Crying After Feeding and Not Pooping Much

Sounds to me like he is constipated. He may also be dehydrated in the heat. I'd add water to his diet. I seem to remember something else for constipation in babies, but it has been much too long to remember what it is. Sorry.

hi, he might be constipated. when my kids were that age I would get a little bit of baby oil and rub their tummies with slight pressure going towards downwards. After(and sometimes during) they will fart and poop. Or I would give diluted prune juice or puree prunes(gerber) if they are of age... but yours is only 5 weeks, so he is too young. Just try massaging his tummy.

hth,
M.

My 5 week olds bowels have changed too and I have noticed it has to do with eating more raw fruits and veggies. Try eating some raw carrots and apples/pears/peaches and see if that helps. Also, I have noticed that eating some young fresh coconut helps with his bowels. Also, he is getting older and may not be hungry when you are offering him food and he is just letting you know he is not interested, since he/she is more expressive.
I hope that all is well. Definetely increase fiber foods if you are nursing, add flax powder to a shake.

Call your doctor to make sure, but it sounds like he's going through a growth sput, and he may still be hungry after you nurse him. Also, they poop less as they grow, they intestines grow and they don't poop as frequently, in a few months he may poop just once a day.

You might need to increase the amount of milk you're giving him. He might be going through a growth spurt, which means he'll need more milk and with the hot weather he's more likely to become thirstier and more dehydrated. If he's formula fed, he'll have a greater chance of getting constipated than if he's breastfed. You can help him have an easier b.m. if you give him a 3oz bottle of 1/2 prune juice and 1/2 water. This works...I had to do it with my daughters when they were just over a month old. Of course, this is advice I took from my pediatrician 4 years ago. You should check with your Dr. to see what advice she/he may have.

Lycopodium 30C dissolve in water, shake and give few drops on the tongue every 20 min for 1st hour, every 2 hours after that. stop as soon as crying becomes more manageable. if it does not work, consult professional homeopath - there are many remedies to calm the baby, but most need to be selected for the baby (individual) not for the symptom (common).
Good Luck
V.

NAET.com for allergy eliminations.

Be well.

N.

Hi C.
My baby is 7 weeks old and just experienced this same problem a few weeks ago. Not sure if you breastfeed or use formula. My doctor suggested putting baby on nutramigen formula (its expensive of course:) and it has worked like a charm. Find it at Target, CVS or Babies R Us. Hope this helps.

N.

PB8. You can open the capsule and dump some into his mouth and chase it with breastmilk or mix more in his bottle. If you are BFing, you might want to take a bunch yourself. Give this a week or more and increase the dose until the bowels get lose, then back off a bit. If this doesn't work, try potassium gluconte for you, if BFing and make sure you aren't eating dairy. If he's senstive to it, it can cause wicked constipation. Corn (insluding corn syrup), wheat, soy, peanuts and tomato are the other big food allergans.

Probiotics health food store. You will be amazed!!!

Hi C., I had the same problem with my daughter. And the doctor suggested prune juice a little at a time. This helps with the constipation. The babies get hungry of course and eat but their so uncomfortable since they can't poop.(just as adults get uncomfortable) Many suggest a little apple juice but this can do the opposite on alot of babies and make them more constipated. Prune juice is the only juice that would help. Good luck with it all.

you can use suppositories on your babe..get glycerin ones made for children ..u can also make them smaller..is your baby breastfed or formula? if breastfed u could have a too fast or too slow letdown and could be uncomfortable for him...if you're using formula it could be hard on his belly..try Good Start Supreme Comfort Proteins but introduce it slowly if you're not already using that one.
also if you are bfing u may need to eat more bland..it's very common for them to get constipated.

C.,

Have you contacted your pediatrician about this? Better to be safe than sorry. He is probably colicky and feeling some abdominal pain if he hasn't pooped. He needs to poop atleast once every other day in the beginning and it should be yellow mush. If he is formula fed rather than breastfed, try Enfamil's Nutramigen which is specifically designed to prevent colick in babies. It says so right on the can. You can get it at Ralphs or Target, ready made or powder but check first with your pediatrician. My son was fed Nutramigen right in the neonatal unit of Saint John's Medical Center the day after he was born and now at 14 months he still occasionally drinks it along with his food.

Good luck.

Aloha C.,

The first thing that comes to mind is.......are you breastfeeding or giving formula? That came make a difference. If nursing, and it's been hotter, you might need to increase the nursing so as to give him more fluids. But, when in doubt, call your pediatrician.

Blessings,
Marie-anne

You have a newborn, only 5 weeks old... you should call your Pediatrician. They are on call 24/7, and you can page the Doctor. They are used to this.... so don't hold back from calling the Doc.

Next, your newborn could have gas problems/pains... which is common with babies. Burp him often. Or use infant gas drops, which is completely safe.
He could also be constipated... BUT, you need to have this properly diagnosed from the Doctor.

Crying could be due to many things... ie: lack of intake thus hunger, not enough milk coming out, improper latching on thus he is not drinking enough, etc.

SO, you have to have it properly diagnosed. Because the reason could be many.

Sometimes, crying AFTER eating/nursing can be due to not enough intake or gas pains. USUALLY if a baby IS getting enough intake per nursing, then they are satisfied afterward. Be sure to nurse ON demand... 24/7, day and night. Some babies even "cluster feed" meaning they even need to nurse every single hour... .to keep up with their growth. ie: Nursing/baby's intake needs ALWAYS changes with a baby... because they are constantly growing and developing... thus, their feeding 'schedule' needs to be on demand because their intake needs will increase as they grow.

Nursing sessions should last at least 15 minutes so that the baby can get to the 'hind milk' and then they usually nurse after that. Typically, a baby will nurse for 1/2 hour or longer. Does your baby do that? Also try burping him during nursing...

It is also common that breastfed babies not poop every single day and is still considered 'normal.' Some babies don't poop for several days... their body is always changing.

I recommend the book: "What To Expect The First Year." Which you can find at any bookstore or online like at Amazon.

If he seems to 'push' and nothing comes out, it can be constipation or gas pains.

I would call your Pediatrician....and also check that he is latching on properly, that you have enough milk, and try the infant gas drops. My daughter as a baby cried a lot- but she had bad gas problems & rarely farted.... and the infant gas drops helped a lot. But that is just her. Each baby is different. But many babies also cry a lot and after feeding because they are not 'full' nor getting enough milk/supply and are thus always hungry.
Do you use BOTH breasts per nursing session? If not, try that. That is how I nursed both my kids, and they had GINORMOUS appetites and drank me dry each time.

Also, a Mom's milk supply also always changes and can change as a result of what she eats... so there is also that factor too, sometimes. Make sure you are keeping hydrated and drinking lots of water and stay away from eating foods that can cause 'gas.'

But call your Pediatrician.

All the best,
Susan

Hi C.,

I hate to be an alarmist but get him to a doctor ASAP to rule out intestinal obstruction. Sometimes the intestines twist and if his bowel movements have changed that is a sign and eating less or reacting with pain is also a sign of digestive distress. Better safe then sorry. Especially since you say its been 3-4 days. This is a life-theatening situation.

If it's not that, I hope it isn't, are you breast feeding? Are you eating differently then before this started? If you using formula, have you changed formulas? He may have developed a lactose problem. Boy babies are more likely to have an underdeveloped digestion system. Having 4 sons of my own, we ran the gammit. He could be constipated but if the stool is the same consistancy as alway, then it's less likely it's constipation. Use a glycerine suppository but first consult your peditrician.

I noticed others mentioning not enough breast milk, this is what I did and I wish I had figured this out with my first two. I offer the breast they finished with the feeding before for 5 minutes. That way the get 50% of the milk in that breast. Then I'd offer the other breast and allowed them to nurse until they were full. It satified them. Took the pressure off of both breasts, reduced that look of having a D cup and a FFF cup look and they got enough milk to satisfy them for a longer period of time because the majority of the milk they take in is the first 5 minutes. This also keeps them from biting the breast when the think that will get them more.

Good Luck to you and I I'll include your son in my prayers.

Carpe Diem :^D F.

Hi, my friend is currently having the same problem with her 5 week old son! He just stopped pooping as normal, and what she done was put some fruit juice in a bottle, diluted with cool boiled water. This has really done the trick! It acts as a slight laxative because of the natural fruit juice acid. I think maybe the crying after eating is due to his not being able to clear himself out properly? Maybe he's feeling all bunged up! Hopefully this might help a bit. If he feels really hot maybe he has a slight fever relating to something else which is curbing his appetite?

Hope you get to the root of this soon, its so stressful when they are that young. Good luck :)

Hi Cristine

I am a mom of three 2 girls and 1 boy. Please call and make sure your doctor knows about this. Is he spitting up at all? My son at 6 weeks had pyloric stenosis he stopped popping, spitting up and was always fussy after feedings. Look into everything. They don't need anything, but milk at this age.
Hope he is doing better soon