle. The stomach and everything has to heal and get use to it again, to much to quick will start vomitting or diarreha all over again.