Excuse the pun. I couldn't help myself.
So S hasn't pooed in 11 days. That's right - 11.
At about the 5 day point, I did some research and was relieved (no pun actually intended on this one) to discover it's quite normal for EBF babies not to poo for several days at a time. Plus, she didn't seem in discomfort at all, so I wasn't worried. Now that we're approaching 2 weeks, however, I've become somewhat concerned. In addition to the sheer length of time since her last BM, she's recently been doing A LOT of stinky farting, last night she woke up a few times crying and today she's been fussier than normal. I ended up calling the doc this morning and he suggested that I incorporate more fibre into my own diet and try giving her some juice (unsweetend prune or apple). First one - easy peasy. I promptly bought some Fibre 1 and had a big bowl when I got home. Boom - about 12 grams of fibre. I then made smoothies with prune juice. Another 3-4 grams. Several hours later, still no poo from S so now I'm thinking of moving to the second suggestion. I'm hesitant, though. She hasn't had anything to eat or drink except BM so far (well aside from a chunk of napkin the other day, but that's another story). So I'm a little skittish about giving her juice, especially before she has started on "milder" foods such as rice cereal or veggies. But - tomorrow will be 12 days. That's a LOOONG time without a poop!
Have any of you been through something similar with a little one? If so, how long did the "no poop" period last? Did your kiddo eventually just go on his/her own, or did you introduce something like prune juice or an infant suppository to help move things along? And what was the first BM like after the drought? Normal? Overly plentiful? Was it the same consistency or different? Interested in hearing from others who have been through the same thing!!
I completely understand. Our Little Man has a 'very efficient colon'. We had the same problem starting at about 4 months. We tried everything we could for months...introducing baby prunes, pairs, cutting out grains, me watching my diet. It finally got to the point where we had to do 2 oz of prune juice mixed with 2 oz of water. We also had to do a baby suppository....but it worked very well! Now, we make sure that he gets his 2 oz of prune juice and 1-2 oz of water everyday just to make him regular. It makes cloth diapering very easy though because there is never a peanut butter consistency. It never mattered how much fiber I ate or how much we gave him. He is starting to have a little easier time now that we are introducing cows milk at 13 months, but he still gets his juice everyday before nap.
ReplyDeleteI can relate! Our 3 mo old has always gone about 3 days w/o pooping and sometimes has verrrry smelly gas! His dr just said it's his digestive system getting used to being outside the womb and it should get better w/ time. At one point, after it had been over 3 days and he was so uncomfortable and we tried gas drops, the dr suggested giving him a suppository. She told us the ones to buy and we did-they looked pretty big and she said to cut them in half but we cut it in thirds. It sounds bad, but he honestly didn't seem to be bothered by it-about 45 min later he pooped.....and pooped....and pooped! Not to be graphic, but it was basically like a lake! Just be prepared w/ extra clothes and DO NOT LEAVE YOUR HOUSE!! :) Poor guy just needed a little "help" I guess. This isn't something we'd give him routinely but if your child is so uncomfortable you may want to ask your dr about it. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteAmy
I forgot to add that my little guy is exclusively bf
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your experiences, ladies! It's now the end of Day 12 w/o a poop. :( I had a LOTTA fibre the last couple days and we gave S about 2 ounces of diluted prune juice today as well, so hopefully that'll jumpstart things! Dr told me to call back tomorrow morning if she still hasn't number 2'd as he may suggest a suppository then. :( Don't want to go there until we've given the juice adequate time to do its thing.
ReplyDeletePerhaps she'll decide to go right before the Great Cloth Diaper Change?
She's 5 months old? Is she growing okay? I'd double check her weight just in case, as sometimes the no pooping can be a sign that they aren't getting quite enough to eat, or at least enough of the fatty hindmilk. If she has been popping off of the breast after a quick snack lately, try to encourage longer nursing sessions. I *wouldn't* do juice or suppositories for an exclusively breastfed baby (ask the doctor what the proven medical benefits and risks are. The lack of poop is bothering you but isn't a true medical problem in a breastfed baby.)
ReplyDeleteMy oldest was like this. Putting her in a kangaroo hold (with her legs scrunched up in front of her) in the sling and going for a brisk walk sometimes helped. It's extra likely if you dress yourself and the baby both in bright white clothing. We also resorted to taking her temperature rectally once. but I wouldn't recommend that. Really, the poop will come eventually. And when it does, it will be soft, yellow, abundant and completely NOT characteristic of constipation (if I'm wrong, definitely consult your doctor at that point. I have no idea what would cause actual constipation-type stools in an infant.)
I really disagree with the doctor's idea of you eating more fiber too... not that it will hurt you, but it just doesn't make sense. The fiber works on your system mechanically by bulking up your stool. The fiber doesn't get transferred to the baby through your breastmilk (fiber-rich milk??) Consider looking up a local IBCLC for breastfeeding advice if you feel like you might want to talk to a professional about this -- especially if it turns out that your little one is slipping a little on the growth chart.
That would be my $7 worth (I couldn't stop at two cents...)
@muddytoes - not sure if you saw from my GCDC post, but she did poo a day later. She's now pooed twice since the post - yay! The poo was a little thicker, darker and stinkier than "normal", but still nothing close to constipation poo. The change was presumably due to the prune juice.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I was wondering about the fibre thing myself as I have actually been very regular recently. But I figured that I may have been "using up" all my available fibre and not passing enough along to her, but now that you've mentioned it, the idea of "fibre-rich milk" does sound a bit skeptical.
In terms of the prune juice, we retrieved this advice from a few sources (including the "Mother of all Baby Books") so I led to the conclusion it was sound. If she was younger (<= 4 mths) I would have felt a lot more hesitant about it, but now that she's 5 we're planning to expand her diet soon anyhow so I was willing to give it a go. She *did* poo soon after the juice, so I'm not sure if it was coincidence or if the juice actually helped, but it *was* a relief regardless!
RE: growth, she IS gaining but rather slowly. About 10 oz to a pound per month. There was a period in the past when I suspected she may not have been getting enough hind milk so I was very diligent about keeping her on the same boob until it was empty, but I may have been a little lax on this recently. I'll give it renewed focus - thanks for pointing this out!