Toddler lots of constant loose stools dr gave laxative

[Macd123]

Hi I am just wondering if anyone else has experienced this. My LO is going to be 3 in June. He doesn’t ever seem to have a solid poo. For at least 6months it’s been looose messy poos that spill out everywhere. Ive went to the doctor and he has prescribed laxatives which my DH and I are really not sure about taking as we really are struggling to cope with the amount of poo and the frequency of it.
I’m scared to try potty training him cause it’s such a mess. He does it all day and then in the bath and in the middle of the night. I’m 11wks pregnant and have very bad sickness and I’m struggling with the smell and the constant battle of a nappy change. (He has never been one for staying still)
We have sent stool samples away but won’t get a result for a month.
Has anyone else has this? I just want to see a nice normal poo!
He has a pretty balanced diet of fruit and veg and carbs etc. I’ve tried changing his diet like taking out diary or reducing carbs but finding no difference.
He doesn’t seem to be in any pain at all.
Please help me stop this river of poo!

Hi, sorry, I have no advice, but I certainly wouldn't be giving the baby a laxative in those circumstances. It sounds very odd. Did the doctor explain this choice of medication?

Sorry, toddler not baby. Still wouldn't use laxative!

If there is a blockage of poo further up then the loose liquid poo can constantly leak around it. I would imagine that the laxatives are to see if they can shift a higher blockage.

It could be that the gp worries about impaction - a big solid poo stuck that inly liquuid poo is squeezing around to come out. It's not uncommon for toddlers

I'm guessing the doctor thinks he has a blockage somewhere. Sometimes when you get lots of loose stools it's because it's leaking around the blockage. Can you go back to the doctor to clarify?

Maybe the doctor thinks there is a blockage and that's why you're only seeing liquid stools as it's all that can get through as it were. I would try the laxatives to rule this out and help his body clear itself out. Have you tried probiotics to help restock the gut biome bacteria?

Yes, frequent loose poo is suggestive of chronic constipation. Google faecal impaction. My son had it. He was pooing 12+ times a day. Leaking, in his pants. Sometimes quite big poos, sometimes tiny. He had a huge blockage and the liquid poo was leaking round it. He had huge doses of laxatives for a few days then reduced to a smaller dose for about a year. If ever he struggles to poo or goes more than 24 hours without a poo we give him another sachet. He’s been fine now for a couple of years.

Yes now that you mention that I think that’s why he gave the laxative (sorry I’ve got baby brain already) has anyone else experienced this or know how long it will take to clear up? I really don’t think I can go out anywhere if he is on laxatives.

Is the laxative movicol/cosmocol/laxido? And did the GP recommend starting with a low dose and building up until the poo is just brown water?

If so then they suspect that the loose stools you're seeing are due to constipation - I know this is counterintuitive but as a pp said, you could be seeing runny poo which is leaking past a blockage.

It is infuriating that you have this prescription without having it properly explained what the plan is - disimpaction is a fairly big commitment and you need to be ready for what you're doing - you'll.newd loads of nappies, barrier cream, and a good few days to a week when you don't leave the house much!

The Eric website will be a really good place to start finding out more if you think this is behind the GP's decision. The have a helpline too - I'll find the details.

Thanks that’s helpful. Yeah the doctor didn’t explain much he just said maybe there’s a blockage but didn’t explain the process of it coming out. I came home and my DH was like no way are we doing laxative. He was given Laxido. I think il try it today then. It’s just I know we can’t go swimming or anything like that on a laxative. The doctor did say if nothing is happening to double the dose but I’m not really sure what I should be seeing happening and how I now it’s fixed itself.
Just so relieved some people know something about this as my whole family are totally perplexed!

It sounds like the GP is going for disimpaction then but I would really recommend reading up on how to do it and what to expect. You might be very tempted to give up before it's really done the job unless you are very clear why you're doing it and what you're aiming for.

Eric are fabulous and can tell you everything you need to know.

Have a look here:
www.eric.org.uk/how-to-treat-constipation

0808 169 9949 is the helpline number which is open 10-2 Mon-Thurs but does get very busy.

When you tried dairy free did you remove all traces of dairy or just the obvious things like milk, yoghurt, cheese etc? My DS had issues with very loose stools for years, had some early indicators which we missed and at 13 after testing and an illumination diet found he has a very strong intolerance to dairy protein. Unfortunately dairy protein is in so many every day foods so in the beginning it can be quite exhausting to shop and check everything. He did see a huge improvement within 3 days and when the allergist still thought it might be lactose intolerance rather than the protein we introduced just lactose free milk and within a day symptoms had returned so we knew it was the protein and not the lactose. He doesn't test as allergic either with a skin prick or patch test but clearly has a very strong intolerance.

Thanks that’s been really helpful. It’s just so annoying it has to get worse before it gets better. Also hope it works as we really wanted to try potty train but it’s not likely right now with constant explosions

I’d say when we did dairy free it was more of a reduction as my husband kept giving yoghurts and such. He used to poo ok. Can you just develop an intolerance? The dr said he didn’t think it was that as he had no rashes.
Would using like oat milk be an idea?

Def look at the Eric website. We used movicol, so the doses will be different. Once he was on the max dose the “clear out” was SPECTACULAR! It took about 6 days, the first 3 days very little change but once it started he was stuck on the toilet with the iPad!

If you are on Facebook have a look at the Movicol Mummies group. There is a video pinned by the 'poo nurses' that explains really well how disimpaction works.

However I would also want to go back to the go and ask for a clear explanation of what you are aiming for.

The 2 things I often see at work (in a preschool) is constipation leading to leaky poo, and toddler diarrhoea which is more constant loose stools (as opposed to liquid leakage).

Thanks that’s helpful. See I still feel it’s constant loose stool and more close to diarrhoea but not as watery. But I guess I need to try this laxido stuff to see if it works.

If you suspect a dairy allergy (and a reaction to the protein is an allergy, not an intolerance), you need to cut ALL dairy for up to 6 weeks. You may notice a difference in 2-4 weeks. It's a relatively common allergy in babies and toddlers and should be checked for properly, if this is a long term issue. The odd yoghurt or "just a little bit" of dairy will make a difference and make it very hard to tell if dairy is the issue. The same would generally be true of any suspected food allergy.

An allergy doesn't always involve a rash. In fact, delayed reactions are less likely to involved rashes (although they can). It is worth doing some reading on ige (immediate) and non-ige allergies(delayed).

I can't add anything to what others have said about impaction.

The thing to remember about macrogol laxatives (movicol, laxido etc) is that their action on the body is very straightforward and the laxative passes through the body unchanged. The laxative binds with the water you mix it with, making the molecules too big to be absorbed out of the bowel, so the water stays in the bowel and the poo stays wetter. The water mixed with the laxative becomes part of the watery poo and leaves the body. There's no need to worry about side effects or hurting your child in any way.

However this does mean that:

1. You must make it up correctly - that means the powder must be mixed with the amount of water it states on the packet. Some children don't like the taste and you can disguise it in squash or juice but it must be mixed with the water first, and then something to cover the flavour if necessary.

1. The water you mix the powder with then isn't 'useful' to the body as it can't be absorbed - so it doesn't count as part of your child's fluid intake for the day. Just worth bearing in mind as if you get to a point where he's having several sachets a day you'll feel like you're giving him loads of fluid, but he still needs to drink other stuff as well!

Did the GP give advice on what to do once the clear-out has been achieved? I would imagine he'd need to stay on a maintenance dose for quite a while to let his bowel recover. He's been consitpated for at least six months from what you say, so expect to take a while!

I hope this isn't too daunting. I'm really cross on your behalf that the GP hasn't given you all the info you really need to do this effectively.

Lastly, please don't feel bad ! Constipation is a really common problem in children and there's often no obvious cause - as you say your child has a good diet and fluid intake. It's just one of those things and when it presents as leaking soft poo it's easy not to realise at first that constipation is the issue.

Recommending Eric again!

Op, I've just seen that there is another active thread about this on the potty training board. You may find it helpful. Its title starts with 'witholding, impacting'.

Hi OP, been thinking about you and your little one and wondering how you're all doing.

Do you feel you've had the information you need?