Anyone have a toddler (4yo) complain here and there about stomach aches? My dd is complained about 4-5 times a week but only once a day. I am calling the doctor tomorrow to make an appointment but just wondering if any other mamas experienced this and what was the end result.
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My daughter who is 8 used to do this and she is now on a feeding tube. But she has a rare disease the effects her esophagus and her stomach and intestines.
Yes mine is now 7 and still sometimes like that. Since at times they are such picky eaters my little one will get backed up and needs some grape juice for help. Still best to see your pediatrician just to ensure there are no other underlying issues.
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Possibly a dietary issue, maybe an allergy or sensitivity to a food? I experienced this myself when I was a child, turned out I was lactose intolerant.
MILK! My daughter has always had tummy issues, she does not test as being allergic to milk but we know on days she has too much milk she gets the upset tummy and does not sleep well. She is a teenager now and manages it her self, if she has a big Starbucks drink then she won’t have any other dairy all day- if she does she feels unwell. We drink A2 now at home and that has helped, your kid may have a different issue entirely but that was our deal, a food sensitivity that goes all the way back to a colicky baby.
Could be anxiety…
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My 4 yo always tells us his tummy hurts when he is hungry
At that age tummy ache could mean a pain anywhere, or anxiety. It shows as a tummy ache.
My 7 yr old did. It was a LOT of different things. He was lactose intolerant, ulcers and gastroenteritis
Is the child taking any vitamins? When my kids took them they all said that they had sore tummies. I changed the vitamin to another brand and they were fine
Another vote for anxiety, my daughter would go to the nurse a few times a week in kindergarten and 1st grade with a stomach ache, they’d get me on the phone at work and all she wanted was to talk to me(try to get picked up more like it 
) but she stopped after a while
Kids dont have a reference for “butterflies in stomach” so often describe anxiety or fear type emotions as pains in the tummy. Not to be excused of course as it may be anither medical condition. Doctors are usually good working it out
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My kids don’t do this but I remember when I was little I used to wake up every morning with a stomach so bad it was terrible even now some days as an adult I still do I went to a doctor as a child it turned out I had excessive stomach acid and it was what was causing the stomach problems I basically lived on pepto when I was a child
My daughter did. She has to take prilosec every day and its helped sooo much
Anxiety mines stared complaining about stomach ache once me and my ex slip up he was 3 at the time
My granddaughter does the same thing. We just found out she is allergic to dairy. Every time she eats anything with dairy her stomach hurts
My daughter is 6 now but it started around 3yo. Turns out she has some pretty fierce anxiety, so we’ve been working on coping mechanisms the last few yrs 
Doctor is definitely a good idea. We went thru a tough time when my son was 8 and I used to think he was faking sore stomach to get out of school as it would come on at school gates. We then found out thru a counselor that anxiety can cause symptoms like that. But honestly could be absolutely anything. I hope you get answers quickly
I was this kid, for me it was and still is anxiety. Bad stomach aches.
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In children their age its a sign of anxiety, my son was diagnosed with sever anxiety at the age of 4, everyday he saw his bio dad or heard someone talk about him he got a tummy ache it was the same way with his now wife. We talked to the doctor and she ruled it was his way of showing us his anxiety. 
It could be anxiety. That’s what is was with my daughter and we did every test imaginable and all came back clear
My son complained a couple times a week for awhile. X-ray showed he was constipated and he was prescribed stool softener for a few days been in the clear ever since.
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One of my kids deals with constipation and it took a long time to figure it out.
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Awww it could def be anxiety
My boys both did this. Its anxiety. They don’t know how else to describe it at a young age. But still a good idea to get it checked to rule out anything else.
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If Dr rules out everything physical ask for a referral to a phycologist. It very well can be anxiety.
If you talk to your doc like I did as my daughter did it all the time, children of a young age do not understand being poorly and don’t know how to tell you what is wrong so say they have tummy ache for everything, still worth getting it checked as most of us on here are not medically certified
My daughter did. It was due to stress and Anxiety.
I baby sat a child and he always had a tummy ache. We didnt take him seriously and brusjed it off. It was always homework time or at times he was sposta be doing things so we always thought he was trying to get out of doing things. He was 6 or 7 i think. It ended up beimg stomach cancer. We should have taken it seriously and im still upset now Hes 13. He turned out ok but no adult beleived him. Take her to the dr. Just as you planned. Bc you never know. He was diagnosed not because of a stomach ache but a giant bruise on his hipish back area that no one knew where it came from.
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Yes my daughter does and she has anxiety
With my youngest its anxiety or she ate too much and has contipation. Just depends on what we are doing.
My daughter was checked for kidney infection constipation and ended up bein anxiety 
My daughter did this for years and it and I tried everything. I eventually found that switching from 2% milk to whole milk stopped it.
Start Journelling your childs week. Food, bowel movements and any activities. See if there is a pattern. Perhaps its food related, maybe constipation, or even anxiety. To find the cause you’ll have to find the trigger. The easiest way to do this is to start documenting before seeing a doctor. Then you can say stomach aches came on these days, and find what’s common. (Coming from a girl who has suffered from a multitude of stomach aches my entire life)
My kids 20 and has always always complained of belly aches since the time she could talk
We still don’t have an answer. It’s been 8 months. Keep being told it’s anxiety. Finally the GI listened and did a scope both ways. My daughter is inflamed from her stomach down. But we still don’t know the cause since the biopsy came back normal. It’s been so rough for her. She eats she is in pain. She has a hard time pooping. But laxatives don’t work for her. Just been a nightmare.
I still remember I had an upset stomach every school day from kindergarten till grade 9. I was horrendously bullied. Come to fond out it was anxiety…I also suffer from ibs sooo…
This is what I complained of, around that age, and it was just the start of my anxiety disorder. It’s the most common complain of children with anxiety!
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It could be lactose intolerance. I was about 4 when I began exhibiting symptoms and it’s incredibly painful!
Look up abdominal migraines.
My daughter is now 7 and she use to have horrible stomach aches to the point where she would sometimes throw up. Found out her digestive system was irregular and she was badly constipated. So she gets miralax every other day to help her stay regulated.
Many ailments can manifest as a stomach ache in small children. Most often, the real culprit is anxiety. They just don’t know how to communicate the mental aspect of it, only the stomach ache.
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Could be food allergies or sensitivity…at least that’s what it wound up being for my daughter.
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Cut out gluten and dairy!
Might be allergic to milk
Mine did. It was anxiety and they didnt know how else to say they weren’t feeling good.
My 11 year old started complaining of stomach and waist pains. I thought it was his way of trying to get out of going to school. He had been bullied the year before but, we got it handled. After months of him complaining on and off and his doctor trying everything he could think of, he sent us to a gastro specialist. They found out his gall bladder had “died”. It just stopped working. No reason why, it just did. So, he had surgery to have it removed and have had no issues since.
My oldest did few years back was nerves from bulling so nervous he would bound himself up get full of poop made stomach ache treatment therapy and anxiety meds no issues since knock on wood
My youngest got sick for years. Grown he found out it was mustard making him sick…
Anxiety probably. All my kids have it to some degree…I have it as well and when I realized it for myself I was able to see it in my children. My youngest is 8 now but would complain every weekday morning in kindergarten 1st grade. What I do now for myself and all my kids is wake them up atleast 15min before we have to start getting ready in order to get our minds focused and ready for the day.
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Yes. My son at 4 always complained of a stomach ache constantly. Took him to the dr they couldnt find anything wrong. I think it was just all the change going on at that time
I expired it myself. The cause was I have a gluten intolerance
Could be food allergies or even Anxiety.
My 6yr old is going through the same but when we cut milk out she seems okay
Depending on the time of day it could be sleepiness! Belly aches and headaches are a sign of tiredness in little ones.
You should go get it check, in case it might be her appendix
Yes my boy has had unexplained stomach pains since he was 2 ish until now he’s 5. It got quite bad in the midsts of the years and numerous doctors appointments but thankfully it seems to be few and far between them now. I hope it’s just a growing pain that will pass in time. 
My daughter (4.5) stomach only hurts when she doesn’t like what’s on her plate for dinner. It’s magically better a minute or two later when she wants “desert”
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My daughter did for a while. Around the time her dad and I were divorcing. She ended up needing an anti acid. Her anxiety would increase her acidity levels in her stomach causing nausea basically.
ETA- it could be a number of things though. Strep throat, constipation, UTIs can all cause stomach pains.
I had a lot of stomach aches as a child and it was anxiety from my parents divorce and having to switch houses every week.
Anxiety possibly. That can be a way it presents in children.
When my kid (he is 5) complains about his stomach hurting it’s usually because he needs to poop. I always tell him when he says it hurts to go sit on the potty and see if that helps and usually he poops a ton and does feel better. Maybe that will help? The only time I think of something serious is if he isn’t acting his usual self and complaining of something hurting.
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If it’s especially in the morning id say anxiety I had it bad growing up still have it as an adult just not as bad before school everyday I remember it was so bad id puke and felt physically sick eventually got panic attacks at 15-16 yrs old always felt like I was dying also caused me to have acid reflux I couldn’t do school or work because of it and it happend almost every day only maybe had one “good day” of the week
I actually just talked to my Dr about this with my 5 year old. He would get random pains that lasted anywhere from 2 minutes to 45 minutes. Chalked it up to gas since it normally wouldn’t last terribly long. But apparently kids can get abdominal migraines. She said in kids its normally just the intense stomach pain… normally doesn’t last more then an hr or so and it completely back to normal once it breaks. Same triggers for adult head migraines. Stress, lack of sleep, skipping meals, food triggers. Definitely something to talk to the dr about.
Kids can’t understand anxiety and internal bad feelings it’s all registered as a TUMMY ACHE. Think back to when the tummy troubles started and see if there is a correlation like a change in routine, different day care? Different people they interact with? Is there certain people or situations that come up when they complain the most of a tummy ache? I have learned to ALWAYS trust your kids gut instincts about people. I am not saying your kid is in danger but its something to think about
Maybe he has a nervous stomach? I have 2 cousins that ALWAYS had tummy aches when they were little and come to find out it was nerves. But I always tell my daughter to try and poop.
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I had the same problem with my 4 yo.Went to the dr.He couln’t find anything wrong.Suggested that it maybe anxiety.But turned out he just needed a good poop!He wasn’t constipated but there was a lot of poop.
My oldest use to and still gets anxiety and it centers in her stomach so frequent stomach problems. Just a thought. After Reading the other comments It happens a lot.
Yes. They did X-ray and she was bound up. Try plant based softeners for a few days. And don’t do anyone’s home remedy suggestions please!! XO
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This has been my son the last few weeks… he tested positive for covid.
I read a few years back that little ones don’t get headaches in the same way as adults and the symptom is instead belly ache.
Had a grand daughter that was a very picky eater and getting her to eat was very difficult. She always complained of a stomach ache. We finally discovered it was because she was hungry and it was hunger pains.
Yes my daughter was doing this doctor at first said uti, but when it came back negative said maybe acid reflex she has an appointment with a gastorologist
If gets too bad you can try an enema for relief.
My oldest was always having stomach aches and we finally realized he was lactose intolerant.
It could be the appendix, happened to me when I was 12 and a little girl I know 6
Might be something they’re eating maybe they’re lactose intolerant
My 10yrs has them due to his anxiety.
Anxiety. My daughter did it allll the time. She still occasionally does but it was definitely anxiety/stress
Some kids have acid reflux
I get stomach problems cause of anxiety so that might be going on for her too
Anxiety/nervousness I what my step daughters ended up being.
Mira lax is laxative they prescribed for my daughter, it’s over the counter and works wonders.
How are her bms? I read a study the other day that like 90% of kids don’t get enough fiber in their diets
Nervous anxious or serious
Could be constipation
My son did all the time. I limited his dairy and I noticed he complained a lot less.
I have a lactose intolerant child. It affects his digestive system.
Lactose intolerant??