How do I get my 7 yr old son to stop pooing in his pants?

Question

The hospital thinks he has mild constipation (he doesn't like alot of fruit or veg) and so prescribed a powder drink. Hasn't really helped. We've even been to a hypnotist. Worked great after the first visit - no dirty pants! But only lasted 6 weeks or so. Second visit to him was no good at all. Worried as problem is and always has been an issue between us.

Answer 1

make him wash out his own stinky pants, then put diaper on him. make him wear it.

Answer 2

My son is 5 and he still goes in his pants! He has a similar problem with constipation. I have tried just about everything, and nothing seems to work. I have tried pull ups, leaving the poop in the pants (gets messy), talking to him, spanking him, letting him run naked, sitting him on the toilet untill he goes, putting him in time out, scheaduling him, trying to make him go every 20 minutes, NOTHING WORKS! I started taking him to a therapist, but its hard at this age I mean he's 5 1/2! I have been actively tried to potty train him since he was 2 1/2! I haven't tried a hipnotist though! He goes pee just fine, it's the poop thats a problem. I think that my next tactic will be to give him a laxative over a weekend and make sure he goes on the toilet when I can have control. I think if I can get him to go more predictively then he will feel more comfortable going, because he will have no choice but to sit on the toilet and let the poop go. Hey it's worth a try at this point! Oh and I've tried sticker charts and positive reinforcement too, but that didn't work either. Good luck!

Answer 3

if he has a mild constipation you might want to document what he eats in a diary just so you pin point the cause of it, in the meanwhile dedicate a whole week or two when he is not going to school for potty training. during the day wear him cheap pants and keep an eye on him and i reckon he would poo on his pant, when he does let him know how bad it is to have done that and make him feel irritated by it, also tell him if he does it in his pants again then he will be punished, but if he tells you that he wants to go toilet or goes himself then he would get a reward. you might want to get something like a good boy sticker chart of a cartoon character that he likes. this should help and dont give up it does take a while. if he doesnt like fruits make sure he drinks alot of fluid. hope this helps

Answer 4

He does this because he feels poop is dirty and he is ashamed to do it! Specially in school and in public . He holds it so he doesn;t have to do it causing it to back up for some days. After holding it for so long it will be painful to go and he willl be so urged to go that he will realease when time has come.

Explain to him that poop is natural and that evrybody poops, and therefore, there is no need to hold it or try to avoid going.

Try to read him the book "Everybody pooops" so he can get the idea in an easy way. Nagging, telling him that he is dirty and nasty will only make the situation WORSE.

No veggies? Stop giving him soda and switch to apple juice, That will help. Try incorporating baby jars of puree peas and veggies into his macarroni and cheese sauce, spaguetty sauce, pizza sauce etc. He will not see the difference and won;t know that is even there.

Remind him to poop often in a loving manner. Stay there and coach him and cheer him when he does it. Encourage him to clean himself well and show him how to. You can even buy those new wipes for kids, he'll probably like them.

Make him scrup his own underwear. This helps wonders.

Patience and love dear asker, that's the only way

Good luck

Answer 5

how long has this been going on has he always done this

if not were there any major changes in his life when he started moving a death divorce change of or starting school new baby in the family etc

you could try talking to the school to find out if there are any problems is he being bullied is he stuggling in his lessons has he friends etc

you could in the meantime try some sort of incentive for him try a sticker chart or something like that
when he goes to the toilet instead of messing himself give him a sticker or points etc when he has gained a certain amount or gone so many days without soiling himself give him a treat maybe let him chose some new pants or a small toy or a trip to the cinema for example

try not to show you are stressed when he does have an accident but praise him a lot when he does go to the toilet

if everything fails you may need to consider getting him refered to a child psycologist to see if there are any underlying fears that he has

good luck

Answer 6

My 7 year old does the same thing. I have to most of the time, have him sit down and I tell him he needs to try to go. This seems to be the only thing that works. Have you thought that maybe he might have something medical wrong down there? I have talk to my child's pediatrician many times on this subject. I don't you should spank him or anything. I know it suchs but it will get better eventually, my 3 year old goes all on his own. Just have him sit down at night and in the morning. I worry about my son doing this at school, but he probably, wouldn't even go there anyhow. My son isn't over weight either, the doctor claims he is just being lazy. There really is something children can have that keep doing this in there pants. Something about there brain doesn't trigger the muscles in there bowls that they have to go number 2. Then they can actually, not even notice that they smell. There sense of smell doesn't recognize it. I wish you luck with this...I know it sucks..

Answer 7

The worst thing you can do is make an issue of it, you know. I suspect that your son is what can only be described as 'anally retentive'. He may have a phobia of using the loo and should never be admonished for such accidents but do praise all efforts to use the loo. I would suggest that you simply resort to continued 'loo training' and get him used to regular times to be on the loo, plenty of time to be there ( patience with him is most important ) and congratulate him when things happen in the loo or at the least he tries to go. Take all pressure off him when he is in the loo, teach him that toilet motions happen best when there is no pressure to perform and that given the right habits, these things will improve with time and patience. Above all, keep him reassured and happy in the home place ...... take charge of his stresses and simply let him know that time will definately heal this one!

Answer 8

My much younger brother did this around the same age you are describing. His Dr. suggested every trick in the book but nothing worked. In the end his pediatrician told my dad and his wife that at that age it is generally a phsycological thing. He told them they would have to treat it as a discipline issue. So they started simply spanking him whenever he did it, and made him scrub his own underwear. Inside of 2 weeks the problem was solved. Im not saying this will work for you but it might give you some ideas as a way to look at the situation.

Answer 9

Get two buckets -- fill one with warm water and a little laundry soap and one with cool, clean water. Make him wash his dirty pants, by hand, himself. Don't put him on public display or yell at him about it or beat him for it, just matter-of-factly make it his chore and be firm that he complete his chore to your satisfaction before he can do anything else.

In the meantime, be a parent. If he doesn't take enough fruit and veg, it's because you haven't been making him eat enough fruit and veg. Serve his fruit and/or vegetables first, make it clear that he can have no servings of anything else until he cleans his plate and that if it isn't clean within a certain amount of time, he's going to bed for the rest of the night -- no light, no tv, no toys -- and mean it. If he throws a tantrum, send him to his room to throw it and ignore him until he's finished with it, then bring him back to the table with the same rule -- nothing else until he's cleaned his plate and he has a time limit.

Answer 10

Does it get him special attention. Try ignoring it. Let peer pressure go to work or his own discomfort. Not for long periods of time. That would be unhealthy. But if you change him everytime he does this he never feels the discomfort. Try putting him back in diapers and treating him like a baby. But that means everything goes back to being a baby. No outside play no nintendo, no doing the things that 7yr olds like to do. If it for attention this will work. What does your doctor say. Has he been tested for mental impairment? ADHD ? Ausitsm?

Answer 11

My daughter was also severly constipated and had this same issue (for more than 2 years!!!)... We did the powder drink too (Myralax) and it didn't help her either, and I even took her to a GI doctor. I just started making her sit on the toilet every night after dinner until she'd go. Try a warm bath too while he's supposed to be going so he can relax enough to go... It helps, though, too, that she is now old enough to be embarassed about it. She doesn't want other kids to make fun of her now, so she makes sure to go. (ie... he'll grow out of it)...