Does anyone's child take Miralax for their constipation? My 4 year old daughter has had constipation issues for a long time now. I have been giving her the full dosage of Miralax (actually the generic form - Polyethylene Glycol which I'm pretty sure is the same) every day. It helps some but it seems it is not working well lately. It recently took her about 5 days to have a bowel movement. This is getting to be quite an issue because she is avoiding eating because of her constipation. The doctor says it is perfectly safe to use this every day but from what I've been reading it seems she can become dependent on it. I'm at a loss of what to do. I try to make sure she eats fruits and vegetables and healthy foods but it is a struggle to get her to eat. Any suggestions? I don't like giving this to her every day.

There are products made from psyllium seeds, which can't be digested. One is metamucil, but there are others, which don't have sugar...I think Konsill or something like that. I found it at WalMart. They are a bit grainy, but they are very safe, and work well. If you can get it into her, it should do the trick nicely.

Thanks for the reply. I would rather give her Metamucil but the container says age 12 and up and she is 4.

I am an adult taking Miralax and it works great "IF" you drink plenty of water. Miralax works by bulking up the stools.

Be sure your daughter drinks plenty of water. Also, the full dose may be too much for her. Have you tried 1/2 dose and plenty of water during the day? The full dose may be contributing to constipation if there is not enough water consumed.

Be sure your daughter is not eating a lot of constipating foods.

The name alone indicates this med is a laxative, but, it is the same type med as Metamucil, Konsyl, etc. Supposedly it is not habit forming.

My meds for health problems contribute a lot to my constipation problem and Miralax has been a blessing for me.

I have been having this same issue with my 3 year old! She has the largest stool I have ever seen (especially for a 3 year old) I think what happened is that it was so big that she didn't want to go - because - well, it hurt. So I have been researching, researching - cuz I didn't want to put her on any type of stool softner - so I read that I should start giving her mineral oil - I give her about a tblspn every night - they say to give it to them at night - because it also washes some minerals out - anyway it really has started to work - she is starting to go everyday - we actually went for 2 weeks without a bowel movement (which I'm sure added to the size) Anyway, maybe it is worth a try for you - it seems to be working quite well for Erin. Good luck!

Misty, she probably does need more water. Water is the only thing she drinks but I don't think she drinks enough of it. Like the food, there's only so much I can get in her. I didn't know the full dose may contribute to the constipation. I'll try cutting it down and pushing more water. Thanks for the info.

jande, my daughter is also afraid to go because it hurts. She has a fissure so it hurts really bad. She doen't understand that the longer she waits the more it will hurt. I don't think she would take the mineral oil. Does it taste bad?

Actually it has no taste at all - I tried it- I just mix it in with her juice at bedtime and she has no problem drinking it at. It took about 3 days or so to see any results. I also have been giving her prune juice. All of her juice I mix half juice and half water. It is so hard with kids!!! I think now she is starting to realize that it won't hurt when she goes - so she isn't holding it, but I think the trick is to keep it so it doesn't hurt for awhile.

BTW - I wanted you to look at a link I found from Dr. Stoll - this is how I happened upon the mineral oil - It is very interesting reading.

h t t p : / / w w w . a s k w a l t s t o l l m d . c o m /cons.html

The problem with mineral oil is, it takes with it all the fat-soluble vitamins. Your child could end up being malnourished, if using it for an exptended persion of time.

My daughter is 8 and she has been using some sort of laxative for 4 years now (Milk of Magnesia, lactuloose, senna, dulcolax and now Miralax).
Miralax works the best. It does not cause dependency as it is a non stimulant laxative.
If soiling or constipation keeps happening it could be two things: either your child is impacted and needs a clean out, or the dosage is a bit too high. It takes a lot of trial and error to find the right dosage. Also, it takes about 2 weeks for a body to figure out if what it is getting is the right dosage.
Seeing that your child is "only" four I would be absolutely on top of this, before it leads to bigger problems like megacolon or megarectum.
Look up soiling, constipation or encopresis for more information.

Karen

When my daughter was 4 my husband and I realized that she was holding her bowels. A month went by before we realized here leg crossing. We initially thought is was dietary but it wasn't. She had such a fear of going, that she could painfully hold it for a week!

The dr had us trying Senakot for kids which is a natural laxative. Milk of Magnesia, and also mineral oil. Miralax was the only thing that worked. She was so backed up and she would eat considerably less. She was miserable w/o the Miralax. She was on for atleast a year, until she outgrew the fear (which she even had therapy for).

She is now 7 and is perfectly fine. She remembers those days!!

My daughter is 5 and has been on Miralax for 1 and 1/2 years under the direction of a pediatric gi. I originally called the pediatrician because she suddenly began having 7 or 8 accidents a day and I could tell by looking at her face that she was as surprised as I was. She had no control over it. I did not like the way my pediatrician brushed me off and I went to a specialist who would focus on this problem. It turns out that she was very backed up. This problem has been very trying. On the Miralax she does have fairly regular soft BMs but she also still has soiling (encopresis), usually later in the day. We have regular potty times usually after breakfast, after school and after dinner, although if she has already had a big poop that day I don't force her to sit long. Sometimes she blows up balloons, or on instruments, or bubbles to help her push, but I'm not convinced she really knows how to push or feels it when she needs to go. We do a lot of finetuning to her dosage and the timing of the Miralax. I am somewhat disheartened that this is taking so long to go away. I try adjusting her diet to avoid constipating foods and increase fiber. One birthday party indulge sets us back a week. I would say we are managing it "OK" but not great. It has become an issue that impacts her social life--little things like drop-off playdates or swim lessons. My doctor assures me that this will go away. It is important to handle it in a non-emotional way with her, but it eats at my insides.

Hi C's Mom,

Not that is going to help you much right now, but there will be days that you feel better about all of this.

My daughter has been suffering from this her whole life and she is now 8. Checking her body has become second nature to me, I am able to predict how she will do on any given day, but strangely enough I am not able to prevent anything from happening: it is not my problem, it is hers. Giving the problem to her has been the hardest things I had to do. Also, you need to learn to realize that the problem is the problem, not your daughter. That all said, I found myself yelling at my kid again today, because she had an accident in school and put her dirty undies in her backpack without a plastic bag (lovely smelly backpack!).

I found (and still find) that this problem eats away on your confidence as a mother. My reasoning goes something like "if I was a halfway decent mom, I would be able to solve this problem". It deosn't help that most people I meet have no way of understanding what she goes through every day (but if she needs to go, she could go, right??? No, wrong, she doesn't feel her poop, she doesn't smell her accidents etc etc...

Right now Anna and I are in a good place. After years and years of trial and error I have decided to finally follow my gut feeling. I halved her dosage of Miralax (the pediatriac gi said that soiling had something to do with impaction, I believed it was just too much Miralax) and I have become extrmely strict with bathroom routines. It helps, we have a lot less accidents. But anything throws us for a loop: birth day party, getting up later in the weekends, one forgotten sits, not enought too drink, or all of a sudden too much to drink...

The frustrations are sometimes overwhelming!
By the way, there is a specific message board just for this problem. I am not sure I am allowed to mention it hear but look under aboutencopresis.com.

Good luck C's mom!

karen

Thank you Karen! I totally understand the frustration that would lead to yelling at your daughter. Sometimes I think it is my fear of this problem going on forever that makes me snap at her sometimes, rather than the actual event. I also totally beat myself up constantly about how I must be screwing up what I fed her, or when I had her sit on the potty, etc. I do endless strategizing before events (like gymnastics class) to help her get through it without an issue.

I do find ziplocks to be the greatest invention ever. I have often had to spend an evening out with a dirty pair of underwear in a ziplock in my purse. (I always carry clean underwear in a ziplock with me just in case and then use the same bag if I need it.) You can also get those little blue bags that they sell to dispose diapers in because they have some kind of scent cover upper, but I haven't tried that yet. I bet your daughter just panicked and wanted to get it hidden as quickly as possible. Does she have a strategy for school, like carrying a bag with her when she goes to the bathroom just in case? She could have some cute plastic lined purse that serves a double purpose. Unfortunately, my daughter is still unable to really clean herself up afterwards properly. Luckily most of her problems occur later in the day when she is home.

C is starting kindergarten in the fall. I was thinking of speaking to the nurse about letting her use her bathroom if she has a problem and to see what extent they would help her if she had an issue. However I am concerned about them labeling her as "a problem". Does your daughter feel comfortable going to after school playdates and activities without you? These are the things that keep me up at night.

By the way, I also think that too much Miralax causes some of the accidents. I cut mine by 25% from what the doctor wanted and it did help the leakage that was occuring after she had already successfully pooped that day.

For a really long time I did not feel comfortable letting Anna go on playdates. For the longest time she also only did after school stuff if I could guarantee that there was an adult who knew how to handle the situation.
I feared summer camps (still do).

We have always openly talked to the school and so far - except for a very ugly scene with a schoon counselor once - everybody involved has always been very understanding and helpful. That said, Anna had a lousy Kindergarten year because her teacher figured she would be able to "fix" Anna and what didn't work she became rather unfriendly towards Anna...

We have also decided to not allow anybody to make Anna "a problem". Her current school suggested we explain to her class mates she has a medical condition, but we explained that Anna feels this is a very private thing, and also would maybe give her an excuse not to pay attention (why use the bathroom if all your classmates are ok with you pooping in your pants?

Over the years we have had various strategies, depending what would work at any given time. Sometimes she leaves the classroom to use the school nurses bathroom (up to ten times a day). This works for a couple of weeks and then it stops working. We go to the "the teacher will warn you discreetly when it is time to use the bathroom". When that isn't working anymore we introduce a watch with a timer. Etc etc

I think it is important for all people involved to know what to expect. Talk to the principal and the office staff, talk to the school nurse, talk to the teacher. Bring extra undies to school. Make printouts from articles you find online and bring those. Make sure everyone knows where she herself keeps clean clothes (in a special bag in het back pack). You may want to teach her how to clean herself, just in case she needs to...

I have also decided to tell playdate moms that Anna has a stomach problem and that that means she might have an accident. She is able to clean herself, so it has become less of a problem.
BUT I once had a mom tell me that she did not want my daughter in her house anymore because of three accidents during one playdate (Anna was 4 at the time). When I asked if her daughter could come and play with Anna in our house she bluntly said "no, I don't think my daughter needs to play with yours anymore..." Ouch!

Right now, Anna also goes to see a therpaist, who talks to Anna about friendships and school, and her body. It helpts. We did go see an OT for sensory issues (she never feels she is dirty, not only her underwear, but she also always has a dirty face...), but I felt it didn't help enough.

Hang in there, it will get better!

Karen

Just for the record, you are a thoughtful, considerate mother and your daughter is very lucky to have you on her side.

It is so refreshing to hear from someone who has been going through this and can understand. I too am scared of summer camps. Pretty much only my mother can babysit for us, which makes going out rare. My very best friend hesitated taking C to her house to watch her for a few hours while I had the stomach flu. (We have since talked about it and she has become much more supportive--but it was very upsetting at the time.) I live in fear of parents and teachers who could be mean to her on a playdate or in a school situation. (I would like to slap that mother who wouldn't let her daughter play with yours.) So far, luckily, the limited people I have shared this with have been kind.

I really liked what you said about teaching my daughter to be more self-sufficient. I think that would help her confidence in handling things. I will work on that with her over the summer before school starts. I also agree with you completely that it is "her tummy problem" and no one elses, and it is not her fault. Thank you for giving me that web-site too. Thank you!!!!!!!

Update.... I have been giving her about one quarter of the dosage and she is doing so much better! She's pretty regular now and doesn't hurt her. Thanks so much for the suggestion!

Karen if you are out there I wanted to tell you the C is doing much better. She has had her best 6 weeks since this all began over 1 and 1/2 years ago and I am encouraged for the first time. She's still on Miralax, but is pooping once a day and only soiling periodically (maybe a few bad days in a month).

A few little things I changed which may have helped (although maybe it was just about waiting it out and this stuff didn't matter.) I stopped mixing the miralax with milk and switched to juice or gatorade. My husband also stumbled upon the fact that if you make her laugh hard on the potty it helps her poop. We've taken to tickle games--e.g. if you rhyme my word I get to tickle you--which gives her control over starts and stops of tickling. It sounds totally goofy but it worked for her. It also lightened everyone up. Now she's starting to copy the tightening of her tummy sensation that she felt when tickled on her own sometimes without tickling her. She still doesn't feel when she needs to go or pushes the way I'd like, but she is definitely doing better.

C's Mom

Another good trick is to have your kid blow up a hard to blow up balloon.

Glad to hear C is doing better.
Anna has actually been accident free for almost two months now (minor minor incidents every once in a while). I am keeping my fingers crossed!

karen