4 Month Old Constipated - OMG, HELP!

old fashioned! I used to go get a bar of Ivory soap and cut a little chunk.. like a stint size...Thicker than a match stick.. and about 1/2 inch long. Poke that where it needs to go and success! everytime.. It may take a few moments, but it works

My daughter had the same problem when she was a baby (now 6yrs old). I had taken her to several different doctors and nothing. I tried everything and nothing. I had a friend to told me to take her to the chiropractor, thinking what can they possible do... Well it worked!

I know some people don't believe in chiropractors, but it beats giving them medication. It wasn't something she had to continue doing either, which was very nice.

I too suggest 1 tsp of Karo syrup in water.

Before all the suggested formulas.

Pets evaporated milk, water and karo syrup
was used to feed the new born baby.

Add Karo to some water and this will
help hydrate and release the bowels.

C.

Gently rub her tummy around her belly button.

I remember that around that age that happens - and ALLLL moms freak out - I remember asking our dr. friend at the time and he said it is like clock work - it must be that something changes in their tiny system and as i recall it was a few days like maybe even 5 before the plumbing started working again!

J.,
You might try an enema. Easy to do and will clean her out for now. Warm soap water and a bulb syringe, place a little Vaseline on the tip and pump in gently. T5ry to keep it in a few minutes and diaper and change as frequently as needed. I don't sugest this as an on going remedy but shgort help in the short term until you can talk with your doctor. The Karo syrup in the bottle will help in the long run but she needs releif now.
C. B

When my niece was a baby they called her a lazy pooper. She did not want to push it out so the doctor recommended that you take a little sliver of soap and put it in her butt crack. This will cause her to push and try to get it out. For that matter, I guess you could try an rectal thermometer. You are looking for something that you can put in her that will cause her to push naturally. Otherwise you will probably need to do an enema. Good luck!

I've used prune juice, or not watered-down apple juice in the past. Also (and this may sound gross) I've put just a little vaseline around the edge of the opening on her little butt (not in, just around the edge) to make it easier when things do start to move.

If you can't talk to your doctor, is there another doctor who can help in their absense? How about Children's Hospital's help line. I know my dr's office use fwd's to them on the weekend. Their nursing staff is great. I never had this issue, but it seems like my friends did and there was something you could give them. Maybe call a pharmacist to see if there is any OTC remedy.

L.

My little one has been constipated for just about her entire life (she's 18 months). Things that have worked are prune juice or gerber prunes; glycerin suppositories (ask the pharmacist to pick the infant ones out for you); and a tad bit warmer than normal bath. The suppositories can cause diarrhea after the "plug" is out, but work within an hour and help the pain. Prune juice or gerber prunes takes about 24 hours, but I introduce it when I notice no dirty diaper in about a day or so. Warm baths relax the muscles and with the bicycle kicks just might make the difference. Hope this helps you. I know what you're going through.

My 2 year old has only been constipated once and it was when she was about your baby's age. I put her in a warm bath and she pooped in about 30 seconds. So I would try to let her soak in a tub or the kitchen sink.

Re: karo syrup, a lot of kids have a reaction to corn syrup so keep an eye out. if she breaks out in a rash (on either end! my kids got red splotches on their faces and backsides whenever they had anything with corn syrup) stop giving it to her.

Here's what Dr. Greene has to say:
http://www.drgreene.org/body.cfm?id=21&action=detail&...

I'd agree that the Fleet suppository is probably gentler than an enema. My daughter loved to poop while I was giving her a bath (yes, gross, i know but i learned to deal with it). Maybe while she is straining, put her in a baby tub of warm water that you are willing to clean up if she does manage to go.

My boys had the same problem - my dr had them drink small amounts (an ounce or two at a time) of prune juice. It worked GREAT for us!

My son's ped said that not going for 3 days is normal for formula fed babies but we didn't think so. We gave him Baby Gas-X once a day. But then last month we started giving him Florababy 1/2 tiny scoop with his first feeding of the day. It is a powdered Probiotic. You can buy it at Sprouts. It regulates their digestive system. It's expensive but you can probably buy similar anywhere or give the baby yogurt like Stonefields.

Hi, it seems as though you have gotten some good responses to keep in mind for the future (since you have already updated this, I know that something worked for you). My only concern is some of the repsonses that you got told you to use Karo Syrup in her bottle. That is true, but I was shocked to see that NO ONE knew the right way to use it. So this is a note for EVERYONE, not just for you. For almost a year, my daughter had some major constipation issues due to intestinal surgery that she had at 3 months. Our doctor had me put dark Karo syrup in her bottle, but he gave me STRICT warnings against using too much. You are only supposed to put 1 TEASPOON (not tablespoon as some have said) into 4 ounces of formula or breastmilk once a day. DO NOT put it in every bottle. If I didn't know about this home remedy and read some of the responses to your inquiry, I would interpret it as just pour some in the bottle every time. That is NOT the way to do it. You should look at this cure as you would any other medicine, and think of the consequences that could result from overdosing, you could cause some other major problems by using too much.

Also, some people said to give the baby food prunes, and that will help. In fact, it will not. Notice how all baby food looks the same, just different colors? Well, that is because they ARE all the same. Gerber and BeechNut use the same base for every food, and then they just add flavoring and color. If you want to help with constipation, buy adult prunes and get a food puree machine (Magic Bullet works great for this) and put three prunes and 1 ounce of water, then blend well until it is the consistency of baby food. Give her that as one serving (3 prunes) has 3 grams of fiber. Give that once every three days, and skip the Karo syrup that day.

I don't mean to sound like a know-it-all or like I am trying to discount other ideas, I just want to make sure for your baby's sake and for anyone else who is reading this, that you can cause major problems for your child by using these items in the wrong amount. I went through the whole constipation and painful poop thing for two whole months and everytime she tried to go she would scream. Finally I got her doctor to listen to me (after four trips to urgent care) before they finally started to give me home remedies like Karo Syrup and adult prunes, but three different pediatricians made sure to warn me against using them wrong, so I am just passing along what I was told.

Hi J.,

You can get these drops at the store for babies with colic/gas. I can't remember the name of them. Just call the urgent call center in your area, and talk to a nurse. It will be ok.
Please let us know how the little one is doing...

Have a nice Christmas!
C.

My husband is a pharmacist who frequently tells parents to get the formula with NO iron in it. Iron is known to constipate babies. Maybe try that for a bit to see if it helps.

Hi, when my kids were little the doctors use to tell me to put dark corn syrup in their milk and it work every time. It would be worth trying. I would say that apple just is not good to give them when they are constipated.

I hope this helps

L. P.

when my daughter was that age, our pediatrician recommended Benefiber. the bottle says not to give anyone under the age of (I don't Know) but our dr said it was perfectly fine. 1/2 teaspoon in every other bottle and it totally helped her out! Good luck!

J., try a tablespoon of Karo syrup in the bottle. get ready for the action! brenda

My daughter had consitpation problems. Our doctor had us put karo syrup in her bottle. It helps loosen the stool up. We would put a tablespoon in her bottle. You can also try having her sit in the bathtub for a while. the warm water is supposed to help get things moving. Another thing to try is infant massage. Lay your baby on her tummy and with her diaper off rub one butt cheek in a circular motion 25 times then do the other cheek. Hopefully one of these work for you. there were times we had to "help" our daughter out by helping to pull it out. It was awful! Good luck

My doctor had us use a couple of ounces of chamomile tea when ours were infants. It not only helped with bowel movements but also for upset tummys. Good Luck

Hi J.,
I just wanted to share I did the bicycle on my daughter also. Eventually she threw up and I took her to the ER because I was worried about the length of time she had not pooped. The doc asked why I was doing the bicycle on her...I told him she was constipated but he walked away. So I am not certain we are suppose to do that. I did it with my older daughter, but the doc made me feel kind of stupid. It would have been nice if he had given a reason for his reaction.

C.

If your baby is on an iron supplement, keep in mind this can be intensely constipating, more for some than others, as can a milk based formula. Never give a laxative without your physician's advice and possibly consider more fluids in general, add a baby acidophilus to water for him to gain increased good bacterial activity in the digestive tract to stimulate lower colon activity. See a doctor if it continues longer than a couple days, there could be an unsual upper or lower intestinal scenario, or it could just be the old-fashioned grip (virus).

Try giving her some apple juice and easing back on solid food until she gets some relief.

peaches peaches and more peaches...if she is eating solids

My son had the same problem from 2-8 months and the ONLY thing that worked for us was we soaked im a warm bath an hour or so after a feeding then after the bath we would use a q-tip with vasaline on it and had to rectally put it in , only the tip though you don't want o hurt her,

When you gave her the apple juice was it cold or did warm it up a bit... if it warm she will be more likely to hold it down... the other way is use an ounce warm water with BROWN sugar in it... trust me I am a nurse and if you want her cleaned out this will do it!!!

Good luck and Happy Holidays!!!

Give her prunes. If she won't eat the whole fruit, buy the pureed baby prunes and mix them in with hot cereal.

My daughter had this problem as well. If you think she needs immediate relief then I would recommend the fleet suppository. They have one specially made for infants and children. It will do the trick in just a minute or two. We had this issue ongoing for about a year. My physicain recommended a drop or two of mineral oil in a bottle of formula. We did that from time to time with great sucess as well. Good Luck!

My pediatrician recommended using the heel of your palm to make circles between the belly button and pelvic bone. Circle in a clockwise motion gently. It seemed to help her. Good luck.

I know how frustrating this is. We still struggle with our 7
year old, he still has problems. He would get so constipated, it was horrible! we switched formulas and tried
Karo syrup in his bottle, and nothing worked. Finally our
pharmacist suggested that he might have a tight sphinter muscle. Tada!! That's what it was. We had to buy some
finger cots, and vaseline,.. I know but just listen. When
he would be trying to go, we would just insert our pinky just
a little ( first joint) and could tell it was tight. He would tighted up around the finger and could push it out.
Can't hurt to try. ASK YOUR DOCTOR FIRST!

My son was the same until he was almost 2. We tried a down-home remedy and it worked beautifully. Use about a teaspoon of Karo syrup (preferably dark) in each bottle. As she gets used to it you may have to adjust the amount to keep her regular without the runs.
If she's really in pain, put some mineral oil in her next bottle (of anything she will drink. But be ready, cuz it works pretty fast!

mY SON STILL GOES THROUGH THIS BUT IT WAS A BIG PROBLEM WHEN HE WAS THAT LITTLE DARK KARO SYRUP HELPED THE BEST WE JUST ADDED A TBS. TO A BOTTLE OF FORMULA AND SHOOK IT UP REALLY GOOD!! gOOD LUCK!! iT WILL GET BETTER. Oops sorry about the caps!!

J.,
My twins had that problem around the same age. The doctors told me two things...one, try some corn syrup on a pacifier - not likely to throw that up (do not use honey - infants aren't allowed to have honey until they are one yo), if that doesn't work, they said to put a finger just lit bit into the anal hole...I know, it sounds gross, but it helped. We actually used the bottom end of a sharpie marker, round and smooth...I had long nails and didn't want to hurt my baby boys. It lasted for about four days before they were regular again. I hope this helps.
S., wife, mother of four boys ages 6, 4, and twin two year olds.

I once had a nurse tell me taking a rectal temp worked everytime. Our son started getting constipated at 4-5 months. It turns out he was not drinking enough, even though he was nursing just as long. He wasn't swallowing the milk. If it continues, and your nursing, I would recommend checking to make sure she's getting enough liquids.

Apple Juice. You can mix it with water but my son was constipated from about 2 wks on and that's what took care of it...Dr. even said it was okay to give it.

Another thing that works really and is less invasive is acidophilus/probiotics. You can open a capsule and have her suck it off your finger or place it on your nipple if you are nursing and she can suck it off that way.

J., it looks like your little one was able to poop already but I wanted to give you another suggestion. You can massage her bowel. Right above her hips in between her hip bones and belly use your thumb and pointer finger and massage her bowel. You have to get in the deep and really rub and do it for a couple minutes or as long as she will let you. A massage therapist friend of mine showed me how to do this and it really helped my daughter because she was getting constipated a lot when we tried new foos, formula, etc.

Try gripe water. This stuff is liquid miracle. You can find it at CVS or walgreens... its naturally sweet and babies love it. The ingredients are all natural and have stuff like Chamomille, some have dill weed and catnip... all herbs that aid digestion and gas AND constipation. My first baby was horiibly constipated and her Dr and I changed formula a couple times before we found completely lactose free was best for us. Try to switch formulas too, cutting back (or completely out) lactose. Lactose is just a sugar; and I can't think of a single baby that needs more sugar! :) Good luck making that sweet baby comfortable.

My first child had the same problem (she is now 15) The doctors recommended any juice that begins with 'P' such as pear juice, prune juice, pineapple juice. If those don't work, then try putting a couple teaspoons of mineral oil in her bottle. Last resort was a child's fleet's enema if she is having gas pain and hasn't gone for 4 days.

Hey J.-

I recently spoke with a pediatrician about this for my daughter. Apples are actually binding, so pear juice & prune juice might work. Have you tried probiotics? You'd have to mix it in with her formula and it's more of a long-term solution so that it doesn't happen again, but that's what the pediatrician I saw recommended. Combining that with Omega 3 essential fatty acids when she's eating solids should get her digestive system on tract. Since I put my daughter on probiotics (from vitamin cottage, whole foods), she's definitely done better with the constipation. Good luck!
J.

Hello,

My daughter has a lot of constipation problems. Give her a warm bath with baking soda--I was a little unsure about this, but I swear it worked like a charm on her. Fill enough water just cover her belly, and quite a bit of baking soda. Let her sit in that for 10 minutes or so. Within 10 minutes afterwards my daughter was able to go. Also, dark Kyro syrup in the bottle. Good luck.

baby food prunes or warm prune juice with a little dab of butter works well if that doesnt work then the fleet suppositories work they are glycerin and it helps lubricate to make it easier to slide out. as a last resort you ned to take her to the ER or pediatrician to be disempacted. 2.5 days with pain is not good also if she is throwing up. it is a good idea to include a little water or apple juice on a regular basis so it doenst happen again

When my kids were really small like that, I used to brew them Chamomile tea for constipation and upset stomach. I'd add just a little bit of sugar to make it taste better. The tea seemed to help them a whole lot and it soothed them and relaxed them too. I highly recommend Chamomile tea. good luck. M.

Try infant glycerine suppositories. they are available at Walgreens or other drug stores. It is difficult to watch a child let alone an infant suffer through this. I have used these many times only as needed and follow the instructions on the bottle. They are small, and if in long enough just melt enough to allow the child to have the BM without too much trouble.Good luck!

I'm so sorry...it's awful to watch them struggle. My daughter is almost 2 and also struggles with constipation, from time to time. I don't know if you can swing any of the following, with a four month old, but here are a few of the things that have worked for us: activia (it's very watery and is a brand of yogurt that is just for that), prune juice, or prunes blended and added to the formula or milk. Good luck!

My son only went to the bathroon once a week for the first few months of his life so I can relate. I had different doctors tell me different things, but what I found that finally worked were the baby enema's, suppositories, and a laxitive that is now available over the counter called Miralax. You mix 1 and 1/2 teaspoonsful with 4 ounces of milk or formula once a day. It needs to be mixed just that way. Anyway, all of these worked for me and my son has been regular since he was 4 months. It is hard to see them struggle, but I would talk with your doctor first before doing anything.

My daughter had the same issues and the doctor told me to use miralax. Also I found she had a milk allergy. She couldnt even have breastmilk. She was so constapated she would scream when she went and strain so hard she would pop little capillaries in her face. I put her on Nutramigen formula by enfamil and it cured the problem! She goes as normal and there is no straining or pain. It has been the key to helping her manage. You may want to switch to a hypoallergenic formula such as enfamil Nutramigen.