Toddler holding on to poo for 6 days at a time...help!

[KatLP]

Hi everyone,

I have a 21/2 year old girl who has been increasingly holding on to her stool since Easter. As the months have gone on it’s has gone from bad to worse with our little one going up to 6 days without a poo. She is currently on 2-3 laxido a day but still manages to hold on and was recently very ill with a urine infection which the doctor said could be related to the poo holding scenario. This is having such an impact on our lives, she is miserable as are my partner and I. We are going from being frustrated, to upset, to positive reinforcement, to bribes but nothing seems to work. When eventually she does pass (because her body physically can no longer hold on) she is absolutely hysterical and what she passes doesn’t even resemble a normal poo because there is so so much of it.

What can I do? I’ve cut out milk and dairy and have been giving her plenty fruit, veg, wholemeal cereals and bread. I try not to talk about it or acknowledge it around her as not to draw attention either. She is NOT constipated though she is holding on.

Any help would be so greatly appreciated ladies.

X

How awful for her & you! I used this book before commencing toilet training with my son, it kind of got him excited about using the toilet & having a poo... could be a non confrontational way to initiate discussion?

usborne.com/browse-books/catalogue/product/1/10859/what-is-poo/

Poor thing. Has been checked for a fissure? It could be it really hurts to poo and so she's trying to avoid then the avoiding makes it worse (speaking from my own painful experience). The dr gave me an ointment but no idea if that would be suitable for a toddler.

My DD was like this......held on for as long as possible and when she did go, it was so big it hurt her so was scared to go again! Dr prescribed Lactulose to soften stool. I had a tip from a parent that went through the same which was to explain that Mr Poo wanted to come out and be with the rest of his family in Poo Land (down the toilet!) and eventually when she did go we waved Mr Poo away and flushed him away to Poo Land to be with his family!! Sounds ridiculous and was a bit 🤮 but it helped her be less scared of the poo!
DD 12 now and still saves it up and only goes when desperate and they are massive and block the toilet, don't think she waves to it anymore though haha

Lots and lots to drink, positive encouragement or reward for sitting on the toilet or potty, try her 20mins after a meal, just for five mins at a time. make sure she's got her knees bent and she's comfy on the loo with a toddler seat and a step for her feet to rest on, with a book or some bubbles or even iPad, whatever works. Sticker charts are good if she responds to incentives like that.

My DM fed me laxatives for years, when in fact it was just natural for me to only go every 4-5 days. The amount of pressure and stress she put on me was upsetting - making me sit on the loo multiple times every day, constantly asking me if I needed to go, worrying because I hadn’t gone, taking me to doctors who kept examining me, forcing me to swallow laxatives. It made a normal act into something traumatic that I actively avoided. When I got a bit older I told her and the doctors to get lost and happily spent the rest of my life only going once or twice a week. Is your DD hysterical because of physical pain or is it psychological?