HELP! 11 Week Old Choking

I also find it strange that she is sleeping through the night, but I would cut out the formula. Visit this site- you won't feel so bad about amounts when breast feeding! I did it for 18 months.
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/milkcalc.html#calculator

www.lalecheleague.org is always good too!

My son had Gerd and we tried every formula, finally finding Nestle Good Start. If Gentlease doesn't work I would highly recommend it. I fed it this time with my little man until I was forced to use the Gentlease when my hubby lost his job and we had to start using WIC formula.
Good luck!
C.

This is not normal! It is a good thing that you are going to the doctors. It sounds like she is having a reaction to the type of formula you are using. You doctor can let you know which is the best to switch to. You may have to switch to a soy formula.

I would definitely have a doctor check her out. I don't understand why you are not just nursing her. She may be allergic to the formula but that will not happen with your own milk. This whole thing sounds pretty scary! She's still very immature. Your milk supply will pick up quickly if you nurse her on demand. Even if you are working part-time, she can take breastmilk from a cup or spoon if you nurse her good before you leave and when you return. Or maybe you should stay with her a few more weeks till this is resolved. It surprises me that she sleeps thru the night at this age. They generally need to be fed around the clock for much longer. G. B.

It sounds like she could have acid reflux. My son has GERD and that is what he did as an infant until we got him on medication for it. He is now five and the GERD is not as bad. I defiantly would get her in and ask the dr. about reflux. After she eats keep her upright for 20 minutes and you can even try and prop her crib mattress. I put a couple pillows under the mattress to prop it up. Lying flat can worsen acid reflux so maybe try that to see if that helps at all.

Sorry to hear of your hard time. My daughter (who is 8 years old now) did something like this as well. It was the formula she was on. I had to switch her formula like 4 times to get the right kind for her. It ended up being the Carnation Good Start. She could handle that better then the rest. Also she could not use the powder type. I oculd only use the concentrated type for her. I would take her to the Dr and see what they say. Good luck and take care.

Hi J., I also breast fed my daughter. I switched to formula when she was about 3 months old. Have you tried using a different brand of formula? Or maybe a soy formula. My daughter was allergic to the regular formula and had to use the soy. She was on the soy formula until she was over 1 year old. Just a suggestion and something to try. My daughter is now 31 years old, so I have had a little experience, but I would still consult a peditrician. There are also other types of formula that you can try and some are easier for babies to digest without throwing up like that. It's worth a try. Hope it works out for you.

Yes a Dr advise is warranted..it could be anything from acid reflux and she is aspirating. or Pyloric Stenosis which is rare for females to get but they do.I had it. Or it could be just as simple as a formula change that is needed. I hope you have made that appointment and get her seen.

Sounds like she could have reflux.
-Christina

I am guessing the dr. will look into reflux. We thought my daughter had a seizure. She was tensing up, eyes going all over the place, etc. Turned out it was reflux. She was having a reaction to the pain, and that appeared to be the seizure. After seeing a neurologist and having an EEG to rule it out, they put her on reflux meds and it never happened again.

Good luck. Sounds very scary.

P.

How scary!! Maybe you could pump and supplement her with that instead of formula that would also give your milk supply a boost.

Your Child could have an allergy to the formula. Especially since this started when giving formula. My nephew would choke and stop breathing or vomit continually if he had anything with just a little bit of milk in it which alot of formulas have. Some children have allergy's to soy too so you may have to keep trying different formulas. See if that makes a difference.

That is really scary! Something similar happened to me with my daughter when she was about six months old. What I realized was that she was allergic to cows' milk. I switched her formula to soy and she was fine. Ask your doctor if this could be a possibility.

Sounds like it could be acid reflux. My DD had this (she was combo fed, too.) If you can stick to just breastmilk, you will be better off. If you want to introduce bottle, try to pump breastmilk and give it in the bottle. If there is any way to avoid formula, do it. It will be worth your while in the end. If you can't then just try to breastfeed for as much as you can for at least the first 6 months. Babies guts don't completely close until then. (You can check out kellymom.com for more great info about breastfeeding and open/closed gut.) If it isn't acid reflux then maybe she has an allergy to the formula you are giving her. If that is the case you are already embarking on a difficult journey and may want to more seriously consider going back to 100% breastmilk if at all possible. My DD was on Zantac after the reflux diagnosis, it just made the problem worse. We gave her Maalox and that seemed to help some. Eventually the problem passed and I just tried to breastfeed as much as I could. There are teas you can drink to increase your milk supply and other kinds of herbs/supplements. Go to kellymom.com for more suggestions about that or you can do a search on increasing your milk supply at google. You may still be able to get your insurance to cover a consultation with a lactation consultant if you need professional advice on increasing your milk supply.

Good luck, and God Bless!

It sounds like she may be having an allergic reaction to the formula. Your milk supply should be just fine, especially if you feed her on demand. Your supply has probably just adjusted to what she needs over the past few weeks. Just because you don't feel engorged doesn't mean you don't have enough milk for her. Please take her to the doctor - I'm sure if you explain the situation they'll make an appointment for her right away. And also talk to a supportive lactation consultant or someone from La Leche League about your concerns about how much breast milk you have.

Hi J., how wonderful to have a litle girl! It must be a really scary thing to have happen. It isn't normal as far as I know and I think heading back to the doc is a great step. Does the pediatrician have a nursing consultant? How about the hospital where you delivered? Nursing can be a little unnerving because you really don't know how much milk they are getting, but if you keep supplementing with formula (does she take much?) you shoot yourself in the foot, your body doesn't have an idea how much to produce. If you can't find advice on that from either of those places you can find a LaLeche League person, but they can be a little overwhelming sometimes because they are such staunch believers in nursing. HOpe you find some good help. B

My son did that too except he didnt quit breathing when he was that age. I never breast fed but I ended up have to buy a different formula then I was using. Try buying Isomil. Or they do have one out and i cant think of the name of it but it comes in a gold can, my sister in law had to buy it for her son which is now 1 and 1/2 yrs and it helped him with the vomiting and this particular formula is as close to breast milk you can get without actually pumping. Hope you find something that works for her.

i am so sorry to hear about this very scary choking issue with your daughter! i know the fear in you, because my daughter started off doing something similar. she would choke, spit up and then she actually stopped breathing in the hospital several times and had turned blue. thankfully i heard a small sound in her when i was holding her and dozing off and could call a nurse immediately. the other times she was in the nursery with the nurses on watch because of her continual difficulty. they said it was because she swallowed too much fluid during delivery and that she would continue to do that until she got it all out of her stomach. they also said that some babies take some time to figure out how to push stuff out of their throat when they are choking. that they will sort of panic and just stop breathing rather than the natural reflex to get it out. once she was home, she didn't actually turn blue, but she did have difficulties with slight choking and extreme spit up. through many discussions with the lactation consultant, we felt she was getting too much milk. she liked to eat and my let down was too much, so she was getting too much and gaining lots of weight very rapidly. it took a few weeks to get a good routine down, but the spit up continued for a few months. the doctors never had a full explanation for it, just that some babies have a harder time than others, and some require medicine for reflux. we decided to wait it out before giving the meds, and it eventually went away. but i know many girlfriends who have had to go the meds route.
i don't know if maybe she is getting too much formula/drink at one time, or if she has a reflux issue, but those are two things i dealt with. this could be something similar or entirely different, it's so hard to know. i would be curious to hear what your dr. says once you can get in though. but in the meantime, i know that fear of not being near her all the time just in case something happens. just keep a close eye on her until you can get some answers. good luck!

It sounds to me that your beautiful young lady might have a case of acid reflux and when she is put down she is unable to spit up properly. I would talk to your ped. and let them know. Also if your milk supply from nursing is decreasing because you are lucky enough to have her sleep through the nite, try setting an alarm and pumping once in the middle of the nite to keep your supply going. Sounds to me like you are doing a great job already and that will all your little lady would care about.

Formula did not agree with my daughter's stomach so I asked the doc for the most gentle brand, Nestle Good Start. But, one question, if you are nursing do you really need to supplement with formula?

The same thing happened with my son but at less than two weeks. It is terrifying! I had a milk allergy when I was a baby, so I switched him to soy formula and also always made sure I got a good burp out of him.
Definitely let your doc know, so they can tell you if anything is wrong.

Have her checked for acid reflux. My daughter turned blue on me at 7 weeks because of this.

Just keep an eye on her... If she has issues with dairy based formula putting her on soy formula may help... Talk to the dr about it....

J. -
She could just be taking in too much. There's not really a good way to measure how much volume babies get when breast feeding, so with the bottle she may be getting over-full and the extra is coming up. When it happens, don't panic - that makes things worse. Lean her forward and rub her back, wipe her mouth and nose and use the bulb syringe you got from the hospital when she was born if you need to. Always remember that a crying baby is a breathing baby.
D.

Hi J.,
I have 2 different possibilities.
We have a young lady at our church who's 2 year old son is out growning the same problem. Somewhere in the swollowing mechenism in the throat, his muscle hadn't developed, so he couldn't swollow. He had to be on feeding tubes off and on to test the growth of the muscle. He is doing alot better and is now on a sippy cup.
For myself (age 60) all 3 of my son's would profusly vomit right after I would give them a bottle. I discovered they were allergic to regular formula and once I switched them over to soybean formula they were fine. I pray you find out what the problem is J.. Sincerely, Dee.

Dear J.,
Truthfully, I'd take her to your pediatician as soon as possible and start with her/his diagnosis. I mean not breathing, twice, is not normal.(Or at least, you can find out if it is) After you get a diagnosis and what you can do...then ask anyone if they've had the same problem and what they do for it.MS

It sounds like she could be allergic to the formula. OR even possibly that she's getting too much too fast. As for your decreased milk supply: Breastmilk works in a supply/demand sort of way so though you are losing your night milk (because she's sleeping all night), you should be able to keep making milk during the daytime if you stop feeding formula and go back to breastfeeding. Your body makes only as much as your baby uses so by formula feeding you are actually telling your body to stop making milk. Allow you daughter to nurse more frequently during the day, stop using the formula and you'll find that after a few days your milk supply will be sufficient for her needs. "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" is a great book to check out if you want to know more.

I would talk to my ped, it sounds like reflux to me. Formula babies in my experience 9 having done both) spit up a lot more.

My youngest had acid reflux as a baby. She would projectile vomit (not just spit up - it was over 75% of her feeding) one hour after being fed, then she would cry until the next two hours (wouldn't eat anything either though). I know one of the things the doctor told us was to make sure that she was sleeping on an incline, if necessary have her sleep in her car seat, as it is harder for the vomit to get stuck and cause her to aspirate. I think your doctor is on the right track though, keep an eye on it and make sure you let him know if the formula change isn't working. My daughter was 2 weeks old when diagnosed, and our dr. opted to have us start putting rice cereal in her bottle. Obviously, because of her age, you may want to bring that up if he looks at reflux as being the issue. It helped keep the formula down, which eliminated the worry of her choking on it.

This sounds like reflux. The ped will probably have you switcch formulas and start you lo on meds. If they give Zantac - it tastes terrible - I had the pharmacy flavor it.

I agree that this is no place for medical advice but in the same token it is a good place to compare what works for others and what didn't work. Or for something that just doesn't seem to be working despite what the doctors say.
With that said; I breast feed both my boys I didn't have the problem with them choking when I supplemented and then switched them to formula but I also researched the formulas and I found Carnation Good Start to be the best to make a smooth transition (against my pediatricians advice for my oldest they wanted the soy based given to all the kids) I could fathom the idea of feeding my kids something I couldn't stand the smell of. Well within 4 weeks of using that formula the pediatrician was advising all the moms to use Carnations. My boys are 17 and 8 Carnation has been around for a long time. The other plus side was it didn't smell funny or stain cloths :).
My step daughter was on a soy based formula and had horrible reflux (so bad that it would eat away at material if it wasn't washed right away and even then it could strip the dye out) they first thought she had acid reflux but later when she was 1 they figured out she was allergic to soy, milk etc she ended up on Rice milk for a couple of years till she out grew that allergy.

i hope you find the answers you are looking for at the dr's. i'm sure everything will be fine. with formula babies tend to spit up more in general anyhow. maybe she has some reflux? i hope everything works itself out!! best of luck with your baby girl!!

my daughter did the same thing. I gave her formula with cereal mixed in it and she never spit up again. I believe I used 4 oz formula and 2 oz of cereal all mixed in a #4 nipple. It worked great!

Since her tummy is used to breastmilk, she could be having some reaction to the formula, spitting it up and then choking on it because she doesn't know how to get rid of it. It is really nice, for you, that she is sleeping through the night, but as you said it has changed your milk supply. Remember the supply/demand rule and that YOUR breastmilk is made for YOUR baby. I would get up in the night and pump to rejuvinate the milk supply. (Breastmilk freezes nicely if you want, and could be used when you are at work instead of formula)
It sounds like she didn't have this issue when she was on the breast only, the formula could be the culprit. She is so young, she might start getting up in the night again anyway when she goes through her next "grow". I'd love to hear what the doctor has to say about this! Good Luck!

Take her to the Dr. Now--This is really no place for medical advice!

She needs to be seen by a pediatrician ASAP. Especially with this interfering with her breathing. Her breast milk or formula can be thicked to decrease choking. Also feed her in a upright position and keep he upright for at least 30 minutes after she eats. Good luck, and make sure you get her to the doctor.

J.,
I would say that maybe she is alegric reaction to the formula, or its just too thick for her. I would take her to the doctor. I didn't have a problem with my daughter formula, however I never breast feed my daughter either. But I would take her to the doctor as soon as possible, because that it not normal. Good luck, I wish you the best.

Your going to TRY to get her to the DR. tomorrow. I would think you would be running to the DR or ER day or night. This is not normal choking and next time you pat her on the back, she may not start breathing again. Get her to your Dr. quickly.

Sounds like she's allergic to the formula. Did she do this when you were breastfeeding? My son spit up and threw up all the time till my doctor put him on special formula(Soy). Try something else. Good luck. Just read your outcome. Little advice ONE thing at a time. Try new formula first then do acid reflux if it doesn't work.I'm going to school to become a nurse practitioner. So be careful with putting her on meds at such a young age!

Does she do it at every feeding? If so, it may be an allergic reaction, which you can change her formula or gerd (like baby acid reflux). Maybe try giving her some mylicon and have her sit up for a while after each meal and see if it cuts down on it.

If it's every so often, it may just be that she over ate and is spitting up the excess. They really dont have a gag reflex like ours, so it just kind of comes up with no warning. My daughter was mostly formula fed as I didnt produce enough milk and she spit up every single feeding just about.

Good luck!!

Dear J. S.,

Sounds to me like your daughter may be allergic to something in the formula. You can get your body to produce more milk again by simply giving her the breast more and more. She will nurse whenever hungry and then your body makes more milk. I breastfed a baby and that was all she had for many months until she began watching every bite of food she saw others eat. Breastmilk is usually more easily digested by babies than formula because formula is for baby calves, not humans.
Also, if you can not find a local number for LaLeche in your area, call a local hospital and ask for a number that is local to your area for a laleche rep to talk to you. They know more than me because they are nursing a baby now or have nursed several and probably recently. Ask lots of questions.
You should be expressing as much of your milk as you can into a container to freeze to be fed to her later. Did you know you can freeze breastmilk and thaw it later to be drank out of a baby bottle? I did it and hear of people doing it all the time. Express as much as you can and freeze it. If kept very cold all the time, it should be good at least two or three months. You never know when something would come up that this frozen milk would come in handy.

L. C.