BF baby poop/thrush questions

[JTsMom]

I wonder if I'm the first to use poop in a subject line... 3 1/2 weeks as a mom, and I've lost all modesty. :)

About a week and a half ago, my son's poop became REALLY foul smelling. Everything I've ever read said that bf babies don't have smelly poop- is that true? It didn't really have a smell during the first week or 2, so it seemed odd to me. Also, he started having a ton of dirty diapers a day. I didn't keep track, but I'm guesstimating as many as 15, no exaggeration. About the same time, I noticed a thick white coating on his tongue that didn't go away, so I kind of figured maybe he had thrush.

Last Thursday (6 days ago), he had a pediatrician appointment. She agreed that it looked like a mild case of thrush, and prescribed Diflucan for one week. She attributed the poop issues to the thrush, but I haven't read that that is a symptom- has anyone heard of that?

Also, I called my midwife to see if she wanted to give me a prescription as well, but she said since I have no symptoms not to worry about it. Again, this seems to be the opposite of what I've read.

Now, 6 days later, nothing seems to have changed with Jason, and I'm starting to get some soreness in my breasts. I guess I'm just looking for some words of wisdom from the pros here. Am I getting bad medical advice all around, or do you think we're on the right track? I'm planning on calling the pedi to check in with her shortly, but I thought I'd get some feedback first.

Thanks for any input.

[stillplayswithbarbies]

yep. If baby is being treated for thrush you need to be too.

I don't know about the smelly poop, someone else will probably post who has been through that.

And no, you are not the first to use poop in a subject line. :) Get used to it, you'll be talking about poop for about 3 years. :)

[SashaBear]

From what I understand about thrush you both need to be treated to prevent the infection from spreading back and forth between you. You need it more of prevention.

Have you tried to scratch the white coating away? My DS had a white tongue for awhile and it was just milk coating it. If its thrush the spot should bleed when scratched.

HTH

Also try contacting your LLL leader.

[SpaceGal]

Since you are breastfeeding as far as I know you need to be treated for it too. I did read in my all natural baby book, you can try washing your breasts with a vinegar/water solution to alleviate the irritation. In the meantime, I would ask your doctor for a thrush medication for you.

My DS had thrush and it's a big difference from the milk coating on his tongue. He had thrush for about 2 months. And only now is his tongue is finally not white...a milk tongue will look more like a sheer opaque coating. So if it's thick pastey looking that's definitely thrush. Anyways, my son was on Nystatin for a long time I had to get a refill. In the last month, of his thrush it was minimal and just on his tongue so I used a cotton swab of nystatin to treat it. It finally finally went away. From what my other mom friends tell me the thrush is hard to get rid of and it can make them irritable...my DS was initially but then he learned to live with it. I hear it can sting like a kanka sore.

As far as smelly diaper poop...I think it's probably related. Thrush will leave the baby's body through poop and pee so you will have to be careful of baby getting a yeast/diaper rash. And sinice thrush is a yeast infection, and when women get yeast infections...I hear those are a bit on the stinky side too...so maybe it's similar. Not sure tho since I have not had one of those before. Anyways, try not to let baby sit in the poopy diapers that much and if you think baby might be in it a bit longer...just use a ton of diaper rash cream as a barrier. My DS is formula fed so his poopies always stank but he didn't get a diaper rash I was very quick to clean him up cuz I didn't want him irritable from the diaper rash on top of the thrush.

Hope that helps.

[JTsMom]

I'm losing it here ladies. I really am not having a lot of confidence in my pedi right now. I brought DS in to see her. Now she thinks maybe it isn't thrush since the medication doesn't seem to be doing anything. She took him off that, and is basically taking a "wait and see" approach. She did do a swab, but she said they take a long time to come back.

I'm really concerned, b/c I don't see how that much poop can possibly be normal! She also really shook my confidence in bf. In one breath she was saying maybe he isn't getting enough to eat and that's why he is feeding so often (b/c some times they poop too much when they are hungry?!) in the next she was saying maybe he's eating too often, and that's why he's pooping so much. WTH?!


I didn't mention this before b/c the post was already so long, but he was born with a serious heart defect. He has to have open heart surgery in a few months to correct it, and it is extremely important that he gain enough weight. He ended up seeing 2 doctors today, his cardiologist and the pedi. At the cardiologist, they weighed him naked at 8 pounds 9 ounces. The ped weighed him at 8 pounds, 15 ounces with clothes on. Last week she weighed him at 8 12, so even if her scale is accurate, he only gained 3 ounces over a week. AGGGGH!
Until today, I felt like bf was going really well, so I really wonder if maybe b/c of the frequent poop, the milk just isn't staying in his system long enough.

I just feel like I haven't gotten any reliable info, and I'm really worried at this point. I called a LC just now and left a message, so hopefully that will help.

[lisams]

What color is the poop?

The reason I ask is, DD had very stinky poops and hers were a greenish color (not the mustard color BF poops are supposed to be). Also hers was kind of slimey (which again isn't like how everyone describes BF poops). It turns out she was sensitive to the dairy protiens in my breastmilk from the dairy I was consuming. After going off of most dairy products, her poops started smelling sweet, mustard color and cottage cheese texture. Just an idea.

Good luck with everything. I really hope the LC can help you out, I think that was a great decision to call her!

Lisa

[lynettefrancois]

The medication won't do a darn thing if you aren't BOTH being treated at the same time! Maybe I misread, but if you weren't both treated and now the ped is stopping meds, I'd switch peds (I had to switch twice before I found a ped that would treat both of us). As far as the poops, it doesn't sound thrush related to me, since it only gave our DD a yeast diaper rash (as far as poop related symptoms go). I've read tons about thrush and never heard of stinky poops.
Is baby exclusively breastfed? If not, it could be constipation (looks like diarrhea and STINKS because loose stools find they're way around an impacted stool). If exclusively breastfed, maybe it just changed to a "different" odor than you are used to. Did the Ped see/smell an actual poop?
Here's a link I found on google about what's in the "normal" range for poops:
http://www.drpaul.com/newborn/diapsign.html
Have you seen a Lactation Consultant? or two? They are generally a lot more knowledgable than peds about breastfeeding related issues, including what's normal, supply issues etc!

[stcelia]

OK You need a new pediatrician. You definitely don't wan anyone to undermine your breastfeeding confidence. Especially since your son has the heart thing going on. He needs your antibodies and all the other good stuff that ONLY you can give him.

What color are the poops? We had a lot of stinky green poop, and it turned out to be that DS was getting too much foremilk. I tend toward the overproduction side of things, and he wasn't getting the good fatty hindmilk. It upset his tummy, the midwife told me it was like eating only salads and never getting the steak and potatoes. So take that into consideration.

Do you think he could have a virus or some other thing causing diarrhea? DS had diarrhea and it was Extra Green and Extra Stinky. It lasted a few days. Just look for signs of dehydration (no tears, sunken soft spot, dry inside of mouth) and as long as you don't see them dont sweat it.

As far as the weight thing goes, remember that some weeks are better than others. Especially if he's pooping a lot this might not be his big week. Next week he might surprise you with a big gain.

I say ask you friends for recommendations, or even ask the cardiologist if you like him/her and trust their judgement. Whatever the case, if you don't have confidence in your ped. then you need a new one.

Good luck,
Jenn

[Elilly]

Ditto all of the above. As for the weight gain, hopefully your ped shared w/ you that sometimes when when there is a defect, esp a cardiac one, the body has to work so hard to keep everything status quo that they don't gain weight as fast. 3 ounces in a week still sounds like he is doing quite well to me.
Boil your pacifiers, change breast pads after every nursing session, put lotrimin on your breasts after nursing and wipe them with a damp tissue before nursing, and continue DS's diflucan.
As for the green pooping, I'd try to go dairy and maybe even soy free. The smell coupled with the frequency raises my suspicion for a dairy and/or soy sensitivity. The frequency is an issue w/ food sensitivities as well. At one point, my DS was eating every 45 minutes at night. My DS has food allergy issues and we battled thrush along with the poop issues so it sounds all too familiar to me.
I'd try a probiotic as well. Kirkman's pro bio gold is dairy and soy free and will help get rid of the yeast and help his immature GI tract as well.
Best of luck to you. I know how difficult it can be to figure it all out and retain your sanity all while sleep deprived.

[nfowife]

*Sorry to hijack*
Lisa, how long did it take after going dairy free to see a change in your daughter's poops? I'm on day 3 of dairy free and haven't seen a change yet, she is still having greenish mucousy poop.