Almost 5 Month Old Daughter Hasn't Pooped in 7 Days!

Updated on May 25, 2011
L.U. asks from Kirkland, WA
15 answers

Hi moms! I have an adorable little girl who is not poopin!! She is totally 100% breastfed. She has been pooping about every 4-5 days for the past month or so, but this is the longest she's gone. Usually when she goes it is a BLOWOUT...but so far, nothing! I talked to her doctor about it last month and she said to move her legs up and down and to kind of massage her belly. So, I have been doing that every day, any time she is laying down. SHe loves it...but no poop! What else can I do??? She doesn't seem to be uncomfortable, isn't crying, is having plenty of wet diapers....just no poop!
Thanks for your ideas.
L.

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So What Happened?

Wouldn't you know? An hour after I posted this she had a MAJOR poop! Good girl! Not hard at all...still very very loose...breastfed baby poop. Just a ton of it. She has a regular dr. apptmnt on Thursday, so I will just ask her about it again. Thanks moms. Boy am I relieved she finally went...I bet she is too!!!
L.

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J.D.

answers from Seattle on

Hi. My totally breastfed son used to poop once every 10 days or so. He was perfectly fine. That is normal for breastfed babies. Nothing to worry about :-)

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G.G.

answers from Lewiston on

suppositories!! My son was the same way!! they have toddler ones but my sons doctor said to just cut a little piece off and use that!! And the doctor said it was safe as long as your not doing it all the time!

2 moms found this helpful

D.P.

answers from Detroit on

My dd was the same way breast fed too. There is literally very little waste from breast milk. Some kids do poop a lot when breast fed as the sucking promotes peristalsis ( basically an active bowel).

As long as you dd is gaining weight and has no discomfort and her infrequent stools do not come out hard she is fine.

Side note. I did call the doctor everyday with her lol (first born). We did the caro syrup and water thing with doctor's advice but not really necessary. I believe our pediatrician got tired of my poop obsession.

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J.S.

answers from Hartford on

Since she's breastfed and not eating any solids, is producing wet diapers and isn't uncomfortable, she's fine. My youngest once went 10 days without pooping while we were EBF. It freaked me out a little, but it happens. It just means that she's eating what she needs and her body is using it efficiently.

You have no reason to give her prune juice or pears, and absolutely no reason to give her suppositories. She's giving you no signs of distress at all. She'll poop, and when she does I'll bet she'll need two diapers to get it all out. :-) As long as when she does poop next it's not dry and pebbly and white or black. Right now you have to let nature take its course.

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C.W.

answers from Las Vegas on

When my daughter would get constipated I would make a bottle (just pump some milk) and mix it with 1-2ounces of prune juice. Worked for me and it didn't hurt her or anything.
But being that she's breastfed I agree with Dawi P. I just couldn't believe if my daughter didn't poop for a week that she has none :P

Update Awesome cuz I was cringing if she was gonna have a suppository (don't those go in their behind?, poor babies :P)

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J.R.

answers from San Diego on

I was told that you (mom) should eat canned pears to get things moving for your baby. My daughter was the same way at her age. I think the longest she went was about six or seven days. The pediatrician told me that she could go as long as 10(!) days before they'd think she needed to come in. But he recommended Miralax and juice if we were really worried. I never had to do either though.

1 mom found this helpful
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E.C.

answers from Syracuse on

A while back, I was also concerned when my formula fed baby hadn't pooped in 4 days, but my pediatrician said it's not the frequency so much as the consistency of the poop. When she does poop, if it looks like rabbit poop (small, round, hard pebbles) then she's constipated. If she's not fussy or uncomfortable, I would give it another day or so before taking any action. Juice definitely works. My son is now 15 month old and when he hasn't had a decent BM in a fews days, we give him pureed squash and it works every time. Good luck!

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M.C.

answers from Washington DC on

Make sure that that YOU aren't dehydrated. Does that make sense? Give her some apple juice, prune juice. Graham crackers.

Make sure her belly stays soft. If her belly tightens, there is a problem and she needs to be seen. If she doesn't poop by tonight she'll need to be seen to make sure there isn't some type of blockage.

I just found out last week that if your appendix is floating around and lands in a certain position, it can cause constipation until the appendix moves. Who knew! So you could also try lightly massaging her belly.

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J.C.

answers from Seattle on

I am not a doctor, but neither of my kids (100% breastfed) pooped more than ever 4-5 days - the are fine!

1 mom found this helpful

M.M.

answers from Jackson on

I tried Gerber Apple Prune juice when my little ones had this much trouble. 7 days?? That does'nt sound good. I would call the Dr. again. Also,there are glycerin suppositories you can use to stimulate her to go. Be warned....this will probably make her go...so WATCH OUT!!! LOL.

Keep us posted!!!

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G.B.

answers from Oklahoma City on

Call the pediatrician. Suppositories can dehydrate her, even a tiny piece. They have prescription enema's for babies. They are tine little bulbs of mostly salt water or glycerin but do not dehydrate them..

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D.B.

answers from Charlotte on

.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.R.

answers from Chicago on

Is she breastfed? If so, could be normal. My first son took breastmilk and would have blowouts about once a week, despite going daily or a few times a day for the first two months or so.

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S.S.

answers from Seattle on

You can give her some apple juice (watered down or give her the Gerber's brand). One ounce per month old she is - so up to five ounces for her. Apple juice will make her poop.

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N.P.

answers from Portland on

We've had the same problem with our daughter who is also 100% breastfed. Except that she had actually gone more than a couple weeks at a time. If it ends up as an ongoing problem, alternatives include giving a small amount of benefiber each day, or about a teaspoon of apple or prune juice, and probiotics. Or daughter is getting breast milk bottles so we add these things to her bottles. That said, 7 days is probably nothing to worry too much about, just wanted to let you know some of the options!

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