bf guru's, TikTok and friends - have you experience of...

[treedelivery]

...slow gut motility in fully bf newborns?

I ought to search threads but I'm too tired, miserable and demoralised so forgive me.

dd2 is 6 weeks - has colic or wind or constipation or belly ache or something.

She has only opened her bowels every 3 days since birth which I know to be odd in a tiny babe, but normal in a month or 2 old baby. I'm a mw so I can rationalise most bf stuff that goes on in our house but I cannot get my head around this.

The poo is soft, yellow basically Korma style. But When it is due she is miserable. Truly in agony.

We've tried and persued Lactase drops, infacol, gavison, chiropractor - that helped - and homeopath. I baby wear [not my choice!], massage and she co sleeps. Still the misery with wind, burps, possits and bowels.

Where the hell does the wind come from, and why does poo-ing hurt so much? Arrrggggghhh!!

Am just starting treatment for breast duct thrush too. oh my life!!

could it be something you're eating that's upsetting her? keeping a food diary might help?

That could be embarrasing! I think my diet is generally crap, but there is nothing in particular I have loads of, and nothing particulary strong iyswim?
Might do the food diary though. God what a thought.

Oh tree - so sorry you're having a hard time. Have no advice, but I missed your birth announcement, so many many congratulations on the birth of your wee girl. Hope her innards are working a bit more easily soon.

Thanks Habbibu. Have had no mumsnet since delivering her -thats how mental it's been!

Tree, we have had exactly the same thing! DS has pooed at most once every other day since birth, usually more like once every 4-5 days, longest has been about 9 days. His poo varies from proper BF poo to thick tar, even when he was EBF (he now has one bottle of formula, which hasn't really made a difference either way). He's now 24.5 weeks.

It's been a complete pain, TBH. No one has really been able to help, DS is a misery for the 12-24 hours before he finally poos, lots of wind and discomfort, waking every hour or two in the night.

I tried:

• cutting out dairy (no change)
• cutting out caffeine (I think this made a difference, but it may have been coincidence, and now I'm too scared to drink coffee until I stop BF!)
• cutting out things like onions, garlic, cabbage, sprouts (no change)
• infacol (I think it made burps come up easier, but didn't affect anything else really)
• suppositories - this is the latest thing, and makes him poo very quickly and painlessly, but obviously not a great idea long term.

I did notice a distinct improvement at about 10 weeks - screamy colicky evenings pretty much disappeared, but the gut issues are still very much with us.

The doc and paed are optimistic that his gut will improve once he's weaned (advised starting on fruit etc rather than anything that might bung him up further), and we've already started putting things in front of him when he's in his highchair, although nothing's going in yet!
Have been promised more investigation if it doesn't improve with weaning.

Sorry, I know that's not really a huge help to you, but thought you might be interested to hear of someone who's had exactly the same thing. Seems to be fairly unusual, especially with BF babies.

Hopefully this is a huge help!! I was wondering about suppositories.

I think the GP may offer referral at the 6 week check - did you find it helpfull? Have they mentioned weaning early or later?

I did find it helpful to talk to a paed, but only from a reassurance point of view, rather than finding a 'cure'.

Some noises were made about early weaning, but it was decided that since there was no known reason for the gut problems, there was no reason why early weaning might help, rather than hinder it, and we agreed that weaning around this time meant that at least we wouldn't add to any existing problems.
Paed also highlighted things like keeping on top of it as he gets older, to ensure that he doesn't start holding it in once he's aware of it, even if this means long term diet management (plenty of fluids, fibre etc) and even movicol/lactulose when he's potty training. However, he is optimistic that once there is simply a greater volume going through the gut it will improve significantly.

DS is supremely unconcerned by suppositories (often smiles when they're going in - eeeewwww), and they do the trick, but will probably only provide relief while we're using them (3 day course) rather than improving things long term. in our case it has meant buying us an extra week before giving in to the desire to wean in an attempt to improve things.

I also find slinging it or putting him in his bouncy chair rather than on the floor helps - think it's the keeping him in a knees up position, which naturally relaxes the bottom, making wind pass more easily. he's never really been a fan of lying down, and I think that's why.

We also found that sometimes when he was uncomfortable at night he would settle propped on his side with pillows, as he would again adopt a knees up foetal position, and fart a bit and generally be happier.

Ermmm... I'll let you know if I think of anything else that eased things for us!

This all rings really really true, and we have used the things/positions/tricks you have too. Except for suppositories as were not that far down the road yet.

My dd1 has long term constipation and started movicol in the summer aged 31/2 - worked a dream. Wish we'd acted sooner [ah more guilt].

Off to baby massaage tommorow, hv assure me anal massage will help.......

It's really reasurring to hear that someone else has this going on. Although obviously would rather your ds didn't have it you understand!

I had this problem with DS1 and it made me and him thoroughly miserable for the first three months...
What did help him was cranial osteopathy, he would always have a big poo after a session and then he woudl be happier.
Also massaging his tummy and back after a bath and pushing his legs into his chest helped a bit.
And agree that lying down is the worst position, using a sling (as you are), and bouncy chair are prob better for him than lying down.
Hope it gets better soon...

Hmm. Have tried chiroprator with some affect [perhaps, so hard to rate improvements as I want a total cure!!]. Wonder if osteopathy is significantly different.

I haven't used a chiropracter but osteopathy is about treating the whole body, which am not sure is the same? Osteopaths can tell pretty detailed things just from gently manipulating the head, which I thought was quite amazing.
Anyway it did help us so I thought I'd mention it.
And baby massage good for stress relief too.
You haved my sympathies, it's no fun...

Thanks Pannacotta. Now really rancy some Pannacotta. Yum.

Nearest oestropath who treat bubbas is 50 miles away, but would obviously do it. God would go to Mars if would help! Will access situation next week.

Chiro talks of an abdominal release for next week. Dunno what one is but sounds very dynamic!
Might start a thread. Must be some Chiro's out there!

Well am sure you deserve some nice pudding!
SHame the nearest osteopath is so far away.

GOod luck, hope you get some help/advice.

My ds2 is 12 weeks and has had bowel problems since he was 2 weeks old. After lots of tests they have this week decided his anus is too small. We are going back next week to discuss treatment.

We initially had to give him suppositories but they didn't always work. DS2 gets very upset before doing a poo but stops crying as soon as he starts to do it. The dr says thats because it's the getting it out thats the problem once the bowel is open it ok.

Has anyone examined your dd2?

Forgot to add my ds2 is fully bf as well.

treedelivery....firstly congrats on your DD

secondly I'm sorry she is having these problems. Our situation was similar in that we have had the colickiness and windiness with accomapnying misery and pain on pooing since birth, but with the normal number of newborn poos. Since he was six weeks he went to pooing every two or three days and had a full 24 hours of crampy gripey pains prior to each poo. We also tried every colic remedy on the market, saw the HV and GP and no-one could give us an answer. the only thing that seemed to give him any relief was furious sucking on a finger whilst he was in pain. DH and I have spent many evenings passing him between us when our fingers were getting too soggy and wrinkly from him.

He finally accepted a dummy at 12 weeks which meant we got a bit of a break, and since about 10 weeks his tummy issues have gotten much better to the point that sometimes he does a stealth poo where we haven't even realised.

Anyway, just wanted to share my story and say that it did get better slowly, and although he has days where he is a bit off and has lots of pain and wind, it is the exception rather than the norm now.

Oh, and we saw a cranial osteo at 1 week old and had a few follow ups. Can't say that we noticed much of an improvement, although who's to say how bad it might have been if we hadn't seen the CO at all

they did check her sphincter isn't too tight before she left the hospital didn't they?

He's now 18 weeks

No but will be peering at anus myself at next change! GP and hv have had a good feel of tummy but not at her anus.

That's an interesting thought, thank you. Hope your ds2 gets some good treatment and feels better at poo time!

oh, and he has now settled into one poo roughly every day and a half.

Glad you are getting more replies now...
And apolgies that I referred to your DD as he... (need to go to bed I think)

And thanks to you too lackaDaisycal. I think we should all be given valium, or gin, or something. My nerves are shot from imagining the pain she's in - which is really unhelpfull of me I know. I shouldn't do it.

Glad it's improving for you though. You must be so relieved. Again a familiar tale.

I just feel angry there is no help to be had. Why should our poor bubbas have to put up with this?

tree just had a thought, do you have quite fast let down?
Am sure with DS1 this was part of the problem as he used to choke anc cry during feeds and this carried on until he coudl mamage the flow and my let down slowed a bit.
Am sure this was a big cause in the belly ache/wind problem (not the poo problem though).
With DS2 it was less of a problem as I used to feed him in a more upright position and express a bit before starting a feed.
SOme useful info on Kellymom if you think this might be an issue
www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/fast-letdown.html

I know that the fluconazole tablets gave me horrendous wind, so it's possible that the little that gets through in BM could have been contributing to DS's discomfort. I hope they don't have a bad effect on her already poorly tum (I'm assuming you have the tablets for your thrush?)

massaging her tummy might give her some relief tree, and now she is six weeks you can try gripe water. We noticed that if DS didn't get wind up the way after a feed, it made things worse when it was coming out the other end. But getting wind up was always an effort so it was more often than not a done deal that it would come out the other end badly.

gosh, yes pannacotta, I'd forgotten about letdown. I had a horribly fast letdown and after doing some block feeding to help slow things up a bit, there was a definate improvement.

DH has pinched the lap top [crept on while he's in loo] but will require update on what block feeding is. My milk is like a shower head so think she does struggle. Have the magic swing pump [new purchase] so maybe expressing some would help. Will check out kellymom for advice.

not a cure, but we found a baby swing was brilliant for soothing our wee one when she was crying inconsolably with wind (most evenings but seems to be getting better as she grows. she is now 13 weeks)