We are having a little power struggle here and Gracie is winning. Time for another play picnic to allow G to reclaim her autonomy with regard to food. It is just so hard to know if her lack of interest in her bottle over the past 2 days is from the new 30 cal formula recipe, teething, normal kid stuff or what?! Oy. This ebb and flow of eating and weight gain does seem to go in spurts, but every time we hit a valley it is SO difficult not to freak out. Because the doctors (who I just don't trust) will freak out as they cling to their precious charts. The only people I trust are our OT and a child psychologist form Germany who I consult with. Gracie is hydrated, energized, happy and PRECOCIOUS ;) She's a little skinny, but aren't there other kids out there who are totally hitting their developmental milestones but just don't gain weight super fast? I bet there are. Meh. I am really being anxious in anticipating our GI doc's response to my latest weight/food update. I just hope she has something useful and supportive to say.
This long journey is getting the best of me today, but we are trying to focus on fun stuff like going to the park and celebrating Ramsey's birthday! We have just tried SO many different combinations, formulas, foods, fortifiers, tactics, doctors.... and you know what?? I bet we would have ended up right where we are anyway! Ha! The one thing we haven't tried is a feeding clinic as this is pretty aggressive and Gracie does not necessarily need that kind of experience at this young age. I am considering looking into a local child psychologist that specializes in feeding, but I am not sure if they exist here. In Europe, they do not insert a feeding tube into a child without a specialized psychologist and an exit strategy. The way feeding issues are dealt with in the States is abhorrent to me. It's no wonder one of my online, tube-mom-friends is studying to be a patient rights lawyer.
Okay, that's my rant :) I consider myself a "glass-half-full" person, but I would be remiss if I did not include the darker moments I have had. Because if another family struggling with similar issues hears of our story or reads this blog, I would want them to know the WHOLE story. Like that we don't take Gracie out much because she doesn't have any extra weight to help her through an illness. Or that I have some mild PTSD symptoms. But I will end with this: our good days and good times are far outweighing the bad. Gracie is a joy and the light of our lives and we will keep fighting to help her be a healthy, strong, well-adjusted eater!
This long journey is getting the best of me today, but we are trying to focus on fun stuff like going to the park and celebrating Ramsey's birthday! We have just tried SO many different combinations, formulas, foods, fortifiers, tactics, doctors.... and you know what?? I bet we would have ended up right where we are anyway! Ha! The one thing we haven't tried is a feeding clinic as this is pretty aggressive and Gracie does not necessarily need that kind of experience at this young age. I am considering looking into a local child psychologist that specializes in feeding, but I am not sure if they exist here. In Europe, they do not insert a feeding tube into a child without a specialized psychologist and an exit strategy. The way feeding issues are dealt with in the States is abhorrent to me. It's no wonder one of my online, tube-mom-friends is studying to be a patient rights lawyer.
Okay, that's my rant :) I consider myself a "glass-half-full" person, but I would be remiss if I did not include the darker moments I have had. Because if another family struggling with similar issues hears of our story or reads this blog, I would want them to know the WHOLE story. Like that we don't take Gracie out much because she doesn't have any extra weight to help her through an illness. Or that I have some mild PTSD symptoms. But I will end with this: our good days and good times are far outweighing the bad. Gracie is a joy and the light of our lives and we will keep fighting to help her be a healthy, strong, well-adjusted eater!