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DD11 really lacking in personal care

19 replies

Bunnylady54 · 29/12/2019 15:42

Some days it’s all I can do to get DD to brush her hair! Drives me crazy, which I’m pretty convinced is part of the reason she refuses to play ball. She suffers from chronic constipation so sometimes soils her clothing. Depending on her mood, we can get her to go & clean up but at times it’s a struggle. And I am sick of having to clean the loo. She even manages to get poo on the sink! I have to wash endless towels & bathmats as they get poo on them too. She generally doesn’t seem to care about her appearance, apart from make up. She often remarks that she hates herself, is ugly, fat etc. DH & I are having family therapy & trying so hard to boost her self esteem. My SIL said that the hairbrushing thing can be a phase but does anyone identify with any of this? I can’t help but compare DD to her friends ( secretly of course). Maybe we need to find out if she’s depressed?

OP posts:
Knowivedonewrong · 29/12/2019 16:14

Sounds like you need to visit your GP. Good Luck OP.

JoshLymanIsHotterThanSam · 29/12/2019 16:17

Does she have any additional needs? Often autistic children can be good at refusing personal care-you don’t mention wether or not she is.

If not, then I’d set her up a routine in which she cleans and brushes her teeth....I’m afraid she may dislike it for a while but tough.

LuluJakey1 · 29/12/2019 16:23

I have been a Child Protection officer in a secondary school and done lots of training. Lack of personal care could be symptomatic of lots of things - depression, despair, an ASD. However, the poo stuff is unusual and can also be a response to abuse. Is there any chance this is the case?

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CheeseOnToastMmm · 29/12/2019 16:26

Poo on the sink and the toilet left in a mess, why exactly are you cleaning it?! Dd1 is nearly 11 and not a chance would I be putting up with that, unless there's a massive drip feed about additional needs!

Bunnylady54 · 29/12/2019 16:44

Sorry if it’s a drip feed - DD hasn’t been formally assessed but it is likely she’s high functioning autistic. The family therapist has suggested that I gently show her how to clean up as she may be unsure, then after a few demonstrations she can do it herself. I have tried so many times to get her to do it & have left flushable wipes on top of the toilet tank.
I don’t really understand her wanting to apply make up etc but leaving her hair on a tangle

OP posts:
Bunnylady54 · 29/12/2019 16:45

In a tangle

OP posts:
Bunnylady54 · 29/12/2019 16:46

She’s not smearing poo as such - it can be very messy due to the constipation so it’s on her hands then gets onto the sink & towel

OP posts:
JoshLymanIsHotterThanSam · 29/12/2019 16:46

Well then there lies your answer. You need to do some finding out about WHY she finds it difficult. An ASD child doesn’t refuse to puss you off-it’ll be a sensory issue and you need to work with her.

JoshLymanIsHotterThanSam · 29/12/2019 16:47

Autocorrect....piss Blush

JustASmallTownCurl · 29/12/2019 16:51

Bless her. You absolutely need to get her assessed by professionals.

It's great you're exploring therapy but you need to go to your GP and get the ball rolling with appropriate other avenues.

No need for you to predict the outcome, just be open to getting a diagnosis and some support.

But I wouldn't wait too long as it's such a pivotal age when it comes to social interactions, making friends and learning boundaries etc.

I feel for you but think this should have been addressed sooner so please do try to do it ASAP Thanks

Saltdoughmuncher · 29/12/2019 16:51

I would see your GP as getting poo everywhere really shouldn’t be happening at that age. What does she do at school? It’s a big hygiene and safety issue if she has it on her hands and touches surfaces there. I don’t really understand how constipation can cause this sorry? Does she just need more help in wiping or is she having accidents and then getting messy when trying to clean herself up?

Mummyoflittledragon · 29/12/2019 16:52

I have an 11 yo. I think you should consider seeing a child psychologist privately if you can afford this. Your dd seems to have a number of issues.

Is your dd embarrassed about smelling or the poo getting everywhere, people seeing it? If she does this at home, she could do it at school or at someone’s house. It could be game over for her if she did, she may be forever known by some horrible names.

My dds friend has had both wee and poo accidents at my house but isn’t embarrassed, which I also find strange. She also didn’t clean herself when they happened. I did say to shower if she wanted.

CottonSock · 29/12/2019 16:54

Have you got help with the constipation? Encopresis?
Great help from movicol mummies Facebook group. See pinned video by poo nurses.
We have specialist help and it's much better controlled on two different medications.
Sorry if I'm telling you thungs you already know, but I can't believe the difference its made for my dd.

CottonSock · 29/12/2019 16:56

Here is the video in case it helps anyone

www.thepoonurses.uk/

TigerBreadAddict · 29/12/2019 16:57

Is she having medical help with the constipation?
With my son with ASD I just have to set rules or expectations about personal hygiene routines which works for him. eg shower daily, apply deodorant after shower, brush hair morning and night, brush teeth mor ing and night etc
When it’s part of his routine he accepts doing it for its own sake, rather than the outcome IYKWIM?
Cleaning up after himself is a different battle though, noticing his own mess is the problem, he just doesn’t see it as relevant. If he had made a pooey mess in the bathroom I expect he would leave it too. Don’t really know what to suggest other than bringing her back in every time you discover the poo to help clean it.

Shattered04 · 29/12/2019 17:01

DD13 was like this. She was diagnosed with ASD a few years ago, to the utter surprise of her teachers, but the complete non-surprise to those of us who live with her when she doesn't need to mask!

Just like you, I couldn't understand how she could spend ages obsessing over make-up, yet didn't brush her hair (it was seriously horrific at times, a literal matted bush), and would forget to to go to the toilet (too absorbed in whatever she was into, then she'd have accidents) and never brushed her teeth. She needed the hygienist at one point and even that didn't seem to sort it.

I was really worried about how her lack of personal care would affect her at secondary. As it turns out, the anxiety over needing to fit into a new school (I assume) somehow got through to her and almost over the summer holidays before she started Y7, she got it together.

She could probably shower a bit more (not that she is smelly, so I'm reluctant to push it) but she now takes fantastic care of her very long, thick, curly hair, has a brace and her dentist says she's doing a fantastic job of keeping her teeth clean, and hasn't wet herself in years as far as we're aware now. She's also less interested in make-up..!

I did provide her with her own decent hairbrushes, fancy electric toothbrushes etc which made little difference until she actually wanted to change, and then she was presumably grateful she had those things.

She does struggle with anxiety and sometimes depression I think - it is hard to tell as she is a very private person, although sometimes it will just all spill out if we get lucky. I always make sure she knows I am there for her, but you know how it is.

Depression won't help though. If she's struggling with friendships in particular, it can feel very hard to climb the mountain to "fit in" and perhaps as a result she can't see the point in trying. I do think having a steady friend during the transition to secondary helped DD a lot.

I don't know what the solution was for DD. I'd assume it has to come from within, they need their own internal motivation - I'm going to guess for her it was the very common female autistic need to blend in, and realising she'd need to do more at secondary than at primary where she was relatively content and accepted. Or maybe her appearance became her special interest, who knows? I'm just very relieved.

Good luck!

RebelWithVerySharpClaws · 29/12/2019 17:15

If she is very constipated she may be using her fingers to help move the poo out. If so, she will have a lot more poo on her hands to deal with than most people. Wet wipes or similar could help, or a big stash of paper towels and large bin. Bless her little cotton socks. I hope things improve for you all soon.

tatyr · 29/12/2019 17:44

I would ask for a referral to a continence advisor to try to sort the constipation issue and an occupational therapist. OT' s help people to be independent in performing their activities of daily living, which she isn't managing to the level your expect at her age. It could be down to sensory issues (she finds it difficult to tolerate brushing/wiping, or she is not as aware of the bodily sensations/discomfort as others would be) or social issues (her hair doesn't bother her so why should anyone else be bothered?) But an OT should be able to help get to the bottom of it. If NHS availability is poor, there are independent paediatric OT's.

Shattered04 · 29/12/2019 19:59

FWIW ASD is often co-morbid with IBS or similar conditions.

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