newborn baby constipated - anyone else had this problem?

[miniegg]

my newborn is suffering from constipation. after 3 meconium nappies in his first 48 hours, he produced nothing for six days. he got more and more unhappy and uncomfortable, and we ended up back in hospital, where a paediatrician checked him over and gave him a laxative. since his laxative he has been like a different baby, so much happier and more settled.
but i'm worried the whole cycle is going to start again now the laxative has worn off.
the paed doesn't think there's anything wrong with him though the door is open for me to go back and they will run some tests if I push for it.
has anyone else had a little baby that hardly ever poos?! all the midwives i've spoken to seem to have different views as to how normal this is. some say it's worrying; others say some babies are just like that.
he's breastfed.
grateful for any shared experiences...

breastfed babies can happily go for over 1 week without pooing - my DS1 used to poo once a week!!!

the trouble is he doesn't seem happy about it!

I dont think they are expected to poo less often until 4-6 weeks have passed - up to that point they are normally expected to poo much more frequently. I'm sure someone more expert in these matters will respond (I formula fed)

check out the kellymom website for more info

Newborn nursing

Pooing concerns

My ds did this because he wasn't getting enough milk - is he doing OK weight-wise?

If he's b/fed then it's highly unlikely that he's constipated. Are his nappies wet? Is he awake/alert - waking for feeds etc? He should really be doing yellow poos regularly - several times a day.

Later on it is normal for a b/fed baby to have long intervals between pooing, once the gut matures a bit, but in the first few weeks a lack of poo can be a sign that feeding isn't going so well.

I'm sure someone more informed than me will be along soon!

babies often don't seem happy about pooing - my DS3 (who's bottlefed) poo's 3 or 4 times a day and they'ver nice and soft (sorry tmi) but he still complains about it..

DS1 started his once a week poos when he was 2 weeks old.

How are things today?

Have hunker or tiktok seen this?

hi again
he seems better - we had two poos in the night! hurrah! i'm hoping this isn't just the effect of the laxative he was given by the paediatrician on Saturday afternoon, which worked almost immediately (on Saturday) and I hope has kick started his system.
i suspect you're right that it's to do with his feeding - my milk took four days to come in and still isn't as plentiful as he'd like it to be! he's lost weight but less than 10pc which is okay and normal, apparently.
he seems a happier baby - i'm just praying it lasts..

glad he's pooed

Keep an eye on his weight - you should start to see it going up fairly soon, and make sure he doesn't go too long between feeds. Remember the way to make more milk is to feed more often!!! Well done!

try a teaspoon of brown sugar in this milk.

nappy, if he's breastfed that ain't gonna work!
(not sure it's a good rememdy for ff babies either tbh...)

sorry meant to put in his milk or water.

hi evryone. dd's 8wks old and hasnt had a drop of water in her life. She's being breastfed exclusively. am i doing something wrong? ppl say i ought to give her water.

you only need to give a breastfed baby water if they are constipated.

No,breastfed babies of this age DO NOT NEED WATER.

Oh and Miniegg,whole breastfeeding malarkey works on supply and demand principle.The more he sucks the more you will make so plug him in,sit back and relaaaaax.

even bottle fed babies of this age dont need water either. ds never got water till i started weaning at 23 weeks.