My Toddler Super Strains with Every #2 - Colorado Springs,CO

I know this sounds odd but try the chiropracter. His hips may be out of alignment and this will really help. I have done it with my own children one being a newborn and what a difference. Back off on cheese if that is something that you eat a lot.

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I agree with the previous poster -- maybe he just needs to learn that he can relax when going #2. My son is impatient with #2, so it's hard for me to get him to stay on the potty long enough to go sometimes. And I notice with my daughter (only 5 months old) that if I rub her back when she is straining and can get her to relax that is when she can actually poop and not get constipated. I recently had a conversation with our pediatrician about this and he said that the anal sphincter muscle is not totally developed (yeah this was about my baby -- but bear with me, it's relevant) at her age. So they end up working really hard to poop -- but they are pushing down to poop while tightening up the sphinter muscle which keeps it in. Perhaps your son has been doing the same thing all along and has "taught" his body that is how to do #2. My pediatrician also recommended milk of magnesia (a stool softener only, NOT a laxitive) for when stools are hard so they never HAVE to strain for #2.
Also, you say he looks like he's in so much pain -- but does he communicate to you that he's in pain? Have you asked him if it hurts? Maybe he just makes painful faces and "screams" as part of the primal act of relieving himself.

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I feel your pain. Have you tried soymilk? My 13 month old daughter had problems as soon as she stopped nursing. She weaned herself at 6 1/2 months. She would have problems going, crying and trying to hold it in because it hurt so much. It got worse when we switched from formula to milk. The dr. told me to try Miralax as well. I switched her from regular milk to soymilk and I promise you, she has not had a painful stool since. She's not allergic to dairy, so I still give her yogurt and cheese and the occassional ice cream, and sometimes regular milk if we're out. But the soymilk seems to have helped. It's worth a try. I give her the vanilla kind. at first I was concerned about the sugar, but it doesn't have any more sugar than whole milk. Another note, I've read some of your other respones and i had tried pretty much everything that was listed as well. And for the people who said he's trying to get a reaction out of you, give me a break, the poor thing is just trying to poop. Please try the soymilk, I thought my daughter was doomed to pain and would eventually grow out of it as well. I'm so glad I tried this, because it was painful for me as well. I wanted to cry and I'm not the crying type!

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Maybe you need to see another doctor.

Cut back on the juice, it may be making things worse. Try feeding him Activia yogurt, it tastes good and it works! Abdominal massage also works well, I do it for my two daughters all the time. Look up some abby massage websites, there are sure to be some out there. Basically as longs as you are stroking clockwize it will be good for him. If his doctor is not concerned than he is probably OK health wise, but if your mother's intuition is telling you it is medical, then find another doctor and make sure he is really OK.

My son would strain and push entirely too hard when he would have bowel movements. We told him that sometimes it works better to relax and take deep breaths. Breath with him to show him how to do it and if he starts pushing extremely hard again tell him to calm down and breath. I think it is how he thinks he has to push to get it out. Does he go on the potty? If he is not quite potty trained maybe when he poops might be a good time to sit him on the potty ask him to relax give him a book to look at and see if it is easier on the potty.

I wonder if he's just used to that tightening and screaming, since that's how he started out. If his poop is normal, that's a fair sign that he doesn't have a problem (though not 100%). If you're doubting the doctor, feel free to get a second opinion (always trust your instincts!) But to me it sounds more like a habit, and he may just grow out of it.

Hi L.-

My son used to struggle so much with this problem. He was constipated on and off from the time he was 4 months old to about age 4 or 5. It got really bad with potty-training, because it would hurt to go and then he wouldn't want to go, so he would hold it, which would make it hurt more. I know how you feel seeing him have such pain with it- I HATED it. You feel so helpless. We tried numerous things. Glycerin suppositories (1/2 of one) worked sometimes, but I hated giving them to him. When he was around 5-6 months, I gave him about a tablespoon of dark Karo syrup in a couple of ounces of water and that worked ok. I don't know if you son would eat prunes or drink prune juice, but that really worked with my son until he decided he didn't like it. You can add the juice to apple juice or dilute it with water. I also realized that bananas really affected him and would make him more constipated. There are a few baby laxatives on the market also, like the Little Tummys brand, that worked for my son. Something that seemed to work well was an herbal supplement called bowel toner that had senna and licorice in it. Adults are supposed to take 2 or 3 with a meal, but I just gave him half or one in some oatmeal or something. The only thing is it tastes funny.

I work for a pediatrics office and the providers there usually rec Miralax, probably half a tsp a day with your son's weight, until he is having a soft bm every day and then slowly wean him off. You can adjust the dose 1/2 a tsp at a time every 3 or 4 days until it works if 1/2 tsp doesn't work. My best advice would be to call your dr. and keep calling until you find something that works. They have a lot of tricks up their sleeves if they realize that the old standby doesn't work for him. I definitely felt like my son's dr. just didn't get it. I wanted to show him what my son was going through, because I felt like he just thought it was a little straining, and it was more like screaming and both of us crying and nothing coming out and we were in a vicious cycle. Hang in there and use those free phone calls to your provider! :)

God bless,

J.

Hello L.,
Sounds like you have gotten a lot of good advice. My daughter is the same way. She has always had this problem, she is now 4 1/2. Our doctor has told us to give her miralaz, I know you have tried this but maybe back off a little. give it to him every other day or so. Once he goes a few times and it is soft then maybe he will figure out that it doesnt hurt and he will stop straining so much. Unfortunaly that is not the case for us. My daughter still has issues but that is because she doesnt eat the correct foods. We have cut back on the juice and that might be his problem too. Do you do 1/2 and 1/2? We do, but we have limited her juice to once a day. I have noticed some progress with her but it has taken some time. Good luck to you. But I believe in the miralaz but I also know that this is a temp. fix.

He could be "straining" because it gets a reaction out of you. I try not to make a big deal of most injuries and such (unless they are really hurt) because then I can sometimes hear about them for the next 2 weeks!

We started using Miralax about that age...upon doctor (GI) suggestion. Heck, I used it sometimes too. It is a powder and I sprinkled a little on her cereal. We called it princess sugar. Also, look into a probiotic lie Acidophilis. It gets all the flora an fona in balance. We found a dairy free chewable at Walgreens. Do check with a doctor and only try one thig at a time.

woops. Just read you used Miralax already. try only using a little bit and make sure he gets whole grain cereal or bread. the fruit can actualy bind him up as well as the juices. Stay way from the sugars even if natural. I also cook with flax meal. We have bananna bread with flax often and mine seems to be doing great now. I know it is hard though as I have been there. Just keep thinking about it and follow your instincts. there just isn't something balanced don there. Also try going dairy free for a couple of weeks. Just see what happens.

Try a pediatric chiropractor. My daughter and nephew had similar problems since birth. My daughter started seeing Dr. Beth Lancaster at 10 months, and never has problems now. My nephew on the other hand, is on medications, drinks TONS of apple juice and still has problems.
Good luck - poor baby!

You might look into elimination communication (EC) with him. (I assume he's still in diapers?) EC puts him on a potty (in a natural, gentle & loving way, of course), which is a more natural position for elimination. You can find lots of info on it online. Try www.timl.com/ipt or www.tribalbaby.org or just google "elimination communication."

You might also want to try probiotics (Natren is a brand I use) and possibly checking the magnesium in his diet. You might be able to find a baby-compatible supplement if he needs some. Vitamin Cottage would be a great place to start. They're usually very knowledgable there.

Best of luck... hope you can get your little one sorted out soon!

I would recommend not having juice in the house and switch to water. It's a transition, but it worked just fine with my kids and now they drink more water (body needs more water than juice). It will reduce the sugar intake and eating fresh fruit is better because it has all the nutrients as opposed to juice from fruit doesn't keep all the nutrients. The acidity and sugars from juice can contribute to stomach and digestive pain.
Also, my friend's son had constipation problems since he was born. I got him on some aloe to drink and he has no more problems. It used to take him an hour to #2 even on meds, but now only 5 min and no more meds. I'm a personal wellness coach by the way. If you're interested in getting some herbal aloe drink, you can contact me 888-236-4453 or ____@____.com.
-O.

This may be obvious, but have you tried prunes? Even when other things fail, this natural fruit can have incredible bowel stimulating powers. You also might not try giving him more things, but try eliminating from his diet foods known to cause constipation, like cheeses, meats, and processed foods (you can probably find a list of foods that cause constipation online or from your pediatrician). He also might have Irritable Bowel Syndrome. If that is the case, you can expect to have to change his diet a bit, but it's not too life changing, so don't worry. Good luck, and happy pooping :)

My son was 3 and constipated. Even though it was soft after the initial constipation, he had a small fissure inside the opening that was causing it to sting. If he has been off and on constipated, he could be re-tearing it and it is painful again for several BMs. There is an ointment that can heal that. Another thing it could be is an overabundance of yeast near the rectum. I don't know that doctors really believe in that stuff but cutting down sugar and increasing probiotics like in yogurt can get rid of the yeast that can cause a burning sensation, thus not making him want to hold in or strain when he has to go.
good luck.

My daughter was a preemie and had the same issue. I felt so bad for her, I just wanted to cry! When we spoke to her doctor at the time, she suggested that we feed her any fruit or vegetable that began with the letter "P" with every meal and as snacks in between meals. That helped alot, but not quite enough. So, in addition, we started adding Benefiber to her last drink of the night (which happened to be milk with a smidge of strawberry Quik in it - just enough to make it slightly pink). After about three days she was "normal". She never had any side effects or loose bowels because of it. We continued doing this til she was almost 4 years old, after that it was no longer necessary. Hope this helps! Good luck!

L.,
Try giving him tsp. of Karo syrup in water.
Also just giving him water and cutting back on the cheese and milk.
S.

start with rasins /crasins. make your own applesauce and blend in the peeling. the fiber really helps. try live culter yogert. water with karo syrup. i am sure you have tried a million things but if you keep to the friut and veggies and don't forget the water it will really help him. try the prune juice. if times are really extreme get extrA virgin olive iol and feed him a dime size amount in some oj. i know that aloe vera supplement can help with tummy bowl troubles but i would go to the whole food/ vit cottage to see what they suggest naturally
good luck and god bless