Parenting / 29 September, 2021 / Ellie & Jamie

Our Top 10 Sanity-Saving Products For Reflux, Wind & Colic

You can breathe a sigh of relief. We’ve tried and tested a range of products and here are our recommendations of the best products for reflux, colic and wind.

Reflux can be a living nightmare, for everyone involved. For a baby, it can understandably and often relentlessly horrendous, and for the parents, it can incredibly upsetting. The feeling of helplessness coupled with the severe sleep deprivation that goes with a reflux baby can be absolutely brutal. All three of us have found some days better than others, with even some nights feeling like we’re winning, perhaps turning a little corner, with one less snack feed, and one longer cat-nap… then BOOM! We’re back at square one with symptoms exacerbated even more than ever before.

Reflux and CMPA

Through our Jellie Diary Facebook page, we’re learning that reflux and Cows’ Milk Protein Allergy are common issues faced by babies. We’re told by our mums that CMPA is a condition that often goes hand in hand with reflux a lot of the time. This is a possibility we’re currently exploring by going dairy free with the help of Nutramigen. It’s a week in, no improvements to report yet. It surprised me how many other parents have been through similar or the exact same things with their children. The light at the end of the tunnel is that it’s very reassuring to know that all those babies and their parents, have mostly all come out the other side completely unscathed – with only a few carrying on an intolerance into early childhood.

Is my baby missing milestones?

I don’t know about you, but I think the saddest thing about reflux is that it robs you of those precious first few weeks and months with your baby. Mums have told us the condition will pass with time, but I don’t want to wish away those first days of her life. And I certainly feel as though Maddie’s little life has been blighted by the disease. She should be smiling more, she should be learning to laugh. I almost think she’s missing little milestones – just the little ones; the ones I hear about from my NCT Whatsapp group. Those proud mummy moments – their babies reaching out for things, starting to be interested in toys and rattles, sleeping through the night – even going on walks and lunches. Things I don’t feel I can do unless very close to home.

Going out and planning anything with a baby that’s in pain a lot of the time is very tricky to say the least. You can’t plan with any baby, but with reflux it’s worse. Maddie’s main priorities in life right now revolve around pain. It makes me feel terribly sad that her first experiences of life are overshadowed by this horrible condition, and I worry about her. A lot.

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Postnatal depression or anxiety 1 in 4

I met a mother in my local garden centre on Sunday, we got chatting as her 4-year-old daughter showed an interest in a sleeping Maddie. The topic quickly turned to reflux, and CMPA, which her daughter suffered extremely badly with as a baby, and continues to be allergic – and dairy free. This mum told me how at one point in those early months, she headed to the train tracks with her baby, fully intent on throwing them both in front of a train due to sleep deprivation caused by reflux. It’s no surprise then, that recent research conducted by Australian support website found that more than 1 in 4 parents (29%) had a diagnosis of postnatal depression or anxiety. I find this really alarming.

Tried and tested products for reflux

Besides the products we’ve personally come across so far, my advice to anyone discovering they’re in the same position is to fight yours and your baby’s corner. It’s estimated that you’ll need to see your GP three times before you get taken seriously. Keep going.

There are times when things will get tough, all you can do is lower your expectations and consider investing in one of these products. We’ve tried and tested them all and found them to be worthwhile. There are common sense items, but also some real go-to products.

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