helping DS to poo!

[bigkidsmademe]

My 12 week old DS is a boy of regular habits, he poos every third morning at 8am. They are pretty disgusting when they come out and very vinegary!

He is not the best sleeper and I've only just noticed the pattern, which is that the night before Poo Day is a terrible one, with him waking up crying every 2 hours, thrashing round and farting. The only thing that comforts him is feeding (he is ebf) but it's knackering!

If I could find a way of helping him to poo daily then I'm sure it wouldn't get so uncomfortable for him, he'd be happier and I'd sleep more... any tips for me?

thanks!

Mining!!

Firstly, his poo is vinegary because he's only getting the sweet milk rather than the rich milk, my DS was doing the same! Does he have short feeds?
Try a little gripe water for his tummy, really helped my DS

sweet milk and rich milk - I'm fairly sure that's nonsense I'm afraid (see kellymum on breastfeeding)

tummy massage?

and check with doc

the vinegary sounds like some kind of intolernce -possibly to something you're eating which is why I suggested a gp visit just in case

I was told that by my gp. Just passing on my experience. It's not a problem, he's still getting enough milk. What's nonsense to you may not be to someone else, as soon as he started getting rich milk the smell went away. I was also told by various hv/gps that what you eat will not effect your milk. The fore milk for the first few mins of feeding is very sweet.

www.drpaul.com/breastfeeding/colostrum.html

Nonsense?

there is a higher content in the milk as the breast empties but the milk is essentially the same

and your milk can be affected by what you're eating

higher FAT content

but how would I make him slow down feeding? He feeds very fast and is all done and satisfied in 10 minutes.

My DS would do the same, I used to feed off one breast for 2 feeds. Or express a little bit first. Don't worry though, he's still getting what he needs :)

I don't think it is the milk, thinking about it. He is fine for 2 days and nights, it is only the night before the poo that he is uncomfortable. The two nights in between he sleeps 8-6 with one or two wakings but only wakes for feeds, no pain. He does 6 hour stretches. It is Poo Night that is awful, every third night. So surely it can't be the milk?

If he is constipated - the poos are so massive they flood to his toes! - how would I stop that? My mum says a wee bit of orange juice daily. Is that allowed for a non-weaned baby?

anyone any tips?

My doctor had me give DS a tiny bit of corn syrup when he was constipated.

We had something similar with DS for a few weeks when he was about 8 weeks. The GP had suggested that he could have a little 'kink' in his digestion and that it would right itself.

We did tummy massage daily. When DS was very distressed we tried warm baths, and a little warm water in a bottle (or off a spoon sometimes) or gripe water (get yourself a used, clean infacol container and dropper for that!). I wouldn't start juice this early, plus it only really softens the poo that is there already IYKWIM rather than helping him expel it. If you have ever drank a load of orange juice when properly struggling to pass a stool, you will know that it just gives you tummy cramps!

It sounds like he is taking everything from the bm - is he growing well? You could try feeding him more often for a few days to see if you can break the cycle. The extra milk would mean their was more 'waste' and fluid, if you like, to move things through his system more quickly.

I would initially try baby massage - you can probably youtube for instruction - along with gentle 'back and forth' of legs. Lie him on back, gently bend his knees towards his tummy letting his bum lift off the surface and slowly straighten out again. Always massage tummy in a clockwise direction.

Also lying him across your lap on his tummy and massaging the lower back in an anti-clockwise direction. Also, sit him up and 'walk' your fingers quite firmly up his spine - they tend to straighten up which can help release gas up the way, relieving pressure on the gut.

abdominal massage

oh thank you so much - very useful. He is growing brilliantly and is a big boy - 75th for weight and 91st for height. The idea of feeding him more did make me giggle, he feeds every 90min - 2 hours in the day anyway!

I did try gripe water when he was littler and it was good so maybe I should go back to that although he has recently got good at burping himself when I sit him up after a feed

The massage instructions are great, thanks. Would you do every day or just when he is in pain?

Did your DS just grow out of it?

thanks a lot for your useful post!

No problem! Ahem, yes...probably don't try and feed him much more than that!

I did a wee tummy massage every day, but then DS1 (pfb!) was bathed every day so it was part of the routine.

I seem to remember that it is the sugar in gripe water that helps move the bowels, so it might be worth trying for this purpose.

It seemed to pass so I don't know whether he grew out of it, whether our efforts made a difference, or whether changes in his feeding pattern as he grew just shifted things for him.

Anyway, hopefully some of that will help for now!