So it's time for a Campbell update...
My poor sugar's tummy is clearly not a fan of milk.
What baby doesn't like milk?
Well, she likes it. It doesn't like her.
The lowdown:
Breast feeding is/was super important to me. I was warned to not get too attached to the idea of nursing in case things don't work out. I thought, "hog wash." Well, now I sit here feeling incredibly guilty. I feel like I let my little girl down.
No more breast milk for Campbell:(
We struggled with nursing from the very beginning. She lost more than 10 percent of her body weight days after her birth. She had a hard time latching. The lactation specialist told us she had a bubble pallet and it'll take a couple of days/weeks for it to level out. The pediatrician told us her mouth was exceptionally tiny.
Either way, we struggled. I cried and cried and cried. So if she can't nurse, I'll pump. Breast milk in a bottle is still breast milk.
So I was a slave to my pump. I pumped 6-8 times a day. I washed and sterilized pumping equipment and valves constantly. I would wake up and feed Campbell and then pump and then clean equipment. Each routine would take about an 1.5. I was determined to make it work. I'm so stinking proud of myself that I was able to give her breast milk for the first month of her life.
Well the whole process was exhausting. I was worn down, and I got sick. I was on antibiotics and my milk supply suffered. The day after her one month birthday, we had to supplement with formula.
And here comes the problem...the cow's milk in the formula tipped her over the edge.
She got really cranky. And when I say cranky, I mean constipated. I mean screaming for 20 hours a day. It was terrible to watch her in so much pain.
After two rectal stimulations and 2 enemas, I was hopeful things were flushed out. It got worse. Four more days of constant shrieking. It was the worst week of my life.
I cried. She cried. She screamed. I wanted to scream. Even Mopac was stressed and was acting out. The Lueders' household was chaotic.
Luckily my pediatrician is brilliant. Although I think he should take me up on the idea of implementing a frequent flyer punch card. For every 9th visit, your 10th visit is free. :) Kinda like frozen yogurt.
After two trials of special formulas, we found a fit. The doctor believed she had a milk protein intolerance.
That means if I wanted to continue giving her breast milk, I would have to eliminate all dairy in my diet.
See Campbell can't digest the two proteins found in milk. The formula she's on is the royal royce of formula. Her high maintenance formula takes the milk proteins and breaks them down to amino acids. All for the very low price of 90 dollars a can.
Yep, that's right. And who said, "Kids are expensive?" Luckily we are able to get it from the wholesaler and only have to pay 40 dollars a can...only! Now if we can find a way to stretch a can out longer than four days :/
Well I went dairy free and it sucked! For two weeks, I read every label. Let me tell you, milk is in everything, even bread!!! Think about what butter is in...cakes, cookies, etc. Basically everything other than meats, fruits, and veggies have milk. Basically I've been starving for the last two weeks. I lost ten more pounds though. I'm almost back to pre pregnancy weight!!!
But seriously, I'd rather have ice cream. Vegans have earned a huge amount of respect from this carnivore. They can't have meat, dairy, eggs. Oh my goodness, what do they eat?
Last week, I was able to introduce breast milk back in her diet since I've been dairy free. Let me tell you, it was AWFUL!!!! It didn't work. She had 32 oz. over four days and on the fourth day broke out with this terrible rash on her face. Being the smart lady I am, I thought to take pictures. Not to mention the intense screaming returned:(
This has brought an end to breast milk. I can't watch her suffer. Breast milk is best, but in our case that's not true. I tried my hardest, and it's time to throw in the towel. The rash was actually eczema. There's still something in my milk that she's reacting to which means she has a very high intolerance to something. It could be milk proteins or something else since most dairy was eliminated (i.e. eggs, wheat, who knows?) Today the pediatrician and I agreed it's best for her health to stop trying. I'd have to eliminate more things in my diet, and it's still not conclusive it would work. Tonight, I mourn a little she won't have breast milk, but I will celebrate eating dairy! :)
Where do we go from here? Well we are getting referred to a pediatric gastroenterologist. We'll probably have to do some type of allergy testing at around six months to figure out and pin point what she's actually allergic or intolerant to.
Does this mean my child will be sitting at the peanut free table in the school cafeteria? Our pediatrician believes she will outgrow this. Most of his patients with milk intolerances don't develop food aversions. I hope so. He's not worried, but he wants to find out what exactly is the cause. The silver lining: her rash was not hives. If it was hives, we'd have something more serious that could be life threatening like a peanut allergy. Praise God.
If you could say a little prayer for my sweet girl. She's been incredibly fussy. It takes two weeks for milk proteins to get out of your system, and we are on day four. Each day gets better which is promising. Also pray that she outgrows this and her little tummy can one day enjoy all the fabulous things that her momma will be gorging on tonight, like chocolate and ice cream:)
Sorry for being the longest post ever!
