Constipation-its really upsetting me now

[Rubys mummy]

Had Ruby back to the doctors 3 times now...

She has been suffering with constipation for around 6 months now. She would go a few days without passing, and when she did go it would be so hard and big, she would be in a right state passing it, and sometimes it cut her little bum so there would be a bit of blood when I wiped her She was prescribed Myvicol salts which she is taking daily. These made the stools softer but she still wasnt going regularly.

Doc then gave her lactalose (sp?) which didnt seem to work either!!

She is now back on the salts again and has been for a few weeks. she went finally this morning after 4 days, OH has been on and on at me every day saying something is wrong and she should be going every day. its making me so unhappy now-I am obsessed with her bowel movements!! It was fairly soft today and she didnt cry.

Her diet is good-she loves friut and veg, and drinks plenty of juice and water through the day...

Has anyone else experience of this? Is it normal for her not to go every day???

Its really starting to get to me now, I feel like I am doing something wrong....

 

[Kylie1007]

It's horrid isn't it. When Finn first started on solids he had horrendous constipation and went 11 days without a poo - the11th day was a lactulose day and a very horrid nappy, but trying to squeeze out those pebbles made his little bum bleed. Anyway...did the doc tell you how to use lactulose? Sounds like a silly question but mine didn't and it's something to do with drawing the water to the area or something like that. My HV said to give full doses of lactulose and then gradually "wean" them off it. Is she drinking plenty of water/juice too?

 

[Rubys mummy]

It's horrid isn't it. When Finn first started on solids he had horrendous constipation and went 11 days without a poo - the11th day was a lactulose day and a very horrid nappy, but trying to squeeze out those pebbles made his little bum bleed. Anyway...did the doc tell you how to use lactulose? Sounds like a silly question but mine didn't and it's something to do with drawing the water to the area or something like that. My HV said to give full doses of lactulose and then gradually "wean" them off it. Is she drinking plenty of water/juice too?

No, he just gave it to me, said to stop the salts and try lactulose...so we gave her a 5ml dose of an eveningif she hadnt gone that day....she could have a dose for 2 nights in a row without going...

She drinks loads of juice and water-plus she is still having a few bottles of milk a day which she loves-4oz on waking, 6oz before her morning nap and a 9oz bottle before bed...

What do they class as a full dose of lactulose then?

 

[Kylie1007]

My doc just gave it to me too - in fact he prescribed it over the phone!
I guess a dose is a tsp but I was told to go from say..1 tsp every few hours to once a day to 1/2 tsp once a day to every few days.

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/medicines/100001447.html
http://besttreatments.bmj.com/btuk/cond ... 17269.html

I only used it that once and now his poo is the opposite - totally runny & gross. So much so I'm going to ring HV in the morning.

 

[KJ]

Asher has had 'poo' issues ever since we started weaning. We've had several occasions where he's gone 6-7 days without a poo! And we've had the blood and tears aswell, so I understand what you're going through.

Personally I found the lactulose crap, as Ash didn't like it so we barely got any down him. I give him fruit puree as a desert after most meals now so that is helping.

But the best thing for me has been glycerol suppositories. I always keep a supply in the house in case of emergencies. It may sound drastic, but it's really not. I was mortified the first time at having to push one in my little boys bum, but it really isn't that bad and it didn't hurt him at all. They're really effective and besically just lubricate the lower part of the anus, making the poo slide out easier. Usually within a few hours of using one he has done a poo. Even if he's trying to do a poo and hasn't been for a while and is obviously having problems, I use one and it makes the whole process much easier for him. You just get them from the pharmacy. The problem with babies that don't go every day is, the longer a poo stays inside the dryer it becomes. The body absorbs water from the poo all the time it stays inside. So I always find there is a really hard bit of poo right at the bottom which is why he has such problems getting it out. Once that bit is passed, the rest is a lot softer.

I hope you get it sorted, I know how distressing it can be.

K.xx

 

[Kylie1007]

I also gave Finn pureed prunes at the time