Post by polarbearfans on Aug 8, 2015 23:29:17 GMT -5
We only have an underarm thermometer that isn't rated very well. I couldn't find any thermometers that I liked based on ratings and we bought this just to have one on hand.
Temp reads 98.6. Internet tells me 99 is a fever with underarm temps. She feels warm. She was nursing and I became uncomfortably hot. She is sleeping at the moment after being fussy the past 4 hours. She has had two diapers that may be diarrhea... Not sure how people tell since breastfed babies poops are always liquidy. The two diapers were large. She has been nursing a lot today. The first I was holding her and I felt the two hot explosions in her diaper. The 2nd was almost out the top of her diaper. I wasn't around for that one.
We moved out to the country, and I don't even think our walmart is 24 hours, so I cannot buy another thermometer. It would be about 30-45 minutes to get to a 24 hour store.
The children's hospital is about 30 minutes away or we have a new local ER about 5 minutes away. If I take her to the ER i would probably make the drive to childrens.
I haven't called the after hours yet. Not sure if I am overreacting. Baby is almost one month old.
I've been able to sleep a bit more. I get an hour here and there when my husband takes her, and a couple nights she has let me put her down. Her reflux meds stopped working so we are trying a different one. It's terrible putting her down because I can hear the transition of the acid coming up and her choking that wakes her up. The rnp helps some, but she still has reflux issues. Putting her flat is trouble. Diaper changes stress me out.
Temp went down some if the thermometer can be trusted. 98.1 which is higher than she normally is but not in fever territory.
So stressful caring for this little girl who cannot tell me how she is feeling.
I've been able to sleep a bit more. I get an hour here and there when my husband takes her, and a couple nights she has let me put her down. Her reflux meds stopped working so we are trying a different one. It's terrible putting her down because I can hear the transition of the acid coming up and her choking that wakes her up. The rnp helps some, but she still has reflux issues. Putting her flat is trouble. Diaper changes stress me out.
Temp went down some if the thermometer can be trusted. 98.1 which is higher than she normally is but not in fever territory.
So stressful caring for this little girl who cannot tell me how she is feeling.
You are such a good mommy! She's lucky to have you. Can you ask your husband to take her for three or four hours so you can get a longer stretch of sleep?
You are such a good mommy! She's lucky to have you. Can you ask your husband to take her for three or four hours so you can get a longer stretch of sleep?
She still wants to nurse about every 2 hours. He will sometimes do a small bottle with her so I can get a bit more than an hour sleep but she doesn't take them well and fusses a lot. It also makes her reflux act up more.
She will sometimes sleep longer at night but I don't trust him with the baby at night. He has mild narcolepsy and i am too nervous to have him care for her any other time than day when he is well rested. He has never been good at staying up late at night and has fallen asleep in the middle of sentences. He tries but even caffeinated he falls asleep. I usually have him nap during the day and then I get a nap once he is more alert. I don't think I would be able to leave them 4 hours even if we figured out the food. I would be too worried that he would fall asleep holding her.
Post by curbsideprophet on Aug 9, 2015 2:02:15 GMT -5
Based on what you have said I don't think she has a fever. Nursing might cause her temp to elevate slightly but it should drop back down. I would not consider either temp you listed a fever, those temps both sound normal.
While you don't want to ignore a fever in a baby that young you also do not want to take them in unnecessarily.
I would get a rectal thermometer since you are not confident in the one you have.
Post by polarbearfans on Aug 9, 2015 3:29:41 GMT -5
Temp back to normal today. Poop still a little off but looking more normal. Not sure what was going on last night. I let her sleep almost 4 hours. Normally I would wake her up at 3 hours since we are still working on weight gain, but I thought she needed the sleep. She is nursing well and seems happy.
I had read that babies under 3 months need to be seen at a lower fever than older babies, and that 99 degrees was considered fever for underarm thermometers. Her normal every day temps are usually around 97.6 , so 98.6 was concerning.
Thanks everyone for the advice! I'm glad I didn't take her in. No reason to expose her to more germs. The upset tummy is probably from her new meds. I'll keep watching her today.
Post by whiskeyandwine on Aug 9, 2015 3:54:16 GMT -5
What reflux meds is she on? Isaac was on Zantac after his surgery and OMG the poop. His ENT said the #1 side effect of reflux meds is poop issues, and if we got to more than 12 in one day to worry. He's a bit older than your baby, but I still bet meds are/were to blame.
We also had weight issues which ended up as Failure to Thrive and surgery. My saving grace was introducing formula so my H could help out and I could sleep. You obviously don't HAVE to do this, but if you want to give yourself the option just known that that's ok too.
You're doing great. The first 8 weeks (imho) were so hard. 8-12 hasn't been a breeze, but I certainly feel like I know what I am doing, which is a nice change from where I was at a month!
What reflux meds is she on? Isaac was on Zantac after his surgery and OMG the poop. His ENT said the #1 side effect of reflux meds is poop issues, and if we got to more than 12 in one day to worry. He's a bit older than your baby, but I still bet meds are/were to blame.
We also had weight issues which ended up as Failure to Thrive and surgery. My saving grace was introducing formula so my H could help out and I could sleep. You obviously don't HAVE to do this, but if you want to give yourself the option just known that that's ok too.
You're doing great. The first 8 weeks (imho) were so hard. 8-12 hasn't been a breeze, but I certainly feel like I know what I am doing, which is a nice change from where I was at a month!
She was on zantac but it stopped working after a a couple weeks. They changed her to axid a couple days ago. The reflux has made things challenging. It is so scary.
She was labeled failure to thrive but has been better since treating the reflux and huge effort on the breastfeeding. Finally back to birthweight after weeks of loss and slow gain. I have been pumping after she nurses 1-2 times a day. She didn't do well on the formula the hospital sent us home with (spent the night flailing in pain) but her pediatrician has some samples of a dairy and soy free formula we can try if we need to supplement more than what I can pump. We have a plan A, B, and C in place. I'm trying to be flexible and do what is best for her even if that means formula and bottles. The most important thing is for her nutritional needs to be met.
I've also cut dairy from my diet and am working out the soy (omg it is in everything processed) on the recommendation of the pediatrician. I want a milkshake more than anything in life right now but she has done better since i cut the dairy a few weeks ago.
I had no idea that there could be too much poop. Thank you for letting me know! Looking at her logs, 8 is the most we have had in one day. I hate having her on these meds but I know she needs them. I feel the meds mess with the good bacteria we are trying to establish.
It gives me hope that it gets a bit easier. Thank you.
Post by curbsideprophet on Aug 9, 2015 7:43:26 GMT -5
I would stop taking her temp daily unless you have been advised to do so by your pedi. It sounds like you are taking her temp multiple times per day. Is there a reason for this? I think you are going to drive yourself crazy.
I would stop taking her temp daily unless you have been advised to do so by your pedi. It sounds like you are taking her temp multiple times per day. Is there a reason for this? I think you are going to drive yourself crazy.
I took her temp multiple times last night because she had diarrhea and felt hot. I wanted to see if temp came down on its own before I took her to the hospital. I was on an immunosuppressant while pregnant and her system is compromised currently so we try to limit her exposure to crowds. The hospital seems like a place to avoid unless needed. We are also supposed to limit her use of antibiotics the first 2 years of life unless it is truly a bacterial infection. I know for me I have to have blood tests done before using antibiotics, not sure how they will determine for the baby.
We have taken her temp a few times just because it is good to have a healthy baseline. Not everyone runs at the "normal" 98.6. It is also good to know how the particular thermometer reads.
She was a bit warm again late morning but not nearly as high as last night. Poops are still a bit questionable but looking closer to normal.