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Baby constipation isn’t something that I had considered in the early days of having Lucas, we were asked how he slept, how he was feeding, we were told how many wet and dirty nappies we should expect and Lucas seemed to be doing what they health visitors were saying.
However, once he got to about 6 weeks old, he started struggling when he needed to poo. He screamed and cried in agony for up to an hour, wriggling around until he managed to pass it. This continued for a few weeks, even if he had wind, it would be a stressful time for Lucas and us, feeling helpless watching him go through agony. We visited the doctors a couple of times who told us it was normal and that Lucas was learning how to poo. He said that babies can go up to 10 days without having a poo and there is nothing wrong with that. I would have been fine with that if he wasn’t struggling so much.
As I was exclusively breastfeeding, I looked at what I was eating and whether there was any pattern between me eating and drinking certain things and if it made it easier for Lucas or whether it was a particular bad time afterwards.
I found that when I drank fresh orange juice, it was noticeably easier for Lucas to poo but I wanted to be careful not to drink too much and cause him to have diarrhoea. I also took him to baby massage sessions where I was taught some simple massage points on his feet and tummy that has an effect on the bowels. Lucas instinctively moved his legs in a bicycle motion before we started to go to these sessions but that was also one of the moves we were shown. Lucas really relaxed when I gently massaged his tummy in a clockwise circular motion.
Thankfully, we are past these days now but if you are struggling with this, SMA Nutrition have put together an infographic with some ideas on how to deal with reflux and constipation.
If your baby appears to be in pain or if you are concerned for any other reason, always seek the advice of a healthcare professional such as your GP, health visitor or public health nurse.