Those of us who have children who suffer from "silent GERD" know the truth: there's nothing silent about it. When your child continues crying for 8-10 hours in a row without reprieve despite all your best efforts, you know. It's not silent!
You also know something is wrong. No child should cry for that duration. Even if your doctor tells you it's just a phase or your child's personality or your own lack of experience with infants, trust your instincts. You have those instincts for a reason.
Diagnosing GERD and prescribing treatment through your pediatrician may take weeks or even months. Part of this is simply due to the fact that the symptoms of GERD are so widely patterned and seemingly unrelated. Sometimes the persistent crying is misdiagnosed as colic, which means it may be months of agony for your child until a correct diagnosis is reached.
A slow diagnosis may also be due to a pediatrician's conservative approach of "waiting and seeing" if the symptoms resolve in a few weeks due to the infant's immature digestive system. Hang in there, but don't just "wait and see." Ask questions, schedule appointments, and if need be, find a new doctor. You are your child's greatest advocate.
On the other hand, some pediatricians take such a proactive approach that they automatically prescribe strong medications, or they refer you to specialists who will have your infant x-rayed, scoped, and operated on before your baby is even a month old. My personal belief is that when dealing with a baby you should try to make sure the cure isn't worse than the disease. As much as possible, exhaust all least-invasive therapies first before rushing into the hospital or operating room.
When my first daughter was born, I had never heard of GERD. I had read all the books and magazines and taken an eight-hour hospital class on newborns and child care, and heard not a word of GERD. From birth she suffered from an inability to suck or swallow correctly as well as weight loss, dehydration, incessant crying, persistent congestion, periodic choking (even to the loss of breath), yet it wasn't until she was almost two months old before she was diagnosed. At that point, the doctor informed me that I should have preferred a diagnosis of colic, for GERD was "ten times worse."
So here is a list of the many symptoms of GERD. This list includes symptoms and behaviors seen in both infants and toddlers, but it is still not an exhaustive list. If your child exhibits even two or three of these, it might be a good idea to consider GERD as a possibility and discuss it with your pediatrician or primary health care provider.
As a GERD mama, I have personally seen every one of these symptoms (with the exception of gross motor delay) exhibited in either one or both of my daughters even though they were diagnosed with different forms of GERD. The good news is we made it through--by the grace of God we are making it through--and so can you.
Physical Symptoms and Behaviors:
- Frequent choking, gagging, loss of breath
- Frequent vomiting or spitting up
- Taking only an ounce or two of milk or formula at a time
- Arching of the back (like a back-bend) while the rest of the body goes rigid
- Inability to latch or suck bottle well; inability to swallow well (dysphagia)
- Failure to gain weight; loss of weight
- Dehydration
- Continual crying for hours on end
- Recurring and sustained congestion
- Drainage from nose, ears, or eyes
- Acidic smell on breath even if vomit is not seen
- Frequent clearing of the throat
- Persistent croupy cough (barking sound) with or without stridor (wheezing)
- Hoarseness in voice when crying or babbling
- Shoving fingers in back of throat; making himself/herself gag
- Blood and/or mucus in stool
- Crying/distress when lying on back (diaper changes or naps)
- Excessive drooling
- Burn-like rash around mouth
- Chronic post-nasal drip
- Increased rate of ear, nose, and throat infections
- Lowered immune response
- Staining of teeth or erosion of enamel
Night-Time Symptoms:
- Wheezing
- Sleep apnea (periodic moments without breathing)
- Waking up coughing or gagging
- Night terrors/crying in sleep
- Refusing to sleep; fighting sleep
- Poor sleep patterns at night and during naptimes (not being able to sleep for a few hours at a time)
- Waking every hour or 90 minutes to be fed at night
- Increased congestion at night; noisy breathing
- Keeping self upright at night
Developmental Symptoms:
- Speech Delay
- Gross motor developmental delay
- Difficulty eating or swallowing solids
- Long-term and excessive struggles at mealtimes
- Emotional meltdowns not associated with intentional defiance
- Routine fatigue and inability to sleep through the night lasting up to 4 years of age
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