Please Help I Am Getting Worried

When my son was born, he was tiny (5-lbs 14 ozs and a week overdue). He had bouts of constipation from the beginning. I knew that, with him, he was absorbing most of what he ate and had little waste because he had almost no body fat. I would let him go two days max with no BM and then I would lay him on his tummy with a couple of cloth diapers under his bottom area and gently massage his rectum with a warm washcloth for roughly a minute of so. Worked like a charm. I talked to his doctor about it and he said that if I was going to try to stimulate a BM this would be the best way to do it rather than introducing medications. This way, it stimulates them without medications that they could become somewhat dependant on if used regularly.
Hope this helps.

OK, what I did with my baby is put some vaseline on a q-tip and put just the cotton head part in his bottom. I kept it in there for 30 seconds. It sometimes helps stimulated him to go. If it doesn't happen right away, do it again. I moved the q-tip in a circular motion...not twirling, but making some circles...small ones. Hope that helps!

Just a side note - never use honey for a baby under one year of age. It can cause botulism. Karo is the better option.

Hi K.,

I worried when my son didn't go for 2 days. I called the pediatrician. And, at that age, it's really not uncommon for them to skip a day or two, maybe even more. Unless he is acting like something is wrong, I wouldn't do anything right now. If you are worried though, call the pediatrician. It never hurts to talk with a nurse.

C.

K., This trick worked for me as a kid and still does for my son - put about a tablespoon of plain old karo syrup in his bottle - it tastes sweet and he will eat it up and he will poop within a few hours - if not, give him another bottle with karo and i assure he will - no harsh chemicals and it tasted great !! Hope it works.. T. j.

My daughter was formula feed and sometimes the same thing happended to her. Our pedi said that babies are different and they do not have to go everyday. He told us that some babies may go 5 days and still be fine. I would not worry about it. If you are still concerned or he seems miserable than you may add a little Karo syrup to his bottle. Start small like 1 tsp to a bottle and that will loosen up the bowel a little, increase the dose each bottle (slightly) until he has a BM. Once he has a BM then you can stop the Karo. This is what our pedi had us do and it worked great.

My first son went one week plus with no poop close to that age. He was strictly breastfed and when I called the dr., she said that was normal for a breastfed baby. So maybe it's not uncommon for a formula fed baby to go a day or more with no poop.

She told me if he went more than close to 2 weeks w/no bm to give him an enema. I think we only had to resort to that one time. It does worry you though when you're used to it everyday, so I understand your concern.

Don't worry my son went through the same thing. We did glecerin supositories they worried great. You can find the children's supositories at Wal-Mart or Target we cut them in half and just stuck it up up his Bo-bo. This would always help in an hour or so. We didn't want to try the Kayo Syrup b/c added sugar scares me.

All you need to do is give him some DARK KARO syrup. If he is bottle fed just put about 1/4 tsp in about a fourth of a bottle of milk or water and warm it just enough to dissolve it. When the bottle is a good temperature to feed him then give it to him. Make sure it is when he is hungry so he will drink all the milk and get all the Karo. This will not cramp his tummy or hurt him anyway. I have done this with all four of my children. You can repeat this tonight or tomorrow if he doesn't have one. I would put this in 3 bottles a day for my kids, because this was a constant problem. Has to be the dark karo though. Good luck and don't worry.

My son had some issues with constipation. His doctor had me put about 1 ounce of dark Karo syrup in his bottle of milk and it worked just fine. Also, honey will make the poo flow, but Karo works more naturally. Bless you and Happy Thanksgiving!

It could be totally fine, my little girl is about the same age, and some days she wont go at all, and then she makes up for it the next. However, if you are worried, here is my tried and true method, not necessarily a fun one, but it will usually work...if he really does need to go. Use a rectal thermometer, put a little petroleum jelly on the end of it, and stick it into his bottom just like you were going to take his temperature. Sometimes it takes a minute, and a little bit of moving it around some, but it should help stimulate the muscles that he uses to go poopy. It should work, but if not, try again several hours later. It may be tomorrow before he really goes, but at his age I dont know if they recommend any other remedies. Try to put a call in to the ped for suggestions if by tomorrow night he has not gone, as Thanksgiving is coming up and they wont be in the office. Good luck, I hope all goes well:) ~A.~

Hello, I am certified in reflexology and I am a certified yoga instructor. Reflexology is accupressure of the soles of the feet and the feet are connected to every part of the body.If you rub the bottoms of his feet (and I'll tell you how ) you can produce a bowel movement. Here's how...the middle of the foot is associated with the digestive system. Stomach, bladder, small and large intestine, kidneys, and colon.When you rub the middle of his feet you are going to rub in a downward motion with your thumbs.In other words from the middle or arch of the foot towards the heel. Do not rub up from the heel towards the toes as this produces the opposite effect that you are going for. Rub with some pressure, not enough to make him uncomfortable but not too light either. Practice on your foot first, and then remember that his feet are a little more tender than yours. Guarenteed to produce a movement within 24 hrs.Some warm water on his belly will help too. And if he is able try laying him on his back and gently twisting him so that his legs go right while his upper torso go left hold for a few (30) seconds and then do the opposite, legs left, upper torso right. Good luck.

I've heard the Karo syrup works well for babies that age. I also think you could try taking his temp rectally as someone else mentioned. My pedi once said that could get them to have a bowel movement.

My daughter was never constipated until about a month ago (she's 23 months old now), and I know how hard it is to figure out what to do. Hopefully he'll get back to normal soon.

a little prune juice :)

try some diluted juice.... Gerber makes an apple prune just - use 1/4 of the individual bottle and the rest with water. The Apple prune worked wonders for my daughter and she liked the taste of it *YUK* - the pear juice also worked for her at time.... just be careful on the amount of juice given at one time or another....

Try taking his temp. via rectum; don't forget the KY. My ped told me that will sometimes get things moving. You might also try a warm cloth which may help everything relax. My daughter had the same problem two or three times when she was that age. Poor guy! Good Luck!

Hi K.,
You might trying some Karo syurp with some warm water in a bottle, that seemed to help my littleone when he was small. If in doubt call the doctor and ask, it never hurts to ask!!
K.

My pediatrician told me that mylicon can constipate a baby. Good luck

I don't remember what stage of food they are on at that age. I am talking like mine is sooo old when she is only 16 months-lol. Anyways, feed him some fruit-stage 1? of prunes, peaches, plums or apple sauce to make him go. That is if he is constipated. It is always the fruit that starts with P that gets them going. Either that or a warm bath and rubbing his stomach while in bath. The fruit will do the trick though. Have fun-lol.

My daughter, 5 weeks, had the same issue. I was told by a nurseline that some babies will go without a bm for up to 7 days! However, that seems painful to me. Every night I do exercises with my daughter. I pull her legs up to her chest while she is laying on her back. She grunts the for the first few, then she starts laughing! We do this for about 10-15 minutes everynight and whenever it seems she is trying to poop. Hope it works for you!

My baby had the same problem, he would only poop 2-3 times a week! (Although he was nursed) At 8 wks I started giving him a lil' apple juice, 1 ounce w/ water, and he sucked it down, and it worked great.

Try putting some white karo syrup in his formula, or even a teaspoon of olive oil if you have it. Baby will like the sweet syrup better though. Also, at bedtime, you can rub olive oil on his back and tummy, then cover with warm pajamas for comfort. I don't know why it works, but it does.

I would reccommend giving him alittle bit of prune juice in his formula or apple juice works well too. The best thing to do is stimulate his rectum with your fingers(and a baby wipe) or by taking his temperature rectally. It has always worked wonders(and very quickly) for my babies!

You may need to change your Doctor or your formula !
I use Good Start use to be called Carnation and you can get it at Walmart, my daughter & son were both on this and were regular with no problems. Also the gas drops were very good too ! Good Luck ~

Actually warm liquids stimulate parastaltic movement. Be patient, tomorrow you may well be changing six dirty diapers!
C. S.