My son had a poop that hurt his bottom from holding it too long. Now he won't go at all and has messes in his pants, has a sour stomach, and resorted to even dragging his bottom on the floor like a dog! I am at my wits end and have tried taking away toys, privileges, and so on without any result. Any ideas welcomed! We had no problems until just recently and he was doing fine. He's 5.
By Chaos from OH
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I would suspect a blockage or impacted bowel. He needs to see a Dr. right away. Even if a bowel is blocked some can seep out.
Your child has been traumatized and you are punishing him? Think about that. Get him to a doctor and mention that you have punished him and see what the doctor says about that.
I agree with Lilac 100%! Please don't punish him because you are making matters worse both emotionally and physically doing that! Get him to his doctor ASAP because what you mention about him holding it and having a sour stomach can cause serious health issues! I am frankly shocked that you haven't called his doctor by now and I have never heard of a child scooting on the floor like a dog to relieve their behind so there is something seriously wrong and I pray it's not a permanent physical problem or permanent emotional scar!
First, I'd like to say that there is no reason to be rude & nasty to someone who is asking for help!
Now.....
Sometimes when a child has a hard, painful bowel movement, they will begin to 'hold their poop' so it won't hurt again. Unfortunately this makes it worse because they become even more constipated, so that when they do go it is even more painful, and it become a cycle. The cycle has to be broken by making him un-constipated so that he can see that it doesn't hurt anymore to go to the bathroom.
First, you probably should take him to the doctor to be sure there is nothing wrong with him. The doctor will probably tell you what you need to do. You can also search the Thrifty Fun website for constipation or constipated child, or something like that (I know there's a lot there,but I'm in the middle of something & can't take time to look).
I went through this with 2 of my kids & 2 of my grandkids.My daughter & her little boy both had a very severe problem with it fri-om the time they were tiny babies. Constipation can be caused by not getting enough liquid or fiber in the diet. To remedy this, be sure he drinks enough water during the day. For fiber, feed him high fiber foods he might like, such as apple, dried prune,dried apricots,oatmeal etc. (look up 'high fiber foods'). Oh yeah, almost forgot, some foods can cause constipation, so look into his diet for that-my son had a big problem with constipation when he was your son's age, turns out it was because he loved milk & wanted to drink it all the time, I figured it was good for him & gave it to him any time he asked.When the doctor hear how much he was drinking(up to 40oz or more/day), she told me to cut the amount in half, problem solved!Sitting in a warm bath will also relax him & his bowels, stimulating him to feel the urge to go.
With my grandson, we had to give him a fiber supplement like Metamucil. I don't remember the dose, but we gave it to him every day. They really don't have a choice, it will make them have to poop whether they like it or not (but he may not go in the toilet at first,so be prepared). But you have to be sure they drink a LOT of liquid, or it will gel up in his intestines & make him even more constipated! Once they become unconstipated & start going again, you may have to keep giving them the fiber for a few weeks (or months) to get them over the fear that it will hurt to go, then begin to taper the fiber supplement off. Don't stop it suddenly or they could become constipated again.
Once you break the cycle, you have to be sure he stays that way. Be sure he drinks plenty of fluid & eats some high fiber food every day. Too many diets today are highly refined, processed food that contribute to constipation.
Wow, I would first like to say that folks should not judge you. I am sure you punished him out of frustration. At 5 we expect our children to be fully toilet trained.
With that said I would like to tell you about my son. He had an issue like this at age 3. I took him to the Dr and he said to give him 1/2 a cap full of Mirilax. It is a mild laxative and we were to mix it into his juice, milk, water, whatever. When we added it to his juice he ended up calling it sugar and sometimes asked why I didn't add it to all the drinks.
Feel free to contact me anytime if you have any questions. It works, my son is now 6 and does not have any problems. It fixed the problem within a week or so. Good luck to you and God bless you and your son. Remember, praise when he does well, more praise than correction, it will work itself out.
AuntieLala12000, absolutely no offense is intended to you about your comment regarding others judging in their posts here but punishing a child, even out of frustration, for a having problems with a bodily function is definitely not a good thing :-( It took me years to get over being able to urinate when needed to instead of holding it until absolutely couldn't hold it anymore because a babysitter punished me because she was frustrated that I wouldn't go when she told me to and I was the same age, five, as Chaos' little boy is now. Bottom line is that Chaos needs to call her son's doctor and find out what to do now for her son's complete safety.
Is he eating enough fiber? I know at that age it is sometimes hard to get them to eat it. Definitely see a Dr. asap.
Take him to his pediatrician immediately.
Hi! My son had trouble pooping in the toilet also. Sometimes he would even feel like he had to stand. I didn't understand how that would help, but soon realized he was constipated. We tried Miralax also, and after I was able to regulate the amount, and I was consistent with it, he didn't have any more trouble. Be careful, and don't give too much. My son (poor baby) had a 'blowout" at school one time. After that, until the amount was regulated for him by trial and error, we made sure the teachers knew he was having trouble in this area, had been given Miralax (so she would be more understanding), and had to be consistent! It has helped tremendously. Hope this helps you!
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