Mr. T's belly

We stayed home today because Mr. T was sick, well not really sick-sick but super constipated. This is something he has struggled with his entire life and every once in awhile Peter and I fall down on monitoring it and he goes a week or so without going and then things get hard (no pun intended!). He doesn't feel good, the last three days he's been given Mirilax (in adult doses) and this morning I gave him a choice of an enema or pedialax chewables. He wisely picked the chewables after he heard what an enema. He asked what flavor they were and I told him watermelon. After he ate one he looked at me with the most betrayed look ever on his face and said "these aren't watermelon! These are TERRIBLE!" I know babe, I know.

We have had him to see a pediatric gastroenterologist twice and each time the answer is "keep him on a daily dose of mirilax until he grows out of it" and here is where we fall down. I HATE giving him medicine every day. I hate giving him an ADULT medicine that you aren't supposed to use for more than a 2 week period EVERY DAY. I hate that there are polimers (plastics) in the medicine which have been indicated to contribute to autism (I know he's too old for that but still....). So when he seems fine, I forget sometimes to give him his medicine juice because in my heart I don't want to give it to him. I know he needs it and I know that getting this constipated is horrible for him (think leaking poop, bulging belly, unhappy and sick kid...) - it's miserable. For all of us, but mostly for him. For the last 4 nights he has not slept well, he has not been eating and he has not been his usual chipper self at all.

Honestly, I don't know what to do. I'm not sure we are doing the right thing by keeping him on this medicine but it's hard for me to argue with a pediatric gastroenterologist and his pediatrician. We are way beyond all the normal and recommended constipation relief suggestions  - the eat fruit, drink water, drink juice blah blah blah - none of that has any effect.

So we ended up with today. Stuck at home, just the three of us, Mr. T running to the bathroom every 10 minutes, and Miss E whining because she was bored (me too lady but your boredom is no longer my problem....). It was a rough rough day for all of us. The laxative finally worked for Mr. T this afternoon and I'm hoping he'll be able to finally get some good sleep tonight. I'm wiped out. It doesn't seem like I should be from spending the day at the house but I am. And I feel a little demoralized. I hate that this happens to him and I hate what we have to do to treat it. All in all, I'm glad my little guy is feeling better and I'm ready to be done with today.