# Please help - vomiting toddler (for 18 hours)



## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

My DS is 22 months old and last night, after he went to bed, around 10pm, he woke up and vomited and since then, it hasn't stopped. He woke up pretty much every half hour last night and was either vomiting or dry heaving and then falling right back asleep. When he woke up this morning, he was chipper and amazingly seemed no worse for the wear. He had an appetite and wanted water and toast and so we gave him some and since then, he has been vomiting again, non stop. I am worried about keeping him hydrated since he's losing all of his fluid. He wants water, but keeps barfing it up. I keep giving him tiny sips every 20 minutes or so in hopes that maybe some of it will get absorbed. We are trying to give him Pedialyte to replenish electrolytes and salts, but he isn't taking very much (I don't blame him) and he is still barfing. At this point, it's mostly water but then there is some deep yellow stuff. He has an on and off minor fever (100.3 has been the highest) and he doesn't have diahrrhea (thank god). But, he didn't poop yesterday and hasn't today.

I was not worried about this three hours ago, but now that it's not stopping and it's been so long, I'm starting to worry if he's staying hydrated enough or what's going on. DS has never had the stomach flu before, so I have no idea how this is supposed to go and I don't want to compare it to when us adults get the stomach flu. Any thoughts, tips, help?

Also, I called and left a message for the doctors on call at our peds office and haven't heard back from them and it's been about three hours.







Then I called and left a message for our ped who says he checks his messages every night and I haven't heard back from him either







: Our ped doesn't take insurance, so we pay A LOT to have him be there for us when we need him and I am trying not to get too angry at the fact that NO medical person is helping us. At what point is this constant vomiting a real worry? TIA


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## MizLiz (Jan 23, 2005)

It sounds good that you little guy is still chipper (he is probably absorbing some of what he is drinking). I'd start to really worry about him if he starts to get really listless or his eyes look sunken.

My dd1 went through something like this when she was around 2.5 and she couldn't keep anything down for over a day. We ended up taking her to the ER and they said to only give her tiny amounts of liquid until she could keep it down for a couple of hours. They suggested 1 tsp. of liquid every 10 minutes (and this was really hard because she was SO thirsty and wanting to drink anything she could...). I was skeptical but it did help her stomach to settle down and in a few hours the vomiting had slowed down considerably.

Does he nurse? Breastmilk absorbs very quickly so that can help him stay hydrated.


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## aricha (Oct 21, 2007)

I always like Dr Sears for what's going on, when to worry, and when not to worry. www.askdrsears.com has been my guide on many occasions when I have tried to figure out where the line is for when to worry.

Here's his page on vomitting: http://www.askdrsears.com/html/8/T083300.asp


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## sparkysgirl (Feb 29, 2008)

we had this happen a while back, lasted nearly 24 hours. Called our ped, they said sips of fluids, lots of bfing, if that stays down, then bland food. When it continued we took her in, just to get checked. Ped gave us this medicine that stops the vomiting, it worked. sounds like your handling it well though. If you get concerned you can always go to a walk in clinic tomorrow


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

Thanks for the helpful posts







Good to know others have BTDT. Sparkysgirl - especially good to know that your LO also had 24 hours of vomiting. That is the part that's worrying me because I've never heard of it lasting that long.

DS nursed and only barfed a tiny bit up (not the whole feed) and then burped and fell back asleep for two hours, so that was considered a success. But then after he woke up, he was hungry and so I nursed him again and this time he popped off and barfed everything up (onto me, I might add). We went straight to the bath and DS seemed to liven up a bit in there and then we read some books in bed and then DS fell asleep with this arms around my neck







Before he fell asleep, he barfed a tiny bit once more and I think it's happening to him when he moves too fast. DH is like this when he gets sick. But, DS asked for a sip of water before he fell asleep and we reluctantly gave it to him (it's been making things worse), but he managed to keep it down.

I just hope that he can get some good rest and have that "I feel so much better!" feeling in the morning. Or at least not be barfing anymore.

As an aside, I am appalled at our ped's office. I have called the emergency number for the doctor on call twice and have yet to hear anything back. And, I called my doctor directly and haven't heard a word. I've been calling all of my friends and thankfully they've been calling their doctor, nurse and PA friends to get help for me.

BTW - when will I know it's okay for DS to have some solids again?


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## SparklingGemini (Jan 3, 2008)

Sooo sorry you have to suffer through this...your little one too!

We just had a bought of viral gastroenteritis here and it was awful!

My DD vomited for 6+ days and had diarrhea for 11!!

She lost a lot of weight but because we were still nursing the doctor wasn't concerned at all.

They main concern, of course, is dehydration. While I'm not overly fond of Pedialyte, we did buy some to try. DD didn't like it at all and the doctor reassured us that this was a good sign that she wasn't dangerously dehydrated.

As for adding solids back in...start SUPER slow. Some toddlers have more sensitive stomachs that others after a stomach upset. (I had no idea of this and assumed once she was done throwing up that was it! But no, it just kept happening!)

What we did was start with clear liquids and super bland soft foods; chicken broth, applesauce, homemade popsicles, white pasta, toast, etc.

We offered teeny tiny little bites all day long so as not to overwhelm DD with too much food or make her eat too much by waiting until she was over hungry. Then we cut her off solids a few hours before bedtime and she just had breastmilk after that.

For some reason the evening food would make her vomit in the night but if we didn't give her solids after, say 3 or 4, then she wouldn't.

I hope this helps a little bit. It's a bit jumbled and rambling...


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SparklingGemini* 
Sooo sorry you have to suffer through this...your little one too!

We just had a bought of viral gastroenteritis here and it was awful!

My DD vomited for 6+ days and had diarrhea for 11!!

She lost a lot of weight but because we were still nursing the doctor wasn't concerned at all.

They main concern, of course, is dehydration. While I'm not overly fond of Pedialyte, we did buy some to try. DD didn't like it at all and the doctor reassured us that this was a good sign that she wasn't dangerously dehydrated.

As for adding solids back in...start SUPER slow. Some toddlers have more sensitive stomachs that others after a stomach upset. (I had no idea of this and assumed once she was done throwing up that was it! But no, it just kept happening!)

What we did was start with clear liquids and super bland soft foods; chicken broth, applesauce, homemade popsicles, white pasta, toast, etc.

We offered teeny tiny little bites all day long so as not to overwhelm DD with too much food or make her eat too much by waiting until she was over hungry. Then we cut her off solids a few hours before bedtime and she just had breastmilk after that.

For some reason the evening food would make her vomit in the night but if we didn't give her solids after, say 3 or 4, then she wouldn't.

I hope this helps a little bit. It's a bit jumbled and rambling...


Thank you sooooo much for your post. It puts vomiting for 24 hours in perspective







6 days of vomiting and 11 days of diarrhea - holy crap (no pun intended). Good to know about starting solids really slow. It's tough when he is really hungry and has an appetite to tell him no. I think that's what set us back this morning - his wanting toast and pasta and water and me giving it to him and then bam - barfing all of it up right afterwards. It makes me feel better too that not wanting Pedialyte means he's not severely hydrated. When you gave your DD breastmilk at night, how long before her bedtime did you give it to her? And did you nurse her lying down or sitting up (or did it matter)? And, did you cut her off or let her eat as much as she wanted? I HATE cutting DS off, but he'll eat until he barfs everything out so I'd like to set a limit for him if that would help.

Oh and aricha, thank you for the Dr. Sears link. I read about vomiting in his book, but this is a lot more detailed and clear


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## ShyDaisi (Jan 22, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *happy2bamama* 
Thanks for the helpful posts







Good to know others have BTDT. Sparkysgirl - especially good to know that your LO also had 24 hours of vomiting. That is the part that's worrying me because I've never heard of it lasting that long.

BTW - when will I know it's okay for DS to have some solids again?

Micah had a bad stomach bug not long after he turned one. He vomited for NINE and a HALF days straight. If he had vomited one more time I was going to have him admitted to the hospital because he had lost so much weight.

The biggest thing with a stomach bug is that whatever is causing it is being expelled. You CAN stop it from coming up, but more than likely the body will expel it in other way (read in his diaper). The virus (or whatever) will need to run its course and when the body fights it off, it will give his immune system a great boost! (I try to see the positive when they are so pitiful).

In the Dr. Sears article previously posted it talks about the three stages (I referred to his pages about vomiting and dehydration a lot when Micah was sick) Here are the key points I picked up on:

Quote:

First stage: vomiting every 5 - 30 minutes. No food or liquids, complete bowel rest, unless requested by the child, but don't expect him to keep it down.

Second stage: vomiting every 1 - 2 hours. Small sips of liquids every 5 - 10 minutes (like Pedialyte, frozen popsicle, or BM).

Third stage: vomiting only 2 - 4 times a day or stopped all together. Introduce bland foods - if vomiting ensues, drop back to second stage (liquid only).
The article also talks about when to worry and when not too, so check it out if you haven't already. The main thing I watched out for was dehydration or symptoms of other illnesses. I hope this helps.







I hope he recovers quickly!

It would really frustrate me if my MD wasn't getting back to me, so I totally feel you there.







:


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## ShyDaisi (Jan 22, 2007)

I know that this wasn't directed at me, but here is my two cents.









Quote:


Originally Posted by *happy2bamama* 
When you gave your DD breastmilk at night, how long before her bedtime did you give it to her? I offered whenever he wanted it...

And did you nurse her lying down or sitting up (or did it matter)? Whichever way he seemed most comfortable, but if I recall, it was mostly semi reclined in my lap.

And, did you cut her off or let her eat as much as she wanted? As much BM as he wanted. I figured that it was potentially keeping him hydrated.

I HATE cutting DS off, but he'll eat until he barfs everything out so I'd like to set a limit for him if that would help. I always feel better when I vomit SOMEthing rather than nothing, plus, he could potentially be absorbing some of it.

Oh and aricha, thank you for the Dr. Sears link. I read about vomiting in his book, but this is a lot more detailed and clear







I posted as you did so wasn't sure if you had read it, sorry if it was redundant.


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

Thanks for the help Shydaisi







Nine days of vomiting??? Wow, just wow.

Thankfully, DS nursed both sides last night (there was NO taking him off early) and only threw up a tiny bit, so I know a lot got absorbed. He nursed both sides again this morning and didn't throw up at all







: He's had a little water and some toast and has managed to keep it down (so far). I am making some red potatoes to have on hand should he want something other than toast.

My MD called back last night after I sent him an irate email. It turns out that the doctors on call didn't call me back because my number doesn't accept blocked calls and they didn't want to unblock their numbers and give me access to their home numbers... can you believe that???







: My ped was apologetic and said he thought they should've been more "flexible" about it, but it just makes me so mad. What if DS was on the verge of some crazy thing? The liability issue here is astounding. I want to call their office on Monday and tell them that if they are not going to return calls to blocked numbers, they need to TELL us on the message to give them an unblocked number to call back.

Anyway, ped said that this stomach thing is going around town and is 24-48 hours of vomiting and another 24-48 hours of diarrhea. So we have that to look forward to. But I am so happy to see DS keeping anything down.

Thanks for all the help!


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## ZippyGirl (Aug 12, 2006)

Yep, the barf-fly visited our house earlier this week! It's going around!


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## ShyDaisi (Jan 22, 2007)

Yes, 9 days of vomiting was no fun at all....every time I thought it was over, there we went again. Luckily it was basically milk coming right back up, no yucky stuff.

And, I would definitely let them know that they need to amend their policy on the phone numbers. In an emergency they should have a cell phone that is only for callbacks or go to a pay phone or SOMEthing...I am so glad he is feeling better! Hopefully everything is back to normal soon!


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## Bay Area Babe (May 15, 2006)

From Naturally Healthy Babies and Children: A Commonsense Guide to Herbal Remedies, Nutrition, and Health

You can use a tea made of red raspberry leaf tea, 1 tsp per cup of water.

A homemade electrolyte drink:

1 cup of water
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
2 tbs honey


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Bay Area Babe* 
From Naturally Healthy Babies and Children: A Commonsense Guide to Herbal Remedies, Nutrition, and Health

You can use a tea made of red raspberry leaf tea, 1 tsp per cup of water.

A homemade electrolyte drink:

1 cup of water
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
2 tbs honey

Thanks for this







Problem is, DS is not the most adventuresome eater and especially when he's sick he doesn't want to try new tastes. I tried giving him some Tummy Tea today, but he refused it. But, luckily he's keeping breastmilk, water, pasta, white bread and Veggy Booty down! I thought for sure it would all come back up but we was adamant about having it and it's been down for about 8 hours


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

So now DH and I have this horrible thing. Any tips for how to survive it while trying to take care of yourself AND your toddler? How was your toddlers version of this stomach bug different than yours?

We thought DS was on the mend, but he was barfing again today. Remind me again the silver lining to this regarding his immune system? It makes me feel like I never want to do any group activity with kids EVER again.

This completely highlights how EASY it is to be sick without a kid. I took all those times for granted when I could just curl up in a ball and go away until *I* felt better.


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## ShyDaisi (Jan 22, 2007)

During the 9 day debacle at 12 months, I got sick and was better within 48 hours. We did a lot of sleeping that 24-48 hours. Slept on towels so I could just change those out without too much fuss, and had a bucket next to the bed for me. And had a pile of laundry waiting on me when I felt better....Micah just had another vomiting sickness that started night before last and was better last night (about 24 hours), but I haven't caught it yet (knock on wood)....


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## SparklingGemini (Jan 3, 2008)

Yeah. I was sick when DD was sick too! At one point, she was feeling a bit better and followed me into the bathroom to laugh at me while I was puking and dry-heaving over the toilet. She thought the sound was SO funny!

Really, we just stayed in bed all day. We slept together and like ShyDaisi, we layered towels under us. This was a lifesaver for me. I just had to whip off any yucky towel and lay back down.

I also let DD watch Sesame Street (quite the novelty, she's been TV free up to that point!)while sitting with me on the bed. I made sure there was nothing in the room not safe, and closed the door and then catnapped when she had too much energy for me.

But my bug came within 24 hours(for throwing up, the runs were much longer)and went while hers lasted.

As for thinking your babe was done, well at one point, after the main 6 days of vomiting, DD would go up to 36 hours before throwing up again. Finally, we got to 48 hours since her last episode and I was pretty sure we were done.

It's the strangest thing, this lingering vomiting. I hope you guys recover soon!


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## SparklingGemini (Jan 3, 2008)

On a side note~We were told by three separate doctors that we were all extremely contagious for as long as we still had diarrhea. So know that even when your DS is feeling loads better, if his stools aren't back to normal, he can still pass this bug on.

We were isolated from everyone for what seemed like weeks! I just knew how horridly I felt and didn't want _anyone_ to feel the same.


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## bdoody11 (Aug 16, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *happy2bamama* 
So now DH and I have this horrible thing. Any tips for how to survive it while trying to take care of yourself AND your toddler? How was your toddlers version of this stomach bug different than yours?

We thought DS was on the mend, but he was barfing again today. Remind me again the silver lining to this regarding his immune system? It makes me feel like I never want to do any group activity with kids EVER again.

This completely highlights how EASY it is to be sick without a kid. I took all those times for granted when I could just curl up in a ball and go away until *I* felt better.









I just wanted to give you a







. Being sick while trying to parent is absolutely the worst. Do you have some family help that could relieve you while you get some rest? I got sick while DH was out of town and demanded my father sleep over and care for DD (granted she wasn't sick) while I passed out on the couch.

Good news is I probably had the same virus that lasted 5 days for her and it only lasted 2 days for me. You'll probably recover much quicker than your LO.


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

So, we're on day 5 of DS still barfing.







What are some options of mellow things to feed him? So far, he's kept down (sort of) breastmilk, some water, saltines and Veggy Booty. Poor guy is hungry and seems to want his normal stuff but then barfs the minute we give him a bite of it (peas just now). He has been nursing like a newborn - every two hours (even at night) and I just give it to him because he's so sick, but I wonder if he's feeding too much and that's making him barf too. It's so hard to know what to do.

TIA









Also, when did you know it was okay to start giving your LO more than just breastmilk, water and saltines? Did you base it on how long ago they'd last thrown up? DS was just begging for some pasta and so I gave him the tiniest bites ever of plain pasta and then he just barfed it up again.


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)




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## ShyDaisi (Jan 22, 2007)

Oh, poor thing!!









I think that we stuck with bland foods like toast along with the BM. If he is asking to eat, I would go ahead and offer small bites, but I don't think I would give anything other than the things he has kept down so far.

How often is he vomitting? With Micah, I could have almost timed it and could really see it spacing out (ever slowly but surely) and slowly moving through the phases listed by Dr. Sears. Has it been spacing out? Have you been watching for signs of dehydration? (like those listed on the Dr. Sears page?)

Also, at 5 days I took Micah to the Dr. just to be sure that I wasn't overlooking additional signs of an illness worse than just the flu. Though my little guy had lost so much weight (I have a baby/toddler scale that I had been keeping tabs with) that I wanted to be sure I was thinking of everything. Of course, the MD turned out to be a moron, but that is a different issue completely. Just wanted to put out there that you might want to visit your Dr.








again...It's no fun having a sick babe! How are you feeling?


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ShyDaisi* 
Oh, poor thing!!









I think that we stuck with bland foods like toast along with the BM. If he is asking to eat, I would go ahead and offer small bites, but I don't think I would give anything other than the things he has kept down so far.

How often is he vomitting? With Micah, I could have almost timed it and could really see it spacing out (ever slowly but surely) and slowly moving through the phases listed by Dr. Sears. Has it been spacing out? Have you been watching for signs of dehydration? (like those listed on the Dr. Sears page?)

Also, at 5 days I took Micah to the Dr. just to be sure that I wasn't overlooking additional signs of an illness worse than just the flu. Though my little guy had lost so much weight (I have a baby/toddler scale that I had been keeping tabs with) that I wanted to be sure I was thinking of everything. Of course, the MD turned out to be a moron, but that is a different issue completely. Just wanted to put out there that you might want to visit your Dr.








again...It's no fun having a sick babe! How are you feeling?

Thanks so much for your post







Today is day 6 and we had a terrible night of sleep. No vomiting - it's been about 20 hours since that last happened, so we're keeping our fingers crossed. All night DS wanted to nurse and it was killing me (and my nipples that aren't used to nursing every hour anymore). But, now I think it was because he was STARVED. This morning we fed him some toast bites, cereal bites and he begged for pasta, so we made him some white pasta (which he threw up just two days ago). He ate just a few bites and I was sure it was all going to come up again since he pushed the plate away like he does before he's about to lose it, but he didn't. Then, I tried to nurse him to sleep - he was/is in desperate need of sleep, but he just wouldn't drift off so we came back downstairs. Then I got this idea to make him mashed potatoes. He had barfed at the mere sight of some a few days ago, but I thought I'd give it a shot. He ate 5 (little) bowls of it!!







: I have a feeling it's gonna stay down too. He got some of his personality back after that and just now, we finally nursed to sleep (he was still reluctant, though).

Fingers crossed, I think he might really be on the mend.







This is the longest stretch he's gone without vomiting so hopefully it will stay that way.

I am doing better and of course, I feel better the more he feels better. We still haven't been out of the house since Sunday, so hopefully when he wakes up we can take a short walk or something to get our vitamin D!

Thanks for your concern and help. It's been so helpful to know that other peoples' kids have been vomiting for more than 24 hours and they lived through it!

I guess if I had to find a silver lining in this whole thing, it would be that in the future when DS has a "normal" stomach flu (like 24 hours or something), it will seem like NOTHING. Now our expectations for what a "bad" flu is like are set really high, so we'll be those parents that are like, "Unless you're throwing up blood, you're going to school - and maybe even in that case, you're only missing school if you're throwing up blood for FIVE days!" Does that qualify as a silver lining?


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

Ugh, a setback. DS stayed barf-free for about 26 hours and then lost it. I think overall he's getting better but it makes me so frustrated to keep taking a step back. I'm not sure what did it - he did have a bigger appetite today and we went to the park for some fresh air and he played around a bit, but was still mellow. But, he wanted to go on the swing so bad and I let him and then later I wondered if swing + sick kid = barfing. Perhaps that was a bad call.

So, tomorrow we start anew and will see what it brings. DS was in a pretty chipper and cute mood tonight (although subdued), so hopefully tomorrow will be more of that. He didn't eat anything before bed (except BM) so I expect another night of nursing every hour.









I called our ped today and they told me that if DS hadn't have had that 26 hour stretch of being barf free, they would've wanted to see him, but since he seems to be having longer stretches, that's a good sign. But, if he barfs again tomorrow, they said to call and I will take him in just to make sure. Six days of barfing is a lot.

Poor little guy. He looks so pale and lackluster to me - not his bright eyes and full cheeks I'm used to. I know it's because he's been sick for this long, but it makes me so sad.


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## amandaburns (Nov 14, 2008)

there is nothing worse than a baby vomiting! i am so sorry. my baby had the viral gastroenteritis(sp?). i was so upset when she had forceful vomiting nonstop, and then vomiting up green bile! we don't mess around as we are nervous parents, so we rushed her to the er and waited hours until they gave her an iv with fluids and sent her home. she threw up for the next couple days, and then our whole family got it. guess who took care of evryone? hint: not daddy! ha ha.


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## ErinBird (Dec 5, 2005)

We are just coming out of a virus ourselves. Ugh :/

If your child is not complaining of stomach pains or general pain, which would indicate some other problem, chances are good this is an illness that will pass. Concentrate on keeping him hydrated. Small sips of anything that can be kept down is a good idea- we've been offering 100% juice because it is something my daughter will drink, as she never has it.

Our doctor advised to head to the children's hospital ER for IV fluids if her saliva and tears dry up and if she stops urinating at least three times in a 24h period. When she indicates a readiness for solids, we should offer bland foods- stick to the BRAT diet.

The yellow vomit is bile and this is common when the body vomits and you have not had any food.


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## happy2bamama (Apr 29, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *amandaburns* 
there is nothing worse than a baby vomiting! i am so sorry. my baby had the viral gastroenteritis(sp?). i was so upset when she had forceful vomiting nonstop, and then vomiting up green bile! we don't mess around as we are nervous parents, so we rushed her to the er and waited hours until they gave her an iv with fluids and sent her home. she threw up for the next couple days, and then our whole family got it. guess who took care of evryone? hint: not daddy! ha ha.

I'm sorry you had to go through this too and be the nurse to everyone.







How long was your baby vomiting for?

Oh yes, we've seen the bile - that was days ago though. I am not quick to head to the ER for many reasons, but the main one is that the only thing I think they could do for DS is give him an IV, like you talked about, and I'm not really worried that he's dehydrated, so it seems unnecessary to me. Maybe if I weren't BF-ing I'd feel differently. DS still has wet diapers, tears and a wet mouth, so I think we're okay in that department. Did you LO look and feel better within a short time after receiving the IV or did it still take a few days for them to bounce back?


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## TypingMJ (Nov 10, 2005)

Just wanted to give you a







, we went through the same thing in the summertime and it was brutal -- my husband and I were so weak we were army crawling to get from room to room. Hope you're all feeling better in time to have a relaxing weekend!


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## Kellie_MO4 (Jan 14, 2006)

hopefully the stretches will get bigger until he is completely bark free.. poor guy, to me throwing up is the worst thing in the world, so I totally feel for anyone that does it repeatedly







I hope his little tummy heals quickly!!!


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