started weaning - very constipated

[huby]

i've strated my baby weanng fort a few weeks now - lots of bananas and cereal, along with fruit and veg and now yoghurts

She's got very, very, very constipated and is now refusing all food and is crying a lot. She can't poo (Is trying to pass pellet like poos and screams when doing so


I have no idea what to do, especially now she's off her food entirely and is very miserable. She's also becoming very letargic. I will take her to the doctors, but can any one advise me on what i can give her.

She's 6 months. She's also having a pit of spit up too - could this be an allergy to something?

Thanks

[anna*]

(((hugs))) I hope you can get her along to the Dr

When you say 'lots of' bananas and cereal, how much is she having? What type of cereal? Rice cereal can be constipating, oatmeal possibly less so. How many meals a day is she having?

I've heard that some very dilute orange or pear juice can help get things going. You can get glycerine suppositories from the chemist, or the Dr may prescribe lactulose.

[huby]

thanks very much indeed. Took her to the docs this morning. Found she has been so sore there there's also a tear down there and today she passed a hard stool while screaming her head off. She had some blood down there too, poor thing.
I was giving her a banana a day with no idea that they were constipating.
I am just giving her water and milk at the mo, she's refusing food - probably thinks it's related directly to the pain. Am worried that that's the association she'll make, so am keeping her back on liquids for a few days and then will try again.
I have some dilute prune juice made up in the fridge for her too, and the docs gave her something which softens the stools.
I was also giving her baby rice and baby cereal (not oatmeal) but she was also eating mango, pear, sweet potato, swede, carrots and so on....i don't know where, apart from the rice and bananas , i went wrong, but she has got the fear about food now after LOVING everything she ate before.

[anna*]

Poor sweetie, I hope she feels much better soon. I'm sure she will come back to it. When she is constipated she probably just feels yuck and doesn't feel like eating. At this age it's fine to do just 1 x solids meal a day, I wouldn't do more than 2 for a little while - it's hard because when they LOVE the new tastes the temptation is to give lots. It takes some time for their tummies to adjust to digesting all these new things. I would definitely skip rice cereal though, SO many mums find it constipating.

[We Three]

AW.....poor little baby.  I so, so wish that modern pediatrics would just STOP with the rice cereal!!!!!!   

I agree with everything anna said.  It sounds like you're on the right track...the tear will heal quickly, and she will be ok.  Once she poops some very soft poops with no discomfort, she will have no memory of the pain, and she'll be just fine.

So sorry you're both going through this...but at least it's sorted out, and she is on the mend. 

[huby]

thanks guys, you're right. I think we'll be back on track soon. I had no idea it was ok to give just one meal for a bit while she's six months. When I called a well known help line for baby formula, they advised excalating the weaning, giving her lots of new tastes so she wouldn't be fussy and even recommended fish and meat and pasta which i thought sounded wrong.
It's such a shame as it was the first day she'd taken two long naps on her own, ever, and now we're back to square one...she woke up screaming after 40 mins trying to pass a stool. She's slept one hour all day since 5am and needless to say, is in meltdown even though bedtime was an hour earlier.
On a positive note, she did pass some softer stools today with the help of lacalouse.
She's still off her milk and water now though, not even trying food yet.
Can you guys please give me some advice on where to go from here...one meal a day, say lunch time or breakfast and what i should be offering and when to go to two meals and so on. I feel there's such little info or it contradicts itself out there, and I'm so confused.
Am a bit scared of returning to thissituation again.

Thanks

[anna*]

If it was me, I would give her a couple teaspoons of pureed pear about an hour after her breakfast milk. Do that for a couple of days, and then try something else like maybe butternut squash. I'd expect to be doing breakfast and lunch by 7.5ish months, and then 3 meals around 8-9 months if she's enjoying it and not having any reactions. Have you got a weaning book ie Annabel Karmel? Her weaning book is great it has a table of first tastes and when to introduce them.

[squeakersmum]

I always understood that a god meal to start with was breakfast as then you had the whole day for the lo's tummy to digest the food.

Poor you though.  DS has always seemed to have a problem with constipation, and he too got a tear although he was about 10 months.  I found that putting a handful of raisins in about 5 ounces of boiling water and leaving until it was cool enough for DS to drink an ounce or so was a really good natural laxative for him.

Favourites here when we started weaning were pear, sweet potato, carrot and butternut squash with apple.  We weaned a little early but were on 1 meal for around 3/4 weeks I think.

[huby]

i didn't realise - yes, i was rushing through and giving her lots of meals as i thought i'd let her lead me. Poor thing, I feel so bad now. She did lots of explosive nappies last night so i think we have a clearage of the blockage if you pardon the expression, which is good. But she's still off her milk.

So would I be offering one or two ice cube sized chunks for breakfast, and then how much formula do I offer altogether? And do I stick to the previous meal times - i.e every four hours, or do I give morning milk, then breakfast an hour later as first meal?

Sorry for the basic questions, am actually to be honest quite scared of starting this up again.
 

[anna*]

Stick to the same amount in bottles as she was having pre-weaning. She will lead you in dropping milk - for now and for several months she still needs most of her nutrition from milk. Give her bottles at the normal time, just do breakfast an hour after her first bottle, rest of the day stays the same. Then when you are ready to add lunch, it's the same thing - still four bottles, do lunch an hour or more after her second bottle.

She'll naturally start to reduce the amount of milk she takes as she starts to take more solids.

[huby]

ahhh, that's how you do it. Thank you very much. Will start again tomorrow - do you think that's too soon? She seems to have done lots and lots of dirty nappies and seems to be taking in more milk again, though don't want to rush things after what she's been through. Thanks again. DO i start using the iron fortified follow on milk now ....i am midly aneamic and certainly don't want her to end up the same way, but nor do i want her to get constipated again.
Thanks again. Gosh i realise how wrong i was going now - was just letting her eat as much as she wanted for three meals a day...no wonder she got bunged up!

[anna*]

I don't think tomorrow is too soon. You could start with just a couple of tsp of puree pear in the morning. Remember that at this age, solids is an Activity, not really 'eating' as such - it's just about getting used to new tastes and textures. If she turns her head away and refuses the spoon, no harm done, you can just try again in a couple more days.

I don't know about the follow on milk - perhaps on the bottle feeding board they will know?

[huby]

tomorrow it is. I'll make a pear purree tonight and put it in the fridge for her. Thanks for the tips, i feel a lot more confident about things now. Will let you know how it goes

[huby]

tried this morning...she just clamped her mouth shut as soon as she saw the spoon and pushed the bowl away onto the floor.
not sure what to do now.

[anna*]

That's OK. There's no rush. You could give her a 'spear' of nice soft pear, peeled, and let her play with it and taste it. There's no hurry to give purees, and you can even do Baby Led Weaning instead of purees if you feel that would suit her better. Or you can try again in a week or so. Whatever you do don't try to force it. She will get there. I'll find you a link for more about Baby Led Weaning.