At Charlie's nine-month appointment, he had fluid in his ears. He had one ear infection in September (along with the one a couple of weeks ago) and the doctor had noticed fluid off and on. She referred us to an ENT so they could do some further testing. We met with a doctor in late December and he suggested ear tubes. Ugh. Not what I wanted to hear, but if necessary, that's what we'd have to do. But the more I researched it (I know, I know, google is your frenemy) the more I thought that maybe this wasn't the only option. While the surgery is so minor, it would require anesthesia and I wasn't crazy about that at all. So we set up an appointment with another ENT for a second opinion. First of all, I just got a better "vibe" from this practice. And the doctor we met with was AWESOME! She reviewed his history and wasn't as concerned with the two infections. Instead, she's going to try to treat the fluid first with some medication before we explore surgery as a last resort. This sounded much better to me!
This reminded me of when Charlie was struggling to gain weight around six months. I was convinced my supply was fine, but that his spit-up was the real issue. Our pedi suggested supplementing with formula and sent me on my merry way. I cried the entire way home! When I settled down, I called a lactation consultant and made an appointment for the next day. After a weighed feeding, Charlie took in plenty of milk on one side and started nursing on the other. After that, he showed his beautiful spit-up colors and lost three ounces of his feeding! I also followed up with a gastroenterologist and had to pump for three days to confirm my supply was indeed fine - and it was! Again, I'm glad I trusted my gut and kept nursing. I'm so proud that we made it to a year (almost there!) with breast milk. Of course, there's nothing wrong with formula, but I knew we didn't have to go that route.
So there you have it... two examples to show that a mother's intuition is usually right! Trust your instincts, Mommas!
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