Constipated 8 month old - please help!

[SallyMischievo]

I posted last week about my 8 month old DD not having pooed for a week. It has now been 13 days and her discomfort and distress is becoming unbearable. Upon the advice of our GP, we have given 2.5ml of Lactulose twice a day for four days which has done nothing, we have today moved onto one sachet of Movicol per day, (which was incredibly tricky to administer all in one go as it needs to be dissolved in 60ml of water and she isn't keen on bottles and still doesn't swallow very efficiently from a cup) which has yet to take effect. She has been straining, writhing and crying for the last three hours and has finally fallen asleep exhausted. What can I do?! I am crying big fat tears as I type. Is there anything more that they could do for her if we take her to A&E?

[LittleMiss77]

Hey OP - I didnt want to read and run...have you rang 111?

I dont have any experience of this, but I think if your LO is in discomfort and you are worried then you should call. Tell them what you have given and what has happened so far - if they think its worth a trip to A & E they will say so.

Does your hospital have a separate A & E for kids? Can you ring them direct and see if you can talk to a nurse/dr?

I really hope your DD is feeling better soon

[ffffffedup]

If she's asleep now for the night I'd leave her but certainly ring 111 for advice in the morning, they may well suggest a&e or if you can ring and speak to the gp you saw last week they may be able to refer you direct to the children's ward at the hospital rather than going through the wait in a&e. I hope she's better soon x

[MingZillas]

Prunes always works for our dd who gets prone to constipation and takes lactose daily. Just blitz up a can of them in the food processor and freeze in ice cube trays.
for you it's awful seeing them upset. Hope your dd manages to go soon.

[Totalshambles]

The pharmacy will have glycerine suppositories designed for infants. My son had this same thing when he first started solids. After 11 days, i went to the chemist and they advised me to try it. Got home, used one, 5 minutes later came an unholy explosion of poo! I will never forget the sight nor the smell - but it was good to get it out!! He slept well afterwards.

[CanISayOfHerFace]

My DS had this. I gave lots of BM and some puréed pears and prunes. Then one morning when he was really straining like your DD I popped him in the bath which apparently helps and he did a small poo. I got him out to put in fresh water and whilst I was holding him half the world fell out of his backside! It was unreal. I actually just stood there for about three minutes not knowing what to do or where to start, we and the bathroom were covered!

I was very careful with his solids after that's it's horrible to see them in pain

[polkadotdelight]

When DS was tiny he didnt 'go' for a while and the midwife massaged around his anus with vaseline which produced a poonami. I have chopped a dried prune up finely and soaked it in yoghurt overnight before now, and orange juice too but Im guessing shes a bit too constipated for that now.

[stickytoffeeface]

Prunes as a everyday constipation preventor for dd. I soak about five in hot water then wizz them into a thick gloop to keep in the fridge for a few days. This gets stired into porridge, a teaspoonful or so, and when she hasn't gone for a few days I also give her a couple of babyspoons with her breakfast. To hell with blw when she needs her prunes! I think it does keep her regular and her poos got softer after I started this. Dd is 7 months.

[SallyMischievo]

Thank you so much, all. Am heading back to the GP this afternoon for glycerin suppositories to use as a last resort. Fingers crossed the Movicol will work soon and we won't need them! Many thanks again.

[DriverSurpriseMe]

After 13 days she's probably too far gone for the Movicol to work. You need to shift the hard painful blockage at the exit and you'll only manage that with a suppository.

Movicol will be brilliant for making sure she doesn't get this bad again though. You could give her half a sachet per day to keep her regular.

[SewSlapdash]

Definitely suppositories. We had a similar experience. Lactulose was completely useless and was a complete pain to get into DS.

[SallyMischievo]

Thank you. It looks as though we will have to roll our sleeves up! I'm dreading putting them in! Absolutely terrified of hurting her :-(

[DriverSurpriseMe]

Lubricate your finger with a bit of baby bum cream. You need to push it in quite far (you might even touch the poo with your finger - gross, but you'll know the suppository is high up enough to start softening the blockage) and then it should work really quickly. Poor baby will feel SO much better afterwards.

[Totalshambles]

Its really no big deal. We didnt bother trying anything else just went straight for the suppositories (it had been ten days). Just a tip though hold the bum cheeks together for a minute or so after you put it in to stop it coming out. It took me a couple of attempts. I used a bit of water on the tip of the suppository which made it easy to put in!!

[SallyMischievo]

All done, that was truly horrible though, she screamed and screamed whilst it was working and when the poo was coming out, have never seen her so distressed. Thank you for all your advice - now for an early night!

[Totalshambles]

She will forget and just feel more comfortable. You will also feel relief now too!

Lay off giving her toast and banana. They are both so easy for babies to eat and its easy to give lots. Both cause constipation. Pieces of tangerine, prunes, veg etc all great. I remember assuming banana was fine but it can cause problems.

[DriverSurpriseMe]

Hopefully the worst has passed, literally.

Keep up with the Movicol though, because there is a biiiig backlog that needs to shift!

[ffffffedup]

Glad she's passed something and will hopefully be feeling more comfortable now. The things we do as Mums hey!!!!