Monday, October 25, 2010

Next Step.

The screaming fits have continued.

I didn't expect the weaning to stop them, I just knew that the weaning would prevent me from beating up on myself every time she had them. The fits are usually once a day for around fifteen to twenty minutes. Yesterday there were more than one and today she had the longest one yet--forty-five minutes.

Ironically, I had taken pictures of her earlier in the day, because Mousie is just so cute and requires lots of picture-taking. Here she is around 2:15pm, on the kitchen floor, happy as can be. She laid there, playing with her feet and cooing for thirty minutes while Cub and I made and ate lunch (Cub had a middle-of-the-day nap, hence, late lunch). I think it's safe to say she's pretty content.


At about 4:00pm, she started getting fussy. This is normal. She usually has her fits between 3:30 and 5:30 and I've found that putting her in her sling helps to calm her down. While I'm not a huge advocate of keeping your child strapped to you at all times, I do think a once-a-day sling ride is good for Naomi, since she is typically content and independent (notice the above picture).


At about 5:00, I put her down for her evening nap. This is always a tricky one, because she still needs it, but she typically fusses for a bit before falling asleep. This is usually no big deal and the fussing is very much a tired fuss. I checked the monitor at 5:15 and noticed that she was becoming increasingly loud. I realized a gassy fit was on the horizon, so I went in and picked her up. Within minutes she was inconsolable. She sobbed, she screamed, she lost her breath, she clawed at my neck (resulting in a few scratches) and she kicked and stiffened. No matter how much I rocked her, gave her a paci, sang to her, walked her, nothing helped. She would calm down and suddenly scream again in pain. I carried her into my bedroom and grabbed my phone and began recording her. I knew it was time to schedule an appointment with our doctor again, and I wanted him to know how she sounded. After she finally calmed down (around 6:00), I wanted to get a picture of her asleep, to show her red and tired face. The nursery was almost pitch black so I couldn't see what I was snapping, and instead I got a picture of my face.


Red nose and smeary make-up. I hadn't started crying until she fell asleep.

I understand that so many parents have it so much worse than I do and I don't want this to sound like a pity-party at all. I know I have it good. I am honestly blessed with two wonderful children. What's hard for me to swallow is the not knowing. I don't know what's wrong with Naomi, and that is extremely frustrating. Watching my sweet baby girl go from happy to helpless within a matter of minutes is heart-wrenching. I know it's her stomach, because she releases so much gas during the fits, I just don't know if these kinds of fits fall into the realm of "normal" or not. I'm hoping the doctor can tell us what the next step should be. Cub was a champ through the whole thing and played with his trains in the living room while Naomi cried.

So, that's where we are right now. Thanks for reading.

8 comments:

  1. I'm sure at this point you have tried absolutely everything...but if you haven't tried gripe water...I want to highly recommend it to you. You can find the organic one at walgreens and it worked WONDERS for my daughter's screaming fits and gas. And if you HAVE tried gripe water, then I offer prayers. I am so sorry.

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  2. Oh no..good luck! And thanks for sharing both the ups and downs, I have learned so much from your victories and troubles!

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  3. i agree...gripe water w/ our first was a life saver. we had to use it until he was 6 months old like clock work. the only kind that ever worked for us was "little Tummies" brand. used to sell it at target but they stopped so we started ordering it in bulk on-line :)

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  4. Hi Katie, I have read your blog a few times and this one brought back nightmares. Eli had horrible fits too but his came off and on all day about 3 days a week. Someone finally told me to try an infant probiotic. This is the one we used http://www.rockwellnutrition.com/hmf-natogen-no-fos-infant-probiotic-by-genestra.html but I'm sure there are others out there. It is just good bacteria like you get from yogurt and I think it helped a lot! Next time I have a baby I plan on giving it to that one too because it is healthy even if they don't have gas problems. I hope things get better soon!! Annie Tharp

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  5. Hugs Katie! I know how it feels....E had(has) severe reflux and would scream uncontrollably all.day.long (and night too). She didn't get better until we found the proper medication that relieved her pain. It's so very sad to see your baby in pain and not know how to help them. It's also very stressful and puts a ton of guilt on you regarding your older child. You are not alone. I hope the Dr's find out what is causing her so much pain and get it resolved soon. Hang in there!

    Just a quick thought, is she overly tired around that time? Maybe try laying her down for a nap earlier....

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  6. No advice here. Just prayers for knowledge and health and peace. Love you.

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  7. Thank you everyone for your thoughts and advice! We've tried Gripe Water before to no avail (it was a while ago, so we could try it again), and Naomi is on a basic feed/wake/sleep pattern, so naps aren't usually an issue. I mentioned that she fusses a bit before the final nap, but she typically falls asleep within ten minutes. It's only mentionable because she falls asleep more easily with her other naps. The screaming fits rarely come when she is trying to fall asleep for her last nap. I'm going to talk to the doctor about probiotics. I have a lot of questions for him!

    Just the same, thanks to everyone for reading and putting in your two cents. I covet your prayers and thoughts. There is nothing more reassuring than hearing a Mom say, "Mine did that, too!" :) Gives me hope. Thank you!

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  8. I'm not a mom. Not even married. Only a high-school girl. But I DO know that God can heal that sweet little mousie :) I'll be praying for her and you. Good luck!

    ~Katie S.

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