Dealing with reflux. Not for the faint of heart

Can you believe Wyatt is over six weeks old already? Man, time flies. And while he continues to grow, so does his appetite.  Which is FANTASTIC, but has also introduced reflux into the mix.

For the first few weeks, we were coasting when it came to feeding him. The routine was simple. Wake him up, feed, burp, back to bed. But at about four weeks, we noticed he started to get a bit more fussy after eating, he would start to wake up more often, and at times, he would even wrestle around while eating on mommy's chest.

Turns out, as he established a larger appetite, reflux has begun to set in. And let me tell you, a child who is uncomfortable with reflux is NOT ideal. Symptoms ranging from restlessness to gagging make every feeding an adventure. Luckily for me, I live with a woman who does more research than the Elias sports bureau. So with some solid tips, we have gotten the reflux under control:

Preparation for putting him down after a feeding

We discovered that sleeping at an angle really helps. By simply placing a towel under one end of the side sleeper, it helped him digest much easier. We read that about a 30 degree angle is ideal, but you can tell when you have turned it from a craftmatic adjustable bed angle to a beach chair.  

While feeding

Lizzy has figured out how to hold him so he is angled down a bit while eating which has also helped. When I feed him from a bottle, I try to sit him up as much as possible. It isn't easy since he is still strengthening those neck muscles but we are getting better daily.

After a feeding (or even switching boobs sometimes)

Burping him REALLY does help. Being an efficient eater does not necessarily eliminate the ability to trap air and by taking that extra two minutes to make sure he burps is like a mini miracle.

In addition to burping, we've found that keeping him upright for about ten to twenty minutes really helps. After that, he goes right to sleep.

I thought this parenting stuff was supposed to be easy.