Help, my 4 year old is soiling herself up to 7 times a day!!

[mummyloveslucy]

Hi, my daughter is 4 years and 4 months old. She has a severe speech disorder and is seing the consultant and other specialists to acess her development as she seems to have difficulties in a few areas.
The consultant felt her tummy and said she wasn't constipated, but she is always soiling herself. It is starting to get me down a bit. It's just little bits all the time. She does occasionally do one on the toilet and we praise her and give her a sticker, 3 stickers and she gets a present. I've tried everything. It's not for attention as she dosn't like being cleaned. I'm just wondering if there is anything else I can try? If I get angry with her, she crys and I ask why she does it and she says "I don't know". I always feel guilty if I get angry but she knows that she should go on the toilet and goes red in the face when pushing, so she knows that she needs to go. Is it just behavural? If you have any ideas, please let me know. She is due to start school in september so I'd like to have her sorted by then.

Anyone there ?

I'm really sorry can't help but didn't want to read and run. Hopefully someone will be along soon to help. Did the consultant not have any ideas on why this could be happening?

I would go on the assumption that the consultant is wrong, really because there's a lot you can do for constipation which won't hurt if she isn't. Try to encourage her to drink more water, eat more soluble fibre (oats, fruit), avoid bananas and white rice and hope for the best.

Just a suggestion - is there any possibility she's gluten-intolerant? I know that can lead to an awful lot of random pooing throughout the day.

Hi, my sister has coeliacs desease, so she might have that too. She does like banannas and eggs, so maybe worth cutting back on them. I'll try more fruit, she won't drink water on it's own so it'll have to be squash.
Thanks for replying.

Thanks cat64, I'll look it up.

Hello.

We had chronic constipation in our 4yo, that looked like frequency as she often passed lots of little squirty bit. That was 'overflow'.

Does she do a huge one every do often?

If it is more of a behavioural thing, maybe the sn board would have insight. I am not sure as I have no experience of sn, but in our dd, her emotional well being and her bowels were hand in hand. So perhaps your dd's suspected developmental could be influencing her.

If it is chronic constipation, then we found switching to undiluted fruit juice [consultant said it was worth extra care of the teeth to sort this out] cutting back on excessive milk, and mango and papaya helped. ANd movicol.

But the cure all was 2 visits to a chiropractor. I'd say go go go. Can do no harm and it's 30 quid. We went form daily nedication to no medication and a proper one visit poo a day. Bloody miracle!

Wow a Chiropractor? what can they do? I thought it was just for bad backs.

She does occasionally do a huge one. The other week, she did one that would make my eyes water. I couldn't believe it.

Bet it's withholding/constipation. Bet Bet Bet.

Chiro released her diaphragm [sp] and her neck. She thinks nerves in her neck were under pressure, that led to her bowel.

T'was bloody marvellous whatever it was - though I wouldn't blame anyone for taking what I say with a pinch of salt. But honestly, it was like a switch flicked.

www.childhoodconstipation.com/

pediatrics.about.com/cs/conditions/l/aa070501a.htm

2 sites I found handy when getting my head around it.

If it is constipation! It could be intolerance etc. Get your detective hat on!

I was there with dd2 who was possessed had colic, and dd1 came, and suddenly had to poo. Chiro let her use her loo [she had no idea what was comin ] and dd1 emptied a 1ft long mega turd into her loo!!

So she told her to hop on the couch and cured her.

When I think of it I swing between deep deep joy and relief, and guilt I didn't go sooner.

PMSL at the megaturd.

Hi
You sound like me .My son is 5 in November & he has had this problem since he was a baby , he has other problems , asthma , speech problems , one leg longer than the other by 1.5 cm-2cm leg difference , he is lactose intolerant & has problems with fine motor skills .He goes to a nursery & he always has over flow , he sees 2 constipation nurses one says one thing & another says something else he goes the the toilet regularly for wee's & when he manages to go on the toilet for a poo he is so proud of himself .
We change him 4 to 7 times a day. When he was in pants he messed his pants trousers , socks & it ran all down his legs so he had a shower at nursery & they told me to put him in pull ups.If you need someone to talk to you can reply & may be we could be there for each other I need some one to talk to as well.smile

This happened with my little boy aged 3 at the time so a bit younger I also had a new baby arrive at the time it started. However the main reason was that he was constipated.

I went to docs and they gave lactulose to start with which did nothing to help. Then they gave movicol (which is entirely safe) it just has a bulking agent and a mild laxative to get things moving. It starts to work within 24 hours and you get a lovely "mr whippy" type poo which shocked the hell out of me to begin with (and him).

So I got things "moving" and he was no longer in pain. I then "role played" the I need a poo poo and running to the toilet. This worked for me as Ds loves a bit of role play drama. I tried to keep calm (originally I was mortified and felt extremely cross and like a total failure). Once i took all of my own drama out of it it sorted itself out. It took another year and a half beofre he was dry in day though and I still have accidents and regression. I do sympathise totally.