Although I'm sorry others are going through this, it is ...

Although I'm sorry others are going through this, it is good to finally hear that we aren't the only ones! My son is now 3 years and 3 months old. He has been constipated off and on for about 2 years now. It began with a severe diaper rash; somehow his poop became very gritty, as though he were eating sand, and his poor little bottom became very raw for a few days. He also was pooping several times a day (those were the days!). After that, he began retaining to avoid the pain. The first two times we used magnesium citrate to empty his bowels; this worked great the first time, not at all the second time. It has been very difficult getting him to take medicine he doesn't want to, or to eat things he doesn't want to. He is very strong-willed! The longest he has ever gone without passing anything was 14 days! :yikes: That time, we used milk of magnesia for 10 days with no result. We finally got him to empty his bowel after a chiropractic adjustment and two glycerin suppositories. A few months ago it seemed we were past this, but then it resumed again. I worry that we were too eager for him to potty train. He has been out of diapers for almost a year now, but no progress (maybe even backwards progress) on pooping. Right now, he doesn't soil, but only has a movement once a week or so with the help of a glycerin suppository. He then will have no urge for a few days, then for a few more days he will have urges but will resist them, hiding and squeezing his bottom while standing on tippy-toes. He feels tortured, both by the glycerin and the bowel movement. It is always enormous and painful, and stops up the toilet. I have to hold him and coach him "push! push!"-- I feel like a labor coach! We have tried fiber supplements (Citrucel) too, which worked great, but only for two days. Senna extracts do nothing for him. Like others who have posted, I am severely worried about his long-term health. I have not yet tried mineral oil, sodium docusate, lactulose, or PEG 3500 (movicol). I was excited to find these options to try but am disheartened to read others' lack of success with these. I did try castor oil once, and ended up wearing it all! :roll: I think the PEG 3500 will be our best bet. I read a study in which the pediatric patients given it liked it better than others and did not refuse it like some of the others. From what I can find out, it seems the main risk is simply continuation of the problem: pain, constipation, and anal fissures. These are bad enough, but hopefully this means I can relax about doing some kind of permanent damage as we work through this. I also have found, as at least one other post has mentioned, that laxative therapy must be continued for a minimum of 3 months, up to 2 years or longer. Wow! I had no idea. I also did not know that you're not supposed to just follow the directions for their body weight; rather, you're supposed to adjust the dose until the child is producing TWO soft movements EVERY DAY. I can't even imagine this! This hasn't happened in two years!! But, if the bowel is to retrain, this makes sense. I just don't know what I will do when he becomes tolerant of whatever we are using. Perhaps the best approach is to aggressively use each laxative and rotate every few weeks. Good luck to everyone! (us included!)

[i:e9973eb638]This message was automatically imported from the original Patient Experience[/i:e9973eb638]

0 likes, 3 replies