Does your child with Sensory Processing Disorder have trouble potting training?

[gatorsmom]

I need some help. Greenbean has a history of being constipated and he also has SPD. He is potty trained for pee during the day and he was potty trained for pooping but in the last 5 months he's regressed and insists I put a diaper on his for pooping. He's been on Miralax since he was 9months old and it doesn't look like he'll be going off any time soon. He complains that pooping hurts and I know that because it hurts, he doesn't want to sit on the potty, he wants to walk around while working it out. I totally get that. But he's going to be starting full day Kindergarten next year so I need to get him on track for pooping in a potty and at regular times during the day.

Our Ped has said that he sees this very often with children with SPD. He explained that they are more sensitive and thus feel more pain when they poop. So, they avoid it. Greenbean can't avoid it because of the Miralax. It's keeping him regular. But he will either ask for a diaper during the day or if I say no diaper you have to poop on the potty, he'll hold it all day til I put a night time diaper on and then poop at night. I've offered him all kinds of incentives to put in the potty- I set the potty chair in front of the TV to distract him, I offered him candy every time he sits on it and more when he puts poop in it. I've offered him toys too. Nothing doing. He hates pooping in the potty.

I need some help here. Any suggestions?

[elliput]

This is definitely a BTDT issue for me.

Does GB need the diaper at night, or is it "just in case"? If he is dry more than not, I would quite using it. From how it sounds to me, the diaper is completely a crutch at this point which he looks forward to, and will continue to ask for until you tell him they are done.

If you haven't already done so, make a routine for him to follow. This helped a lot with my DD when she was having elimination issues. She would become constipated because she was uncomfortable pooping except at home, so we worked on a bedtime routine which includes plenty of toilet time. She has stacks of books in the bathroom, a comfortable potty seat, step stool to rest her feet on, etc. I let her stay in there as long as she wants.

[gatorsmom]

This is definitely a BTDT issue for me.

Does GB need the diaper at night, or is it "just in case"? If he is dry more than not, I would quite using it. From how it sounds to me, the diaper is completely a crutch at this point which he looks forward to, and will continue to ask for until you tell him they are done.

If you haven't already done so, make a routine for him to follow. This helped a lot with my DD when she was having elimination issues. She would become constipated because she was uncomfortable pooping except at home, so we worked on a bedtime routine which includes plenty of toilet time. She has stacks of books in the bathroom, a comfortable potty seat, step stool to rest her feet on, etc. I let her stay in there as long as she wants.

Unfortunately, Greenbean is still peeing at night. Every night. So, yeah, we definitely need the night time diaper. The thing is, he doesn't usually poop at night- it's only when I try to make him poop in the potty. Then he'll refuse and hold it til night time. When I allow him to wear a diaper during the day, he won't poop in his night time diaper.

The twins just started their half day preschool so I"m going to get him into a routine of sitting on the potty as soon as he comes home. I feel bad for him- he is so scared of it hurting. I"m going to try to ease him into this gently.

[Pepper]

My son has SPD and was late to potty train. i rememebr that he had a hard time learning to pee while standing up. Which didn't make much sense to me - he'd been peeing in his diapers while standing, right? - but once he learned to pee sitting down on the potty he had some kind of block about standing up to pee in the same potty! It took a few more months for him to figure it all out.

Anyway, my point is, perhaps your child has trouble with the part where he has to sit still on the potty. You said he walks around to work it out; does he squat at all when he is finally able to get down to business? IF not maybe you could work on him sitting on the potty while still wearing a diaper. (Does he know when he needs to/is about to poop)? just until he gets used to the different mechanics.

Is he comfortable on the potty chair/seat? Could you try a differnt setup?

Putting him in front of the tv didn't help, but maybe there's a handheld electronic toy that he likes, which he could hold while sitting on the potty? Or electronic storybook? Something "special" that he'd get to play with while sitting on the pot, to distract him a little.

How is the consistency of his stool? I have no experience with this but I wonder if there's something else you can give him to soften it, so that pooping will be less painful. Poor kid!

[JTsMom]

Jason PT'ed pretty easily right around 3 yo. He mastered peeing first. Pooping took a few extra months, but we weren't battling constipation.

The previous post mentioning squatting reminded me of a Dr. Oz segment. They actually make a squatting toilet seat. I wonder if that would help make it more comfortable?

[Gena]

DS potty trained around 3.5 , which was actually earlier than I had expected, given his issues.

Does Greenbean have muscle tone issues? DS has some global hypotonia (low muscle tone) along with global dyspraxia (motor planning difficulties). These affect not only the muscles I can see, like his limbs, trunck, etc, but internal stuff like his intestines. This makes it harder for him to "get things moving". Miralax helps, as does exercise, and timing his turn in the bathroom. Even so, it takes a lot of patience and work on his part to get the desired output. Luckily, we have not had to deal with issues of poop at school. DS is an evening pooper.

Some kids with sensory issues like the secure feel of a diaper. I know a few families who have had success by having their child sit on the potty with the diaper on. They cut a hole in it to let the poop fall in the toilet. Gradually they enlarged the hole and loosened the diaper. Eventually the child no longer needed it.

[gatorsmom]

DS potty trained around 3.5 , which was actually earlier than I had expected, given his issues.

Does Greenbean have muscle tone issues? DS has some global hypotonia (low muscle tone) along with global dyspraxia (motor planning difficulties). These affect not only the muscles I can see, like his limbs, truck, etc, but internal stuff like his intestines. This makes it harder for him to "get things moving". Miralax helps, as does exercise, and timing his turn in the bathroom. Even so, it takes a lot of patience and work on his part to get the desired output. Luckily, we have not had to deal with issues of poop at school. DS is an evening pooper.

Some kids with sensory issues like the secure feel of a diaper. I know a few families who have had success by having their child sit on the potty with the diaper on. They cut a hole in it to let the poop fall in the toilet. Gradually they enlarged the hole and loosened the diaper. Eventually the child no longer needed it.

Oh, thank you Gena. These are great suggestions. Yes, he was diagosed with low muscle tone as a baby when he couldn't sit up at 10 months. There very well could be a connection with his constipation there.

Now that school has started, I will get a system in place of giving him his Miralax maybe before school and then getting him to sit on the potty as soon as he comes home from school at 11am. I'm a little concerned, though, that he'll have the urge at school and then fight it. Otoh, if I give it to him after school, he might not have the urge to go until closer to dinner time when all he11 breaks lose around here. I would be too busy to sit with him and make sure he stays sitting on his potty. I gotta think this through more.

But thanks, everyone, for giving some more insights on this!