Milk Sensitivity?

Well... where do I start? Since Caylen was born, she has had a problem with reflux, and seemed to be a 'colicky' baby. I didn't want to label her as having colic, so I was constantly trying to find something that would make her feel better. She was a breastfed baby, until 1 year, and she was constantly nursing. And crying. It seemed like around the time that she ate, she was fussy at the breast and irritable. The more she ate, the more she fussed, and the more she wanted to eat, so on and so forth.  It was a vicious cycle.  She was on reflux meds until about 7 months, then it subsided enough for her to decrease them, until she really needed them on occasion at least. She was still fussy though.. Hmmm. She seemed very dependent on nursing, and I don't mean that she was dependent on eating; yeah ok duh. She was just constantly wanting to nurse and was, here is a prefect word: fitful.  She always seemed to be in a fit when she was nursing, like she wanted to, but for some reason she didn't. My dad told me to put her on soy formula, since that is what they did with my sister, and it worked. I, the breastfeeding maniac, wanting to do what was 'best,' didn't want to gamble that my daughter had lactose intolerance. which is rare for a baby.   So, I continued to nurse, of course, and things stayed pretty much the same. That cycle I mentioned earlier just continued-- it lessened at about 6 months, then greatly reduced at 12 months: the point at which I weaned her. After I weaned her, of course, I switched to cow's milk.

Cow's milk... She likes it okay, I guess, but she has never been so crazily addicted to it like she was the breastmilk. What does this have to do with my point? Oh nothing really, I am just stating the facts, and the fact is that Caylen never drank much cow's milk, as compared to mommy's milk.  And, as I mentioned earlier, her tummy issues lessened a great deal after weaning. She has always had, seemingly, upset tummy issues, but I never really zeroed in on what it could be as much as I have been lately. I guess that is because I can see more of a direct correlation between the cause and effect, now that she is older and more expressive, and now that I am a more experienced mom. So I feel really bad about what I am about to say, namely because I feel like a bad mother for not having noticed such a correlation before now. Caylen has a milk sensitivity. No, we haven't gone to the Dr. yet, but it is pretty much a no-brainer when she throws up and has terrible, sour diarrhea every time she eats milk, milkshakes, ice cream, cheese, etc. Is is lactose intolerance? I don't know-- I kinda hope. Is it short lived, or will we be buying soy and almond milk and dairy free products forever? I really don't know. I don't even know if it could be an allergy. I guess I need to ask the Dr. about that. However, for now, we have figured out what has been bothering her, and that is completely wonderful!

Since we have taken Caylen off of dairy, she has been happier (less grumpy/ grouchy), she has been more active, she eats more!! And, she sleeps pretty well, too! That may not sound like much, but her being less grouchy is a blessing in and of itself. She has always done, eh, horribly, at restaurants. Ya know, like the ones that take forever to get your food.  She is the screaming, crying baby sitting next to your family while you are trying to have a quiet meal.  We are the parents, and family members, you see 'walking' the baby in the front of the restaurant. And, yes, it still happens, even though she is 16 months old..... However, since she hasn't had milk or dairy, today when we went to a restaurant, she did great! Not even like the same baby! I guess it just took a long time for my thick head to get it through that this is the problem, but I am so much happier to know that she is feeling visibly better!  So, I guess for now it is soy milk and no dairy until we go to the Dr. and get some more info on what we can do!