9.01.2011

My living science experiment.

Soo most babies are born, they eat, they poop, they sleep, they grow, they cry. It's a routine. It's what's "normal". It's predictable and expected. And then there are the babies who eat, barf, painfully poop, sleep sometimes, and still grow. We were blessed (oh so blessed) with the latter. Who would have guessed? Not I. But then again, everything I was expecting about having/raising a baby has been tossed to the side, along with all the dirty diapers. I'm flying by the seat of my pants here...going "off the cuff".

Jillian started exclusively formula feeding at 3.5 weeks. One of those things I completely was not expecting to do, but happened almost out of necessity (as in it was necessary if I wanted to stay a sane individual). She started having some reflux symptoms even before she went on formula. She would vomit and sometimes projectile vomit. Can we say...smelly? So she started Prevacid (heart burn medicine) at 4 weeks. She was switched to a sensitive brand formula to help with gas/fussiness as well. Her once soft and sweet little face broke out in a red, bumpy rash.

Here we are at 6 weeks. She's now on Alimentum, a hypoallergenic formula. She hasn't thrown this kind up yet...so that's good. Her reflux symptoms are slightly better on this kind as well. She still hates the morning. "She's not a morning person," the retard medical assistant tells me on the phone today after I describe her most recent symptoms.

We've had to eliminate things one by one, to figure out what it is that's causing all of the problems. Obviously we haven't figured everything out yet, so it's been quite the process. It really is like a living science experiment. Anyone need to use my baby for their 6th grader's science fair project? Unfortunately, we have no "conclusion" at this point, but there is a heck of a lot of qualitative data. ;-)
So here's our new schedule until Tuesday (when I talk to the pediatrician again for an update): 1/2 probiotic tablet in the morning and evening, dissolved in her formula (to help with gas) 1/4 dissolving Prevacid tablet in the morning and at night, 30 minutes before a feeding (for heart burn and reflux) Hypoallergenic formula
Lots of chocolate ice cream for Mom

One thing I learned when I started teaching was to be really flexible. During my first year of teaching I hated when my schedule would be interrupted and things wouldn't go as planned (my teacher friends..like that ever happens, right?). I quickly learned to change that and would often tell myself something my mom would always say,

"Be like the willow, and bend."

Things hardly ever go the way you plan them to go.

I have to apply that to this as well. I used to get so worked up every time her skinny little body would vomit and it would splatter down the wall and she would scream as I changed her soaked clothes. But I figure this is like my first year of teaching. This aren't going to go as planned; the schedule will be interrupted. "Be like the willow, and bend."

"This too shall pass," right?
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I got this cute little video of her during a happy time today. She used her play gym for the first time and loved it (the video I got was towards the end when the excitement was starting to die down...chalk one up for my timing). She's SO CLOSE to smiling. She's done it like maybe twice that I've seen. One day soon it's going to happen all the time and I'm going to melt into a puddle on the floor.




2 comments:

  1. Jillian totally looks like she was wanting to roll over. I bet she will do it early! She is soooooo pretty! I miss her already.

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  2. Sometimes when she is laying down she will arch her back really far, almost to the point where she's on her side. So I bet she'll do it early too!! (Not that I even know when the "normal" time is for them to do that.)

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