Welcome to Roundtable Reviews.  You and your wife have had a trying time following the birth of your second child.  For those who are unfamiliar with your book, can you share a little more about it?

We co-wrote this book for two reasons. The first reason was in direct response to the lack of information that we found available about our
child's illness. There were pockets of information specific to several things, but none that we found that was able to describe how difficult it was, and would be, to care for a child with a chronic illness, such as acid reflux, and how-to maintain a healthy quality of life.

When we were lucky enough to find helpful information we often thought to ourselves, "Wow, how are other folks in a situation like us going to find this info." Out of that thought grew the focus to write a book to help others.

The second reason was almost as a form of therapy for us. Writing down what we found and what worked/didn't worked helped us stay centered, and focused. The book actually helped us on a daily basis.

Thankfully, my children never had colic or acid reflux as you dealt
with.  However, what struck me with your book is that the medical community is often blind to certain conditions.  Having spent two years taking digitalis, betablockers and then calcium channel blockers to slow my heart rate, all prescribed by a top cardiologist, I ended up in the ER with dangerously low blood pressure and heart rate.  After a lot of internet research, I went back and asked why panic attacks/anxiety disorders have never been discussed.  I was weaned off all medications over six months and went to a psychiatrist.  They say you should always get second opinions, in my case I saw seven different doctors, including two specialists, before I found an answer myself.  I imagine you know exactly how frustrating this can be?  How did you finally break past the barrier?

Well,  all the barriers may never, ever, really get broken,  Maybe just
bent or moved. However, you are correct in that there are barriers out
there. We were lucky, very, very lucky in that we found some very
progressive and diligent folks at hospitals such as Georgetown University
and the University of Missouri (but not before we had to kiss some real
toads) and in the support group of PAGER <http://www.reflux.org> that made an amazing difference in the quality of life for us.

What have you considered to be the worst and best moments through your and your son's ordeal?

The worst moments were the times of unknowing, not actually knowing what was wrong with Ben for so long, and what to do to help him.  

The best moments were meeting wonderful folks, like at Missouri and with Mercy Flight (who flew us to Missouri since we didn't have the resources to afford it) and actually finding ways to help improve our quality of life.

What is the difference between acid reflux, GER and GERD?

Acid reflux, also known as Gastroesphogeal Reflux, is in essence, a
plumbing problem in the human system.  It occurs when the valve in a
person's lower esophagus does not close, or does not stay closed properly,
allowing the stomach contents to escape.  This valve usually works well in most infants; however, current estimates are that upwards of one-in-twenty infants born may suffer from reflux. When reflux occurs and the contents escape they can burn the delicate lining of the esophagus, causing pain and damage.  A few babies develop reflux 'disease' (a.k.a. GERD), which means that the reflux has caused damage or other serious health consequences.

How is your son doing now?

Great! We are convinced that he is going to either be a rock-star, or
middle linebacker for the Patriots. When he is upright, he is like any
other active two-year-old except that what he can eat is very restricted.
When he is lying down, well that is a different story since gravity is a
reflux-suffer's friend. Most infants outgrow reflux by the time they turn
one-year-old. Ben is two, and still suffers from it, but it is manageable,
and the future looks bright for him. But there is still work to do.


I imagine it was also very tough on your first born son having his mom
and dad's focus on his new brother.  How has he handled circumstances
through the years?

He has been wonderful. You are right, it has been tough. And there have
been times, after no-sleep nights that we have felt sorry for him due to
the lack of attention he got, but he loves his brother and is really
helpful. And whenever he sees a Comerica about reflux medication for adults he will say, "Let's get that for Ben!"

Now that you have written and published this book.  Will you consider
writing other books in the future?

This is Mike's ninth book, but our first together. We can see some more,
but right now the focus is on getting this book out to those that need it
the most.