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.

windchime, that is the first time I've heard a nurse say that about suppositories.

How easy is it to get them?

I ask as recently we had wonderful fun every 4-8 hours trying to force Calpol or Ibuprofen into my 18 months old with a 39/40 degree temp, with her screaming with her month firmly shut, and me and DH is tears!

Shoving a suppository up her bottom strikes me as a much easier idea!

I never had any problem with DS, he golloped any medicine down in no time at all!

Chemists can order them in within 24 hrs (or by 5pm if ordered early in the day). I am not sure whether they are available over the counter in the UK - anybody know?
They are a useful thing to have in the bathroom cabinet, just in case…

Amber, could you phone your GP and ask for a prescription without needing to be seen?

Anybody know how long a pain relief suppository has to remain in situ to be effective?

Windchime I am also a nurse and that is absolutely not my experience, unless it's a suppository specifically to assist with moving the bowels.

Have administered rectal diazapam prob hundreds of times and don't recall that ever being an issue with either adults or children.

10minutes to be effective?
Quite quickly anyway - they do stay in place (unless somebody has a sphincter problem or was about to go to the toilet anyway).
If you popped one in and it was pooed out intact virtually immediately then you could give another one.

I admit it.

As a British person my attitudes and entire culture, such as they are, are inferior to every other nation's whether in relation to colonisation - military, political or social - social and religious or secular values, the rearing of children, the speaking of forrin languages, the sampling of food on holiday and the shoving of things up my bottom.

Ah, limited, but Brits make a mean cup of - don't be hard on yourself. Rightly or wrongly, your post made me

5yr old DS2 had an operation here in France, and they gave him a mild anaesthetic suppository to make him a little groggy before going into theatre.
He didn't want the nurse doing it, so I did it. He didn't express any pain/discomfort at all.

Any parent concerned that their child might be confused about the rules on who can/can't touch their body could reasonably ask to be allowed to insert the suppository themselves.

FWIW I think it's maybe worthwhile nuancing the "nobody can touch you down there" rules to explain that healthcare professionals are a special case, particularly in the presence of parents.

When DS1 was very little he was prescribed some suppositories for a cold, and I thought I'd try them on myself before using them on him, so I could gauge how painful they were.
Eucalyptus and menthol oil up the bum are horrendous. I threw them out.

I hate tea PacificDogwood. But my mum loved it. Making her the odd brew compensated for all the times I left her abandoned in her lonely house with only the cat and The Chase with Bradley Walsh for company.

Because that's what British people do too, isn't it?

I meant a there btw.

Thanks Pacific do they come in different sizes for adult or child dosage? I'm going to give them a try because the last few times I've had to take ibuprofen it gave me stomach pain.

viper, glycerin suppositories to treat constipation come in baby-, child- and adult sizes (1g, 2g, 4g).

If you cannot take Ibuprofen without getting stomach pains then don't try the suppositories either.
The gastrointestinal side effects are a systemic effect - does not matter how you get the brufen in your system.

See your GP and discuss how to get around it - consider alternative painkillers or ant inflammatory + stomach protection.

limited, dontch just hate national stereotypes?! But that's another thread, I suppose...

If the person is constipated, but the poo isn't too hard sometimes the act of inserting a supp can stimulate bowel movement.

But other than that I've never had an issue in both giving them (ex nurse) or having them administered to me. Gallstone attack, if chopping me in half would have stopped the pain I'd have gone for it.

I do make allowance to my no bum rule.
Such as if we were stranded without any drinking water apart from sea water my DH informes me we can safely spray salt water up our arses to prevent dehydration and our colon will protect us from ingesting the salt.
I have no idea if this really works but in an emergancy situation I am prepared to spray salt water up my arse.

Interesting, LittleBairn. I have similar conversations with DH.

A holiday favourite is which of our neighbours on the plane we would eat first if we crashed in the Andes.

We've never been to South America but this game easily translates to a beach in Spain and muttering: 'Your two o'clock. Man playing beach tennis in the shallows. He's got a lot of meat on him.'

I can honestly say I have never contemplated rehydration per rectum, nor cannabalism - brilliant.
But then again, I cannot get my head around colonic irrigation and that seems to be Quite The Thing in some circles.

After DS with high fever had thrown up all the calpol I had just carefully got into him, I was sure glad I'm living in France and had other options available.

And yes, after birth the hospital gave me a glycerin suppository, so I can never contribute to any of the 'post birth poo' horror stories.

limited I'm glad there is another weird couple out there that has these conversations. My choice is always a fit young guy less likely to be grissly but harder to kill therefore we would need a trap...

Pacific I don't get them either but some people really think that their health will fail if they don't regularly 'flush out' I've come across people who use regular laxatives and home colonic kits.

One is reminded of the old classic:

"Doctor, doctor, why have you got a suppository behind your ear?"
"Damn, some bum's got my pencil"