The Saga Continues...

*Such a sweetie*

We are still trying to figure out what is going on with our sweet little girl.  We have some good days and some days that are just down right awful.  The medicine seemed to be working the first week or so.  Olivia still pukes, but it's not nearly as often or as much and it certainly isn't projectile.

 *Her "go to" face*

To recap (because some were confused)--She was diagnosed with acid reflux and given medicine for that.  The doctor told me to stay away from obvious dairy for now.  We were to give it two weeks to see if the medicine was working.  Then I could add in one dairy a week (cheese the first week, then milk the next week, and so on) and see how she responded.

*trying to capture a smile is tough*

Well... after about a week and a half of being off of dairy (I had gone off of it the best I could before even taking her to the doctor), I cheated.  We went out with friends and I had some milk based gelato.  This was NOT a good idea.  She was a MESS after her middle of the night feeding.  She was puking excessively, "coughing" what sounded like hair balls, screaming when awake, and sounding congested.  That solved the mystery.

*tongue peeking out*

The doctor did say I could have a small amount of cheese if mixed in a recipe.  It wasn't mixed in a recipe, but a week later I had a very small amount of cheese on a snack wrap from McDonald's.  People had said ice cream was one of the worst culprits, so I was hoping I could get by with a slice of cheese.  Her reaction wasn't nearly as bad as with the ice cream, but her puke increased once again and her screaming returned.  Needless to say, I am now avoiding all obvious dairy.  Ugh!  No milk.  No ice cream.  No yogurt.  No cream cheese.  No sour cream.  No cheese.  No cream--whipped, in coffee, in recipes.  No butter.  Do you know how much that eliminates?  85% of what I eat and almost all the recipes I rely on.

*ahh... the ever faithful paci*

I go back to the doctor on Monday to follow up.  I am hoping that it is a lactose intolerance problem and not a milk/soy protein allergy.  You have to avoid all "hidden" dairies then (casein, whey, etc.).  That's pretty much ALL processed food.  You may not realize it, but it's in EVERYTHING.  We would for sure switch to formula then.  Not only that, but there are only 2 formulas out there that can be used.  There are no generic ones either, and they aren't cheap.  Milk protein stays in your system (and your babies system) for up to two weeks.  Therefore, I don't think I can cheat and pump and dump like people do with alcohol.  Although, I will be asking the doctor about this.  Also, I know babies grow out of this, but I'm not sure when.  Living without dairy for months is depressing.  I'm hoping it's sooner rather than later.

Aside from the dairy issues, she's been having other times of screaming.  I'm hoping it was her 6 week growth spurt.  This is getting exhausting!