Newborn poo / nappy rash saga

[PhyllisVance]

I posted recently about the fact my DD poos all the time and she now has a very sore bottom with red open sores.

She’s been prescribed and anti-fungal / anti-septic combo cream to help shift it. The pharmacist advised leaving it on for 30mins before applying a barrier cream.

This would be fine except I don’t think my DD goes 30mins without pooing. I’ve just applied it. We had 10 mins of waiting with nappy off, she sneezed and did a poo. So I’ve had to wipe her and reapply.

Every single time I look her nappy is dirty. She seems to do lots of little poos in between big ones. We are changing her every 1-2 hours but this doesn’t seem to be enough.

What can I do? I am at my wits end.

For info she is 4.5 weeks old and EBF.

Please help. I feel so sorry for her.

[PhyllisVance]

Oh and her poos are increasingly smelly which I didn’t expect for EBF. Don’t know if that is related?

[Ohnoherewego62]

Dairy intolerance??

Mines has vinegar sour smelling poos, eczema and extremely irritable

[Ohnoherewego62]

Had* on prescribed milk and doing well

[bloated1977]

I was thinking a dairy intolerance too. My EBF baby didn't poo very much at all. Maybe get the doctor to investigate.

[user1493413286]

Could you give her a good amount of time each day for a few hours with a nappy off and either laying on an absorbent mat (the type that’s for changing mats)? That’s what we did for our DD when she had nappy rash then you wipe up any poo the minute it’s done and there’s no time for it to get sore. I know it’s not particularly practical and for us we used a muslin so ended up doing a lot of washing but having that tone with the cream on and no nappy really helped and it only took a few days.

[milliefiori]

She may be reacting to something you are eating passed through to the milk. You could try cutting back on anything known to cause reactions (google it).

Is there anything else she could be sucking on that could upset her stomach? Try washing all bedding in very gentle laundry powder. Make sure you're not cleaning surfaces with really strog disinfectant.

I never found things like Sudocrem any good at all. So sticky and heavy and bad for the skin. There was a much softer, gentler ointment called Kamillosan chamomile which was absolutely brilliant at getting rid of nappy rash. For some reason it's been discontinued but you can still buy it online for less than a tenner, so well worth getting a tube or tub and seeing if it soothes her skin.

[PhyllisVance]

Thanks for the suggestions so far. She has just done another poo... 15 mins after the last. This can’t be normal?! Sorry. I am a FTM.

I should have added she’s gaining weight really well... almost 2lbs heavier than birth weight now.

[Theoriginaldramallama]

I could have written this exact post when my baby was 3 weeks. He was EBF and had the most horrific nappy rash (open sores, bleeding etc) despite trying four different anti fungal and anti septic creams. He would also poo non stop. After being fobbed off by GPs I took him to the hospital, was seen very quickly in the A&E department and he was diagnosed with a dairy intolerance. I was also prescribed Cavilon- it is the most excellent barrier cream and using that, along with not putting a nappy on him unless leaving the house/bed time (I just held him and put a unfastened nappy on front to catch the wee) meant he had healed in about a week. It was the best thing we did x

[Theoriginaldramallama]

I also went dairy free- poo slowed down in about 3 days and by a couple of weeks he would only poo every 4 days. X

[Theoriginaldramallama]

One more thing- get the cavilon spray, not cream, as a couple of sprays cover the whole sore like a film and so any poo runs off it and the wound can heal. It doesn’t sting when you apply either. Amazing stuff!

[TapDanceJazzHands]

Is your baby unsettled and unhappy? These are also signs of a dairy intolerance/CMPA.

My 4 week old was similar with the frequency of poos (I think everyone thought I was exaggerating) but it did get better around 6 weeks- he does not have any intolerance. I managed to keep his skin happy with yellow metanium when it was broken and sudocreme every nappy change but It sounds like you baby need more advice from the GP.

Would you consider cutting dairy from your diet (takes 1 week to notice any change but about 4 weeks to be out of your system- so it does require a good commitment from you)?

[PhyllisVance]

She’s generally a happy and content baby. She sleeps well and hardly ever cries. She sometimes gets upset trying to fart/poo. I have thought she might have a bit of silent reflux but nothing major.

I would try dairy free if it helps her. Seems to have worked for a few others.

There is a health visitor clinic in my village today. Should I ask them for advice or go back to GP?

[starfishmummy]

Theoriginal erc - cavillon is great as a barrier, but should not be used if there is an infection or thrush. Clear that up first.

[Sotiredbutcannotsleep]

I think you can get nappy rash 'fans' to air their bum between changes. I found the only nappy cream to get rid of rashes straight away was Johnson's 3 in 1 but you can only get it online now (Amazon, online pharmacies etc).

[PhyllisVance]

So I went to the Health Visitor drop in earlier today and it was a waste of time (why am I not surprised?).

When I explained that DD can do a poo every 10-15mins she laughed, shrugged and said that EBF babies poo a lot.

I’ll have to try GP next but in the meantime will try some of these suggestions.

I thought breastfeeding was the best choice for my baby but I can’t help but think it’s doing her more harm than good at the moment

[picklemepopcorn]

Hopeless HV there! Don't feel bad about EBF- it could be far worse if she was on a normal formula!
Definitely try dairy free for a week or so- you should see a difference very quickly.

Lots of good ideas for airing her little bottom- what are you using to clean her? DS couldn't tolerate wipes at all. I ended up using a cream and cotton wool.

[PhyllisVance]

@picklemepopcorn we are using cotton wool and water at home and water wipes when out and about.

What kind of cream did you use?

[picklemepopcorn]

It was something like Johnson's baby lotion, but without all the perfumes etc. An own brand one, I think. I found it gentler than water, and added a layer of protection and moisture as it went. I might even have used baby oil, thinking back. He's 24 now, so it's a bit of a stretch to remember!

[PragmaticWench]

If it does prove to be the dairy, there's a great breastfeeding support group for CMPA (cows mill protein allergy on facebook and you can definitely keep feeding.

The group is called CMPA for breastfeeding or similar, you can do a search for it. There's a linked Reflux CMPA group too.

[TapDanceJazzHands]

@PhyllisVance you are definitely doing the right thing by continuing breastfeeding.

You either need the right barrier and treatment creams to get through this phase. Or you need to try cutting dairy from your diet & given that formula is made up from cows milk this will not be helpful!

Definitely go and try the GP.

[PhyllisVance]

We saw the GP today who, unprompted, suggest we try dairy free. She agreed there is likely an intolerance.

We are on our third day of dairy free after the suggestions here. I think the poos are reducing and her rash is a bit better but we’ve had quite a stressful 24 hours. She just isn’t her usual self. Up every 1.5-2 hrs last night, feeding little and often whereas she’d previously have decent feeds and go down for 3-4hrs. She has fussed on the breast all evening with back arching cries and she just hasn’t been settling well. She’s just done a big poo and settled straight after so I’m wondering if she’s getting a bit backed up?

Any ideas why this might be happening? Coincidence? Will it sort itself out as the dairy starts to leave my system?

[PhyllisVance]

Bump

[PhyllisVance]

Bump

[DancingWithDogs]

@PhyllisVance my little one is EBF and is now 3 months old.

Before we left the hospital (stayed 2 nights but about 36 hours in total) little one had pooped easily 15+ times on the first day we were there! I'd say she did poop easily 10-15 times a day for the first few months. We went through a huge amount of nappy's. I just charged her ASAP.
Even now she'll go maybe 3 times in an hour but then not till the next day.

[picklemepopcorn]

Quite possible, Phyllis!
Her little system now has to get used to slightly firmer poos, slightly slower digestion etc. Do lots of warm baths, rub her tummy, and try and ride it out.