Breast feeding constant poops and nappy rash hell

[DogsandDungarees]

Hi I have posted before but my little one ( 3 weeks old) has had persistent nappy rash for over two weeks so non stop creams from the GP different nappies ect. We just can’t get on top of it as she poops all the time. So if she is napping I will check see she needs changing , change her which wakes her up so she then wants to go onto the breast which of course then makes her nap and poop again.

its a endless cycle of pooping ( which midwives assure me is normal ) but her nappy rash is completely stressing me out. Would I be better to move her onto formula to control her feeding more this way ensures she gets enough and I can get control of her poops better. She was also born at 38 weeks and is only small so I also constantly worry whether she is getting enough.

Thank you for reading x

Lots of poo is a great indicator that she's getting plenty of milk. Have you got a bf group near you where you can talk it all through? Lots of nappy off time and cream will usually sort nappy rash but sometimes feeding tweaks can also help. If no group the national breastfeeding helpline is brilliant and you can message them if you prefer not to phone.

thank you, we do nappy free time every evening. Until she sleeps, I think I’m so stressed out as no matter what if never clears just gets a little better then flares up again. Also I feel like all I ever see is really big chubby babies so the worry never goes away with her size

What cream are you using?
The miracle for us was vaseline because it forms a proper barrier.

Pooing all the time is normal and a sign that she's feeding properly so please don't worry about that.
Maybe cut down on any acidic food you're eating like oranges or tomatoes?

Sorry to hear that, poor little one. Might be worth looking into your diet a bit more - I wonder if there is anything you are eating / drinking that it causing a bit of a bad tum for the baby? Might be worth doing a quick google (eg can maternal diet cause loose stools in breastfed baby), and having a think to see if you can try and change what you are eating, and see if it makes a difference. It would be a good thing to speak to a health visitor about it too, and get their advice.

Good luck :)

How often is she pooping? Multiple times a day is normal, constantly isn’t - pooping multiple times an hour was a sign of CMPA in my baby.

… and metanium nappy cream used to be brilliant - not sure if it is still available though?

From what you’ve said there is no indication that your LO isn’t getting enough milk

Ringing one of the BFing Helplines as suggested by a PP is a good idea.

I’d also see if there is a BFing Support Group near to you. Do contact them before going though, just to check the group is still running.

Also have a read of Breastfeeding Your Newborn.

As for the nappy rash, can I ask why you’re using to wipe her bum with?

I would see if you can get hold of some of the yellow Metanium which has sadly been discontinued but works like a dream.

Thanks all for your suggestions I am currently using a steroid cream prescribed by her GP and also the Metanium barrier cream over the top.

She does about 8 ‘ large’ poos a day but also a lot of wet farts with small amounts of poo so again cleaning. We either was her bottom and pat dry or we use cotton wool and warm water .

I’m struggling with this too. My little one (4 weeks old) is also pooping constantly. I’m using cotton wool and water or reusable wipes and metanium cream with some Lanisloh nipple cream on top as a barrier. It has partly healed but is not perfect yet.

I did wonder about CMPA as her poo is also mucusy but she doesn’t have other classic symptoms.

Sounds standard. We did lots of nappy free time for this reason. Choose a few towels and sheets for this and lay her down with her naked bottom. She'll end up pooing on it but it means her poo and wee don't stay on the skin as much. We ended up putting him on the potty daily from 9 months too. Fully potty trained by 20 months.

Totally normal. Why are you stressing out? Babies OOP several times a day including bottle fed babies - what a strange thing to surmise that bottle feeding would reduce or eliminate pooing and rashes.

This is a good article on CMPA. It’s worth a read if you suspect your LO might have it

Thanks for the link. Interestingly a paediatrician does now think my baby may have CMPA and wants me to give up dairy for a month. We were referred by the health visitor due to poor weight gain rather than the constant mucus poo specifically.

I’ve started trying to cut out dairy from my diet as well. It’s so stressful isn’t it, the constant poo and battling to get rid of the nappy rash.

Hope you and LO have a lovely Christmas tmro xx

A poo per feed is very normal for a small baby whether breast feed or bottle fed. Try Bupanthen cream, worked well for us.

Did you have a read of the article I linked to on CMPA? Did LO have many of the symptoms?

A GP friend of mine used to swear by a tiny bit of canasten cream alongside whatever other creams you are using as apparently nappy rash can often contain a slight fungal element.

I did thankyou,

it’s tricky, no rashes, but she does sneeze a lot ( but has had a lot of sinus mucus since birth as C section). I honestly feel like a complete novice and it’s stressful.

does she seems like she’s in pain ever? i would wonder about either dairy or egg allergy both are very common.

it’s fine to be small so long as she’s proportionate! and so long as she tracks along her percentile curve.

i would really avoid formula because if she has a sensitive stomach she could end up reacting badly to the formula, and then you have no choice but to use hypoallergenic formula which is unfortunately not as good for the baby. at least with breastfeeding you can eliminate the things she is sensitive to, even if it takes a while to figure it out.

Hmmm I did wonder about this. She’s started to look more expressive when pooping. Almost like a straining look for a baby, but I didn’t know if this was just how babies start ‘communicating ‘ they are pooping or if she was uncomfortable.

My youngest had really bad nappy rash. I second the suggestion about it being fungal. The cream that worked for us was a combined anti fungal and hydrocortisone prescribed by the Dr. Either dackacort or canesten hydrocortisone would work.

I wouldn’t move to formula if you are getting on ok with breastfeeding. As others have said I would look at your diet / CMPA and also the nappies. Have you tried some different brands? I remember a friend having awful reaction to pampers but aldi nappies weren’t an issue

No rashes isn’t really a sign. I have non-Ige CMPA and dont have a rash but I do get lots of the other signs.

Personally I wouldn’t cut out dairy from your diet yet unless she’s actually screaming after every feed.

Pooping after every feed can be normal, however you feed your baby. DS was BF and pooped pretty constantly at that age.

The congestion could be normal congestion following a c-section. What did the MWs say about her congestion and sneezing before they discharged you?

In the absence of other factors, breast is best. So if you can feed, baby latches ans feeds well, you're happy feeding and isn't causing you any mental or physical health struggles then definitely don't swap to formula just in case you get better control of poo's! Especially if some concern of CMPA. Breastmilk is equivalent to hydrolysed formula as your body processes it, switching to formula if it is CMPA would actually make things much, much worse as the milk protein in formula is less broken down.

They do poo a lot to begin with, but especially for breastfed babies tends to settle down. Mine kept pooping 8+ times a day, while friends babies were pooping once a day or every few days and remained very liquid. Midwives kept saying was normal but baby dropped from 75th to 20th centile by 4 months. Finally suggested maybe CMPA and it was like a miracle after the 3 weeks it takes dairy to clear your system. Poo was once a day max, skin cleared up, weight piled back on. Much happier baby. Fed until 2, went back to 75th centile weight, 90th centile height all way through.

Could you be switching breasts too often? I know I did at first and that meant immense amounts of runny poos (think 10 a day). I was worried that one breast was empty and so swapping over every 15 minutes and giving too much of the runnier foremilk. I stopped doing that, baby got a bit older and by 12 weeks I had the opposite problem, one poo a week 🙄