Tags
2 month old baby, babies, colic, GERD, growth charts, infants, percentiles, reflux, worry
Babby was two months old today.
We celebrated by going to the doctor where he screamed incessantly for an hour. Diaper change didn’t help him. Booba didn’t soothe him. The doctor and I had to talk over the crying.
“Is he often like this?” she asked (the entire clinic had heard him crying, with only occasional pauses when I put a booba-cork in his mouth, for the last half hour).
“Sorry, can you repeat the question?” I hollered.
And so on.
Last month he had been much better behaved at his appointment, and she had dismissed our complaints of “he never sleeps” and “he cries a lot” as standard parent whining. She told us she didn’t like to medicate unless absolutely necessary, and suggested we put some rice cereal in a bottle of breast milk for the colic.
But the screaming gets on your nerves fast, so this time she got serious and started writing scripts. We now have Peppermint flavoured Zantac, which I’m worried may give him a pathological loathing of candy canes in later life, as well as a (I believe) totally unnecessary prescription for thrush, because the doctor thinks we have it. I think that the “white” stuff she saw in my baby’s mouth was his tastebuds, since it doesn’t wipe away, which I tried to demonstrate. She didn’t try herself. In fact, she doesn’t touch the baby much at all, just with a stethoscope. Either she’s phobic of cuteness or just really unsure of herself. I’m pretty sure she’s younger than me. She’s probably scared she’ll break him.
Anyway, I didn’t argue the thrush thing much because I do get occasional shooting pains in my boobas for no apparent reason, which I have become accustomed to. Maybe it’s because of thrush?
So I took the scripts she handed me and promised, loudly, that I would bring him back if these didn’t seem to work. She repeated several times that he should come in for his next well baby at 4 months, but if these prescriptions didn’t work, he should defnitely come in sooner.
Ha. I thought. Now she sees what we’ve been living with, she isn’t so quick to dismiss this. Empathy is a wonderful thing.
Since my baby was not exactly creating the nicest impression, I was feeling rather harried, but I was soothed in a burst of motherly pride when the doctor started asking about milestones.
Then I mentioned that he can roll over from stomach to back, and she looked surprised.
“That’s very advanced.”
“He’s been doing it since he was six weeks.”
“That’s VERY advanced,” she said, looking shocked.
(Of course, you and I know that the reason he is so “advanced” is because he never sleeps. That extra time thrashing around SHOULD be good for something. Besides, he was two weeks overdue, so at six weeks he was really eight weeks adjusted, right? Still, it felt good that my baby was remarkable for something other than an ear-piercing “AAH! AAH! AAAAHH!!”)
I left feeling pretty smug about my smart, if screamy, baby. The good feeling is gone now, because I made the mistake of plotting Babby’s weight on a chart.
Now, when she plotted his weight at the clinic on the little Similac chart that she keeps in scads, she told me (over the screaming) that he was now in the 50th percentile. From where I stood, I could see that the dot fell a little below the 50th on her tiny chart, but that seemed fine. He was 50thpercentile last month, good and average, so anywhere near there is good. Then, this evening, I was thinking that since her form was a Similac brand form, it might be based on formula feeding averages and I was wondering if breast feeding averages were about the same. Out of idle curiosity, I googled breast feeding baby growth charts and found the World Health Organization’s specially-calibrated charts.
Then I doubled checked.
Then I triple checked.
…I think I might have misheard the doctor.
She may have said “fifteenth” not “fiftieth”. I had assumed that the flurry of prescriptions was entirely due to the screaming. But now, looking at the chart, I realized that I should have asked her to repeat more sentences as she had pointed to the plots on her little graph. The graph lines were all so close together that her pen had looked close to, if not quite on, the 50th percentile mark, but I now realize that it must have been further than I thought. I had spent a lot of time nodding at her all but inaudible descriptions of what his weight gain should look like over the next few months, knowing I could look up the same information when I got home.
I hadn’t realized that she might have been trying to tell me, gently, that he wasn’t gaining what he should.
Or maybe she’s incompetent and didn’t notice this drop. Or maybe (my favourite option) I’m missing something obvious and everything is totally normal.
I know he spits up a lot, but I never dreamed that he wasn’t gaining weight properly. I mean, I thought he was plumping out.
Should I be worried?
Well. That’s a lot to take in while holding a screaming babby! I’m just imagining the scene and thinking of all the times I came home from the doctor feeling faintly bewildered, ears ringing, and a list in my head of questions I *should* have asked. I swear well-baby check ups would be easier if one could leave the baby at home.
The Zantac may help. If he’s been having belly upset, sorting out that out should at least alleviate the worst of the screaming. And screaming burns calories. A LOT of calories. Not to mention all that trippy rolling over six weeks early and the effort it takes to keep his eyelids propped open 22 hours a day. It’s certainly possible that his percentile has dropped. But it hasn’t dropped off the chart, and you know my main comment on your baby pics two days ago was how plump he was looking – so I certainly don’t think it’s panic time.
Try the Zantac, see how he (and you) get on. Try the thrush meds, too (deep shooting pains in the boobas at two months on are not something to shrug off). I’ve been told by my doctor friends that no one needs to push the panic button on growth unless / until the baby drops significant percentile markers twice, so wait and see where he charts at four months.
After all, from what you’ve said, it’s not like you can feed him more often, right? 😉
Oh, yes! Spot on, the entire post. I really wish the appointments could be broken into two parts, one with the baby and one without. That would be perfect. (Or, you know, better.)
This sounds almost exactly like Liam’s two month appointment, minus the prescriptions and rolling over stuff. He screamed bloody murder while we waited in the waiting room, then screamed bloody murder in the office. In our case, it was a public health nurse who saw him (as we were home in NS for our wedding at the time) and she was a godsend because she was the one who figured out his colic might be due to food intolerances. Why I never found that out on my own, I don’t know. But the point is, what an amazing difference that appointment made! I dropped dairy (and later also soy) from my diet and BOOM! Different baby. Screaming all afternoon and evening finally stopped, and he finally had content moments instead of constant fussiness. It was WONDERFUL to have a “normal” baby. So wonderful, I ALMOST didn’t even miss cheese! 😉
Anyway, I sincerely hope this appointment is also a major turning point for you and Will. Not that I want to wish GERD on your precious baby; but, hey, a diagnosis of some kind helps lead to treatment and a happier baby and easier life for all of you. That would be awesome! So I hope the Zantac works.
As for the weight issue, as Hannah said, I would try not to be too worried right now. The doctor will certainly let you know if it gets to be concerning, and Hannah had great points about all the energy needed to be Will right now. Also, if it is GERD, he may not be taking in as much as he really wants/needs since it could be just too painful. Poor little guy. Hopefully, if the problem is GERD, you’ll notice a significant difference in him soon and his weight will also come back up by the next appointment. Keep in mind, if he was underweight enough to be really unhealthy, than he would also be showing other signs of “failure to thrive”, like a lack of alertness and not reaching milestones. Clearly, he doesn’t fit THAT profile! 😛
I know it’s hard not to worry, though. Jonah is also dropping percentiles on those charts and I worry some, but he’s bright and happy and active, so I know there’s nothing really to worry about for now. He’ll be fine, and I think Will will be too!
Thanks, folks, that does make me feel better.
I also wouldn’t be worried, he is still on the charts right? Also? Screw the charts!
As Kerry said he is bright, happy & active, he is meeting milestones and has lots of wet diapers & dirty diapers?
I am not sure but look into thrush more, my niece & sister in law went thru it this summer and I thought for some reason the white stuff didn’t wipe away and that was what indicated it was thrush, I could totally be wrong tho.
It sounds like the poor guys has GERD but if you are concerned you are not making enough milk try taking feungreek pills. I took them for a week or so whenever I wanted to up how much milk I was making.
I definitely have lots of milk because the wet diapers come fast and furious. I wouldn’t worry about the chart except that he’s dropped so much – if he were born in the 15th and remained there, I’d be fine with that. The drop plus the screaming must be related in my mind. If only because he burns way too many calories screaming.
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