Constant poos making potty training a nightmare! HELP!

[fernhowe]

Sorry - it goes on and on!
My DS 3.2 is still in normal nappies and I'm having no luck getting him to let them go. The last 3 days he's been in pants but has had very little success - I think the main problem is that he does tiny bits of poo all the time (yesterday I recorded 14, all in his pants, which was fairly high but not abnormal for him) and I really don't think he knows he's doing it most of the time, so he gets really stressed even when I try and keep it calm. The first time I tried training him, after half a day of wee accidents, he was fab for 24 hours, and then the pooing started and it all fell apart. Now we're just going backwards!
Any advice, suggestions or previous experience of constant poos much appreciated!

I have heard that constant leakage of wee and or poo can often be linked to food allargies or sensitivies. My DD wees every 20 minutes after drinking milk, when her normal wee pattern is every 4 hours.

HTH

If your ds is not aware of his pooing and is doing so many in a day then it is p'haps not the time to try losing the nappies. You could try washable pull ups that will allow your dc to notice when he has had a poo/ wee, but contain the situation iywim.

My ds is 3 (last week) and is dry at night and wears pants and is v good at going for wees in the toilet - but - he poo's his pants once a day at the moment. He has a nice solid poo but it just does not seem to bother him enough to go to the toilet - very frustrating.

Maybe speak to your hv/ gp if you are concerned about the frequeny of your dc's poo. If there is a food allergy causing a bit of a runny bottom then your dc will not be able to make it to the loo in time.

My ds only poo's at home though he is quite capable of holding on to it all day untill he is in the comfort of his home. Does your ds poo when he is out? Does he exhibit any control over the process?

14 poo's a day is not normal, I thought 5 or 6 a day was a lot for my dd and the hv actually suggested I see the gp with her as it should be up to 3 a day or one every three days iyswim. The gp said that she was ok and it has settled down to one or two a day now. I'd get it checked out, there might be a simple dietary change that you could make that would help or something like that. If I ever feel like I am being a paranoid mum by going to the dr I just remind myself that it is free and if it makes me feel better it is worth going.

Many thanks everyone! I have tried the GP because I was worried it might be a physical problem - he thought probably not, but to come back if we had no progress at all - so I think that's what we should do! I did wonder about dairy intolerance, as he's totally addicted to milk, cheese, yogurt etc, so will ask the gp tomorrow.

Thanks for the support!

Good luck Fern

Thanks Big Mouth! In answer to your question by the way, he shows no control at all - he is as likely to do them at someone else's house or walking around town as at home. I think if he showed SOME control, I might be a bit less worried, as it would show it's def psychological / habitual, but no control at all makes me worry that it's something physical.

Hi, have just started potty training today and we've had about 8 small poos on the potty!! its driving me mad, had wees as well, but I think its just because he's suddenly concious of feeling need to go.
wish he would just go in one big load like in the nappy.
maybe as we go on it'll get better

Hi LittleBoo - A few friends of mine had that at the start, especially in one case as there were chocolate buttons on offer for poos - didn't take her DD long to work out that doing 5 little bits was better choccy-wise than one big one! But the novelty did wear off!

I saw the gp again yesterday who has referred me to a guy who specialises in withholding and other poo-based things. And got an appt beginning of Sept, so hopefully that will help.