Seeking advice on toddler behavior...

[ChefBilly]

Our daughter is 13 months old, and has developed an odd habit.
Whenever she starts crying, she vomits.
She's not throwing a tantrum, she just goes from beginning to whimper to throwing up very quickly.
We don't really know what to do. It's to the point now where we try to race over to her and comfort her rather than change another set of sheets, change her clothes again, or run another bath. (Knowing that this may not be the answer.)
It usually happens once a day.

Have any of you had this problem? How'd you handle it?
It's pretty rough to live with.

Also - and this, I assume, is unrelated - she's hit that "what happened to MY baby" stage. All of a sudden she's more moody, shy, and any time we make an animal noise (like when we're reading her a book and doing the voices) she freaks out! (Obviously, we're not making the animal noises anymore.)
But her whole personality seems to have changed almost overnight.
I've looked on some child behavior sites, and this seems normal. Still, it's really weird to see it in action.

Surely someone can commisserate with me!

 

[Princess_Aurora]

My DS will do this when his a little sick and has a lot of mucus and sinus drainage. Once he starts crying he'll start throwing up a lot. Yes, we've had to do a lot of late-night sheet changes and baths. Our dr reccomended to get one of those booger suckers (sorry, I don't know the technical term for it) and try to suck out all the mucus from his nose to reduce the drainage. I don't if your DD has that drainage problem, but just thought I'd tell you my experience anyway.

 

[DVC~OKW~96]

Please, please don't be offended by this, but if you haven't already, do check with your child's pediatrician. Comprehensive changes in personality can signal a number of problems and your child may need to be evaluated.

As for the vomiting, I have no clue, but it surely doesn't sound usual to me. The sinus issue certainly could be something to look into.

Again, please don't be offended!

 

[Jenn Lynn]

Has she had any changes in her life lately? A change in routine? A change in diet? Anything that might not seem big to you could be huge to her and could be affecting her.

Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

 

[mum4jenn]

She might be too young to teach her this but it might help if you can do some breathing exercises with her. If you can teach her to take very l o n g DEEP breaths it might help prevent the throwing up. My dd has thrown up like this if she has those really BIG cries. She is 6 now but she would get that upset several years ago. It sounds like she isn't really taking any good breaths inbetween sobs which causes the throwing up to occur.

 

[NHAnn]

I do remember my DD (now 17) sometimes getting on a crying jag and then cough and spit up...but not what I'd call "vomiting" and not daily on an ongoing basis.

As far as the fear of noises and changes in her behavior...does she spend any time with other caregivers on a regular basis...if so, has anyone else noticed the changes? My mind goes where Jenn Lynn's did...something going on in her life or a change of soem sort that may be affecting her. You say "all of a sudden"...if it's very recent (like the last few days) --the turning the clock back over the weekend sure has me- and a lot of people - "out of sorts" and tired...which in a baby can transfer into irritability. I think babies, like all humans, have moods and phases where we just need a little extra attention and/or reassurrance. Certainly the crying-turned -into-vomiting sure gets mom and dad's attention quick...and it doesn't take a child long to pick up on that .

But I think if she really just does not seem herself all the time, I would talk to the pediatrician. It could be the two things are related - if she's not feeling well in between the vomiting episodes that could affect her behavior.. Sometimes for issues like that they will do a phone consult with you to chat and determine if you need to bring her in!

Good luck, please let us know how it's going!

 

[Minnie824]

My DD (2) has done this twice lately. Both times she was really crying. The first, my parents, who watch her every day, were watching her at night trying to get her to sleep. Well, mommy usually gets her to sleep, so I assume thats what upset her...the second time was similar, around bedtime and very upset. Nothing life altering. When she was little though, she used to be a 'breath holder' when she would cry hard. I think I'd rather have her throw up than hold her breath - that is scary. I think its just in their temperament. I asked the doctor, and I think this is just another stage of the breath holding. Just try to not let her get too worked up - I know, thats not easy. it will pass. Good luck.

 

[ChefBilly]

Originally posted by DVC~OKW~96
Again, please don't be offended!

I would never be offended! I appreciate any and all advice I can get.

This is all good advice.
She's happy 99 percent of the time (well, except for the past two days) so maybe I should re-trace our days and see what has changed...

I'm still fairly new to this, so again, I really appreciate the help.

 

[RitaZ.]

Does it happen at bedtime?

My younger DS and DD did the vomiting thing when they were about your DD's age. At first, I was very concerned. By the time we had DD, I had experienced it with younger DS. For them, it happened at bedtime. They would cry in their cribs, after months of going to sleep on their own without crying. If we didn't come into the room to console them, they would throw up.

I talked to the pediatrician when DS started doing it and he said that DS probably wanted attention. Some kids vomit when they get upset. Sure enough, we would run in the room to comfort them and then they were all happy. I remember DS and DD smiling when we would walk in the room and see the vomit all over the crib.

Our pediatrician said not to get too worked up about it and try to ignore it. I decided to put plastic trash bags on the floor around the crib to minimize clean up, if they vomited on the floor. When the pediatrician assured me that there was nothing physically wrong with them, then I stopped worrying. I think it lasted about 2 months. Smart little creatures, aren't they?

Talk to your pediatrician to rule out any other problems.

 

[Christine]

Yes, my son did this and still does (at age 8). We didn't know what it was at first but we found out later that it happens because of asthma. When the crying starts and the mucous starts, the bronchial tubes spasm and then they feel as if they can't breath. The vomiting is an attempt to clear the mucous.

 

[ahutton]

Another thing I had happen around this age with both of my DDs is they started to get thier first molars in. Both have some allergies also (pollen type) and with teething their noses were pretty congested and running. That combined with the extra saliva from the teething process made them sick to their stomachs. One of my girls has acid reflux. I was told the extra saliva will trigger more reflux type reactions too, which can also mean throwing up.

By the way - if the crying starts and the throwing up immediately follows that may just be the warning light that the tummy is upset and is about to vomit. Both of my girls do that too - they kind of wimper cry for a minute and then throw up.

Other than that, you've gotten lots of other great advice!

 

[piratesmate]

I don't have any tips on what's wrong or how to get it to stop, except to say I agree with those who said it's probably a good idea to check in with the pediatrician.

I did want to mention that if she's 13 mos she probably has a couple teeth, right? This is gross, but try to clean her teeth after she vomits. The acid in the stomach can damage those little teeth if it's coming up that far & not just mucus from the bronchia.

I hope you get it figured out soon.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Originally posted by Christine
Yes, my son did this and still does (at age 8). We didn't know what it was at first but we found out later that it happens because of asthma. When the crying starts and the mucous starts, the bronchial tubes spasm and then they feel as if they can't breath. The vomiting is an attempt to clear the mucous.

My dd did the throw up thing relating to asthma too, but she was younger. I would definetly get her checked out at the Ped.

Also she may be starting the crying BECAUSE she is going to throw up. Youngest dd still does this when sick.

Once a day doesn't sound right to me. That warrants some medical advice.

Good Luck

 

[sha_lyn]

I agree with most of the posters that the crying could be from the feeling of having to vomit... or ... the crying is causing the vomiting because of too much mucous.

As for the personality change, shat you describe does cound like normal changes in behavior as they become aware of the world that exist away from them. She is starting to understand cause and effect, remembering things long term etc.