Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Parenting

For free parenting resources please check out the Early Years Alliance's Family Corner.

12 week old struggling to poo - help!

10 replies

lulupop · 26/07/2004 12:35

My 12 week old DD is a delicate little thing (currently weighs 11 pounds) and although she feeds well, is really struggling with her poos. Since she was 7 weeks she has only pooed about once a week, and then only after considerable encouragement from me (with orange juice, sugar water, or prune juice, whatever I can get her to take). Various health professionals keep telling me that, because when she does go, the poo is of normal colour and consistency, this is perfectly normal, but I'm not happy as she seems so miserable. For a couple of days before the big event, she cries constantly, draws her legs up, clenches her fists and generally feels quite rigid all over. SHe screams if I try and massage her tummy at all. She has terrible smelly wind. But then once she's done a poo, she goes into a blissed-out state for a while. I'm going to go back to the doctor and insist he offer something to help with the pooing, as it's been 9 days since the last one now. I just wondered if anyone else has had a similar experience and what they found helped? What if the doctor offers laxatives? Any experience of this?

PS She is entirely breastfed.

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Nickinha · 26/07/2004 12:41

Hi lulupop... My dd could not poo herself for the first 3 - 4 months. What I had to do (sounds bad - but so worth it) is to hold her legs up, rub some vaseline on her bum and then instert a thermometer head (just the tip) into her bum and rotate it for a while. That then stimulates her and she poos all at once. I used to do that 3 times a day, and gone was the fist clenching and stomach pain and miserableness. I was scared she might become to lazy to poo alone, but that was not the case, and once she ate more solid/fulling food, she started going on her own and i have never looked back!!!

lulupop · 26/07/2004 12:59

Oh my goodness! Well, I do remember my brother having to have the doctor do something like that to him when he was a baby with a bit of a blockage, but hadn't thought of doing it myself. Perhaps I'll try... how far should you insert it? Presumably just a tiny amount? But what if she wriggles?

OP posts:
Nickinha · 26/07/2004 13:09

I know it sounds terrible! Just stick the tip (3mm past the mercury tip) and rotate it (your aim is to open the anus) so it creates a passage for the poo. If she wriggles (does happen!!) Just coochy coo her and tell her stories whatever to distract her. REMEMBER TO USE VASELINE. It lubricates things. Once she poos you will see how much better things are... give it about 3 - 4 minutes before quiting though. She will be so grateful in the end. Keep me updated on it...

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about these subjects:

mears · 26/07/2004 13:24

lulupop - entirely breastfed babies often do not poo for 10 days - this is completely normal. She does not need to have fruit juices or anything else to make her go. Please do not do the thermometer trick either (did it myself years ago in ignorance). It can cause damage to the rectum, especially if the thermometer breaks! We no longer have mercury thermometers in our maternity unit.
Stomach massage or warm bathing can help upset tummies - laxatives are not a good idea for babies as they can cause bowel problems in the future.
constipation

Nickinha · 26/07/2004 13:30

Lulupop - maybe ask your doctor about the thermometer situation first if Mears says it is bad. Maybe the doctors here in Portugal are too old fashioned cause they are still telling us to do that - rather safe than sorry. I know it worked miracles for my dd. Thank God I never had a thermometer break or worked hard enough to damage her rectum...

Twiglett · 26/07/2004 14:14

message withdrawn

Twiglett · 26/07/2004 14:16

message withdrawn

Nickinha · 26/07/2004 14:57

Twiglett - what is your opinion on the thermometer?

Twiglett · 26/07/2004 15:00

message withdrawn

lulupop · 26/07/2004 15:28

Twiglett, it was my doctor and HV who suggested the sugar water and diluted juice respectively! It's not that I don't believe DD's poo-habits are normal, it's the fact she is so distressed and uncomfortable at the moment that's worrying me. It also makes it impossible to get anything done with DS (who, at two and a half, is having enough trouble getting to grips with his new sister without me telling him he can't go out anywhere because the baby won't stop screaming). I will hold out till baby clinic on Weds (which would make it a full fornight since the last poo) and ask doc then I think about the thermometer thing. In the meantime I'm still trying to massage her tummy and cycle her legs but she really cries when I do it, so not sure whether to carry on or not. Any other ideas from anyone?

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread