FSIL rude about baby eye gunk

[merlotmummy14]

My 15 week old DD has a bit of gunk around the corners of her eye and has had it for roughly a week now. Nothing severe and hasn't effected her eyesight or irritated her or her skin in any way. My mother (midwife), aunt (paediatric nurse) and cousin (infant paediatric nurse) all noticed it when I was up at theirs and said it was nothing to worry about and to just keep cleaning it with sterile water and some gauze. Have been doing so and glad to say it's nearly gone today. However yesterday I received multiple messages from both my FFIL and FSIL telling me I need to take her to the doctors and get her seen by a 'professional' because apparently my relatives (a collective 80 years nursing experience behind them) isn't good enough. My FSIL (who is early thirties, has no kids of her own, no childcare or medical experience, can't be in the same room when we change a dirty diaper without gagging and being a drama queen about it and spends the entire time shes with our DD taking selfies with her) said "The wee soul has had a minging eye for a week and it's oozing throughout the day". Just to clarify she's seen her twice while shes had it and usually sees her max once a week at my FPILs. AIBU to have taken offence to this? It might be a little unsightly but she's happy as larry and the doctors unlikely to prescribe any antibiotic treatment given I have history of allergic reactions to antibiotics. My other mum friends have also had the same things happen with their babies and it's all cleared up by itself within a few weeks. I just feel like telling her to mind her own business and stop making it out to me that I'm abusing the 'wee soul' by not taking her to the GP.

It won't have been either! Gonorrhoeal eye disease is an emergency and can rapidly lead to blindness so babies should be admitted for iv antibiotics. Chlamydia needs more specific testing and treatment. Usually only affects neonates.

Phew! Thanks for clarifying. Mild panic there.

Is your partner getting the same criticism and questioning about the care of his DD?

My dd had this, it was an underdeveloped blocked tear duct and persisted well past her 1st birthday. Swabbing regularly with cool boiled water tidied it up and gently massaging it helped too but it was just the place her snot came out! As she grew it improved. We saw a specialist about it when she was about 10 months old and were offered the option of having the blocked duct surgically opened but we didn’t want her to have a GA for what was essentially a cosmetic problem.
Even now at the tender age of 21 she can still get ‘ snot’ coming out of her eye when she has a heavy cold 🤢

My HV recommended me camomile tea at room temperature. Damp a cotton wool in it without dripping and clean from the inside out, don't use the same cotton wool again, use a different one.

Hope your little one feels better. Ignore the comments, they are just not knowledgeable and want to suggest things to help... Maybe?

I’d get it checked out tbh. My whole family GP and health visitor said “it happens all the time, just clean it with water” this went on until the eye got so swollen I had to bring him to children’s A+E . Blocked tear duct with an infection so bad they were afraid it would spread to the brain. LO had surgery to correct it at 4 wks old.