My feed
Premium

Please
or
to access all these features

For free parenting resources please check out the Early Years Alliance's Family Corner.

Parenting

4 weeks in, horrendous nappy rash and feel like failure

44 replies

flossyflo · 10/05/2013 22:10

DH is away for the night and as luck would have it DD has developed the most horrendous nappy rash.

She has had it on and off for the last 2 weeks but has got lots worse in last 24 hours. Have been using metanium but went to the drs today and got steroid cream dekacrot or something like that. But it just doesn't act as a barrier at all and worried it might make it worse before it gets better.

Asked doc if I should use barrier cream as well but was told to just use the steroid cream at every change

Am just beside myself. Am in tears every time I change her nappy as it is red raw. This is so hard just not feeling like I am coping at all.

Tried loads of nappy off time today but dont think it has made any difference. Any ideas How long steriod cream will take to work? God I just didn't expect to be such a jibbering wreck as a mother.

OP posts:
Report
nethunsreject · 10/05/2013 22:12

Ach you're certainly not a failure!! Nappy rash is extraordinarily common and you've sought medical attention and you are concerned for your baby - these are the actions of a loving parent!

Report
Cosmo89 · 10/05/2013 22:15

Happens. Don't stress- you're not terrible it's not your fault!!!

I was told not to use barrier cream, as it moistens the area and makes it worse, therefore. GP said- lots of air time and application of steroid cream. Give her tummy time with nappy off as much as possible, or on her side- might take a few days to clear but you will see improvement quickly.

Report
stargirl1701 · 10/05/2013 22:16

You are not a failure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What about trying different brands of nappies?

Have you considered reusables? Silk liners are very good for nappy rash.

Lots of nappy off time for your LO would be great.

Report
PacificDogwood · 10/05/2013 22:16

Aw, flossy, she'll be fine.
I'd use Daktacort twice a day morning and night with barrier cream on top AND barrier cream (lots and lots of it) at every nappy change. Personally, I've always really liked Sudocrem, buckets of it.
Daktacort is an antifungal + steroid (antiinflammatory) cream; the yeast that causes thrush lives on all our skin and thrives on a warm and moist environment, hence babies getting nappy rash.
Dry her bum carefully after a bath; blow-drying with a hairdryer on a cool setting is a good way of doing it when towel drying is too sore for them.

Have a look in her mouth: does she have white spots in there?
Have either one of you had antibiotics recently?
Has she had diarrhoea? Not milky 'chicken korma' poos, but offensive diarrhoea?
Are you BFing her?

Sorry, lots of questions. IME, how much babies are troubled with nappy rash is often dependent on what skintype they are blessed/lumbered with: DS1 never had a rash in his life, DS2 had lots of problems with a sore nappy area - he's the one who has eczema, even now (aged 9).

Report
melliebobs · 10/05/2013 22:17

Have u tried a differen brand of nappy? We use cloth but huggies n pampers give dd what looks like burns. We've found Naty nappies (u can get them at sainsburies) to be the nicest for her bum. N when nappy rash flares up as inconvenient as it is but nappy free time really helps Smile

Report
Cosmo89 · 10/05/2013 22:17

Shoukd have said my DS's was so bad even the GP looked astonished. Red raw. I knew it must be awful when he prescribed steroid cream, cos you can't get prescriptions out if him for love nor money

Report
IHateSafeStyle · 10/05/2013 22:17

When dds was really horrible I sat her in a dettol bath, really calmed it down.

Report
FlamingGallah · 10/05/2013 22:23

You poor thing, it is horrid and you feel like it is your fault for them getting it. It isn't, I had this with DC3 when the previous two hadn't had any problems at all. Turned out to be thrush and the horrific red raw patches improved within days, and were completely healed within a week or so.

Lots of great advice on here so far, but the take home message is that you are not a failure, and that it looks far worse than it is!

Report
Haggisfish · 10/05/2013 22:27

I would expect to see a difference within 24 hours. keep going with the nappy off time - if it doesn't improve go back to check it's not thrush. have you been using the metanium all the time? I put it on at every nappy change, whether she had nappy rash or not. You're not a failure - the reality of having a baby is sinking in and the 'high' of a safe birth is wearing off - it takes a long time to adjust! It got better for me after six weeks and was feeling almost back to 'normal' within 6 months - just in time to go back to work!

Report
flossyflo · 10/05/2013 22:27

Thanks for all your lovely messages. Being a mum has really shocked me, was confident happy person before she was born, now every little thing sends me into a tail spin...

Am bf and poos are very runny basically every time she parps or sneezes a little bit of poo comes out. I am practically changing her every hour in the day. Not sure what to do tonight should I wake her to change her

Have tried a few brands of nappy but not huggies or the one from sainsburys

No white spots in the mouth that I could spot. Doc didn't look for them and she is bf fine.

OP posts:
Report
Haggisfish · 10/05/2013 22:29

Oh yes, the nappy brand - huggies or pampers made my DCs bums red raw. tescos own brand newborn and then super dry nappies were the ones for us.

Report
SacreBlue · 10/05/2013 22:30

Ditto everyone above, it happens, not to all babies parents but to lots.

Same advice as PP and GP. If thrush etc is already ruled out and thrush is so common too best if you can cope with the odd accident is to let LO to without a nappy, the weather is warming up and she will probably like the freedom to kick about a bit without.

Try a different nappy too, my DS sooo many years ago now had a preferred brand that seemed to work best for him.

Btw - chin up Flowers not easy managing on your own with an upset bubba xx

Report
Haggisfish · 10/05/2013 22:32

the in one end and out the other nature of feeding stops after about four-six weeks - I totally forgot how bad it is!

Report
nowgotosleep · 10/05/2013 22:33

My DD got nappy rash with pampers, aldi etc Nappies. I moved to nature babycare ones, which are breathable and chemical free. Never had a problem with them. They might be worth a try.

Report
BrianCoxandTheTempleofDOOM · 10/05/2013 22:35

oh it is so bloody hard OP. you are not a failure at all, you're doing brilliantly just keep chipping away with cream and no nappy time and you'll be fine

change her thru the night if she has pood, she may wake but its worth getting a fresh nappy and more cream on in the long run.

DS is 6 weeks, I've been on strong antibiotics for 3 weeks (looking like I need yet more as still not sorted). the poor more's bum had been awful, poo is pure liquid Sad. I feel like a shit and a half for putting him through it, but ultimately I have to take the meds and I don't want to quit BF.

Are you using baby wipes to.clean him up? if so can you switch to cotton wool anf water? give her a rest from everything?

Report
Happyasapiginshite · 10/05/2013 22:36

Another vote for loads of nappy off time. Leave her nappy off for as much of the day as you can (wear your raincoat for the day Smile ) because the acid in her wee makes it worse. My dd is 2 1/2 now, not toilet trained, and suffers from nappy rash especially when she's teething. I just let her run around all day with no nappy. She did a poo on the kitchen floor yesterday and walked in it and we just cleaned it up and carried on.

You're doing a great job. All babies get nappy rash and some seem to suffer more than others. Don't be so hard on yourself.

Report
Almostfifty · 10/05/2013 22:38

Another vote here for sudocrem. It just seemed to clear nappy rash immediately.

Hope everything looks better tomorrow.

Report
PacificDogwood · 10/05/2013 22:38

Here's another thought:
Avoid wet wipes to clean her bum, use the dreaded cottonwool balls and tepid water instead.
BFing is good, sounds like she has normal poos. Keep changing frequently, avoid rubbing, keep her dry/nappy off.
Kamillosan cream was another one I tried but always came back to Sudocrem.

Hope it gets better soon; 'tis horrible
And you are not a failure, of course you are not.
Babies are ridiculously difficult Wink

Report
RainbowsFriend · 10/05/2013 22:39

I found with DD that rinsing her bottom with cotton wool soaked in strong chamomile tea rather than using wipes, cleared up her awful nappy rash IN HOURS Shock

It was incredible...

Report
Flosshilde · 10/05/2013 22:39

My DS2 had horrendous nappy rash at 4 weeks ish. We used tons of Sudocrem but really what sorted it was just pooing less often. This will come with time, at 7 wks he poos about twice a day and the rash has disappeared. Are you using wipes or cotton wool and water? A tiny bit of poo will be less irritating than hourly use of wipes.

I didn't wake to change. Let sleeping babies lie.

Bf babies often eventually go days without pooing so you end up worrying about that instead...

Report
RainbowsFriend · 10/05/2013 22:40

Oh yes and we stay well away from wipes now....

Report
PacificDogwood · 10/05/2013 22:40

Happy, urine is actually quite good for skin (urea used in plenty of expensive creams Grin), it's the wetness that's the problem AND corrosive poos.

Report

Don’t want to miss threads like this?

Weekly

Sign up to our weekly round up and get all the best threads sent straight to your inbox!

Log in to update your newsletter preferences.

You've subscribed!

PeazlyPops · 10/05/2013 22:46

Please don't beat yourself up about it, these things happen and you're doing the right thing by seeing your gp!

I tried loads of different creams for DS who gets nappy rash quite frequently and the only cream that helped was bepanthen.

Report
AppleCrumples · 10/05/2013 22:48

Op this happened with 3 of mine! Was religiously putting cream on, stopped using babywipes but faffed about with water and cotton wool and always made sure bottom dry before putting nappy on, oh and changed every time they so much as blinked! Metanium was best but also with vaseline.

They all grew out of it. Dd2 was bad from around 3 weeks till she stopped pooping so much! Now 18 weeks and nappy rash a distant memory so pkease don't worry. You are doing so well :) and the early days can be a huge shock. Like most things it will soon pass and you will thrn find something else to worry about

Report
LunaticFringe · 10/05/2013 22:56

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.