Lets talk about constipation and movicol...

[poshwellies]

How long have your dc's been on it?

My son is coming up to his 3 year with no change in his bowel habits,still constipated,will he always be like this?

Hi all! Have just noticed this thread. My dd is 9 and has been taking movicol for some time. Whenever I try to wean her off it she quickly returns to her consitipated state. It worries me that I can't see an end to this.

How long has your daughter been on movicol foof?

Its worrying isn't it,that they make have this health issue for a very long time *sighs

*may

Yeah fearless-my son was about 18mths-we tried the lactulose(which didn't help tbh),more water,juice,fruit,vegs etc.

I wonder about dairy also-ds can drink alot of milk at times and loves cheese,I think you do get slightly obsessed with their diets as you are trying to work out what is causing it,and dairy could be a factor in it.

She has always had constipation problems but has only been taking movicol for about a year. She eats the same as the rest of us, so it's obviously just the way she is.

when we first went to see the 'poo' nurse she warned us it could take a very long time to sort out - as a rule of thumb it took at least as long to get better as the time the child had been constipated - so for us ds had had problems for more than 2 and a half years and it took around 3 years to get sorted - although after about a year or so things were measurably better

hang in there

I didn't realise that my son was constipated because he was still doing poos in the toilet. However he was soiling himself a lot at nursery but I just assumed that when he saw other children doing this, he thought it was ok and that he didn't have to go to the loo (denial) So it wasn't until Reception that it was mentioned a few times by the teachers that they thought he was constipated. I didn't know that children could still go to the toilet and poo and be constipated - I know now!

I think if any other mums are having this problem please don't be afraid or ashamed to discuss it hear. I felt so emotional and isolated when it was happening to my ds.

Even though my ds isn't on Movicol anymore I still have to keep an eye on his bowel movements and I have to ensure that he eats food that will tricker a bowel movement at lease every other day. I still have about 20 sachets of Movical in the cupboard though

My ds is nearly 7 and has been off movicol for 2 years. He was on it for about 2 years before that. He is now on a tiny amount of senna, which we give to him in the morning.
After supper each night he goes to the loo to do a poo. The doctor said it would train his bowels if he went at the same time each day. He sits on the loo with his feet on a stool and plays on his ds. We give him the medicine before school so that he does not have to worry about pooing while at school during the day. It means I have some control over his "movements"!

I was quite sceptical but it worked within a few weeks. He doesn't poo unless we send him each day, but it is no longer the huge issue that it was. He manages to do all his after school activities without too much stress, and if he misses a night I make sure he has the time do 'catch up' the next night.

It is important that you support their feet when they are on the toilet. Also when weaning off the movicol, you have to go so gradually that it appears you are making no progress, but you will get there.

Hi

My Ds is now three, has had constipation problems since he was a couple of months old and has been on Movicol for 2 years - GP kept trying to reduce the dose but event he slightest bit less and he doesn't go at all and then gets problems with "overflow". We're having big problems with soiling at the moment - he just doesn't seem to realise that he needs to go - and have been referred back to the poo nurse.

It's great to see others in the same situation as it can be a bit hard to discuss in real life as people don't really understand it!

Hi fearlessfreak, my son started getting constipated at around 4 months and it was another few months before he was put on movical. That period was so awful that I try not to think about it. We went to see the consultant the other day and he said there were 5 things that work for constipation- diet, fluids, exercise, potty training and medication. We are a bit obsessive about R's diet and fluid intake as well. Im praying that once my son starts to crawl, this will help. Having read everyone's comments, I now realise that I shouldn't get my hopes up! Just grateful that he is no longer in pain though.

my ds is 19months and is currently on Lactolose (3 doses a day) and sena. He has suffered with bowel movements for as long as i can remember. He has only been uder the doctor for it for about a month though. I am beginning to think that it will be an ongoing thing having read some of these posts

Don't give up hope. It's amazing how things change the older they get. It's not your fault they are constipated. Just try everything until you know what works with your child - but bear in mind that this can change as they start to get older - so you might need to adapt/tweek ever so often.

ds still on lactolose:-( he is now 2 and showing no sign of improvement. He has also been on medication for contraction like spasms in his tummy. Poor little man seems to be constantly suffering with stomach ache. And to make things worse he is getting stubborn with his diet so doesn't eat anywhere near as much veg as he used to.

those children that are in movical, has it helped? I have taken ds to doctors on numerous occasions and movicol has never been mentioned. Should I bring it up with the doc? Sorry to keep going on about this but not sure how much longer I can watch ds go through so much pain :-(

The movicol definitely works. My younger dd has severe learning disabilities with reduced mobility and has been constipated for as long as I can remember. Movicol is the only thing which has really sorted it out.

I think that the younger age limit for using it is 2 though which may explain why your GP hasn't tried it.

Sorry - misread, thought your ds was 19 months, but if he is now 2, then maybe you could mention it to GP. It has a slightly salty flavour but dissolves completely in water or squash, so can be disguised up to a point!

no joy, doc said no, too many gps prescribe laxitives too freely and wasn't happy to suggest it for ds. Typical we take him to gp because of constipation and goes and has 8 poos in one day! But still that is not right that though is it? It's so horrible watching him suffer!

REIDmylips. You should definitely push for Movicol. So many GPs are unenlightened about childhood constipation and laxatives. Movicol is a relatively new laxative. My DS was 2 and been on lactulose for a year (didn't work). He developed capacity to hold large volume of stool (mega rectum) so didn't even get sensation to go for 3 days and then could hold for another 3. I read up online about Movicol so went to GP to ask for it.(October 2007) She said my DS (2 years old) was withholding because I was making a big deal about it, and also said 'Well, it (the poo) comes out eventually'! I was furious and asked to see another GP for second opinion. Fortunately he had worked in a specialist paediatric gastro unit at Barts hospital and he saw how effective Movicol is and prescribed it. At about the same time I took DS to Paediatric Consultant because I have BUPA. He said that GPs are misguided about laxatives creating a lazy bowel. An overstretched bowel is far more likely to cause problems. Laxatives are essential to nip the problem early on and to try to avoid impaction and encopresis developing by school age when it's so much harder to manage. DS ended up on Movicol(to soften stool) and Senokot (to move the gut)for a while and is now just on 1 sachet Movivol a day. It is brilliant. Initial dose made him very loose and unavoidable soiling but it got the throughput and reduced the capacity in his retum. So now he goes once a day about the same time. I usually find him hiding under the table (in denial) but he always agrees to come to the loo with promise of star on chart or other bribe. Hardly ever have soiling now we've got dose right and I usually spot when he goes off to hide. I remember the days when I would want to shout from the rooftops when he went poo. Have come a long way since then. but not even thinking of reducing Movicol dose for at least next 6months. Good luck with the docs.

I have just joined this site today, come home from the docs with my son 4yr &mths. At my wits end feel like sitting and crying, getting down with all the soiling of the underpants, changing so many tmes a day, when he goes to school my stomach is in a knot incase he has an accident with overflow!! I have started to keep him off school when he needs to go, incase of any embarassment for him. Just to say thanks to all other mums, reading through other posts made me feel like i am not alone, although i feel like he is the only one. Doc has put him on movicol sachets today. I can only pray that these will help, referral to the hosp has also begun. Help!!!!!

It's so reassuring reading these! My 4 yr old DS has had small poo accidents 7/8 times a day for a year. He's now been diagnoised with constipation & withholding. How I wish I'd gone to the doctor sooner - all those tears (his and mine!). Just wanted to add a different symptom that we had. His poo is soft so I had no way did I contemplate there was constipation occuring high up within him. We don't use Motival but we use Senna every night & that is enough to start a regular of pattern of him going in the morning. still early days & have those 'little accidents' but at least I know most of it has come out. frantic to sort before school starts in Sept !

It has been mentioned briefly but it is helpful to try pooing soon after a meal. Maybe after breakfast and after supper, soon after meal. The gastro colic reflex kicks in.

DS is just finished his disimpaction regime of 4 Movivol on day 1 then 6 then 8 then 10 then three days of 12 sachets. Has been having accidents for about 18 months, now have to start him on sodium picosulphate 5 mls at night, anyone else done this?