Rarely opens bowels

[codan84]

Hi.
We have a 4 weeks old daughter. For the first week she could open bowels normally whenever she needed. However, at the start of 2nd week she started having issues with that. She strains, pushes, gets all red on her face, but nothing comes out. She used to manage to open bowels 3-4 times a day and the poop looked fine. But things seem to be getting worse rather than better. Now she sometimes goes for over 24 hours before she manages to poop. She can't fall asleep because of that, she has problems feeding when she is too backed up (frantic feeding, screaming, letting the nipple go etc).
We have read about Infant Dyschezia ( Other Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders in Infants and... : Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition ) and it looks like it's this. However, everywhere we read about it we see that normally baby should manage to poop after 30 minutes of trying.
It seems like a common advice is to wait it out. And general advice is to not try to stimulate anus with anal thermometer etc. But at what point is it better to relieve the little one? At what point should I say "right something has to be done because she is struggling too much"?
My friend sent me a link to Fridababy Windi ( ) and said she uses this but only if her little one struggles for too long.
We are completely lost. What would you advice? What are your stories?

 

[Jft1]

Hi, I had a very similar problem with DS who is now 7 months. Pooped fine for the first week, no issues at all, and then didn't go for 14 days. I kept asking my HV and they said not to worry, after 1 week I went to the doctor and again they said not to worry. Eventually after 12 days I took him to hospital, they examined him and his stomach didn't feel hard, like there were any blockages. They couldn't explain it. Anyway, he got a suppository and did 14 days worth of poop the next day... It was everywhere! After that, he started on lactulose twice a day and it kept the poop soft enough for him to pass. It did give him some wind and a sore stomach, which was hard to see, but without it he couldn't poop.
What I did find useful when he struggled was holding his legs and dangling him between my legs, almost as if he was sitting on a potty. The gravity and legs pulled up seemed to help. Also, a bit of cotton wool dipped in hot water and held against his bum seemed to make him go too.
I feel your pain, I really do.
What I can say is it does get better. He's not been on the lactulose since 17 weeks and goes fine on his own now.

 

[Babybump87]

We had issues with DS . He pooped the meconium during the first 24 hours but then didn’t poop at all for nearly 12 days ! Ended up taking him to a&e and she said it could be a allergy to cows milk which DD2 has . He had other symptoms too . Following switching to a hydrolysed formula he starting pooping as normal !

I’d be seeking advice from my GP/pead . Hope it gets better soon for you both x

 

[autumnal]

Are you breastfeeding? If you are using formula make sure you are using the correct amount of water