Spit Bug

Heidi had her two month well-baby check up this morning.  While we were there she went through one of her typical cycles of eating, being happy, spitting up, screaming, and being soothed by more eating. (Meanwhile, Lula, who was also having a well-baby appointment, screamed at my feet. It was lovely. Not.)  The doctor thinks Heidi has reflux.

That would explain a LOT.  She seems like she is still hungry, but there is no way a baby Heidi's size can consume over five ounces of milk.  That is why is comes back up, sometimes quite forcefully.  The older kids will no longer hold her (both Shane and Evie have been "tagged" by the Spit Bug).  I've become the ounce police ("Don't give her any more! She's already had a bottle in the last 30 minutes! There is no way she is still hungry!" "But she stops crying when I feed her!")  The reflux hurts her esophagus and the milk soothes it, but the extra milk causes more reflux and we are in an endless cycle of sadness.

Tonight she had her first dose of Ranitidine, which is the generic version of Zantac.  It has a peppermint smell, so I'm assuming there is a peppermint ingredient for that soothing, cooling feeling.  She gets her medicine twenty minutes before a feeding to help neutralize the acid in her stomach so when she spits up it doesn't burn so bad.  Well, when she spit up tonight, all over my third shirt, I could feel the soothing, cooling feeling of peppermint on my skin.  Then she fell asleep (propped up in the swing, not on her back) and she has been asleep ever since. I'm supposed to call the doctor on Friday with an update on how the medication is working.  If it works, we will be prescribed more, and if it doesn't...well, I guess we will cross that bridge when we come to it...