Tuesday, May 21, 2013

7 Weeks

Arlo turned 7 weeks old yesterday, and I was all prepared to write a post about how, 24 hours a day, he's clingy, furious, sleeping horribly, inconsolable, apparently going through the craziest growth spurt ever, and ohmygodIcan'ttakethisanymore. But I was just too exhausted.

Instead, I'm writing a post today about how Arlo has infant reflux, and he's been screaming nonstop for 10 days—and just acting "off" for 2.5 weeks—because he's in pain. I feel so guilty for not catching this sooner, but I'm glad Danny and I reached our breaking point this morning and finally called the pediatrician.

When Arlo arched his back and wailed in the nurse practitioner's arms, she made her diagnosis. That's apparently a big sign of reflux, along with several other things Arlo's experiencing—gagging, screaming, not sleeping, spitting up all the time, and preferring to be in the upright position. We have to give him a prescription medication twice a day until his reflux goes away, which should happen around 6 months or so. My poor little boy. I'd like a redo on these last three weeks, please.

Also of note, the nurse practitioner commented that Arlo is "the perfect blend of mommy and daddy," which I loved.

Glorious bedhead / Officer Adorable / Cute smile / Perfection

Unfortunately and fortunately, I have some pretty horrendous carpal tunnel in my left wrist, and since my OB referred me to a physical therapist (an occupational therapist, to be more accurate), Danny gets to stay home with us for another week. Woo-hoo!

I've had minor pains in my wrist for a couple of years now, but since I had Arlo, it's become excruciating and much more frequent. My physical therapist gave me a giant list of things not to do. Basically, I'm supposed to wear a wrist brace all day and not move my left arm from the elbow down, except when I'm doing the list of recommended exercises. That would be fine and dandy if I didn't have a newborn to carry around. I don't see this condition improving anytime in the near future, but I'll keep doing (okay, start doing) my exercises and continue going to physical therapy.

Now, here's to brighter days ahead.

5 comments:

Emmett Katherine said...

Poor Arlo :( I hope he's doing much better now. He is so adorable! That sucks about the ct, I'm not sure how you're suppose to manage not using one arm with a newborn either!!

jessica dukes said...

poor thing! both of you!

Unknown said...

Hayden had reflux also. He was on Zantac for about a year. He slept in a swing to help with this. Did you know hicups is a signify reflux? He had them all the time when he was in my stomach and they continued when he came out. He's better now, reflux wise.....sleeping wise, well that's another story! I also had carpal tunnel in both wrists when I.was pregnant with Mikalah. I had to wear braces on both my wrists. My thumbs would always "pop" whenever I moved them. PAINFUL! And having to work as a CNA, while wearing braces on both wrists was a treat! Made glowing up and hand washing almost impossible. Hope you both get better with time. I know we did :-)

Amanda said...

Nikki, the hiccups are actually one of the symptoms that made me start wondering if there was a reflux issue going on. This kid has them ALL THE TIME, and he definitely had them daily when he was in my belly. Glad Hayden's reflux is better!

I know that thumb pop all too well. It's miserable! How long did you have your carpal tunnel?

Unknown said...

It actually went away a few months after Mikalah was born. Hope yours does too.