To be baffled by British attitudes towards suppositories?

[AnotherGirlsParadise]

I spent a few years living in Paris, where suppositories are pretty much favoured over oral medications - they work FAST, even for a sore throat, and you don't have to deal with your DC spitting out a load of Calpol and not getting any better in the process. I recently brought a haul of children's paracetamol suppositories home after a visit, and the response I've had from other parents here has been frankly quite upsetting, ranging from 'inappropriate' to 'surely that's abuse?'

So, AIBU to think people should be a little more openminded? And for the record, a suppository is easily popped in, involves no more touching than using a wipe does, and doesn't distress the child in any way. It just seems to me that because it goes through the 'other end', it's all WRONG WRONG WRONG to some.

Whilst living abroad, I had a feverish toddler that point blank refused any medicine to get his temperature down. Went to the docs bemoaning the difficulties. He looked at me like I was very stupid and gave me a suppositories prescription. I said "I can't use those, I'm British". But, having now seen how they work I am completely converted. Fast, effective, painless. No fighting, no spitting or choking. Granted my boy was slightly shocked at the time but he got over it and felt better almost instantly!

YANBU

YAtotallyNBU. I wish they were commonplace in this a country. Imagine how easy it would be to get meds into a sleeping child.

I really don't understand why people find this digusting.

SirChen look I don't have DC yet (pg with no 1) so you probably know lots better than me - genuinely, not being snarky! But then how do you give your children medicine?

I only know from my friends but my close friend who has a 2yo has to force calpol down her throat as 2yo doesn't like the formula or something. Serious question: are you saying if small children resist meds they just don't get medicated? Would you extend this to antibiotics (as painkillers/ Calpol arguably unnecessary if they will recover eventually on their own)?

Maybe I am a weirdo but I don't see the problem with restraining small children to give them meds.

Yanbu people are just too precious here.

I live in Germany, and they are very common. But I just can't do it. I know my horror is cultural, but that doesn't make it less real. No way I could insert something up anyone's rectum, not mine, not my child's.

I stock up on Calpol (well actually on own brand paracetomol suspension) when I am in the UK.

After I gave birth (in the UK), the medical staff tried to persuade me to have a suppository for pain relief. I have never shrieked "NOOOO!" so loudly . They were very snotty with me for refusing it, and told me I wouldn't be allowed any other type of pain relief. Fine by me!

"I said "I can't use those, I'm British""

That's a very funny response!

Personally, I only had to use suppositories (glycerine) for my toddler when she was constipated, but I didn't think anything of it. I do remember the doctor warning that I would have to wet the suppository under the tap first and that when I tried to insert it, it would probably keep flying across the room, but I managed it fine. The idea that people would call it abusive and threaten calling SS is astonishing to me. By the way, sandfish, I'm British too.

I'm open minded about suppositories because I used to be a nurse and I've probably administered thousands of the things.
I'd still rather give my children oral medications though (and use them myself).

I loved the paralink suppositories,much better than faffing about with spoons and a fussy baby. Used to use half a paralink for dds constipation too.

I wish they were more widely available here. DS is an utter nightmare about swallowing medication, no begging, bribing or cajoling has any effect, it always ends up with me pinning him to give it and it's bloody horrible (hiding it in yoghurt or drinks is no good either, that child has some sort of 6th sense about these things or possibly a really refined palette). Suppositories would be a much more pleasant experience for us both I think.

Can I just point out that they are like tampons. If you can feel it its not in far enough.
I had to use post op suppositories and learned how to insert them myself.

"I said "I can't use those, I'm British""

this made me snort!

I find they just shoot up. Whizz.

Nope. Sorry. Never. And DS really did used to refuse oral meds to quite some degree. I hid them in sugary, overconcentrated squash and got him to drink it out of a baby bottle. And also didn't give them unless absolutely necessary.

He would probably think it hilarious if I told him we had medicine that had to go up his bum, but eurgh. I can't even bring myself to look in his bum for worms etc.

So, AIBU to think people should be a little more openminded?

Not sure it's their minds they need to open more . . .

You can buy the French ones I use from a London based French food website (yeah, I know!) - they're £3.00 for 10, which seems pretty reasonable going by what I've seen people are paying for suppositories on here!

Also, 'I can't use those, I'm British' is going to be used a LOT from now on

Andrewofgg, are you somehow implying that these people are tightarsed?

I do remember pinning him down once for calpol when he was about 1, it was horrible, never repeated that. Luckily he didn't need antibiotics before the age of about 2 and then was able to be bribed/reasoned with. As they get older they can understand that they have the choice of dealing with the pain or taking the "magic juice".

He's totally out of luck now we live in Germany. No suppositories but disgusting medicine that tastes like doing a shot.

Imply anything, moi?

Normal in NL too (thermometers and pain relief certainly). Whilst I refuse to let someone jab a thermometer up my own arse, I'm happy to do it for baby.
Dignified, no. Practical, yes.

DS2 refuses to take oral meds (allergies/food phobia /sensitive gag reflex). He had a op when he was 2 and and we were prescribed suppositories as pain relief. They were brilliant and easy to use. But now the GP refuses to prescribe them because they are too expensive - apparently they cost something like £18 for 10

Oh dear this is one of those threads that I read where people are writing things like 'all British' and 'every English mum' etc etc (I paraphrase but there's the suggestion it's an exclusive thing) and I then wonder why I'm so weird because I didn't think suppositories were vile or weird, nor to my knowledge do any of my British parent friends - well as far as I know, not sure I've discussed it with them.

I could pick out one friend who is a mum that is uptight about nudity so it's possibly she would think it 'yuk' and 'wrong', but that's just her.

Why are there so many children that have issues with taking medicine orally anyway? Or are the ones mentioned on the thread babies?

thereinmadnesslies are you able to buy them yourself? Surely you can ask a pharmacy to get them for you, even if they don't stock them as standard?

I had one after my c-section and my bum hurt afterwards so I wouldn't say they're pain free necessarily.

Moin - they seem really hard to get hold of - last time we had to phone around five different pharmacies to find somewhere that had them in stock. Then the pharmacist always tells us that we shouldn't pay, we should get them on prescription instead We have bought them when we can get hold of them.