Saturday, December 29, 2007

Saturday, December 29, 2007 - Update

Party at my crib!

The three bottles with dark karo syrup didn’t seem to do anything for Olivia. It caused her not to take quite as much because I don’t believe she liked the taste. Earlier today we gave her a glycerin suppository (she had these in the NICU) and it did the trick. Actually, it did it so well that we ended up having to give her a bath. These aren’t really a permanent solution, but at least we got a stool out of her. Can vaccinations cause infrequent stools/constipation? It’s just interesting how we never had this problem previously. Thanks for all of your suggestions. I know everyone has commented about how much they like this blog, but you have no idea how much it means to Ryan and me. We haven’t had a chance to go to any support groups because we spent our evenings at the hospital and now we have Olivia to take care of. It’s unbelievable the amount of physical and emotional stamina required to deal with all that has happened over the past 4 months. This blog is kind of my support group and I appreciate all of you who take the time to check it each day. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

7 comments:

Melissa said...

Caitlin was very constipated as well and still is and she is 2 now. She never was in the NICU so I never quite got that. What we would do when she was that small was give her alittle bit of APlle juice also we would have to do the suppostories as well about every 3 dyas or so. Also a good one to is put a little bit of mineral oil in her bottle but we would do the first 3 mls mixed with milk so we knew she was intaking it that really helped alot. Its so hard we now have to ahve Caitlin on miralax to he;p her because we do notice that when she is backed up she won't eat as much. Hope you guys find a solution soon!!

Anonymous said...

Glad you can rest easy tonight! Don't worry too much about constipation yet. Our baby would sometimes go 5 days without a stool and the drs said it was nothing to worry about as long as he was comfortable. Now he goes regularly. Who knows?! Those little ones will always keep us on our toes.

Thank YOU for keeping this blog. We didn't have time for support groups either and live an hour from Wichita, so your blog is kind of like an outlet for me too! And I love to see Olivia's victories and know that another mom has felt the same things I have! Someday I hope we can meet! I know they are working on a NICU family advisory council at Wesley and I'd love to have a reunion!

Thanks
Neva

abby said...

The other thing you might try adding to Olivia's bottle is flax seed oil. They sell a kid's variety at Whole Foods market here; I don't know if you have one nearby or have another good natural food store nearby, but it might be worth a try. The apple juice idea is a good one, as is prune juice. And the suppositories aren't habit forming, either.

If it keeps up being a problem, you might have them do a Delayed Gastric Emptying scan on Olivia. It's a very low stress test, as these things go---they have the baby take a bottle with some barium in it and then they scan her to see how long it takes her to empty out of her tummy. DGE is something that often accompanies Reflux. And we're beginning to believe that, in Hallie's case, both were exacerbated by a cow milk intolerance. I believe that Neosure is cow-milk based, and so this could be part of the issue. Anyway, we do hope that you guys get to the bottom of this sooner rather than later and that Olivia starts feeling better in terms of this, in terms of her anemia, and that all goes well vis-a-vis the RSV shot.

Anonymous said...

Good, shes poo-...well you know! haha...
Great pictures, I know have the lovely picture of all three of you as my desktop! It's so cute!!! I was really excited!
I was babysitting today and it made me think back to when I had a little, little brother. There were good minutes and bad minutes. Baby's moods change like the wind. But it really made me think, I mean taking care of a premie would be lots more difficult, but one minute we would be laughing and then the next I would be freaking out because I didn't want him to cry.
My point is, kinda, that in every picture she is smiling! And for me to make, my little boy, smile was challenging at some points. But it was way worth it in the end.
I also like being considered part of a support group, it makes me feel important! :)
I can't wait to see you all in church soon!
Love you all!
Stay Strong,
Shea♥

Stacy said...

Conner pooped all the time in the NICU and is now on an every 3-4 day schedule. We have tried Karo syrup and an oz of water a day. Neither did anything. We also did suppositories 2 times and they worked quickly. Our pediatrician and neonatologist told us not to get in the habit of doing suppositories because it affects development of their bottom. Anyway, they also suggested we try prune juice, but as long as Conner is comfortable and his poop is still soft, they don't worry too much about it. It sounds like this has only happened once with Olivia and only 2 days, so I wouldn't start worrying about problems just yet. She sounds like she's been pretty regular. Won't our kids be excited to know that we all talk about their pooping habits! Anyway, I'm glad that Olivia finally pooped. We stress about it all the time as well. About the hematocrit stuff, Conner is on Neosure and he is also on poly visol with iron (for the extra vitamin D and iron). Neosure does not have an adequate amount of Vitamin D (especially if she is only getting 2 bottles of it a day) for preemie bones. The iron is constipating, but helps greatly with anemia. Hope you guys are doing well. It sounds like Olivia loves being home.
Stacy Larson
www.aboutthelarsons.com

Anonymous said...

This may seem a little odd, but have you considered the chiropractor? Ryan stooled without much problem in the NICU, but when we came home he couldn't stool or pass gass, and he was obviously uncomfortable...grunting and straining and grimacing. A friend suggested a chiropractor, and we found one that had experience with small babies. After taking him to the doctor a few times he was passing gas and poop with no problems. We started taking Ryan to the chiropractor when he was a little less than 5 pounds. He had a couple of areas that were out of alignment around the nerves that innervate the gut and bowels.
Julie

Anonymous said...

I found out the hard way that what mommy eats-when you're giving breastmilk--effects baby. We had 1/2 a snickers cake left from a party when brooke was a few months old, and who am I to waste snickers cake. So after helping my husband consume it all over the course of about 2 days, Brooke didn't poop for four! The nurse said "chocolate consipates babies." Not in moderation, but 1/2 a snickers cake did. So-- that might be one thing to think about - have you upped your chocolate consumption over the holidays? My friend who is a breastfeeding champ would herself eat prunes to help keep her babies regular. I don't think I could gag them down, but you have jumped thru worse hoops with Olivia so far, so that might be something for you to try. Good luck!-Angie