**Disclaimer! I am not a doctor, nurse, or any type of medical professional. If you suspect your child has reflux/GERD, please call your pediatrician ASAP and schedule an appointment to discuss your options. This is simply my own story of dealing with my oldest child’s symptoms, and everything I used to help him. My hope is that another struggling mama will find this post and be able to find some relief!

When you announce your pregnancy, no one comes up to you and says “Congratulations! By the way, your child might scream all day long and throw up all their food. But you can handle it!”.  I mean, it would be a little weird and off-putting. But the truth is, a lot of new moms have NO IDEA that reflux is a common baby problem. I sure didn’t. Everyone says the nice, expected things. “You’re going to love being a mom!”, or “Babies are so sweet. The sleepless nights will be over before you know it.”  A lot of the time, those words are true! But sometimes…  Sometimes, a new mom gets the shock of her life when her brand new, tiny, sweet-smelling baby enters the world with a scream that doesn’t stop.

Sammy was that kind of baby. I vividly remember his first cry, and being so happy that my husband and I had successfully brought this child into the world! If you’re curious why I say it was both of us, read Sammy’s birth story.  🙂  But then he didn’t stop crying. He cried when he tried to nurse, he cried when he finished eating, and he cried when he woke up every 30 minutes before we even left the hospital. The night nurses checked on us constantly because they could hear Sammy screaming all the way down the hallway to the nurses station. When they discharged us after 48 hours (we begged to stay an extra day because we had no clue how to make the crying stop), we were told that crying is normal and some babies are just fussy. 

Cut to 3 months later. My husband was deployed, I was preparing to go back to work, and Sammy was still crying. He wanted to nurse every hour, and each session lasted at least 45 minutes. He could only last an hour and a half between feedings. My boobs were a MESS, let me tell you! I hated nursing with a passion, but I felt like it was something I had to do. After nursing, he would spit up what looked like all of the milk he just ingested. It was a viscous cycle.

He wouldn’t nap longer than 30 minutes, no matter what I tried. The swing, the rocker, baby wearing, you name it, I tried it. At night, I was lucky to get 2 hours of sleep at a time. I talked to our pediatrician who told me (again) that crying is normal as long as there is nothing wrong with the baby (she couldn’t find any problems), and spit-up is normal too. Lack of sleep? Normal, normal, normal!

The thing is, my mom-gut instincts were going into overdrive. SOMETHING was not ‘normal’. All my friends who had new babies were getting at least 3-4 hours of sleep at night by the time their kids were 3 months old. Their babies didn’t cry all day long, only when they were hungry or tired. Their babies didn’t soak their clothes in vomit after every feeding. The excuse “some babies are just fussy” was not holding water with me. Even if that was true, I needed a solution. When I Googled Sammy’s symptoms, reflux or GERD were the top hits every time. But our doctor brushed off reflux because technically the spitting up wasn’t “projectile”. Sammy was still gaining weight so he must have been getting enough food.

A close friend of mine suggested that I try her pediatrician and see if I got some better answers. I was terrified of putting my child on medications though, and I spent weeks searching for natural remedies. Hylands salt tabs, cutting all dairy, cutting all caffeine, cutting all sugar, holding him upright after every feeding, essential oils, pressure-point massage,… I’m not kidding when I say I tried everything. Nothing worked, Sammy still spit up, and cried all day and most of the night.

Finally I called the new pediatrician. I was crying within 10 minutes of meeting her! She was supportive of my desire to stay as medication-free as possible, but she suggested trying a low dose of ranitidine (infant Zantac) for a few weeks. She warned me it would take up to a week to see a difference. Within 3 days Sammy was a different baby! He became smiley and giggled when I fed him instead of screaming. Night time feedings slowly became less of a struggle, and his naps stretched into 2 hours with a little sleep training. Needless to say, I decided to keep him on the medication as long as he needed it!

I wish I could say the medication was a simple fix. Colic was still very much an issue, and there is no real “fix” for that. He truly was just a fussy baby, despite the reflux being managed. Food still didn’t sit well in his tummy, and to this day he has a very sensitive stomach. He was also still a very light, restless sleeper. Any little noise or shift in the air would wake him up. Through lots of internet searches, trial and error and persistence I found the best ways to help him. By the time he was 8 months old Sammy was sleeping 11 hours straight at night, and taking two long naps per day!

So what worked? First of all, sleep training. And not mean, cry-without-touching-them sleep training. Gentle, science-based sleep training that revolves around babies natural sleep cycles. I found the Moms On Call method during one of my crazed midnight search sessions. Not to be cliche, but it was actually life changing! I have to say this is NOT sponsored in any way, I just love their mission and values. It took consistent scheduling for about 3 weeks, and consistently getting back on schedule every time he hit a growth spurt or a mental leap. Sammy just turned two-and-a-half and still routinely sleeps from 8pm to 7am.

Sleep training and reflux medication solved a lot of our issues, but Sammy didn’t stop spitting up until he was over a year old. Here is everything else I used to survive those first 12 months! This post contains affiliate links. I will receive a small commission from items purchased through my links. Thank you for supporting the Something Different Blog!

1. Rock n Play rocker. Babies with reflux have a very hard time sleeping on a flat crib mattress. The Rock n Play is inclined, and the narrow sides make baby feel secure. Technically it’s only meant for short daytime naps, but this is the ONLY thing Sammy slept in until he was too big. I transitioned him to his crib around 5 months.

2. Adult Sound Machine. Very loud white noise solved the problem of Sammy’s frequent wake-ups. I tried the cute little baby owl sound machine from Target first, but quickly switched to a real white noise machine! Colicy babies need extra comfort in order to sleep, and white noise reminds them of being in the womb. I have one of these in both boy’s bedrooms and turn it on full-volume before every nap and bedtime. It’s a lifesaver in our noisy neighborhood!

3. Boppy Seat. Reflux symptoms ease up once babies learn to sit upright! I started propping Sammy in his Boppy seat as soon as he developed strong neck control. Once he was ready for solid food, this was the perfect place to feed him.

4. Halo Sleep Sack. Remember how I said babies with colic need extra comfort? This sleep sack did wonders for helping Sammy sleep longer stretches. The hospital nurses taught us how to swaddle him in a blanket…. Never did that again once I found this!! Velcro sides kept his startle reflex from waking him up, and when he was old enough to sleep with his arms free I wrapped the Velcro pieces under his arms. Halo makes these in sizes up to 18 months, and I used them until he was ready for a toddler bed with a regular blanket.

5. Windi Gas Reliever. Ok, I know this is gross, but I swear by this little gadget! 😀 Colic symptoms are often caused by gas, and both my boys are GASSY. Like, clear-the-room level farts. It’s awful. As a baby, Sammy had a hard time getting gas out which contributed to his fussing. The first time I used this, his whole body relaxed. Gross? Yep! Effective? Heck yes. Just buy it.

6. Large baby blankets. You know those cute burp cloths that go over your shoulder? Totally useless for a baby with reflux. Those little scraps of fabric won’t protect you from the constant vomiting. I quickly learned to carry a big cotton or muslin blanket everywhere with me. It covered all my clothes, and came in handy as a clean-up towel for every time his spit-up landed on the floor. Stock up on these so you won’t have to do laundry every day.

7. Dr. Browns anti-colic bottles. I thought there was no difference between baby bottle types. WRONG. These are the only bottles I would use for a baby with reflux or colic. The bulb insert helps prevent air bubbles from rising to the surface and being ingested by your baby. I noticed a huge difference in Sammy’s gassy-ness when I started using these. He was able to burp more efficiently (instead of just crying and being uncomfortable).

8. Cotton Bibs. Again, the cute bandanna baby bibs that are so popular won’t do a lick of good for a baby with constant spitting up. These are large enough to cover your baby’s whole chest, and tuck into his lap once he’s old enough to sit upright.

9. Wubbanub pacifier. I know the pacifier debate is huge, but for a baby with colic it can be a saving grace. Part of Sammy’s constant nursing problem was that he just wanted to suck for comfort. I tried regular pacifiers but they usually fell out and he couldn’t maneuver them back into his mouth. Wubbanub animals provide something for your baby to latch onto, and they often become treasured bedtime friends. They are hard to lose, since the animal is big enough to spot. Bonus points for being adorable!

Other things I suggest: 

Multi-pack onsies, Soothie pacifiers, Dreft infant laundry detergent, newborn lounger

Leave me any questions you have in the comments! I’m always happy to help by sharing my experience.