Constipation 2yrs old?
SS is 2 years old, his father, grandmother & I are the ones primarily caring for him. He's had constipation issues most of his life & lately he's going 3-4 days with no poops! He's had so many hard ones that he's holding it in now because they hurt 
We've made changes to his diet, adding more hydration & fiber, he eats prunes daily..short of giving him even more of a mental thing about his heiney by fighting him to get a suppository in, does anyone have any advice? I'm starting to wonder if it's an irritable bowel type thing, but he's an excellent eater & doesn't appear to have any triggers.
- Laurencee's blog
- Log in or register to post comments
Comments
lots of prune juice always
lots of prune juice always worked for my GS
The pediatrician hasn't said
The pediatrician hasn't said anything other than to "keep doing what we're doing." He hasn't been on any antibiotics. I feel so bad for him. His BM is useless, in fact an hour of having him & she's at her wits end complaining about him crying in discomfort & having to stop somewhere to change him & grilling his dad about "what did you feed him."
Culturelle for Kids. It's
Culturelle for Kids.
It's probiotics for children that come in little single use packets. you can dump it into any liquids, I've even mixed it into pudding. It's not a medication, it's just a concentrated amount of the good bacteria in yogurt. BS has digestive problems, we also have given him other things like Calm Powder and Miralax. The Calm powder didn't seem to do anything and I know others have issues with using 'medications' wihtout a doctors approval. But the culturelle is just a natural good bacteria we need in our bodies, and the for kids version is a less potent amount for a little ones body.
My DD had this problem from
My DD had this problem from about 2 and a half. If young children suffer from constipation and find it painful to go to the toilet they may start 'withholding' and deliberately delaying going to the toilet. It can become a habit, which they don't immediately stop even when the constipation itself has been resolved. I'm surprised his paediatrician hasn't explained this, because this problem is not uncommon in children.
You're doing all the right things in terms of diet and hydration but it may take a while for SS to get over his fear of going to the toilet. You might want to try rewards and encouragement for poos - stickers, small prizes etc. The more you can get him into the habit of going regularly the more likely he will forget the discomfort and settle into a normal routine. If he being potty/toilet trained he needs to be taken to have a try on the potty within 10 minutes of finishing breakfast and dinner, as that is when he is mostly likely to be able to go. Anything you can do to introduce fun and positivity will help - stickers for trying, prizes for succeeding etc.
It's really important that BM is on board with this approach, otherwise SS's negative feelings about pooing are likely to continue. It's very important to avoid negative pressure - being cross and irritable, complaining about the crying and changing etc. pressure and anxiety will make it worse. Worst case scenario is it takes a long time for SS to ditch the habit, and he may need to be prescribed mild laxatives to counteract the painful bowel movements which will result from continued withholding. The earlier you catch it and the more positively and diligently it is addressed the more likely it will sort itself out sooner. This book may help:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Constipation-Withholding-Your-Child-Soiling/dp/1...
Thanks for all the
Thanks for all the suggestions! His dad & I think it could be an anxiety thing..the "poopy rewards" sounds like a FANTASTIC idea, we're goin to talk about that today. We have him the majority of his waking hours & we expect BM to fight tooth & nail so we're basically hoping patience & persistence will prevail.
NOOOO JUICE!!! BACK OFF ON
NOOOO JUICE!!! BACK OFF ON THE FIBER!!! You need to call the Pediatrician right now. He can die. He might have a colonic infection or blockage.
WATER --- lots of it. I
WATER --- lots of it. I totally agree with the NO JUICE! All you are doing is pumping sugar into him which will affect his tummy among other things like adding to anxiety (sugar is bad for your brain)and is super bad for the teeth. If this has been an ongoing problem since birth - i would have tests done stat! Also - too much fiber will plug him up. Water is the best way to go and if he doesn't like the plain taste - add a pinch of gerber apple juice. Lots of water & an ounce of the gerber apple juice helped my daughter when she was little.
We do an ounce of pear juice
We do an ounce of pear juice & the rest is water. Haven't loaded him up on fiber either, just make sure he eats good veggies, beans, whole grains etc. with meals. He's probably the most awesome-eating kid ever lol I'm the health-conscious one in the family so I have influence as far as limiting processed foods. Dad has a call into the pediatrician; she (the doctor) seems to think it's a phase & that he does have some anxiety about going since he's had some hard poops. No blood in the stool though, thank goodness.