Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

Help! 5 year old with poo ishoooos - is this a behavioural or health problem??

4 replies

satinandsilk · 20/07/2012 21:44

So here we are. DS is about to turn 5. And he is still soiling his pants. Not a lot of mess - just a little bit. He just never quite seems to get to the loo in time to stop some staining. We thought he'd grow out of it. That was two years ago. Now, many binned pants later, and a lot more washing of stained pants than we ever thought we'd have to cope with, we're wondering if something bigger is going on. He's an extremely lively, active little boy who has to be persuaded to go to the loo at all - he seems to see it as an irritating/unnecessary interruption to the far more interesting things he could be up to. He is not constipated; doesn't seem to find it painful to go to the loo; and yet he delays it till the last possible moment to the extent that his pants are messy. We have tried everything - gentle persuasion, bribery, anger. Nothing seems to work. He seems genuinely contrite each time it happens - but not contrite enough to stop him doing the same thing again. He just can't seem to be bothered going to the bathroom until it's a little too late.
Is this a doctor job? child psychologist? or do we just grit our teeth and keep hoping he grows out of it? Any advice/shared experience gratefully received.

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
An0therName · 20/07/2012 21:47

I think GP first to check no underlying issues first

WipsGlitter · 22/07/2012 22:10

Does he poo in the loo ok? My DS does this ( we call it a "smudge") but I think it's down to (a) major issues now thankfully resolved re getting him to poo in the loo at all so I think he had a slack bowel due to excessive 'holding on' (b) he still can't work out totally when he needs to go.

I'd speak to the GP first.

Quip · 22/07/2012 22:12

Another mner recommended this to me:

www.amazon.co.uk/Constipation-Withholding-Your-Child-Soiling/dp/1843104911

It was a godsend. Read it, then go to GP. A mild laxative may help your DS get out of the habit of withholding his poo.

WhereMyMilk · 22/07/2012 22:25

I would say that he is constipated and what you are seeing as a smudge in his pants is actually overflow.

I would second seeing GP to have a good feel of tummy, plus some movicol to clear him out, this may take some time (DS was on it for 6months). The rectum gets over stretched when they are constipated so don't get messages back IYSWIM. Plus big poo there, means overflow.

It takes a lot of time and patience. Just going through it again with DS (3) :(

New posts on this thread. Refresh page