Constipated 3yo girl

[Emily-vb]

Good evening.

My little girl has never really been good at pooing but 6 months ago we embarked on our lonely journey.

She managed to get to 7 days without a poo, spent entire day trying to poo, managed at the end of the day and fell asleep exhausted.

Went to the doc when I saw the next few days did not produce any poos.

Since then movicol and lactulose have entered our life.

She now poos about 15 times a days. Doc said to reduce dosage. Back to square one. Doc prescribed suppository, which I did. Felt like I was torturing her. I sat her on the potty when she could not hold the poo. The amount that came out overflew the potty. This broke her, and me.

Potty cannot be mentionnes, even for wee.

And we are back at 3 movicol a day, and 15 mushy poos a day.

I don’t know know what to do. Please tell me one day it will get better ....

one broken mummy xxx

[Anna908]

This sounds like it had been so bad for your daughter. 15 poops a day,how big are they? Are they like small hard turds or toilet filling diarrhea. When your daughter had so much poop that came out of the potty that was all of the poop that was in her portable over stretched intestines. I would reduce the movicol to 2-1 a day as 15 poops a day as it must her her bottom end pooping that much.

[Emily-vb in reply to Anna908]

Thank you for taking the time to answer. The poo is like a mushy poo. I need to try and reduce it but every time i try she stops pooing. For a while I thought she can’t hold it but then she does not go at nursery all day, so clearly she can. Her bottom is sore and I go through tubes of nappy cream like there is no tomorrow.... doc says to carry on but she never really took the time to listen to the full story. I want to cry. Please tell me it will get better 😭🙏😭🙏

[Anna908 in reply to Emily-vb]

I feel so bad for your daughter. I cant imagine how much pain her bottom is in,I would try and use more cream if her bottom is red as that can make your daughter try and hold it in. I would also stop the movicol for a couple days to weeks to give her and her bottom a break from the constant pain. Also if the poops are large that would cause her bottom to become ever so bad. She must of been so upset when she pooped so much that it went out of the potty,I cant think of how upset I would be if I did that.

You can private message me for more details.

[Emily-vb in reply to Anna908]

If I stop the movicol she stops pooing entirely 😨

[Anna908 in reply to Emily-vb]

I would still stop the movicol for a week to give her pour bottom a little break. Not pooping for a week is not the end of the world. I think that it would be worth it as her bottom needs to recover or it could get infected.

[kittylover1]

15 POOPS A DAY!!!!!!!

Her pour anus. That it pure torture for her anus, I would take her of the stimulant right away. Also lower the movicol if the poops are mushy. Is she potty trained? How could such a young girl over flow a toilet? Did she not poop for like a month to fill up that toilet or what? Was she in pain when she filled up the toilet?

[Emily-vb in reply to kittylover1]

Thank you for your input. She did overflow a kid potty thank you. 7 days maximum is what she did not poo for. Yes it is torture, but funnily enough she does not cry when she poos 15 times a day. However she cries when she is constipated and can’t pass the stool.

No she is not potty trained as she becomes really upset when She sees the toilet. I know it is a blog and you probably did not mean it like that, but I find your answer really upsettibg

[kittylover1 in reply to Emily-vb]

I am sorry I did not want to up set you. Also it makes sense that she only filled a kids potty and not a adult one.

[SallyCal]

Hello, I am so sorry to hear of the situation you and your daughter are going through. Have you called the ERIC helpline? I also found our Dr didn't really listen but ERIC did. How have you tried to reduce the Movicol? We reduced by whole sachets every other day, so went from 3 a day to 2-3-2 for a few weeks before reducing to 2 a day completely, however I have heard others have had to reduce much slower than this so they will make up 3 sachets worth of drink (you can keep in fridge for the day) and then give all but a few ml and that reduces it even slower. I know the current situation is hear breaking but so is constipation so you have done the right thing getting help and it sounds like with a few little tweaks you will be in a good place. You are a great Mum and remember we are all here if you need a chat. Xxx

[Emily-vb in reply to SallyCal]

Thank you. I will try that every other day. I don’t seem to find the right dosage. And if not enough she stops going and then it is torture because she needs the suppository and it become a battle. I refuse for her to go more than 2 days without a poo because I am scared it hurts her again. And she has not forgotten the first time, hence the lack of potty training too. Thank you for your kind words it means a lot Xxx

[Robinia]

Please be assured that you are a great mum and all of this stuff is so hard to deal with. Your GP sounds very unhelpful. I would push for a referral to the local continence service. Also try to go see different GPs until you find the right one to support you. I agree re the comment about reducing movicol only very gradually. You have made an excellent point which is that your daughters pain is worst when she’s constipated so that’s the most important thing to avoid. Do not have days with no movicol, just try to reduce a teaspoon full at a time and keep it gradual. The 15 will reduce to a more manageable amount. There are other nappy creams that are stronger that the continence nurse told me about but I don’t know what they are called. Please don’t feel alone, you aren’t. My son is 10 and has been suffering since age 2, big love 🤗

[Emily-vb in reply to Robinia]

Thank you for your kind words. I am so sorry you are still struggling with it.

I had no idea there was a clinic for it. When asked for referral to paediatrician my GP refuses as she says it is just very common for kids to be constipated. However I feel like we are going around in circle. I have been trying ERIC helpline but they are always busy bless them.

I am trying to tweak the movicol as we speak. Fingers crossed we get somewhere. I can’t face anymore “Anouk stinks again, you should really think of potty training” 😭😭😭

[Robinia in reply to Emily-vb]

My son spent 8 months in nappies age 9 (and he has no disabilities). Ignore them! These kids can’t help it. It’s not their fault and it’s not ours. We know them best 🧡🧡🧡🧡 sometimes you have to tell the GP where to refer you to sometimes. I would google the local continence service and print off the details and take them to your apptmt, good luck 😘

[Yippieyay81]

Hi Emily sorry to hear you are having such a rough time. Sorry to repeat what others are saying but I would definitely push for a referral. I know it depends on area but we are in London and we were able to self refer to paediatric continence clinic (the gp insisted my daughter didn’t need to be referred). Thr continence nurse has been really helpful in assisting us with dealing with an unsupportive gp and write a letter on my behalf. A quick google search should show up the details of your local clinic.

[Emily-vb in reply to Yippieyay81]

Thank you very much. I am googling the clinic as we speak, we are not too far from London either so fingers crossed it won’t be far. Thank you so much for all the tips and support. I think i just need a bit of reassurance and as much as I don’t wish that on anyone it is nice to be able to talk about it with people who are going through the motion. Thank you so much xxx

[Yippieyay81]

There should be something. Ours is run by our local NHS trust and there is a drop in clinic very close to our house but I know things differ depending on your area. Otherwise ERIC have been so helpful but I’m guessing you will struggle to get through to them over the Xmas period. Fingers crossed for you. The lack of support/guidance given by our gp has definitely made my little girls issues much more stressful.

[Emily-vb]

Yes I found something in our little town. Will give a call after Christmas. Thank you so much. Merry Christmas ❤️