Owie Bottom

Totally with Amy on this one...fibers make it actually WORSE if she doesn't drink LOTS of water because poop becomes a huge hard ball. Also be careful when you wipe...sensitive area!!!

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If it is constipation, more fiber won't help unless she is getting enough liquids. Fruit, veggies, and whole grains are great ideas, but I'd also push water and juices. Prune juice and cloudy pear juice are supposedly the best to help with constipation.

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try pureed prunes (baby food) and lots of water. Activia might also help. The doctor may give her a stool softener or mild laxative.

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Hi R. - just yesterday I visited a pediatric nurse practioner who specializes in urology and elimination concerns because my almost 4yr old has been resistant to potty training. She diagnosed him with constipation saying that even though they are having a bm every day, they have these hard sections of fecal matter that dont clear and the waste just goes around them. I think it's a really good idea to set an appt. with your doctor.

The NP/PA that I'm working with suggested a course of Miralax along with some other things to break up the hard matter and get the bowel working properly again. She said when the bowel becomes distended like that, the autonomic squeezing motion that moves things down the bowel stops working as effectively as it should so it needs a small amount of a stimulant laxative for a limited period to train it to squeeze as hard as it should naturally. Miralax is apparently very safe and isnt absorbed into the body.

If your daughter is getting a lot of fiber, she also needs a lot of plain water. An easy calc is to take her body weight, round up and divide by 2. So if she weighs 40 lbs, she would need at least 20 oz of water in addition to her other juices, milk, etc.

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If it is constipation then put a tablespoon of corn syrup and a tablespoon of mineral oil in apple juice water or even milk if that is what she drinks best and be sure she drinks it as many times a day as you can get her to. This worked like charm with my kids. One of my kids however did need to go as far as an enema one time (horrible experience but works immediately).

Glad to hear you are going to the doc, you just never know.

Good luck!

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To help with the hurt, get some epsom salts and toss a handful into the tub. Make sure to stir the water around so the epsom salts dissolve. Let her sit in a warm epsom salt bath and that should help the pain lessen or go away. Both of my daughters have trouble with constipation and when they do, their little bums hurt - so I toss them into a warm bath with epsom salt and they feel better the next day.

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Check with her doctor, and the sooner the better. If you have reason to think your daughter is constipated and she complains of pain, even when she laughs, she may be developing a serious blockage called ENCOPRESIS.

When this happens, poop may continue to ooze past and the child might still have occasional BM's, but they may not know it's coming and soil their pants. Your request is a little vague, but if your little girl hasn't been pooping normally for a few days now, it's really time to get her some medical advice. Encopresis is a very serious condition, and the worse it gets, the longer it takes to straighten it out.

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When my son was little, I used to give him a couple of prunes everyday when he was constipated. He loved the flavored prunes, but also ate the regular. If she is putting off going to the bathroom because it hurts, that will make constipation worse. If she doesn't like prunes, you can sneak them into different foods. Just search for "prune recipes for kids" on the internet. Good luck!

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You don't need the harsh Mirilax if enough fliuids are taken and the right diet is used.

Adding magnesium citrate to the diet is a MUCH better solution to Mirilax. Plus, Magnesium is a much needed mineral that most people don't get enough of because of the processing of our foods now.

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She could have an internal hemorrhoid from straining with constipation. Poor little thing. A trip to the doc is the best. Lactulose works great to clear out a backed up system and my doctor told us that my son could keep using it low dose forever if need be. It is liquid and very sweet so it wasn't even hard to get him to drink. It is a laxative, stool softener and it works very well, I beleive OTC. After a few weeks on it his "bathroom issues" straightened right out. Now if any of my boys get backed up (I have 4) we just give them some of that, it is faster than trying to force food through a system that is already struggling. Then I use the increased fiber and water to maintain things.

I wonder if maybe she has a little split in the skin from straining too hard. Some a&d ointment could help the cut heal.

Careful with the bananas. That's what I give my girls when they have loose BMs to dry them up! Otherwise, if you don't currently give her any juice, you can give her a bit each day. I found that 100% fruit juice (cut in half by water) helps regulate that and in moderation, is not bad for teeth or anything. Otherwise, you're on the right track with fruit (pears are good for constipation), fiber and whole grains.

Oh my. My daughter had this issue years ago. Apparently, a bowel movement is one of the few things that young children can control -- or feel they can control. I guess what happens is that sometimes -- maybe because it hurts or they don't want to stop playing or they're not near a comfortable bathroom -- they hold back their bowel movement and that is like a monkey wrench in the system! I think you're on the right track with fruits and vegetables and whole grains. I guess the point is that if their diet has enough fiber and water, the diet will override any withholding on the part of the child! Your doc will advise whether you should use a metamucil like product. Those are a little nerve racking, however, because they require a lot of water intake and that's not always so easy to control. My recollection is that we offered our kids lots of thawed (or not) frozen berries and other cut up fruits. If you talk with other moms, you'll find this is more common than you'd believe. Good luck!

Banana's will constipate her, stay away from OJ as well. You need to give her Activz. The kids one is almost out. GIve her 1/2 of the adult once aday. It is the only thing that has helped my daughter. My daughter calls it her shakey shake. It all Oganic and she will get all of her daily vitaims, minerals and probotics as weel as all of her fruits and vegs. She loves it. It tastes like strawberry banana smoothie.

Maybe her bottom is just a little sore, especially if she is constipated. maybe put a little vaseline on her bottom and see if that helps.

I'm not sure how old she is but I know if I give my girls (4 and 2) too much fruit they get very loose BM's which makes they're bottoms hurt. Apples and Pears seem to be okay. Oranges "burn" they're bottoms and other fruits in excess aren't good.

Try Culturelle for Kids. I'll attach a link so that you can read about it. This is what our pediatrician recommends. It's a little bit pricey, but very worth it. It's a little ironic b/c it can treat diarrhea AND constipation. It's a very healthy and safe product for our little ones! Check this link out and see for yourself. =0)
http://www.culturelle.com/your_health/culturelle_for_kids...

Also, stay away from bananas and apples for consitpation, as they are "binding". When my kids have diarrhea, they get their Culturelle in addition to the "BRAT Diet"...bananas, rice, applesauce and toast. =0) It's the best diet while anyone....kid or adult...is suffering from diarrhea.

If she was straining before or another time she was constipated she may have an anal fissure...I've never heard of them before but after having my second son I have been struggling with it.
It is soooooooo painful, if feels like sand paper every time you have a BM, it was to the point where when I felt like I had to go I dreaded it...and quite honestly I probably had a look like your daughter's. I would google it and see if it sounds like what your daughter has....Although, usually there is some other sign like blood when wiping...but maybe its just the beginning.....At any rate what has helped a lot is ...Water, Water...water, boring for kids and even myself but when I was well hydrated no problems at all!!

Can she eat an orange or a clementine every day? That will help. Not sure of her age, but can you mix baby food prunes with applesauce? Also white grape and pear juice used to work for my son. Whole grain bread for sure! Easy on bananas and cheese--they can be binding....sprinkle a little parmesan cheese on the veggies while warm. Frozen peas? Peaches?