Reflux - did medication work and how long did it go on for?

My DD started with reflux after 2 weeks. She is now 5 weeks and we have tried a thickener and a non-allergenic formula given to us by the pediatrician. Both have not worked unfortunately. We have until Monday with this formula to see if it makes a difference then we will have to try Losec.

I've been hearing people's experiences with reflux, something I never knew much about before and it is freaking me out. My ped said often babies start to improve after 10 weeks which seemed ok. I have heard some babies take until 6 months old with medication to improve. Another said the age of two. I'm feeling overwhelmed at this prospect and would like to hear experiences of reflux so I know what to expect.

Thank you so much if you do reply from a very tired and overwhelmed mummy xox

I am so sorry to hear this, reflux is awful for babies and also their parents! My DD started on zantac at 3 weeks which did hardly anything and then losec at 4 months. My dd is 2 +3 months and is now on nexium as the losec seemed to wear off, though it was great for ages. Losec really id help. My DD is unique though, most bubs don't suffer for years, just months.

My DS had reflux from newborn and OMG I honestly thought I was going to die of exhaustion. We tried thickened breastmilk, thickened formula, thickened neocate (lactose free) formula, zantac and losec and absolutely nothing worked. We even feed him using a very slow bottle (the nuk one) which helped a little but it extended a feed to over an hour each time. He finally settled around 9 months, once solids were established. Whether it was the solids or not that helped I am not sure but it was the longest 9 months of my life. Saying that, I know plenty of people whose children have settled very nicely on zantac and losec. I really hope he settles down well for you soon

There is a website called Pollywog, it is a shop however they have easy to read info on reflux bubs, which I have found helpful.

My baby hasn't lost weight so the GP won't give us meds, but apparently meds are pretty ineffective. The only product that sometimes helps him is a Baby Probiotic, and I have just found out Inner Health Kids is cheaper than the one I was buying. It sometimes cuts back on his chucks but on the whole he is just more comfortable with the probiotic more than anything else.

No help from me because no medication helped us, but just wanted to send you hugs and hope your little girl is one of the bubs that only suffers for a short time. I'm guessing you're already doing the things like elevating the head of her cot, keeping her upright for a good 20 minutes after a feed etc.

Losec was like magic for my dd, she's been on it since around 6 weeks (8 and a half months old now). We tried to wean her at around 6mths with no success, trying again after Xmas. My dd had/has severe reflux though, Dr told me most bubs wean by 6mths.

We expereinced silent refulx with DD. At the 6-7 week mark the screaming, arching of the back, swallowing and visable discomfort peaked. It was a really difficult time. I went to the GP and DD was prescribed Zantac. Although i hated putting anything other than her milk (breastfed) in her mouth i did see a diffrence in her tollerance to what she was putting up with. It wasn't perfect but it was heaps better. It took a couple of weeks to really take effect and depending on how long it is taken the dose may need to be increased accordingly as bub grows (does is measured by weight).

At 6 months i took DD off Zantac cold turkey (it is reccommneded that you slowly wean i think) for a completely unrealated issue and at first i thought she may not have been ready as i could still see the signs of the reflux but about 1 week later there were no signs at all and haven't been any since. Such a relief, it wasn't a nice expereince to go though for DH & I or my beautiful girl.

From the varying replys you may find that medication does or doesn't help. If bub is in real distress though i may be worth a try but be aware that the results won't be instant.

Good luck :)

My Dd had silent reflux. Zantac was our lifesaver, if we missed a dose poor bub payed for it :( I don't give my dd medication lightly but she really needed it, she would scream for 8hrs non stop in the early days. She was around 6 months old when she came off it, she wasn't ready before this. For us it was either medication or extreme pain. Good luck I really hope your bubba can get some relief.

Ds had silent reflux, he started on Zantac at 4 weeks, until 11 months when he was on the maximum dose, so he went onto losec until 15 months. On the medication his symptoms were manageable, mostly coughing. When he needed an increase in dosage he would scream a lot and couldn't sleep. Dd2 also had reflux but wasn't medicated, it was hard to see her so uncomfortable but she outgrew it at 4 months.

I just wanted to add, I really hated (well still hate that my baby is and is still on meds) however, the damage to her throat it was causing meant there was no other option. She was in agony. Her reflux was so bad it even caused muscle issues and we had to have physio (she also had low muscle tone so we saw the physio for 2 reasons) The physio and paediatrician said she didn't learn to isolate her muscles as she was always so tense and holding her muscles tight. So therefore, when I have another reflux bub of my own I will always put them straight on the losec, as I felt like my DD's reflux was not managed well and caused many other problems (apart from the pain, screaming, no sleep etc).

Good luck in what you decide :)

My DD had reflux and colic. She started on losec around 6 weeks old. We found that it helped in terms of no longer hurting her to vomit, but the actual vomit didn't stop until 6-7 months of age (probably what you don't want to hear - so much washing lol).

Thanks for the replies, very helpful to hear other experiences with reflux. I have started to see an improvement in DD with losec. Im hoping it is going to continue to improve. She used to be tense all day with several crying/screaming sessions that could last hours. She has silent reflux. I could hear it go up and down and she would choke on it. Then the burning would cause her to hardly ever sleep, and when she did it was in 10 min increments. It was so awful seeing her miserable and in constant pain. I'm really hoping the Losec keeps working.

Hello, we are still battling with reflux and she will be 5 months soon. Paed is pushing for us to do solids. We have started but it has seemed to make things worse. He said to stick with it and eventually she will grow out of it. I'm exhausted and really can't see an end to it all. Just when I think things are improving, they take a nose dive. Trying to be positive, I know we will ger there but it just takes a toll on my family - DH and poor DS :(

Our DS1 had reflux (welcome to motherhood - OMG!!!). My word, it was such hard work, the 20 min catnaps during the day and always waking up screaming. We put him on Zantac and I didn't realise that it had to be given EVERY 8 hours to be effective. When I got onto this, there was a major improvement (less screaming, but day sleeps still crappy) and I think he came off zantac around 6 months. He pretty much wore bibs for 6 months, full time which was easier than removing tops or all in ones.
We'd also seen a paed chiro who suggested I go off cow's milk to see if this helped (both my boys didn't cope with cow's milk til closer to 12 months) and b/c he had such trouble bf, we ended up putting him onto a goat's milk formula from 4 months.
We then saw a homeopath who said that the meds tend to treat the symptoms, such as reducing the amount of stomach acid, but didn't really treat the cause. Like emc2 mentioned earlier, we got him onto a baby probiotic and weaned him off the meds, which seemed to work. You can buy them in most health food shops and Chemist Warehouse - it will be in a little fridge and has to be kept chilled.
Luckily DS2 didn't have any reflux and fingers crossed for this third one due soon.
Good luck with it - I don't think parents that haven't experienced reflux really know what you're going through. Another mum I met said her child also had 'a bit of reflux too' and I remember thinking, no, that's just a spew after a feed that hasn't started off a bout of blood curdling screaming!

I hear you sweetpeajan!! My dd is 2 1/2 years old and has been on meds since 3 weeks. All attempts to get her off the meds have failed. We are currently waiting for an appoint to see a paed gastro specialist at the childrens hosp.

All I can say is hang in there. At 6 months dd's reflux was still wildly out of control but slowly improved with the right dosage of meds, but I know what its like waiting and waiting for it to get better as I have been waiting years now!! but I know my dd is in the minority of reflux bubs/kids.

Three Graces - I hear you on people who say their bubs has/had reflux! So irritating, I hate it when people say "yeah I had to give them thickened formula to stop the reflux - I feel like saying - "if only that were a cure for gastro acid reflux and a highly strung, screaming baby who is in agony!"

It's so nice to talk to you ladies who understand! I'm beyond exhausted. I just don't know what to do anymore and question everything that I do.

I get upset too when I hear "my baby had reflux but we fixed it with...". I know they mean well but when you have a baby that screams and won't sleep and behaves like her bottle of milk is poison when you try to feed her...ah well you know what I mean.

Hugs hun, the exhaustion is so hard to handle. DD used to curl and clench her little hands into fists and curl her toes when being fed (boob, bottle and solids)! I also was questioning everything I did. One wise soul once told me I needed to stop thinking about and trying to get y bub into a normal baby routine as it just wasn't going to happen - it would just stress me out further. I ended up with PND, so just watch yourself because it really snuck up on me!