Poo Diaries continued
Warning! There is no knitting in this post. If you don't want to hear about poo, this post is not for you. Just move along and come back tomorrow.
Still here? Okay.
I just had the day from hell.
Sophie has been up screaming in pain for the last three nights in a row, and a couple other nights in the last week or so. I haven't been talking about it constantly, but the poor kid has continued to be constipated for months and months now. I keep dragging her back to the doctor, and they keep taking my $20 copay, shrugging their shoulders and telling me that it'll work out. I am SO so angry at them and at myself for listening to them. I dragged her back in to the doctor this afternoon, and finally this time I scored an appointment with our beloved Nurse Pat. She listened to my story, checked all the regular culprits like ears, and then agreed to take a look at the bum in question.
Guess what? Sophie has an anal fissure. That's a little tear in her poop chute. Ouch! No wonder the kid cries and pulls her hair out every time she feels the urge. It took Pat all of two seconds to see this tear, then another ten seconds for her to show it to me. It was obvious. I started crying immediately and asked her why nobody had looked at her little bum during the five other visits we've had on this matter. Pat couldn't say. But it did spark my ire enough that I pushed the issue and got an abdominal x-ray for Sophie. Turns out not only is she completely, totally full of solid poo, but it's so backed up that she's got a gut full of gas on top of that. No wonder she's screaming in pain.
I walked out of the office with a prescription for some Lydocaine gel to numb her butt while I gave her an enema. We drove over to Target, and while we were waiting for the prescription I gave her some Tylenol to further dull the upcoming pain. Target, of course, didn't have baby enemas so we then had to go to Walgreen's and get a couple of those. By this time, both kids were completely done with sitting in waiting rooms and running errands, so let me tell you I didn't enjoy that last stop one bit.
Home again, pop in a Bob the Builder video for Julie, and Sophie and I spent half an hour in the nursery that I'd much rather forget. Things are somewhat improved, but I'm worried that we may need another enema before it's over. I'm typing this now, while dinner is simmering, so that after dinner once the kids are bathed and in bed I can sit my ass on the couch and zone out with the blankie till I pass out. I have a rocking headache.
Believe me, you are getting the condensed version here and you should be glad. Tomorrow has to be better. It just has to. I'm off to feed my family and get them out of my hair so I can decompress. Don't EVEN mess with me this time, I will bite back.
Still here? Okay.
I just had the day from hell.
Sophie has been up screaming in pain for the last three nights in a row, and a couple other nights in the last week or so. I haven't been talking about it constantly, but the poor kid has continued to be constipated for months and months now. I keep dragging her back to the doctor, and they keep taking my $20 copay, shrugging their shoulders and telling me that it'll work out. I am SO so angry at them and at myself for listening to them. I dragged her back in to the doctor this afternoon, and finally this time I scored an appointment with our beloved Nurse Pat. She listened to my story, checked all the regular culprits like ears, and then agreed to take a look at the bum in question.
Guess what? Sophie has an anal fissure. That's a little tear in her poop chute. Ouch! No wonder the kid cries and pulls her hair out every time she feels the urge. It took Pat all of two seconds to see this tear, then another ten seconds for her to show it to me. It was obvious. I started crying immediately and asked her why nobody had looked at her little bum during the five other visits we've had on this matter. Pat couldn't say. But it did spark my ire enough that I pushed the issue and got an abdominal x-ray for Sophie. Turns out not only is she completely, totally full of solid poo, but it's so backed up that she's got a gut full of gas on top of that. No wonder she's screaming in pain.
I walked out of the office with a prescription for some Lydocaine gel to numb her butt while I gave her an enema. We drove over to Target, and while we were waiting for the prescription I gave her some Tylenol to further dull the upcoming pain. Target, of course, didn't have baby enemas so we then had to go to Walgreen's and get a couple of those. By this time, both kids were completely done with sitting in waiting rooms and running errands, so let me tell you I didn't enjoy that last stop one bit.
Home again, pop in a Bob the Builder video for Julie, and Sophie and I spent half an hour in the nursery that I'd much rather forget. Things are somewhat improved, but I'm worried that we may need another enema before it's over. I'm typing this now, while dinner is simmering, so that after dinner once the kids are bathed and in bed I can sit my ass on the couch and zone out with the blankie till I pass out. I have a rocking headache.
Believe me, you are getting the condensed version here and you should be glad. Tomorrow has to be better. It just has to. I'm off to feed my family and get them out of my hair so I can decompress. Don't EVEN mess with me this time, I will bite back.
posted by Shelly Kang at 6:42 PM
21 Comments:
I am so sorry about poor little Sophie!! How awful for you two! I hope she starts to feel better, and Mama too. I hope to have a picture of my blankie up on my blog by Saturday. Baseball and Softball have started, so we are gone Tuesday and Thursday nights. Take care, Shelly!!
Poor Sophie!!! Poor You!!! Here's hoping the blankie and some chocolate make you feel better...you DO have chocolate in the house, don't you?
Ah what a saga! Poor both of you! She's got to be feeling better tomorrow, I hope!
Man! My first instinct is to call you... but then I realize you need to zone out, hopefully with chocolate. Poor Sophie. Poor You. You followed your instincts though Shelly, and it was the right thing to do. I know you didn't *love* dragging yourself and your kids into the peds office so many times, but good for you that you kept on doing it until Sophie got the proper attention. Tomorrow has GOT to be better.
I don't have kids so I can't offer up anything but support and you have that :) Hope you and Sophie are both feeling better tomorrow!
Poor baby. Do they have to do a procedure,or does something like this heal on its own? I work with kids, but I do not think I have had anyone with this particular issue.
Oh, no. Poor thing (and poor Sophie, too)! I hope that she'll wake up tomorrow after a blissful night of sleep and be feeling much better! I'm glad you were finally able to get someone to really help you and figure out what was wrong. Healing vibes to Sophie!
Been there and done that, Shelley. Eventually I found Kirkland PLUMS (at Costco) and introduced the idea of my son eating one-a-day like candy. Luckily he loved 'em. Add his drinking lots of water throughout the day and away went the poo problem, big time. He's grown now, but he has a plum-a-day and still drinks only water (no pop or coffee or tea). Poo problems are awful...my heart goes out to you. And they are unhealthy for our kids, too. All that old food and germs sitting inside. Not good. Try the plums, kiddo. They are miraculous.
OOPSs forgot my name. Sorry. It's Sharon. Good luck!
Oh, poor Sophie, and most of all, poor you! (She'll forget about this in a few months; you'll remember this for the rest of your life.)
Hope this is the end of her pooping woes. For what it's worth, my kids get apple juice regularly -- it works like a mild form of prune juice.
Poor baby, poor Momma. I hope she is doing better. A POX on the "professionals" who saw Sophie the first five times and dismissed your concerns.
Oh, that toally sucks for you both. I am glad to you followed your instincts.
I'm delurking (just found your blog post-Harlot) to say I'm so sad to hear about Sophie! My son was born with a medical condition that causes constipation so I'm very familiar with these kinds of issues. In addition to the advice about plums, I'd add to stay away from rice, apples, and bananas for awhile, as these can make things worse. If you want some other tips, feel free to email me. In spite of it all, this is not a science, and there are a few other things you can try than just the enemas. Trust me, we've tried it all.
:( I hope she feels better soon...I also hope that if I ever have kids, I'm half as good of a mom (of course, I'm only seeing a peephole of your life) as you are!
I get anal fissures... ow! Hugs to you and Sophie... and to Julie too for having to sit in so many waiting rooms.
Oh, poor things (both of you!). Good for you for keeping with it until the problem was diagnosed though...you are the only one Sophie has to put a voice to her pain, and you did a great job.
The best pediatricians I've ever had always asked the mom what SHE thought was the problem. You are the one with her all the time, after all. I hope she feels better today!
Oh my dear. I'm so sorry that both you and Sophie had to live through that. I understand the anger at the doc's office.
Positive thoughts for a better tomorrow.
I am so sorry:( I can't imagine how painful it was for both of you! I hope Sophie will be feeling better over the next couple of days:)
You poor thing!!!
I remember how frustrating it was when something was wrong and you got NO WHERE with doctors.
I finally found a GREAT one who would LISTEN TO ME (imagine that!)
I hope if you go back to that clinic, you tear that damn doctor a new one..........let him get blocked up with poop.
Hope it's smooth poopin' for here on out for yawl!
You and Sophie both have my sympathies. Hooray for having a good nurse and for the persistence of a good mom. Amazing how much we have to fight to get the right treatment. And good for you for pushing for the x-ray. I hope her belly can clear out soon with minimal enemas. I've had to give my little girl a suppository during her current bout with constipation. While the poo part was gross, the part that was truly soul-sucking was having to do something so invasive to her. I know it was right and necessary, and she forgave me, but wow. I'm feeling for you.
Sharon here...yes, it's the big bag of Kirkland Dried Plums. Oh, soooo yummy. I have to watch it or I tend to eat too many in one day and then I have the opposite problem! This brand is so sweet, soft and yummy it really does feel like you're eating candy! Served plain or with other fruits and nuts...ah. Can you tell I love 'em? I keep a few in a sealed container, on the counter, and seal up the bag for later. No need to cook them or anything.
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