Diarrhea for a Week....

When my older son was 3 months old, he had diarrhea for 3 weeks straight. He was well-hydrated, happy, playing, etc. I took him to the doctor and they never did determine the cause even after numerous visits. After the diarrhea stopped, he got his two bottom teeth at once. It's definitely worth a visit to the doctors, just to rule everything out. Good luck!

How old is your daughter? When my middle child was 2 she had diarrhea for a long time. I remember because I was potty training her. She also was playing fine. I brought her to the doctor and he said it was toddler's diarrhea. An unexplained diarrhea that kids get as toddlers that can be very annoying and even last for months. We just had to watch that she didn't become dehydrated. It can't hurt to have a doctor check it out because there could be something more going on there. Especially if she's out of the toddler stage.

Hi M.,

Not sure if this helps, but my now 2 year old son, had bouts of Diarrhea when he was 19- 20 months, around the same time his brother was born; coincidence? not sure. He seemed fine too... played, ate, drank etc... we adjusted his diet, helped a little- We did bring him to the doctor after a week, he checked him and he seemed fine, he said it was probably just his digestive system changing. After several more weeks, it continued, so we checked back with the DR. but I was concerned, so we brought him to a specialist- gastroenterologist, also went to an allergist, all was unfounded and it did eventually clear up after 2 months- it was off and on diarrhea, and it was just when he normally would have BM's. All said, I would check with your doctor, just in case it's something else. Hope this helps...

I don't think you need to rush in, but I would make a phone call.

Meantime, increase her fluids (water, popsicles), decrease her fruit, and go for the "BRAT" diet of bananas, rice, applesauce & toast. The "T" can also stand for turkey (or chicken) if you need to add protein. You can do some PB if she's okay with that, but decrease or eliminate dairy, apple juice, etc. She may be low on electrolytes so you can add Pedialyte as a source of liquid.

As soon as the diarrhea is gone, start adding back regular foods slowly. BRAT will constipate her if you stay with it too long, but it's great in the short run and it's what our pediatrician recommended.

My 20 month old is going through the same thing- 8 days today with lots of liquid diarhea despite the BRAT diet and appropriate liquids. She also vomited a few times. I am calling the doc tomorrow as she is getting quite thin and neither her twin brother or older brother has it. Good luck

I suggest better safe than sorry. At 4 months old my daughter went through this, I thought it was probably normal but brought her to her Pedi just in case and it turned out she has a mild case of Salmonella, which floored me especially because she had no vomiting or fever. We never did figure out how she got it, but if I hadn't taken her in it could have been a terrible thing.

Hi M.,

I agree with the below two responses.

A friend of mine did the same due to some harsh medication she was on. She lost a lot of electrolytes. She realized that having diarrhea is comparable to vomitting. If she'd been vomitting for a week she would have thought to call her doctor earlier.

Diarrhea and vomitting are your bodies way of purging something it doesn't like out of the body. It means something is not ok.

Good luck,
: ) Maureen

I would call and talk to either the nurse or doctor and see what they say. It could be something she's eating isn't agreeing with her, but a week is a long time to have diarrhea. She could get dehydrated, even if she's drinking enough. Good luck!

M.,

A week is a long time. I would call and what they say to do. Something could be going on, play it safe.

D.

HI!
Your daughter may have a food intolerance or allergy, ie milk, wheat, oranges, tomatoes, whatever. Might be good to discuss this with a doctor. She may be feeling fine, but if she continues to have diarrhea, she will not be absorbing her nutrients, and that is never good.A parasite or worm might also be considered.
Good Luck, N.
.

Is she drinking a lot of juice or eating a lot of fruits and veggies (grapes, etc.)? Our son tended toward constipation and grapes and juice were the great regulator for him. But if your daughter has a lot of those, you might want to cut down on them.

Also, is she getting new teeth? Our son always had looser stools when new teeth were coming in. And they were more caustic than usual, creating more diaper rash than usual.

Bananas or cheese were the great equalizers in the other direction--firming up the stools.

I would make a call to the doctor but it sounds like it is probably nothing serious. Our doctor's office takes calls to triage whether or not it's worth coming. If your pediatric office does the same thing, it's certainly worth a call. (Determine if it is literally diarrhea or loose stools. They will want to know that.)

Good luck!