What if a baby cries when pooping – really screams with every bowel movement?
Here are possible reasons to consider and many parents’ testimonies of their baby’s situation.
Mom’s Question:
My 9-month-old baby screams with every bowel movement. He has been doing this for months, and Dr. doesn’t seem to know what is wrong.
He screams in pain with every bowel movement, soft or hard. Every time, sometimes twice a day. I need help finding out what is wrong.
Baby Cries When Pooping: 5 Possible Reasons
Poor boy, this must be so hard for both him and you. When a baby cries when pooping, it is likely due to either discomfort, fear, or pain.
Since your baby is literally screaming, pain is the most likely reason. Let’s take a look at a few different possible reasons.
1. Painful Constipation
Ongoing constipation can cause discomfort and pain. If he is currently constipated, there are several ways to mitigate that. You’ll find appropriate foods to soften his stools here.
Constipation may develop for various reasons, but the most common reason in infants is due to changes in their diet. Transitioning from breastmilk or formula to complementary feeding (usually with puréed foods and cereals) is often the culprit. There are also medical reasons for constipation, such as Hirschsprung disease and hypothyroidism.
2. Fear of Pooping
Has he ever been constipated before? Babies can sometimes develop a fear of having bowel movements due to previous experiences of constipation.
If that could be the case, and if you have started with complementary feeding, then maybe giving him only foods that are unlikely to cause hard stools for a while could help him learn that passing stools is not painful.
For a 9-month-old, make sure to give finely chopped “finger foods” or mashed foods – save bigger bites of solid foods for when they turn one. High-fiber foods will also move his bowels faster and help prevent constipation – try cereals, spinach, apricots, or diluted fruit juices. Double-check with your doctor on which foods he can take for his age.
You might even want to occasionally give him infant glycerin suppositories to see if passing stools does not hurt. However, do not use the suppositories too frequently or for prolonged periods of time so your baby does not learn to depend on suppositories to poop regularly. Using suppositories very often might irritate their bum or even lead to chronic symptoms.
3. Anal Fissure
Babies who previously had problems with constipation or diarrhea might have developed an anal fissure. This is a tear in the tissue lining the anal sphincter, a ring of muscular tissue that relaxes when we pass stools and contracts when we need to hold it in.
Babies who have anal fissures will feel pain with every bowel movement. Does your baby have any blood in his stool? In some infants, small amounts of fresh blood in the stool are common for this condition. However, blood may also appear in the stool due to other intestinal pathologies, such as diverticulosis or allergic reaction. Make sure to inform your doctor about any bleeding you see.
4. Infant Dyschezia
If your baby has soft stools yet cries every time they poop, infant dyschezia is an important condition to consider. Some babies take a little extra time to learn how to poop properly – they can still have difficulty coordinating some body movements in response to the urge to poop. This tightens the pelvic floor, which should be relaxed instead when passing stools.
5. Irritable Bowel Syndrome
The screaming might indicate the beginning of irritable bowel syndrome.
In irritable bowel syndrome, the nerves attached to the gastrointestinal tract are extra sensitive. Normal movements along the intestinal walls caused by benign substances like milk gets translated to the brain as pain. Kids with IBS may have diarrhea or constipation and usually feel pain during bowel movements.
However, it’s quite difficult to diagnose IBS in infants. It’s best to have your child evaluated by a specialist if IBS is possible.
Get Your Child Re-evaluated
It is really hard to know what is causing his discomfort, and my top advice to you is to get a second opinion from another doctor, preferably a pediatrician. It might also be a good idea to ask your doctor to refer your baby to a pediatric gastroenterologist.
Does your baby show any signs of illness, such as poor appetite and weight gain? Does he have any diaper rash that could cause him pain?
Try gathering as much information as possible about your son’s situation and take him to a pediatrician. I would also advise you to take a video or record your son while pooping. Many babies cry a bit when pooping, so it could be that a doctor really needs to see what is going on to evaluate how severe your baby’s distress is.
I really wish you good luck! And please let me know how things work out for you.
Paula
More Babies In Pain When Pooping
- Baby In Pain Even With Loose Stools
- 1 Year Old Cries In Pain When Pooping
- Read about the signs of lactose intolerance and milk allergy here.
Research References (Baby Screams with Every Bowel Movement)
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)
- Chronic functional constipation and fecal incontinence in infants, children, and adolescents: Treatment
- Anal Fissures in children
- Symptoms & Causes of Hirschsprung Disease
Find comments to this question below. A lot of parents have shared their situation and the progress in finding the reasons for their babies’ painful bowel movements. Make sure to browse all these contributions!
Paula Dennholt founded Easy Baby Life in 2006 and has been a passionate parenting and pregnancy writer since then. Her parenting approach and writing are based on studies in cognitive-behavioral models and therapy for children and her experience as a mother and stepmother. Life as a parent has convinced her of how crucial it is to put relationships before rules. She strongly believes in positive parenting and a science-based approach.
Paula cooperates with a team of pediatricians who assist in reviewing and writing articles.
I was thinking that my one year old was straining and pushing because she needed to finish boo booing. Well with the diaper on she could still feel the boo boo so she thought she needed to push and she would cry and scream out of frustration. Check to see if anything has come out and if so go ahead and change baby even if its not much it could be between the cheeks. When i stated getting the diaper off immediately instead of waiting until she seemed done, things got so much better. She would have about two to three changes before done
I’m so glad Im not alone!! My 11 month old was pooping fine until 7 months. Since then he would only poop once a week I was worried but someone told me its normal for breastfed babies. Recently for the past two months he screams so.muc , gies all red and cries his eyes out.but his stools are not that hard. could it be because he doesnt go that often?iv varied his diet but nothing seems to work
My baby is now 5 wks old, and we switched milk for the 3rd time. From ordinary formula, to HW and now to Soy-based because my baby poops very often until he developed diaper rash due to very frequent poops. Now on the soy-based formula, the poops are now 4x compared before that my baby poops everytime he was fed. The sad thing now is that my baby cries everytime he poops. I usually clean him immediately and watch the poop comes out to relief him. His poop are soft and yellow so its really not constipation but in large amount. What may be the reason of this? I’m really worried. Is there a solution for this?
I have a 14M old and just with in the last 30 days she has had trouble pooping she cries and seems to be in pain when she is trying to push the poop out and I have to lay her down and help force the poop out and most of the time there is blood in her stool .Not sure whats wrong ??? please help me help my daughter …..
Hi Robin,
Have you introduced any new foods during the past month or two? What you describe does sound like a food issue. A common reason for constipation at this age is cow’s milk. Could that be it? In such case, take all dairy products out of her diet and see if it helps.
It doesn’t have to be dairy, of course. Think back on what you introduced recently and reverse that.
Foods to avoid until things get better are unripe bananas, carrots, rice cereal, potatoe, blueberry, white bread, pasta and dairy products. Try giving her apricots, wholegrain bread, apple and pear juice, or prune puré with her foods. Give her oatmeal porrige instead of rice cereal. And a lot of water to drink.
In addition, since you mention bloody stools, I think you should discuss it with her doctor.
I hope this helps,
Many parents here are stuck without a clue. Have any of you tried a chiropractor?! Many issues such as these can be repaired with proper function of the spine and nervous system. Many issues can be repaired with something as simple as a sacral adjustment! Try goats milk, it is the most natural and closest thing to breast milk. Fish oils are good to. Find a good chiropractor. Trust me they have the real answers you wont get from an m.d. Etc. make your choices for your kids. I love my daughter and I have helped many people. Trust me.
I had the same problem with my baby. Went to the doctor and he prescribe some medicine for her.Well when I went to the drug store the drugist said you do not want to give this to the baby further more the Doctor told me to ask the drugist how much to give to the baby. We never got the medicine.
My Grandma was living with us at the time,she said get some mineral oil and give her a little bit on a spoon. You may have to hold her nose it doesn’t taste good but it worked. The Mineral Oil lined the intestine, no time at all I had a happy baby. This was 50 years ago thanks to the old time remedies. Diaper rash use Corn Starch I used an Accent Shaker it’s like a salt shaker with big wholes. My baby didn’t mind dirty diappers so I had to keep a close watch on her.
Best wishes to all you mothers
Hi, our 4 year old has the same thing sort of.She has chronic renal failure and really doesn’t eat any food due to her condition. She has cried and screamed in pain with B/M since she was around 15mths, and is never constipated.
She is on Kindergen formula with a bit of added protein, and has Movicol to loosen her stools daily. We have A dedicated surgeon, pediatrician and renal specialist, who just say “keep up the movicol” and give no reason for the suffering she goes through. After all our poor girl has been through, this has been one of the worst things to sit and watch. We have to sit on the toilet floor to comfort her while she screams out how much it hurts and sometimes she gives up before anything comes out. Once she gets the first bit out however, she is fine to finish by herself. It’s just getting the first bit out that takes the longest. ANY help will be appreciated
Thanks.
From experience with two little ones with the sames issues, if constipated think dairy. Best to introduce dairy after 12 months (if at all). There are many other formula/cow’s milk alternatives to get their calcium and vitamin D. Allergic colitis can cause symptoms of pain when the poop is soft and if there is blood with soft poop. Any new foods introduced? Including dairy/milk based formula? Keep a food log and try eliminating common allergens. (dairy,soy, wheat,egg,fish,nuts)
My 6 month old just started solid foods about 3 weeks ago. Always use the 4 day rule. Watch for any changes with each food. I started bananas and my baby started screaming with every bowel movement. I stopped the bananas and he’s back to normal. Worth a shot.
I have a 20 month old who was breastfed until 17 months (she now drinks evaporated milk mixed with boiled water as it seems easier for her body to digest, she used to have spots from regular milk). She is learning to go to the toilet but never wants to sit down in order to actually poop, and appears to be in pain whilst passing even though stools are soft. She did have some blood at the end once a week ago. When I went to the doctor he didn´t take me seriously.
My 2 month old screams in agony for up to 1 and a half days before he poops. He poops every 3 days and usually twice within 12 hours. His stool is loose like when he was breastfeeding so he’s not constipated (I don’t think??). He screaming comes and goes as if it’s gas that’s putting him pain. I don’t feel like it’s caused from him actually pooping but from the gas? Maybe it’s the movement down his intestines that’s painful. I used to have him on Enfamil newborn then to Gentlease because he was extremely gassy and fussy to the point he never slept because he was always in pain from the gas. Then I noticed his stool went from normal to peanut butter consistency to hard stool. I was told to use light karo syrup which worked to get the stool out but still hard and painful for him and then he was getting really hyper and wired (I think from the sugar in the karo) so I took him off that and the formula and put him on Soy formula which gave me a whole new baby as far as gassy and fussy went. Now I give him diluted prune juice along w/ his formula and his poop is back to normal but he screams when he has to poop. It comes and goes until he actually poops which sometimes carries on for a day or two. So I only get 1 good happy day w/ my baby boy.
It breaks my heart and I truly feel there is something going on inside him that is making him scream this way. We are going to the md tomorrow for his normal 2 month check up and I’m going to talk with the doc again about this issue… I hope I get an answer!!!
Otherwise my next step is the pediatric gi specialist. I don’t think this is anything to serious but I do think it’s something that can be helped! If anyone has any suggestions please comment back to me.
My daughter is 14 months now & i believe this started around 6-7 months of age, every time she tries to have a bm she starts screaming & grunting, she also holds her breath from pushing so hard, she turns blood red in the face and even breaks out n a sweat, she shakes & her heart beats faster, sometimes after all that straining she hasnt even went yet it takes about 2-3 tomes of her doing this before she gets anything out, this happens when its hard and soft, her dr keeps saying its constipation & shes scared to go, but no this is real pain, ive tried everything miralax, pedi-lax, juice, lots of water, suppositories, everything but those are all for constipation or stool softeners they don’t help the problem if the stool is soft & this is still occurring, obviously its an internal problem & its serious, her dr doesn’t seem to think so & there is nothing i ca n do for her when its happening except hold her until its over, please let me know if you think you may know what the problem could be
thanks
Hello. My daughter has experienced the same exact situation you have described since the same age and we have tried the same things, plus a ton of dietary changes and supplements. We have seen numerous specialists. She is now almost two years old and nothing has changed. Miralax is the only thing that helped, but she had an adverse event happen while on it so we stopped. I am curious to know how your daughter has been since you posted this?
Hi,just to let u know how our lil gilr is doing, well after being diagnosed with anal stenosis(at 8months old) we were 1st told by the surgeon who isnt qualified in this that she could have surgery, only to be devastatedly told on her 1st appointment with a specialist in anal stenosis that there is no operation and that we would have to dialate at home, she now has a nurse that comes out once a week and we dialate twice a day, her nurse told us she is the oldest baby she has ever began treatment on.. I am in the process of filing a complaint against the surgeon that first dismissed us to make sure that at least this docter looks into babies cases individualy instead of just assuming it is constipation…
My daughter was born 4 weeks early. By the time she was a week old she had scratched the skin off her face from straining to have a bm. I took her to every doc I could find. ER, walk-in clinics, family doc…everyone. The all said colic, change the formula, give her water, etc. I finally went to a peds doc at a larger hospital who then referred us to Mayo. My daughter had an anal stenosis. She had her first stretching at 6 weeks and 2 more before she was 8 months old. She was also put on a laxative (miralax) to soften her stools. We did manual stretching at home and she prolapsed at one point and had surgery to repair. She is now 4 and has a normal bathroom pattern and no issues now. (thank goodness!) If you are really concerned and your child is in pain do not take a brush off from docs. You know your child better than anyone. I had never heard of anal stenosis and did not have a clue what it meant but painful stools can mean that there is not enough space for the stool to pass through.
My lil girl (shes nearly 8months) has had problems with passing stools since she came home fromt he hospital.. no 1 listened got told by every1 it was constipation.. 1 registrar saw her at 8wks n said it was anal stenosis, refered to surgeon he said NO… it took me to fight for 6mnths, she had a biospy, which i had to literally stand on the ward n scream 4,and it revealed it ACTUALLY was anal stenosis, that the same surgeon fobbed us off… so relieved to have an answer to her pain, but so cross they left her sooooooo long…!!!! she has her 1st hops appoint on monday and will recieve treatment until a space for surgery becomes available.. we’v tried to go private but no surgeon will operate on under 1’s privately, so its a case of me stalking the surgeons secretary, which knows me by voice now on the phone… Just shows MUMMYS ALWAYS KNOW BEST…!! I know alot of posts are milk intolerance and so forth, but this is wat they told me at 1st, so if ur not happy keep on at them x x
Well, I have been trying to keep you guys updated if you can follow all my posts. My little girl has been on cow formula, soy formula, rice milk, goat milk, hemp milk, and finally now she is on So Delicious Coconut milk. They make yogurt too. A yummy brand of soy free dairy free cheese is Daiya. Kinda pricey but for an older baby or toddler who isn’t going to eat too much at once it’s not that bad. She has been tested now for allergies (skin test and blood test) and had an endoscopy for celiac disease. Everything has come out fine. She had mild irritation in her lower bowel but nothing major. I am taking her off of milk and wheat again. I will try soy in a few days. More that likely these are food sensitivities or intolerance. However, milk causes her to have constant congestion, a sunburn like rash on her face that peals, and screaming while pooping; wheat causes her to have a sunburn like rash that also peals, fussiness, restlessness, and vomiting while pooping. Dr. wants me to try the foods again every three months as she will more than likely outgrow these intolerance/sensitivities. God bless you parents and I hope hers and my experience helps someone else. If I find anything new about her that may be helpful I will let you know.
I totally empathize with all of the parents looking for help with this problem. To share my experience, my son is 6 weeks old and struggled to pass his bowels for about 3 weeks. He is nursing and all of his stool has been soft, typical of nursing babies. It took us about a week to identify the pattern of when he had his emotional breakdowns…when he was trying to pass his bowels. We explained to the doctor that this cry went far beyond simply being upset, he was exhibiting signs of real pain! Like many of you, the doctor dismissed it for colic and stated it would simply pass. By the 3rd week I was becoming furious that no one seems interested in helping fix this problem so I started doing a little research.I am not a medical doctor but from everything I found, this condition seems to be called dyschezia…and there is no accepted fix to the problem. But, I was determined to find something. I started looking up traditional Chinese and Indian pressure point control and where I wish I could say it was a quick fix, it did have a very positive response. We began using abdominal massage (see youtube) and massaging the arch of the foot, during his episodes and otherwise. The other thing we did was hold his feet up when he was trying to go. I am happy to report that we have seemed to passed this hardship. I hope that helps someone out there. I know how hard it is for the whole family.
My daughter has had a problem with constipation since she was 2 months. She was unable to have milk formula so we switched her to soy. The soy formula helped with her stomach issues but made her severely constipated. We tried all the soy formulas and finally used Good Start which still caused her constipation but not as bad as others. She is off the formula now and eating regular foods with lactose free milk. I thought ther constipation would go away but it hasn’t. At one point she was so constipated the tissue on her bottom swelled and it looked like baby hemmoroids. The doctor told us to give her Little phillips mom every night at least 1/2 teaspoon. It’s been working and the swelling finally went down after 2 months but she still continues to cry when she poops. I think she is scared to poop and hope it goes away soon. I can’t stand to see her in so much pain.
Hi Morgan’s mom!
Have you tried (or discussed with her Dr) to take away all dairy products completely, not just switch to lactose free? A friend of mine had a daughter with exactly the same problem as yours, a bit worse actually, and it took until she was 4 years old that they realized that is was the milk protein. When they took away the milk, her constipation disappeared, she gained weight, and more.
Just a thought,
Paula
My one year old has had a hard time having a BM for a while now. It started when I put him on rice cereal at about 6 months old. I stopped cereal and waited until he was 8 months old. He was EBF up until this point. Skipped cereal and tried other foods. He would get constipated here and there. So we were told to try caro syrup with water and that would work sometimes. I then also tried prunes and pears. Those types of foods. Nothing seemed to really help.
Now, he is almost 14 months and screams and shakes every time he poops. He works on it all day long and finally will get it out with tears. It is so sad. I stopped breast feeding a few weeks after he turned one and he has had a harder time since I did that.
I guess I need to look at cutting out dairy and stuff. I just can’t take this anymore. His bm that he just had was not very hard. It was pretty soft in fact.
I have read through the posts and a lot of comments relate to my little girls symptoms. Since a few days old she has strained to pass stools,i knew something was wrong as her stools were extremely smelly too, and green, and when she did poo it shot out all spirily like a can of silly string. i took her to doctor, health visitor,midwife, walk in centre and A and E… no 1 would listen, it was a virus, a bug, her milk so we changed it.. In the end I had to record her trying to poo,and show it to the doctor and refuse to leave the hospital, eventually she was admitted to pediatrics, they said she had anal stenosis, got referred, the surgeon which saw her said no it was just chronic constipation,(i don’t think it is,her stools have always been frequent and soft)and gave lactulose,this did make it easier for her to pass but it is still nasty smelling and green, we tried weening her on to food and she got admitted to hospital coz she didn’t poop for 6days n was in agony, their answer was to just up her dosage.. Its so upsetting to watch as you can see the sheer agony she is in,the doc advised to not give food till 6months, but shes a big baby n i feel is ready for food… she can’t not go on to solids because of this? I’m at my wits end, does any1 else have or ever had anything similar, Id be so grateful for any comments.
I posted awhile back about taking my daughter off of milk and putting her on soy everything. I removed the soy and tried goats milk and then removed that and began giving her hemp milk and rice milk. I also removed wheat and the rest of her problem went away. We went to the food allergist and everything came back negative so then we went to the g.i. and had a consultation. I will let you guys know the outcome.
It is so relieving to see that others are going through similar stuff! My son is 14 months old and has had a really painful time pooing now for about 8 weeks. We used to have him on nutramagen formula (he is deathly allergic to milk) but switched him to soy formula after a year (no allergy to soy). Since starting on the soy, he has had a bad reaction in terms of bowel movements – it constipated him somewhat. The poo’s aren’t hard, but formed (like play dough). He will grunt and groan and his whole body will tense up and he gets so red in the face…then he will scream out in pain for 30 seconds to a few minutes. He will do this a few times throughout the day before he actually has a bowel movement – it is terrible to watch and not be able to help.
His GI doctor suggested Miralax (which we’ve done even though he doesn’t have hard poos, just more solid than before) and all the other typical things – prune juice, etc. We also tried pro-biotics which seemed to help a bit – maybe like 20%…but still had the same problem. Nothing seems to help enough…so we just switched off soy formula to Elecare per the GI’s recommendation(a non-soy, non-milk based formula). It has only been two days and no real changes yet, but I am hoping this will make a difference (once the majority of soy gets out of his system). I will get back on here and post if this seems to help.
In reading the other posts, I am going to read about some things that others found out were the problem – celiac disease, rectal fissures, distorted bowel, etc. And if the change in formula doesn’t make a difference in a few more days, then I am going to take him to the GI doctor and ask him to check for any of the above things that may be the cause of his pain.
I had the EXACT same thing happen with my 1 year old. Dr. said he’s scared because of the pain associated with a painful poop that ripped him a while ago. Every time my son pooped I’d get excited and smile and say “good boy” “it’s ok, good job” “yay, you’re such a good boy keep going.” You need to meet every bowel movement with a smile,enthusiasm,and encouragement..if you meet it with a sad face, he will associate bowel movements with sadness!After about half a month of doing this every time he pooped, he stopped screaming and crying every time he pooped!
My baby is 2 weeks old and strains when she poops but the stool is normal looking. It seems to hurt her when she pushes. What could be the issue??? Straining but not constipated! Im lost and I feel bad for my baby. Have a doctor’s appt on 5 march. Any ideas
Hi Tenishia,
Congratulations on your little baby. Since she is only two weeks old, straining is normal. Their intestines are immature and it takes a bit of straining and pushing (and eating and simply living outside the womb) before bowel movements work smoothly for most babies.
What you can do to help her, is to learn how to carry out baby massage. There are particular massage movements you can do on their tummies that can be very effective.
And even just bending her legs and gently pushing her knees towards her belly can help a lot.
Of course, also bring the matter up at the health checkup.
Warm wishes,
Paula
My 13 old baby boy crying whe he is pooping. He can cry and stop for a few hours until he done with pooping. As soon as he poops , he is playing again. He used to have problem with going to the bathroom, but I changed his diet and now his stool is soft but crying didn’t go away. It is hard. Doctor says he is afraid. It will go away. But when how long to wait. Any ideas. Tx
One of the last comments was mine about trying to take baby off milk products and feeling frustrated. She is on soy everything now. Her rash comes and goes around her mouth. She no longer screams when pooping but she throws up a little. It comes out her nose. Dr. said to keep her on soy until 15 mos and to watch the vomiting. She also said to try milk of magnesia again to see if that helps the vomiting. Another note on the milk, she was always congested for as long as I can remember. Once I got her off of milk products, that cleared up. I am now trying to solve the rash coming and going (milk definately makes it come back, but I think there is something else affecting it too) and the vomiting while pooping. For everyone who has a baby screaming while pooping, try removing all milk products (it’s difficult and her rash may be due to products that I don’t check because I don’t think contain milk. I try to check everything but it’s such a common ingredient it’s very difficult to avoid.)
I had the same problem when my son was 7 months old. He had always had a bowel movement everyday but started to wake every 40 minutes every night for a month in pain. It didn’t even cross my mind that it was constipation because he went everyday as I said. We were put into hospital for a few nights so they could observe and saw a ped who discovered he had a distorted bowel which is apparently from constipation even though he had never gone a day without pooing. They put him on lactalose which we put into his bottles a few times a day and this was like a miracle. He started sleeping through and stopped having the pains. He was on it for at least 6 months. The ped said it can take years for their bowel to become the correct shape again. He is nearly 2 now and every now and then we have a issue but just put some lactalose in some milk and he is all good again. Now I have a 5 week old baby who has started the same thing so here we go again. Hope this helps someone, maybe worth a try.
My 11 month old has painful poops too. For as long as I can remember she has screamed in pain when pooping. My mother in law thought her stool was hard, but it felt squishy to me. Doctor suggested lactose free formula. I put her on that and then her face broke out in a rash. I researched milk allergy and found that both are symptoms so I am trying her on soy everything right now. However, it’s near impossible to avoid her getting milk products with my two older children in the house. 2 and 4. She finds a sippy cup with milk in it or some cheetos left. I try to keep all of that in the kitchen but she cruises over when I’m not looking and usually eats something with milk. The doctor also wanted me to try milk of magnesia which solved the problem for a few days but no longer seems to work. She gets fussy right before a poop, then screams like shes being tortured. As soon as she passes it (one minute or less) she’s happy as can be. Twice I have found a small dot of blood in her stool, but just twice. I don’t know what else to do for her.
my baby is going 1 on February. she had the same problem when she’s 4 months old. she was hospitalized for 3 days and had some tests done. the results for her stool culture was she had some bacteria on her poop. How wud that happen when we use mineral water for her milk and for her bath. she had gone through several xrays, ultrasound, stool exams, urine test and blood culture. She went fine after 2 months but went back to crying until now. She cries in pain. i dont know what to do. her breath is also getting bad. im planning to bring her back on her doctor. i know this isn’t normal. I dont want to listen to her cries anymore. that pains my heart.
I thought my DS was contipated and at times his BM were hard and huge. But now even we they are soft he cries. His bottom is raw and has meds for it. They just put him on colace to soften his BM but I don’t know that its it. I am going to look into milk allergy. And my DS doesn’t sleep more than 2 hours at night. He is 9.5 months.
My 3 week old daughter is having the same issue. At first she was constipated then we switched to soy. That gave her regular BMs with good consistency but now she strains and cries with every BM and the Dr just dismisses it. I’m seeking help also. Ive been reading online and checking different formulas. Now I wish I would have stuck strictly to breastfeeding. Not sure what to do for her.
My nine month old since birth does not sleep more than 2 -3 hrs straight and that’s on a good night. It seems as tho every time he is trying to pass wind or poop he becomes uncomfortable and he is awaken at night by it. He use to cry for hours straight the peditrician and all the er drs said its colic then they said a milk allergy so I continue breast feeding and change formula which he feed from both to good start soy formula. We went to a gi specialist who ordered an x ray to rule out gerd and a varicose vein was found on the esophagus. More specialist are to be seen but idk how this wud relate to uncomfortability with my sons anus so I am still looking for answers. I will try the probiotics found in yogurt sounds like a good idea. Also my sons bottom is red possibly from the straining. I would appreciate any advice. Thanx a very concerned and exhausted mom
Hi there. My child just started on whole milk about 3 days ago and around the 2nd day she had a bm which was a little hard ball. She cries while having a bm and it is so painful to watch. My husband just took her to the emergency room (I have to be at work tonight) b/c I looked in her diaper and a very hard, large piece of feces was stuck in her anus. Hopefully its just a little constipation. We have tried prune juice, karo syrup, and Milk of Magnesia in the past and today. The karo syrup worked before, but unfortunately it didn’t work today. I cried so hard to see my baby in pain so I hope what they tell him at the emergency room while bring some relief to me and my baby. Good luck everyone!
Hi FDC,
Make sure you stop giving your baby milk products as well. Milk protein allergy is known to cause severe constipation in some cases. So try excluding any dairy products for a while and see if it helps.
I really wish you good luck!
I’m almost crying myself here …. I’m thinking that sugar is to blame???? Ever since I started “adult” cereal (cheerios, etc.) it seemed that the constipation started, the screaming and tears following soon after. My 10 month old was breast feed for 6 months w/ supplemental formula. Then 100% formula (Good Start). Meanwhile we started solids: mainly organic cereal consisting of whole grain oatmeal and rice. Soon then came the organic fruits and veggies. Perfect ! These last few weeks I have been giving her my own cooking – beef stews, chicken soup – all healthy of course, but not organic and sure there is a little bit of salt here and there. Also these last few weeks I have been letting her have a teaspoon of ice cream on occasion. I believe these sugars are to blame. My advice: If you can afford it – go organic, lay off the sugars (ALL types) and keep them hydrated with water and formula. I have also watered down formula just a little b/c I forget to give her water sometimes. This is important during the summer time too. Although the pediatrician said apple juice is good for constipation I can’t see how it is – it is all (natural) sugar! I think this is a better alternative: I just mash apples, add some water, and lemon juice for tang and vit C and freeze it!! That’s a good solution for teething as well! kill two birds w/ one stone… Good luck everyone – please don’t let these little angels suffer. ALSO: Olive oil!!! Use this in cooking – Mediterranean cooking is the best – it lubricates your insides and is the healthiest food/medicine in the world.
I’m so happy to have found this website! I am frustrated and worried about my son’s condition.
He turns three this coming weekend. For the past several weeks he has been complaining that “it hurts” when he goes poop AND pee – he gets all worked up; red face; sweating; screaming “ouchie, ouchie, ouchie”, etc. It’s enough to break a mother’s heart! I took him to the pediatrician who tested his urine for infection; it came back fine. They offered to do an xray to check for constipation, but my son’s stools are NOT hard or well-formed, they are very soft. We give him 1 tsp. of Benefiber in his morning milk (1% cow’s milk) and he gets fresh fruit everyday. We just started giving him cran-grape juice too (small amounts, 3x per day). He might be a little better – but I’m still concerned. I’ve told other people about this and everyone agrees this isn’t “normal”, so why do the doctors brush it off so easily?
I know this response is a little late but for anyone reading through these I may have the answer. My son started screaming at 12months every time he BM when I stopped breastfeeding. He had blood in his stool at times even though his stools where always loose. After two months and 2 different surgeons I finally asked our ped if we could see a ped GI specialist. He’s allergic to milk. Breast milk has a whey protein base- cow’s milk, soy milk and regular formula all have the same protein base that kids can be allergic too. You don’t usually see this allergy externally because it manifest in the colon. It causes the colon to become inflamed, raw and bleed. All of which cause extreme pain during a BM wether its hard or a soft stool
My grandson has similar problem he has had problems since taken off formula and put on whole milk and food his bm is so huge it looks like he is getting hemorrhoids my daughter took him to a gp put him on laculose and did not even change a bit still hard and huge he screams and cries so hard his mom has to assist him to get the poop out every time we tried prune juice this loosens his stool so much but he still screams it probably burns his little bum i told her to save one of his diapers i just don’t think the doctor knows how big these bms are will try to get appointment with ped. good luck all
Does anyone else’s child scream and cross their legs? My daughter, who turned 2 in April, seems to hold her BM’s in by crossing her legs. She screams and cries with each urge of BM – so many times a day that we don’t even count anymore. She’s definitely not constipated – her stools are very soft from the Mirilax we give her (2tsp). She just seems scared. This has been going on since she was 13 months old. Any suggestions? We went to the GI and have talked to our Ped on several occasions. They just seem to brush it off and tell me to keep giving her more foods rich in fiber.
Thanks!
I have a 4 week old baby boy who is formula fed who screams in shear pain every time he has a bm. He has been on 4 different formulas because his doctor thought he may be lactose intolerant but it’s the same problem. His poop is soft so it’s not constipation. I have been to the hospital twice already and to the family doctor’s office every week since his birth and everyone seems to brush this off. It’s not normal and it frustrates me that no one does anything about this!!!
My little boy (1 year old) has always had a hard time when having bowl movement it kills me seeing him in that pain iv been dr and in and out of hospital a&e and no 1 seems two care! Really need help!!! If there anyone that can help plz help me I don’t know what to do my son don’t eat well because of this can’t leave him with anyone cause they are scared! Me and my son have no life cause of it.
My son who is now 1, has been screaming in pain everytime he has a bowel movement since he was 7 months old. I’ve been to the doctor several times now. I’ve tried Gylercin and the doctor prescribed PMS-Lactulose, its not helping. His stool is softer but he still cries in shear pain. I know there is something else – but the doctor keeps telling me he has a tear or he’s just plain constipated. Help don’t know what to do for my baby :(
I have had a similar problem with my daughter and my best advice is to take your baby to a specialist. I tried everything from breastfeeding, formula feeding, prune juice, glycerol, enemas, my daughter still screamed and cried out in pain from every bowel movement. We are taking her to a specialist now and they’re saying it’s best to take it before it gets this bad (she’s 11 months now). If it’s simple constipation it’s one thing, if your child is crying out in pain because they can’t pass a bowel movement it’s a problem that’s better solved earlier than later.
My son is now 11. When is was a newborn I noticed he screamed and cried when he had a bowel movement. I thought when he was about 2 months old he was straining during his bowel movements because he would ball up his fists and turn so red. I called the pedi and was told to try Karo syrup, try prunes, etc. Finally I decided he need to be physically seen. The dr put her little finger in my son’s anus and he screamed in pain. I said that is the noise I hear when he poops. She diagnosed anal stenosis. Which means his anus was too small to pass bowel movements. I was sent to a specialist-a pedi GI in a town 2 hours from here. He referred me to a surgeon in my hometown. She said he didn’t need surgery but I had to put metal rods in his hiney every day for I think it was 6 weeks. Twice a day. I had to gradually use larger and larger rods. This was a horrible thing to do to your 2 month old. So it worked for a bit and then something constipated him and he went right back to straining. Well the straining I learned was him holding back his bowel movement.
We did mineral oil and the occasional baby lax. I did this until he was 3 yrs old. I would have to sit in the bathroom with him and coach him to poop like a husband coaches his wife to push during a baby delivery. It was wearing me and him out because this could take one to two hours. Finally when he was 3 with the thought of preK looming and the idea of sending him to college someday with his bottle of mineral oil got to me. My son was a very reasonable and smart child and I told him he had to poop because that is how we are made and I could no longer help him. He had 3 choices 1. poop 2. stay at a hospital to get help or 3. die because or bodies have to poop. I know that sounds so mean and drastic but it worked. This problem can be so mental and I had to find a fear worse than the fear of pooping. He has been problem free for 8 years.
I have written a few comments about my son who is now 15 months old. He has been back and fourth from the ER and the PGI. Two weeks ago when I took him for another apt to the PGI (along with his 3month old little brother who has the same issue) I had good/bad news to tell him! My son started whole milk and eating more adult food. (including yogurt (with live active cultures/probiotics) His BM have all but dissapeared (as long as he stays on the probiotics) and the infant is now on NESTLÉ GOOD START PLUS 1 Formula, and his issue is completely gone! The boys lack a digestive enzime to break down BM and the probiotics help! I hope this helps some of you! Good luck.
My one year old is passing bm’s bigger then an adult size bm. She holds it in and then screams murder when it is time to go. the pain on her face is extream. i dont understand what is causing this problem… every time.
My son was born at 32 week and was put on the 24 cal formula. He has had solid stools from birth and cried with every BM and when I mentioned to the doctors they just said he’s holding in his BM and making it harder for him to go. I just didn’t feel that was the case because of how much pain he is in. I have tried every formula and all of the things previously mention and nothing is working. They decided that he may be allegic to cow protein found in milk based formulas and change him to Nutramigen. So I was told to mix half part with his regular formula because babies don’t like the taste. It gave him extreme gas and he began screaming just because of the gas. There’s blood in his stool and I am frustrated with the doctors. Any diagnoses that I can ask my new doctor for him about.
So sorry to hear about what you and baby have been dealing with. There really are so many possible causes for baby’s distress… including formula. My son has struggled with the crying to, including blood in the stool. Does your doctor know about the blood? My son had bright red blood when he developed a fissure, or a tear, from the hard stool. My son was constipated which caused the fissure. This was extremely painful for him. Even after the wound healed he still was fearful of pain when he would go. I ENCOURAGE you to stay strong and persistant with the doctors to isolate why your baby is so miserable. You know your baby better then anyone. In the case of my son the doctors determined that he was withholding stool because of fear it would hurt to go. It has taken over 7 months to get him to a point when he doesn’t cry anymore…but he doesn’t cry now. There wasn’t a physical cause for it and it still took a long time to correct. There may be so many different causes, this is just what caused problems for my baby. Just remember to stay strong and be persistant. I KNOW the pain you feel watching your baby hurt. Your love is the best medicine and the most important part in healing your baby. I hope you find a compassionate doctor who will be able to help you. Best of luck to you!
Hi Guys. My 10-month old is having the same problem. At 6 mos, he started on rice cereal, which never gave him a problem. It seemed to start when I started upping his veggie intakes, and yes, poops became more solid. We have appt in 2 weeks with GI doctor. QUESTION: my baby also won’t sleep through the night. He wakes and if I feed him, then he goes back to sleep. Wondering if there is any correlation with his BM problem. Do you moms have similar problem or no?
My 3 year old screams and cries a lot… This has been going on for months . She’s in pain when she poops, it’s terribly hard to see that and I do not know what to do?. Now I’m going to try Probiotics. I’ve stopped giving her apple juice ,her bowels are softer ,but with pain. I will also try milk of magnesia. I hope it’s not Celiac or inflammatory bowel? Also I will (only ) give her water. I will try anything before I take her to a specialist ,cause I do not want her on laxatives or painful tests, I might be doing wrong. Does anyone know about sprue? how do doctors find that out? I will continue my research and change diet for her,before I see a doctor. If anyone can help with a suggestion or comment? or you have experienced this before,it will be of great appreciation. Thank you all ( I try my best to be a good mother)
My 7 month old son has had the same problem. He has only been on forumula…and as mentioned by some others we have given him water, Karo corn syrup, diluted prune juice. He screams and shakes, his heart rate goes though the roof each time he goes. Maybe I’ll talk to the doc about mineral oil as mentioned above. His stool is really hard and large for such a small guy. I and his mother are very concerned.
My son became constipated since two weeks of age until 2 years of age. The doctor did not know what was wrong, told me to give him prune juice, pears, water and so on. Nothing worked, then he referred me to a peadiatrician, they told me it was due to his diet, but still I was convinced that was not the case. Went to the emergency room many times due to this, they told me to give a few spoons of lactulose syrup, which did work, but not for long the stools were still hard. Went to see a Peadiatric GI and that did not help much. Then when he was 2 years of age, a MOM told me to try using Lactulose Free MILK i’m using 2% and that did work. He goes every two days but no more crying, no more straining. I told the peadiatric GI doctor about it and she was very surprised because most lactose tolerant children or adults will have diarrhea instead of constipation.
Hope this info helps some parents out there.
Thank you!
This is very important information that you are sharing. Actually, just the other day, I talked to a mom who was so relieved. They had finally found out why their 3,5 year old daughter was constantly constipated – lactose intolerance!
It had taken so many years and tears to find out!
I hope other parents now have a chance to try to exclude milk from ther children’s diet as one way of treating constipation.
Thanks again,
My 8 month old is having the same problem and I don’t know what to do? We have tried 2 ped.dr.’s and they both says the same things.
Increase his liquids, give laxative, give prune juice, more water and none of this is working. I think my next step is visiting a ped. gast. My question is do i have to be referred to this ped. gast. by his ped. dr. or do i just make an appt. myself. please help a lost and concern mother!!!!!!!!!!!!
I would call and ask some GI’s in your area if they require a referal first. The GI we went to did. My sons doctor was so slow at getting stuff done that when we were in one of our many ER visits I asked the dr there to fix a referal and he did. If you call your doctor and tell them you want a referal they will give it to you. Thats what We did. I hope every thing goes well. GOOD LUCK. And always trust your mommy instinct. You know your baby best!
I first posted a few months ago about the distress and difficulty that my son was having with his bowel movements. This difficulty began at about 11 months as he was transitioning from formula to whole milk. There were a couple of factors which I now believe resulted in the difficulty.
First, the transition was not executed gradually enough for him. He has a twin sister and she made the switch without any issue but his constitution is different and the change over to whole milk resulted in dry, hard stools which were very difficult for him to pass.
Additionally, we traveled overseas for a few weeks at just about this same time and the time, location and schedule changes exacerbated the condition.
Our return home, and the commencement of a much more subtle transition made a difference in the constitution of his stools but the trauma associated with each BM did not change. After visits with a few different doctors – inclusive of a pediatric gastroenterologist – to confirm that there was no physiological problem, the diagnosis was that he was having “functional constipation” that is to say, a reluctance to have a BM due to the memory of the trauma. This is, as I understand it, not simply a psychological issue as the body has it’s own version of memory.
The treatment for this was/ has been to be certain that to keep the stools themselves as soft and unchallenging as possible. We feed him foods which aid this and avoid foods which do not. Also, we’ve used, on-and-off, a gentle laxative called MIRALAX (1/2 capful in each of his 6 oz morning bottles). This has been a long process. We’ve gone through periods of weeks without Miralax and any incident of difficulty but they do recur, never with the initial severity, but they do.
His sister remains asymptomatic and the model of BM ease and perhaps without that example, our son’s “issue” is so diminished that we’d likely not even know it exists.
I am sorry that this is such a long post but my point is that my son is now 20 months old and although it required a lot of patience and some trial and error he really is doing quite well now.
well the pediatric gastroenterologist examined my 7 month old son and said that he has an extremely enlarged anus and rectum, when he eats the poo gets stuck and builds up in the enlarged area and gets hard and huge. Then when it starts to pass its so large it stretches and tears his rectum. (thats the screaming)
The Dr. said he was miss diagnosed with Colic when he was born and the meds and special formula he was put on have added to the problem not helped. So now with the rectum issue he is scared to gp as well.
We were told to put him on laxitive and get him to get all the old stuff out, (it has been in there so long it is toxic) aparently a baby his age should not have hard or smelly bowels.
After this week we are switching him to regular formula and no more meds. he has been on the laxative for two weeks now and is starting to have runny bowels. The Dr. said after a few months of this he should be ready to have normal bowels again and stop the laxative.
If the problem doesnt go away then we have to go back for more extensive tests.
THANK YOU ALL for you all for your comments and stories. It feels better to know I am not alone. It also surprises me that so many babies under a year have the same problem maybe the Dr.’s need to get to gether and find out why???
Thanks…
I posted in May re: my baby boy. The Doctor started him on Mineral Oil in the beginning of July. I couldn’t believe how much mineral oil he has him taking! We are slowly trying to take him off it. The doctor’s thinking is that my baby is withholding BM’s because he is afraid it will hurt….thus making himself constipated. The mineral oil has made my baby VERY “loose”. But, he has not been able to hold back the BM and he has not cried with bowel movements since.
Something that I am concerned about is that as we are slowly taking him off the mineral oil, his stools are becoming more formed. If I go less then 1 tablespoon daily, he will start screaming again with every bowel movement.
I would have thought that 3 months would be a long enough break for him to “forget” about associating pain with BM’s. I don’t know if we are on the right track and just need to continue with what we are doing….or if something else is going on and we are just prolonging it.
Good luck to each of you!
My daughter is 9 months and also SCREAMS with every bowel moviment. I am glad I am not alone. I am really concern about her condition. Her stool is hard, but even soft she screams for 10 minutes until it is complete off. I don’t know what to do. The pediatrician told us her condition is normal. I am giving lots of water and prunes, but it doesn’t get better.
It is interesting lots of babies at the same age have the same condition, hein? But as a mother I am very frustrated. Seeking for other pediatrician. Looking forward hear from all of you and hoping always for a positive outcome.
Well after two weeks of Emergency room visits and doctors offices (for lack of bowel movements), the hospital called a Pediatric gastroenterologist because apparently there is no reason my son should not be pooing.
The P-GI thinks that there is something wrong and is doing an extensive work up to find the problem. We have tried prunes, kyro syrup, water, sapositories, enemas and manual pulling and my poor baby has been tortured.
So I am greatful that someone finally listened and didnt just think that I was an over concerned new mother. Thank you for your input and your comments. I will post what the doctor said after the appointment.
I’m so glad to hear that you are finally getting help! It takes the right doctor to actually listen, doesn’t it!?
But a friend of mine who went to med. school some time ago told me that they were taught specifically that if anyone knows if something is wrong with the baby, it is the mother…
Let us know how things proceed.
Best of luck to you and your baby!
My 6 week old baby also screams with every bowel movement and he has never been constipated. His stool is loose. My doctor told me it might be a tear – a fisure (sp?). We are going to the hospital to get it checked out next week.
My 7 month old son has the same bowel issue. I have been to the ped. 3 times for this and she put him on the Karo syrup and hot baths, then she told me to try Vaseline and a thermometer and stimulate his tush. We have tried everything even changing diet and trying only formula. Nothing is working! The doctor just says he is constipated, I KNOW he is in pain and that things are not right he has always cried when he has a bowel movement but the last month it has turned to screaming in pain, red face, doubling over. I can’t stand it any more and no one listens. So I am calling a specialist in the morning. I found this site tonight and am so glad I am not alone.
If anyone has advice or a comment please respond…
Ive been to 3 ped gi doctors and they all say that i should give juice or MOM and now the new one is say to try caro syrup. If that doesn’t work then a biopsy which i dont want to do. He mentioned Hirshsprungs but the other docs said probably not. I am so upset about this because she strains and turns bright red and cries. Her stools are like rocks and sometimes it just gets stuck adn she can’t get it out all the way. I thought maybe the opening was too small but no one seems to want to chek that. Please help
My son is now 17 months old. At one year, his too sudden transition from formula to whole milk resulted in constipation and then some very hard stools. This was agonizing for him. We reintroduced formula and began a much more gradual and nuanced transition to whole milk. This didn’t seem to make much of a difference. Subsequently, our pediatrician recommended a stool softener – Miralax – which he has been taking for the better part of 5 months. His stools are all soft but each bowel movement – one or two daily – is preceded by some moaning and agitation and then the actual passing results in crying. He is suffering. It’s time for a pediatric gastroenterologist. I will report back to this site on our findings hoping that they might be of some use to the others with this issue. Given the possibilities, a confirmation that this is our son STILL associating his b.m. with the trauma of several months ago would be something of a relief. However, i am not really buying it.
Finally! I found someone who knows what me and my baby are going through! When my baby boy turned 6 months old he started SCREAMING with every bowel movement. He was diagnosed with a rectal fissure which healed completely in one week. The screaming continued though. He is now 10 months old. He has about 3 bowel movements per day(he will stop going because of the pain). I have been to two ped. docs and they say that he is afraid of pain and associates it with the recal fissure pain and will react to fear of it hurting. There is no question in my mind that he is in agony. It is NOT an issue of constipation, he does not have problems with that. I live in a very small town and do not have access to specialists. I do not know if I should take the MD’s advice and “forget about it, he’s fine” or go somewhere where there is a specialist. I would go wherever I needed to to get him help. Those who posted earlier and had testing done, what did you find out and do you have any advice for me?
I totally understand your concerns! We have the exact same issue. Extreme pain every time my 1-yr old has a bowel movement no matter if it is loose or slightly formed. Our doctor seems to dismiss it as a conditioned response to probably constipation. However, you know when your baby is in sheer pain and when she is just straining or scared to go – she is in pain. She goes at least twice a day as well. Most diapers are loose because we were put on Miralax b/c the constipation diagnosis is the only answer I can get.
We finally went to see a Pediatric GI doctor this past week. We are waiting on test results for Celiac Disease or possibly a build up on bad bacteria (from being on several antibiotics for ear infections months back).
I am not sure either fits us perfectly, but I am just happy to have someone listen to us and truct my mother instict that this “is not right”!
Have you had any food sensitivies or allergic reactions?
In two months Jonah(then 9 mth old) is to go to a specialist. It is not common constipation. We have tried everything from changing formula, soy(which he seems to be allergic to) Hoping to find something soon. Thanks for trying. Hope to tell you something soon.
Hi!
I’m happy to hear that your son will get access to a specialist, although I can imagine that two months must feel like a million years for you! I really, really wish you good luck!
Please let us all know about his progress!
Dear mom, this is something common with my son.
When he was around 7 months I started him solids, hard stool is becoz of some particular
food they eat, at times it may be becoz of insufficient water, so give him lots of water to drink, give him some fruit juices, avoid giving bananas, it might cause constipation for some kids, give little bit of prune juice diluted with water it will help to reduce constipation.
I use to give little bit of diluted prune juice for my baby after his lunch, one more thing is if the quantity of food is insufficient the baby will not pooph,
pls give sufficient liquids and juice to ur baby.. Good Luck
My daughter is 13 months and have been crying when she poops since she was 1 month. They changed her to Elecare formula because she was allergic to my breast milk. I’ve been telling doctors her PCP, GI, any doctor that she goes to about it and they all said it’s ok and that it’s normal. (Which is not) so this past Saturday I put my daughter into the tub and she started screaming because she was having a bowel movement so I felt and looked at her butt and reddish pinkish skin was out of her butt so my first thought was hemorrhoids so I called the doctor today and we met. So they want to be concern and say that it was a rectal prolapse from pushing so hard. Then they ordered an X-ray of her stomach. And they put her on miralax (to help the painful pooping) but all of this could have been resolved if they would’ve listened and ran test when I first said something about her painful bowl movements.
im so glad im not alone with this problem! for months now my 5 month old daughter has been straining so hard and loud she ends up coughing and im afraid the straining will cause her some damage. At first she was straining but not constipated but recently her stools have become firm and only passing small amounts. iv tired lactulose which isn’t working and her straining is getting worse. ( literally every few minutes ALL day) I have been to the doctors 6 times with this and she doesn’t believe me and questioning my coping!!
I give my 3 yr old two teaspoons of flax seed oil organic a day and it’s helped her hopefully it will help anyone else out there