My 18 month old has had constipation ever since she started solids at 6 months. She was prescribed Movicol (stool softener, not a laxative) and advised to keep using it, gently wean and go back on it if constipation reoccurs. This works very well - she drinks a sachet daily and has normal poos. But every time I try weaning she quickly reverts to constipation - she won't poo for a day, struggles to push it out and then when it comes out it doesn't seem THAT hard but it does hurt her.
I know with absolute certainty that this is not caused by her diet. She drinks a lot of water throughout the day, and eats a lot of fibre-rich food such as fruit, sweet potatoes, lentils, beans etc. Her doctor confirmed that her diet is fine and that taking movicol every day won't harm her - her digestive system just needs a little help. He said that if I were to let her go naturally without the Movicol, it would just cause damage and she would start to have a negative association with pooing which would cause far worse problems in the future.
I still worry, though. I haven't found anything on the Internet pertaining to constipation in toddlers that does not go away regardless of diet. Has anyone come across anything like this before? Did it sort itself out, or will she have problems for her entire life?
Thanks in advance.