What to record—and what to leave out
Note bedtime and waking, meals and drinks accepted, bowel comfort, relevant medicines and changes in routine. Describe the child’s communication as accurately as possible: “pointed to stomach” is more useful than “gut inflammation”. A short note about the environment can matter as much as a food entry.
Avoid trying to count every movement, expression or mouthful. The diary should be sustainable and should not make the child feel watched throughout the day. If nothing unusual happened, record that too. A diary containing only difficult episodes can give an incomplete impression of the week.
A worked example of a neutral entry
Suppose a child becomes upset after lunch. The interpretation might be “dairy caused a meltdown”, but the observation could be: “Ate rice and curd at 1 pm. Fire alarm test at 1:20 pm. Cried and covered ears; settled in the quiet room after 15 minutes.” The second account preserves several possible explanations.
Another entry might say: “Woke three times overnight; hard stool in the morning; declined breakfast; said ‘tummy hurts’.” That gives the clinician a pattern to investigate without claiming that sleep, food or behaviour caused the others. Record a change recommended by a clinician along with its start date, but avoid making additional changes solely to create an experiment.
Swipe or scroll the table to read all columns.
| Less useful | More useful |
|---|---|
| Bad day | Needed a quiet break after assembly; joined art later |
| Reacted to gluten | Stomach pain reported after lunch; similar pain also occurred before breakfast |
| Medicine failed | Difficulty falling asleep on three nights; dose taken as prescribed; school trip this week |
When recording should give way to seeking help
Do not delay care to obtain a complete week of notes. Persistent vomiting, blood in stool, dehydration, severe pain, concerning weight loss or a child who is markedly unwell needs medical advice. New neurological symptoms or loss of skills should be reported promptly.
Likewise, do not explain a new rash, pain or worsening function as beneficial detoxification. If a symptom appears after a treatment change, tell the prescriber or clinician what changed and when. The diary is supporting information, not permission to continue a concerning intervention.
Review the pattern with a clear question
At the end, choose the question the diary helps you ask. For example: “Could constipation be contributing to mealtime distress?” or “Does the sleep pattern need assessment?” Ask which findings need investigation and which everyday adjustments are reasonable.
Keep completed sheets private. Share only what is relevant with school or other professionals, and include the child in that decision where appropriate. Stop the diary when it has answered its purpose; long-term surveillance is not automatically more useful than a short, well-described period. The website does not collect your written entries.