Child with severe constipation/impacted bowel

Hi guys

Just wondering if anyone has any experience of children with really bad constipation? My daughter is 3 1/2 and has been "holding it in" for about 6 months now. I think the problem started around Easter time when she started to have REALLY big bowel movements and I think one must have hurt her and now she is afraid to go. We have obviously been to the doctors and they have given us a few different kinds of laxatives to try and we have also been using reward charts and all that kind of business, but she just flat refuses to try to move her bowels and ends up screaming and crying and really getting distressed.

It's so bad now that she has an impacted bowel and has constant overflow constipation where she is pretty much messing herself 24/7. I have had to revert back to putting her into pull-ups all the time now.

Before this happened she was the most laid back, contented little girl and now she is grumpy, sulky, whiny etc. Its like someone came in the night 6 months ago and took my little girl away and gave me another one. I feel so bad for her because I know it's not her fault but I really don't know how to get throught this. It breaks my heart to see her so distressed, especially when she starts screaming with pain at 3 in the morning!

I should add, we have been referred to see the paediatrician, waiting for the appointment to come through, but was hoping in the meantime that someone has maybe been through this and has some advice for me.

Thanks for listening.

I think the doctors would know more of what to do in this case. That being said I do have a friend whose daughter did the same thing. They had her at the hospital 4 times in 1 week. They did enema's gave med's, nothing seemed to work. She bought a bottle stuff from Walmart, is a cleanse. Is clear colored not sure what its called but I remember it was lemon flavored. I believe its with the laxatives maybe a saline type product. Her daughter is 4 not sure if you are suppose to give to children that young. I would check and see if your walmart carries it. She mixed it with lemonaide. I think after 3 times giving her a little bit it cleared her out and she hasn't had a problem since.

Have you tried giving her fiber - like metamucil and other brands?

You can give her castor oil.

Also a small cup of milk with a good bit of kayro syrup will make her go.

I feel for you and her. Been there. Sat many many days on the edge of tub and held my DD's hands and talked her through it when she was 3 - 7 years old. At that time she was a chronic sufferer and we don't know why.

Those lemon drinks are the ones used when you having a colonoscopy and other invasive procedures. If she drank very much of those she would poop and poop and poop uncontrolably. I wouldn't dare give one to a child without doctors instructions.

Thanks for replying guys. I should have made myself clearer though. We are currently on 2 kinds of laxative: Lactulose and Movicol. When she gets them they make her mess herself constantly (small amounts at a time) until she is "cleared out", but then we are back to square one and she holds it in until she is impacted again. It's a vicious circle with the main problem being that she doesn't want to poo and will do anything to not do it.

Once you get her cleared out are you on a maintenance to keep her moving?

She won't be able to hold it if you load her diet with fiber drinks or kombucha tea (organic section of your grocery - 1/4 cup for a couple days) or castor oil in a drink.

Maybe you could also ask the pediatrician about a stool softener for her over a period of time until you get her through this.

I know the horrible road you are traveling. I have been there and it was exhausting and worrying and painful.

Humm not sure how I would handle that. I wonder if after she is all cleared out if you tried to let her only eat high fiber fresh vegtables and things that would make it softer when she went after getting her to go a few times and it not hurting she would do better. But you have peobably already tried that. I am sure that its fear of the pain that is causing most of this. Poor thing.
lot of juice maybe, I feel bad for her and you. I have IBS and know how bad she must feel. I have the constipation for weeks then the reverse. Not fun at all. I have found certain foods make it alot worse. Lots of praise and lots of hugs and hand holding. I will ad her to my prayers.

How about adding a few prunes to her daily diet? They are yummy and sweet, and hopefully she doesn't get turned off by how they look. Whenever my children got constipated at that age we fed them 3-4 prunes and made sure to give them a (preferably tall) glass of water to wash it down. The prunes won't do their job without the water.

Perhaps for a daily routine for someone so young, try 2 prunes? If it doesn't work after a week or so, try adding one more.

So sorry to hear you are going through this.

Thanks guys. Although she is a fussy eater, her diet is reasonable, plenty of fresh fruit. She is not keen of veggies but I manage to "hide" them. She drinks lots of fruit juice (including prune juice), wholemeal bread, baked beans etc.

I appreciate your support.

Went through this problem and it turned out (as I suspect yours will, too) that the problem was not medical but behavioral. Sounds as if you're already addressing the diet and introduced medicine. What we had to do was address the behavior of holding it. So, after meals he had to sit on the potty for x amount of time. I believe at first, he didn't leave until he did something. Then, a time was used. So, after meals, he sat on the potty until he did something / anything. Next step was to sit with a timer set at maybe 15 minutes. After that was working moved to 10 minutes. Etc. It was only weeks before he got the routine and realized he was feeling better after going. I would guess that if you try this you may want to start withholding the laxative so she can start to have real bowel movements. Funny thing I just remembered - toward the end he would take the timer in and set it himself. If he went before the time, he was so proud to make it ding before the time was up.

This worked for our little boy - you may want to run it by the doctor, as well.

Good luck.

she could have a knot in her bowel that cannot be seen.

there are tiny filaments of VERY STICKY string-like skin inside of our bodies that come from our belly button area out to all of our organs. they pull the organs into place as we are formed inside our moms. they usually disappear after that. i know i am going to spell this incorrectly but it is pronounced 'yer-ay-kee-al' remnants. (eurachial i think.)

sometimes they don't. i had one until i was 35 that was severed in an operation...no one knew it was there of course.

they are like rubber bands and 'fling' then stick to other things inside.

it wrapped like a coil around my intestines and i was in pain and experiencing similar symptoms as your daughter for months. it could only be seen by opening my body. not by x-ray, CT scan, MRI etc.

when they found it, i was about 12 hours from losing my life. i had been going to doc's for months.

bowel issues are crucial, whether it is physical or behavioral. get her help asap.