Constipation blues

Yesterday Josiah seemed a little off of his "A" game. I realized that his cries were in frustration and pain as he struggled to work out a small pebble of poo. We felt sorry for him, but thought that it would soon resolve. That is, until this afternoon when Jonathan woke me from my daytime slumber to say that he needed help. Josiah had been intermittently screaming and clinging to him in pain, obviously struggling with whatever was fighting with him to stay in or come out. I rolled over and told him to give him some diluted apple juice, but thirty minutes later he was back, desperate and showing me another hard pebble of poo, similar to the night before.

I tried to nurse Josiah, but it wasn't helping his cause. I finally sat up in bed and draped him in my lap with his legs relaxed on my torso. I opened up his diaper and used lotion to massage his belly in a clockwise fashion. I started singing to him, watching him relax under my fingers. I eventually moved the massage to his palms and feet. The smell of stool started to waft up sweetly, and so I checked our progress. We were getting somewhere. I continued to massage his belly until he fell asleep. When he fell asleep I realized that he had relaxed enough to have quite a large bowel movement, but Jonathan had left for a meeting and I was stuck under this finally peaceful child. I was torn, as I didn't want the poo sitting on his skin for so long. I gratefully remembered the diaper I tucked away in my nightstand. I reached for it and quietly opened it up. In one gentle motion I was able to remove the filled diaper and replace it with a fresh one for the rest of his nap. He didn't even stir. I read for a little bit before resolving to sleep a little more myself. When he woke up he was a new little guy, obviously grateful for a lighter belly and some carefree toots that could finally escape. I felt so victorious...then I gave him some raisins for a snack, as I read in my "go to" book that they are a natural laxative. Keep it moving, Buddy.