So how do I deal with this???? (sorry if TMI here...)

[egoldber]

Ugh. Tonight we had a battle. She went to bed at 8:30. Around 9:30 she woke up saying "I gotta go poop mommy!!!!". So we ran in the bathroom and she promptly peed, but no poop. After a long-ish time (maybe 15 monutes), I put her back to bed. Five minutes later, repeat the same scenario. After the end of the 15 minutes, she asks to sit on the big potty, at which she produced gas, but no poop. I try to put her back in bed and she screams and screams that she has to poop.

After several more minutes of this, I put her back in bed. She screamed for awhile but finally went to sleep. I honestly think she just had gas (we had black beans for dinner...) and I think she was confusing gas pains with the poop feeling.

But how do you handle it when your kid SWEARS they have to poop and yet do not produce?? I have NO desire for this to be a nightly habit!!!!! But I also do not want to derail our potty training by not listening to her signals.

Thanks!

[luvbeinmama]

Yeah, that does sound like gas. She probably DID really think she had to poop. And I would count the gas as pooping in that case. See what happens the next few nights and you'll see if you really have a problem or if she just really thought she needed to poop. If it becomes a nightly occurrance and it's pretty obvious that she's trying to stay up via "poop", then you will have to do something about it. We told DS he would be in big trouble if he said he had to poop & didn't because that would mean he had lied to us, and that is the BIGGEST no-no in our house. Good luck, and I don't think one night (especially a bean night) will make a habit as long as you make sure she knows she only up if she REALLY has to go.

[AugBaby]

We've talked about how pushing too hard "hurts our bodies" and that it's best not to push too hard. We've said how it'll come out when it's ready, and she's usually fine with that. If she still thinks she wants to sit a little more, we'll sit another two minutes are so and then repeat the "when it's ready it'll come out" scenario, and in your case you could keep explaining how gas feels like having to poop and beans make you have gas, etc.

I would try to talk her through it as you never know if they really do have to poop, are hungry, etc. If dd says she's hungry when she's going to bed, and I really think that's not possible, I'll say that it's time to go to bed now, and that after we sleep a little (like taking a nap) we can get up and eat if she wants. To me that leaves the door open so that if she wakes up and she's really hungry, she won't hesitate to ask for food, and she also feels that I listen to her. Maybe you could try something along these lines with having to poop.

Good luck!

[brubeck]

Can you set it up so she can go by herself? As soon as Amy started seriously training I just opened the door to her bathroom at night (it was behind the gate with her room) and she was able to run in there whenever she wanted. So if she has to go she can go. Since pottying is more of a chore than a fun thing she doesn't really do it to delay bedtime.

[baby_mis1]

Any update on how this has been going? We are having similar incidents with my son lately. He really seems to be getting the hang of going potty, but the link seems to really kick in at bed-time. I'm thinking peeing isn't as much fun as paying, but it is more fun than going to bed!

One night he woke up about every two hours and said he had to go pee. He did go every time, but that seems a bit extreme. Tonight he said he had to go about 3 times (and went) in about a half-hour time-frame between books and the beginning of when he should have been asleep. It is very small amounts, so he obviously needs to learn to hold it a little better. Is this something that will work itself out? I don't want to ignore his needs, but find it frustrating that this "need" to go pee only happens right at bedtime. Of course, the soaking wet diapers of a couple weeks ago seem to be a thing of the past now!

Regarding the poop thing - I don't think my son has that down completely yet either. There are times he tells me he needs to poop and doesn't. I let him try for about 15 minutes and then let him know that sometimes it just isn't quite ready to come out yet even though we can tell it will be coming sometime soon. After the warning I give him 2 more minutes just in case...

Valerie
Mom to Jonas 2-21-02

[egoldber]

This turned out to be a one night thing. OK, not strictly true. It has happened 3-4 times in the last several months. I really think she just gets confused sometimes about whether or not she really has to poop or if its just gas. I think they get better at knowing the difference the longer they use the potty.