DD been potty trained for a year but witholds poos should i put her back in nappies?

[luckyJess]

Sorry this is long.

She is 3.3 and has used toliet for wee's for a good year with hardly any accidents. However since potty training she witholds poo. She usually only goes once a week. Before PT she would go everyday.

She has Movical and eats lots of fibre. The constant overflow is very hard to deal with, for both of us. I try not to make a big issue of it but when she needs cleaning up every ten minutes for days it becomes very wearing and has an affect on family life.

We did get to a stage when some of the poos would be on the potty but she would never ask for the potty (i would sit her there when i saw her witholding). Now when she decides to do a poo it will usually be in her knickers. Or sometimes if i can see she is desperate to go but wont sit on the potty i will put on a pull up, as when she has been holding on all week I just want her to do it!

I am wondering, if putting her back in pull ups full time would help her get into a routine. Maybe she would stop witholding if she felt she could do it there and then. I am pretty sure she wouldnt wee in a pull up so we could still go on as normal with that.

I would do it over the summer holidays and if she gets into a routine gently introduce the toilet.

Has anyone else had to do anything like this?
Is it a good idea or am i going backwards?

I have a year to get this sorted before she
starts school.

Please help.

i would say keep persevering use charts for rewards etc we used nappies for ds as getting constipated a lot but his 4 and still will not poo on toilet only in nappy

wish id just kept trying but hated seeing him in pain

we use the poo's love swimming send them to poo land he will now sit and try but the minute he feels it coming he stops and we have to use nappy

but he is trying more with bribes i'll read stories and we do the send the poos to poo land he likes this and wants to do it now just cant seem to let himself go i think if you keep trying she will get there

i would avoid nappies as i say ds wont go unless he has one on and will probably take me longer to get him out of this but were making progress we have the chart so when he does go he gets a start when all boxes have a star he gets to choose a treat

No advice for you, sorry. But just to let you know you're not alone. My dd is 2.9 and back in nappies because of this problem. Although it's not as obvious she's actually withholding as she never seems to do a proper poo. She's on movicol too and the overflow is the reason she's back in nappies. I couldn't cope with constantly cleaning her up with a 15 month old as well. As she never had any qualms about sitting on the potty for wees or poos (she'd sit quite happily and look to see where it was but 9 times out of 10 it was just a big skid stuck to her bum). Sorry if tmi. I've decided to leave it and try again in a few weeks when dh has some time off work.

Thanks for your replies. I share your pain.

Its just so frustrating. We are going back to doctors on Weds.

Does anyone know if she can be refered for this? I will put my foot down at the docs if so.

I dont think its because thinks it will hurt because at some point after days of witholding she will just decide to do it, with no fuss at all.

My dd was referred and is now seeing a nurse practioner at the hospital who specialises in things like this. The main advice that I have been given so far though is to try and relax about it as most cases sort themselves out in time.
We're keeping a diary too, showing how many sachets, poos etc a day.
Worth asking to be referred imo.

Glad I'm not alone!

We had this with dd1. In the end I follwed her around with the potty and sat her on it when it looked like one was coming.

To stop her holding it in I got her to blow bubbles / blow a recorder while sitting on the potty.

As soon as she did one on the potty the problem disappeared.

A health visitor advised me to put pull up in the potty or cut a hole in the pullup.

Good luck!

Dd does this and it has been going on for over 6 months. I am really fed up with the gps as teh movicold and now added lactulose are less and less effective. I have asked to be referred. personally, I wouldn't go back to pull ups during the day though. Dd has them at night.

Message withdrawn

Thank you Pitchounette that is really helpful.

Docs appt is in an hour and i am going to insist on a referal.

How did you get on Luckyjess?

She gave her Senna and lactolose to use together and if no improvment in a month she will refer her to peadatrician.

The Senna will make her bowel contract so she will feel the urge to go more often.

So fingers crossed this might work.

Thank you all for advise, will be making a diary and lots of poo land talk.

Best of luck then.