Newborn constipated. Please help!

[Confused40]

Hi
DD 7 days old and hasn't had a dirty nappy for 4 days. I've tried circling her legs as midwife suggested and it hasn't worked. I'm getting really worried now.
Please can anyone offer any suggestions?

is your dd bf or ff?

It's quite common for bf babies to not poo for anything up to 10 days. Breast milk is very efficient and there's very little waste. Hence there can be very little poo.

DD is bf and feeding very well and has plenty if wet nappies.

That's brilliant then. I would give it a few more days before getting concerned. You baby's bowel is very new and not used to getting rid of waste. It's a muscle like all the others and it takes a bit of time for it to get going. I assume you've had all the meconium nappies and you've gone through the brown to green to yellow nappies?

Dd has only has meconium nappies. Haven't had anything else which is another reason I'm so worried. She hasn't had any green or yellow nappies. I'd hate for something to be wrong and don't know if I should be worried. She sleeps soundly, doesn't seem to be in any pain and brings up wind easily. She has wind both ends. This is upsetting me :(

I would contact your midwife again. Although it can be normal for older bf babies to poo infrequently, it could be a cause for concern at this age. If she's feeding we'll and content then it doesn't sound like there's too much wrong though

Don't get upset, I'm sure it'll be fine. Are you due to see an HV soon? It's definitely worth mentioning. I'm sure it's just that her bowel needs to get moving and it might need a little help.

One thing that I was told to try was using the flat of my palm gently sweep in an upside down U shape from one hip to the other. Kind of like drawing a rainbow with the palm of your hand from left to right across her lower abdomen. You could try that to see if it helps get things moving. Be very gentle, use only the flat of your hand. You really don't need any pressure, it's more like a firm stroking action.

I second marzipan. I would contact your midwife in the morning.

Older babies can go a while on between dirty nappies, but she is a bit wee for that to be happening now.

Sorry if my information was a bit duff.... I hope your dd is ok.

I'm crying my eyes out. Praying nothing is wrong with my lo! I'll contact midwife in the morning and ask advice. Please let her be ok

Can you phone the maternity ward or an out of hours number for advice? If you're that worried that you're crying, you should phone now. They won't mind.

Don't cry confused I'm sure everything's fine. Do as noblegiraffe says for some advice or reassurance.

Now I'm crying again, but this time for pure relief!!
Just rang midwife and she said that as dd is fully bf this is nothing to worry about!! Phew!!
I've never been so relieved as I am now. I know my dd is only one week old but I have so much love for her. I feel fit to bursting with the love I feel for her. Gosh I'm so relieved! Thank you for all your advice x

Oh I'm so glad :)

Now have a lovely , a sit down and relax and don't worry :) Enjoy your lovely dd and be prepared for the giant poo she will no doubt have tomorrow :o

Firstly a big well done on surviving your first parenting panic. There will be others

Secondly, you might find that you'll suddenly see a poo face and if LO hasn't been for a while it might be quite an explosion so have a change of clothes (or 2) and nappies etc with you as it's always at the worst moment! (And just in case you don't know, vests have envelope necks so you can pull them down rather than up in case of need).

Thirdly try a bath to ease wind if helped is needed.

Enjoy your lovely snuggles with your lovely newborn!

I hope your midwife has put your mind at ease. My dd (also BF) didn't poo from day 4 to day 10. I too was very worried but everything turned out OK, she had a massive poonami after 7 days and from then on only went every 4-7 days til she weaned. But otherwise she had plenty of wet nappies so i knew she was getting enough milk. It was actually quite helpful once I realised it was just her way, as I used washable nappies so there was a lot less mess to deal with! But, brace for the poonami, when it comes, it will be utterly horrific pretty bad.

My DD used to go days between poos when BF. HV told me it's just because there's very little waste from breast milk (I have no idea if that's true)

The longest was 10 days. Now be prepared, when the poo comes, it's like nothing on earth. It's like squeezing an endless tube of toothpaste. Just hope you're at home when it happens

Ha ha ha now I'm dreading the aptly named poonami lol!!
Oh gosh, what a worry! Dd is my second child but I was unable to bf my DS so this is all new to me.
I'm hoping that I'm home when she has her poonami. She has a hearing test on Wednesday and this will be her first trip out since coming home.
I'm so relieved to hear all your comments about your lo's. takes a huge weight off my mind.
Thank you all so very much xxx

It is possible that your midwife is also thinking of older babies. I found this from La Leche League:

If a fully breastfed newborn younger than 6-8 weeks old is not producing several yellow, seedy bowel movements each day, the Leader may encourage the mother to:
Have the infant's weight gain and well-being checked by a health care provider.
Practice effective positioning and latch-on techniques so baby holds nipple behind the milk sinuses.
Use breastfeeding strategies that allow the infant to take in more of the higher calorie hindmilk.
Possibly work to increase her milk supply, the length of feedings and the total number of feedings per day.
Infants with inadequate urination (wetting fewer than 6-8 cloth or 5-6 disposable diapers/nappies in 24 hours) require immediate medical referral.

So it's probably fine, but it would be worth getting baby weighed just to check feeding is going well, as wet nappies aren't a complete indicator in themselves.

How is everything going Confused ?

Have you had poonami yet?

Nothing as yet! Midwife saw her yesterday and she is gaining weight. Told mw about her not pooing and she wasn't worried. Said she is healthy and doing plenty of wet nappies and feeding well.
I await the poonami lol

I am glad your midwife thinks it is nothing. Is your baby properly soaking 6 nappies per day at least? Properly heavy wet ones, not just a bit damp?

I think there would be no harm in asking a qualified BF person (lactation consultant or BF counsellor) about this just to double check. I think it is fairly unusual for a baby to only pass meconium and then nothing afterwards (e.g., no seedy, yellowy, greeny poo....) but presumably sometimes this does happen.

Hope all is going well. Bet the poonami will appear at the hearing clinic. It always seems to work that way.

Yeaaahhh poonami happened today! It wasn't actually that bad either. I'm so happy! Goodness me I was getting so worried. Whoo hoo lol

Crikey, that took its time. Hope he starts going a bit more regularly now!

Yes indeed it did take its time! I'm just so glad she has done it now. Lets hope she is more regular now

Sorry, I called her a he!