Almost 4 year-old girl poops pants 2-4 times daily

[Anonymous]

I am at ends about what to do. Pre-school insists that she wear pulls ups to school. I feel like we can’t do anything on weekends because she is constantly having accidents. We have gone to the pediatrician and she said the issue is a behavior issue and not health related. She suggested sticker charts—which of course we have tried. We have tried bribing her with toys. Presently there is a Barbie in the box above the toilet that we told her she can have if she poops in the potty one time. It’s been there 3 weeks.

To be clear, she has no other developmental issues. She does not wet herself and uses the potty for peeing consistently. She can recite her name and address, the alphabet, and speaks in complete sentences.

What to do????

[Anonymous]

It may be constiparion and not a behavioral issue. Suggest you get a consult or try miralax. Or look up Dr. Hodges

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It may be constiparion and not a behavioral issue. Suggest you get a consult or try miralax. Or look up Dr. Hodges

ok. What time of day to give Miralax? What amount?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It may be constiparion and not a behavioral issue. Suggest you get a consult or try miralax. Or look up Dr. Hodges

ok. What time of day to give Miralax? What amount?

Do not do that without talking to your doctor.

[Anonymous]

Get a note from your pediatrician saying she needs diapers for the time being. Daycare will have to comply. Use the diapers to make life easier for a bit while you rule out a medical issue as well. and then try PT again.

[Anonymous]

THEY HAVE RULED OUT A MEDICAL ISSUE.

Just keep at it. It will click.

Can she say what the issue is? What do you think is going on?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get a note from your pediatrician saying she needs diapers for the time being. Daycare will have to comply. Use the diapers to make life easier for a bit while you rule out a medical issue as well. and then try PT again.

How will diaper help? Diapers are the same as pull-ups.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a note from your pediatrician saying she needs diapers for the time being. Daycare will have to comply. Use the diapers to make life easier for a bit while you rule out a medical issue as well. and then try PT again.

How will diaper help? Diapers are the same as pull-ups.

Pull ups do not hold poop. So they’re actually worse.

[Anonymous]

See a different provider this is pretty clearly a symptom of constipation. I would find a pediatrician who takes this seriously and also make an appt with a pediatric GI (probably at least a few month wait for an appt there). Do not wait to take action- BTDT it can take years to resolve.

For my DD it was a motility issue that was only solved by a regimen of ExLax but like PP said I wouldn’t start on anything without doctor’s advice. Pediatricians don’t always know what to do here, we needed a lot of testing to figure it out.

[Anonymous]

Have they ruled out encopresis and all the usual food intolerances?

[Anonymous]

Does she ever go on the potty? Does she have a regular time that she goes?
How about refusing to take her to a place she likes to go until she goes.
Like, "Oh you want to go to the park? Sure! As soon as you poop, we'll go." Make everything else very boring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It may be constiparion and not a behavioral issue. Suggest you get a consult or try miralax. Or look up Dr. Hodges

If she is pooping 2-3 times a day, how is it constipation?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does she ever go on the potty? Does she have a regular time that she goes?
How about refusing to take her to a place she likes to go until she goes.
Like, "Oh you want to go to the park? Sure! As soon as you poop, we'll go." Make everything else very boring.

I would try this strategy.

[Anonymous]

If she's pantsless all day, will she go on the floor or just hold it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does she ever go on the potty? Does she have a regular time that she goes?
How about refusing to take her to a place she likes to go until she goes.
Like, "Oh you want to go to the park? Sure! As soon as you poop, we'll go." Make everything else very boring.

+1 Is this new behaviour? Did she poop in the potty prior or have you recently completed potty training? If you have her try to poop on the potty frequently (like every hour say), how does she respond?