oh my god, very distressing and embarassing problem.....!

[PeckaRolloverAgain]

ok, gave birth last friday

fab delivery, 5 minute pushing, no stitches, small tear

yest and today suddenlky become v v v v constipated

because im quite backed up, and its hard......omg this is awful think my pelvic floor might have given up. inside my actual fanjo can feel the big blockage as a lump thru the wall - to the point its actually pretty much filling my fanjo!!!! that has got to shock you a bit? it certainly has just freaked me right out!!!

arghhhh, very disturbed, when i tried to have a poo it felt like my small tear would tear further

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

help!!!!

oh poor pecka!

mintpurple - thankyou for that, so not end of world but need to try and sort it

can i buy lactulose over counter?

Yes, no prescription needed. Send someone out now so you can take it before bed and hopefully wake up to a squirty poo of your very own.

do so, it works overnight. you'll feel a lot better (and lighter).

Yes definitely don't strain, i gave myself piles. Just reminded me why I will never get pregnant again. (one of the many reasons)

water water water

OK I had the same and I did the following:

Drank loads of water.
Ate dried fruit and a bowl of bran flakes.
Gave it a few hours.
Sent DP out with DD in Pram (so no one could hear me if I screamed!)
Had a bath and a coffee (as I find it makes me want to go for some reason?).
Applied copious amounts of anusol.
Sat on loo.
Held folded loo roll over tear.
Relief

I did get a little blood from the tears but not much and I just hopped back in the bath to make sure they were clean as wiping was painful.

Another tip - once back to being a bit more regular, use baby wipes to clean yourself up rather than dry paper as it pulls more and is not as effective at cleaning.

My dd was born on 21 December -I finally has a poo on Christmas Day - I could hear the Queen's speech coming from the living room as I (oh god, TMI) helped things along with a rubber gloved finger. I'll never feel the same about the monarchy....

Quite normal - if horrible. Drink gallons of water and eat lots of fruit - and accept my sympathy and understanding!

ooh - I was just like this. I remember sitting on the loo crying and crying. It was awful and definitely worse than the birth as I had a section so none of this pushing palaver! I think you just have to get through it - it'll happen and it'll be terrifying, but after the first poo it's all downhill - good luck!!

The midwife told me that your body goes into shock "down there" so even though you may be eating plenty of fibre rich foods and drinking lots of fluids, it is still getting over the shock of pushing the baby out, hence it holds onto the poo making you constipated.

If it helps, when I did my first movement (!) it didnt hurt as much as I thought it would!

Good luck x

Im in the house on my own with 3 kids (for first time, DH popped out to "wet babies head" so will have to wait til morning.

Will drink lots of water overnight and hopefully this will be partially resolved tomorrow.

Thank you so much, I really was a bit scared before!!

How about licorice? Or a curry, or even something that usually upsets your tummy a bit (definitely licorice for me!). Just to get things moving? Mind you, if you're breastfeeding the baby might not appreciate a licorice/curry combo...

well keep drinking the water and eating the bran. don't worry, it'll be fine.

I had a similar problem after ds2. Having dealt with ds1 with similar problems over the years once you get the crusty hard head bit out the rest will be fine. Try really relaxing rather than pushing. TBH though I'd talk to your midwife- they're used to constipation problems. (One chat to a midwife sorted out my godawful wind after ds3). Mine were all sections so I don't know about tears but when I was sweating it out post ds2 I kind of held my stitches and pushed against them which seemed to help (even if only psychological).

Squatting (if you can) is really helpful. And if you can't, putting your feet up on a box or something while on the loo is the next best thing.

Was horribly constipated after ds. And on iron tablets, so when it did come it was jet black, which just about finished me off.

My sympathies...

Pecka I had this too. I think it's quite natural. I used to make sure I had glycerine suppositories just for the first and second poos after birth. They are little tablets you stick up your bott' and within minutes it should all flow nicely.

What a bleedin' relief.

All the best. It's really tough that post birth recovery bit isn't it?

You can also TMI ALERT put your finger(s) in your fanny to try to maneouver (sp) the contents outwards.

Flinching for you.

Im off to bed now - feeling way better than I did earlier.

I have some evening primrose capsules - could i use one of those instead of glycerin or do you think that is not adviseable.

Think this all came as a bit of a shock as this time round have had a really perfect delivery and recovery.

No stitches, no physical discomfort in my fanjo, minimal blood loss.

Thought it was going too well............!

Good luck pecka, I have been through this too (although I must admit this thread has made me laugh) and it is awful. I had to wait until I was on my own in the house until I braved it as I am sure I was making similar noises to the ones I made when I gave birth. You will feel so much better when the deed is done.

All the more reason to do some gentle pelvic floors in a few days when you're feeling up to it.

Havent read much of the replies.

Lacolose asap, water, hold a pad on your tear if your worried, and odd i know, blow out when you push down, your body does try and hold it in if it hurts, but its impossible to blow out and hold in at the same time (DD had bowel troubles, we kept bubbles in the loo!)

Good luck

This happened to me as well. Please don't eat a curry or anything that might make you runny - you'll just feel ill if you haven't shifted the blockage. Nothing you take orally will shift this blockage right now, though it will prevent another blockage.

A suppository or OTC enema will help, but of course you'ld need someone to go get it for you unless you feel you can wait until tomorrow.

When the urge comes to poo, try lying on your side and breathing through it as if you were giving birth. Put a disposable changing mat or a thick towel on the bed or the floor, and don't worry that you may poo in an inappropriate place. The aim is to poo relatively comfortably! It may be easier lying down. Or in the bath, that's also helpful if you can be comfortable and relaxed.

You won't open up your tear, the stretch is from the other direction.

Now this may sound weird, but with all the straining to poo your anus may get quite dry, which may make it more uncomfortable to pass the poo. If this is the case, rub a little butter or olive oil on your anus to smooth the way, so to speak. I got this tip from my aunt, who was a geriatrics nurse.

To prevent any further constipation, drink lots more than you are doing right now, and take lactulose or prune juice as well as eating lots of roughage. IIRC this sort of constipation is caused by a combination of hormonal changes and lactation.

Hope you feel better soon!

Get something up your bottom, it's much quicker than down your stomach!!! Takes a few minutes. Some suppos are great. Not sure whether they have them over the counter??

Yes, glycerin, that's the one! Really works!

Was going to say lactulose but already mentioned I think.
Glycerin will only help marginally but problem remains the same.

Prune juice (room temperature) or glass of warm water with lemon juice first thing in the morning & generally lots of fluids.

Something that REALLY works: Okra soup.
Dead easy. Boil 2 pints water with 1 stock cube & 2 chopped onions ( and a piece of ginger if you have). Add 2 handfull chopped okra, boil another 10 minutes. Ready.
Have 1 or 2 bowls in the evening. Garanteed "passage" the next day.