i have an eight year old son who i am certain has ODD (though has not been diagnosed he displays almost all of the "symptoms"). this is challenging enough but i have a more distressing issue with him at the moment. he keeps having bowel movement "accidents" (use the term euphemistically here). about 6 months or so ago i realized that he was making himself constipated. he gets involved in an activity and is so focused on it (no ADHD i think) he does not want to interrupt what he is doing for a trip to the bathroom. instead he was attempting to push his stool back up inside of himself. he must have been doing this for years because we have frequently had poop stained underpants and related "accidents". i finally figured it out and took action. i began increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables he eats and i dose him with a fibre supplement in his juice. my intention (aside from better nutrition) was to make his bowel movement so urgent he would not be able to push it back in and would have no choice but to get to the bathroom.
apparently i have only made the problem worse. he still delays getting to the bathroom and because he can't get it back in himself it must come OUT. and out it comes. it gets everywhere. then to make things even more fun, he went through a period of deciding he just wasn't going to wipe his bum AT ALL. i think (hope?) we have gotten out of that but it's such a recent development, who knows? this weekend he had an urgent poop and for some reason was not wearing any underwear. he left a sizable poop in the middle of the floor of his playroom and did not clean it or tell anyone else it was there. consequently my husband (wearing shoes) stepped in it and tracked it all over the house. we are going out of our minds with frustration! i am constantly cleaning up his poop! i have a 16 month old baby and i clean up more poop from the 8 year old than i have for the baby! my furniture is getting ruined, the car smells and needs a professional cleaning and it just feels like the harder we try to correct the problem the worse it gets. so now, at the end of my rope, i am seriously considering getting the boy diapers and even professional help. i am reluctant to see a doctor yet because i hope to fix this myself and because my son is afraid to see the doctor for this problem.
does any one have any thoughts, opinions or advice? does anyone else have to deal with a similar problem? i feel like i'm all outta everything!
apparently i have only made the problem worse. he still delays getting to the bathroom and because he can't get it back in himself it must come OUT. and out it comes. it gets everywhere. then to make things even more fun, he went through a period of deciding he just wasn't going to wipe his bum AT ALL. i think (hope?) we have gotten out of that but it's such a recent development, who knows? this weekend he had an urgent poop and for some reason was not wearing any underwear. he left a sizable poop in the middle of the floor of his playroom and did not clean it or tell anyone else it was there. consequently my husband (wearing shoes) stepped in it and tracked it all over the house. we are going out of our minds with frustration! i am constantly cleaning up his poop! i have a 16 month old baby and i clean up more poop from the 8 year old than i have for the baby! my furniture is getting ruined, the car smells and needs a professional cleaning and it just feels like the harder we try to correct the problem the worse it gets. so now, at the end of my rope, i am seriously considering getting the boy diapers and even professional help. i am reluctant to see a doctor yet because i hope to fix this myself and because my son is afraid to see the doctor for this problem.
does any one have any thoughts, opinions or advice? does anyone else have to deal with a similar problem? i feel like i'm all outta everything!