How Do You Get a 4 Y/o to Poo?

If she hasn't pooped in 2 weeks, you need to take her to the doctor ASAP. This is a big deal! When one of my boys doesn't poop for 2 days we start seriously increasing the fiber. We've even had to use Miralax a couple times. But 2 weeks? She needs to see the doctor. This might not be something you can deal with at home.

Once you get this back to normal, you should read her the book "Everyone Poops" by Taro Gomi (Author), Amanda Mayer Stinchecum (Illustrator)

http://www.amazon.com/Everyone-Poops-My-Body-Science/dp/1...

It's very cute and make kids giggle. But it also teaches them that pooping is part of life and everyone (and every animal) poops. It shows babies, little kids and adults. Very, very helpful for this phase of life.

It's time to talk to the pediatrician. Right away, please. Call their on-call line.

For the smell, get this. You spray this stuff in the bowl before a poo, and it traps the bad smells under the water! Pretty awesome. http://www.poopourri.com/

When my boys were about that age, I'd give them each 2-3 prunes a day. We called them "big raisins" and they loved them. It helped to keep them regular. On the off chance they'd get a little stopped up, a couple more prunes and a cup of cooled down, doctored up (creamer and sugar) coffee usually did the trick.

Talk to the doc. She's likely impacted now and will need medical intervention.

My girl doesn't like it either and she has had a football sized blockage. Miralax several times per day every day for several days took care of it. She has to have Miralax every few months because she has chronic constipation.

Your little one's body is not able to use the food she's eating. She needs medical help before her blockage busts her intestines.

She may have some stuff come past her blockage but it's....seepage. It can even seem firmer if it sits in her bowels for very long. But holding her pooh will result in a blockage. She needs an X-Ray to see how extensive it is.

If she hasn't pooped in two weeks you need to call the doctor. At this point, even if she was refusing on purpose to START with, she has constipated herself and is not going to be able to poop even if she tries... this isn't something you can talk her into.

Get her to the doctor.

They will recommend a laxative. Probably Miralax every day for a while.

Good luck.

T.

Please update us. By the time you read even one more post you should already have taken her to the doctor. She may have bowel damage from holding in poop -- that can be very serious. Stop focusing on the power struggle between you and her, and get her medical help now. Do not wait until Monday. Get to an urgent care or the ER. An impacted bowel can lead to very serious complications.

At this point, if she has not had a bowel movement in 2 weeks, you need to see a doctor.

She may be severely impacted, which can stretch out the colon and damage the nerves in the colon that help her recognize when she does need to poop.

No one should go two weeks without a bowel movement, A..

It might be too late to give her some sort of OTC laxative. She might be impacted. The damage she is doing to herself is bad. You are in a power struggle with your child. This should NOT be a battle. She needs to be seen by a doctor. TODAY.

From this point forward, you need to help your daughter poop EVERY DAY. That means making sure she is eating right, to keep her poop soft. Plenty of water and fiber.

Please take her to the doctor TODAY.

I would do a few things
-take her to the dr to make sure it's nothing more serious
-then I would try a few things that would make it easier for her to go like
feeding her foods that are more apt to make her go & less apts to make
her constipated.
-put one of those good smelling plug ins so at least the bathroom has a
good smell to start off with.
-tell her since she's a big girl now, if she can start going to the bathroom (#2) then you will take her to the store & buy her a toy. In the meantime, the next time she does go to the bathroom, have a small toy on hand to give her like a plastic tea set or something.
-What all this is doing is making it comfortable for her & encouraging her trying to get around the "unfortunate parts of the process".
-have a few things in there for her (a few of her favorite books, a kid towel
of her fave character, a cute kid rug, a cute nightlight etc.)
-feed her some foods you know make her go
-try taking her in when you think she might need to go, leave the door partially open, tell her you'll be in the hall & only have her sit there for about 10 mins w/a book on her lap, maybe even the type with the voice readin the book if you push a button. This way you are not only encouraging her to go but you're making the experience much more pleasant. From child psych classes, some kids hold onto their bowel movements b/c they feel like they are dropping part of them down the hole. For some it's just an unpleasant experience. For some it hurts, if their diet isn't conducive to helping them go etc.

So be patient, try diff things. She won't be like this forever. Just a stage that will soon pass.

ETA: 2 weeks?! Call the doc!

Have you tried the angle explaining that after your body takes all of the good stuff, energy, vitamins, out of the good you eat, the Easter left over is poo & it's best flushed away?

Sticker chart?

Explain it's not "part of her" but just waste?

Hi A.! My daughter did the same stinkin' (no pun intended) thing! I would recommend Miralax. Give her a full capful in some milk (or chocolate milk) and make sure she drinks the whole thing. I would often put it in chocolate milk as a treat and not even tell her its in there. Give it a few hours and it will come out whether she wants it to or not. A bit of warning though...it may get runny so if you have any pull ups, I would recommend those until the threat of a big yucky mess has passed. Also, you can buy glycerin suppositories at the drug store. Those work great but inserting them in an unwilling 4 year old is not for the weak (I speak from experience).

Also just know that this is common and I guarantee that this stubbornness in potty training will pass. So keep your head up because I know how frustrating it can be for you! :)

You need to take this a bit more seriously. My youngest has been constipated for the last three years, but for the last year would literally go 10-14 days between movements.

Her colon is so stretched from the build-up that she can no longer sense when she has to go, so I cannot potty train her. She is devastated - I had to change her diaper in the nursery at church the other day (she just turned four today) and she actually said, "Mommy, then all the little kids will know that I pooped." She was SAD. Her doctors have advised me that she probably won't begin toilet training for BM's for almost a year, because that's how long it will take the damage in her colon to heal. She'll be in diapers until she is FIVE - a very bright little girl, who just physically can't learn to go when she needs to. THAT'S what you have to look forward to if you let this continue.

What breaks my heart is that we did everything we COULD to treat this, including daily Miralax, fiber supplements, lots of water, etc - and because of other health conditions, this just happened to her anyhow.

It's not something to joke about. Put her on Miralax, a full cap twice a day until she goes, and then continue one cap a day for a week, then half a cap - wean her back off of it. It won't likely make her go very quickly - it's not a laxative, it's a stool softener. It only has laxative properties in much larger amounts - like 2 capfuls at a time four times a day, which is the highest dose my daughter has ever had.

If she doesn't go within 24 hours, you can go get a bottle of Magnesium Citrate at the pharmacy for a dollar. An ounce of that stuff WILL make her go, believe me, but with THAT be prepared for some loose stools.

After this - if this is TRULY a battle of wills - you need to share with your daughter MY daughter's story. Ask her if she wants to go back to being in diapers and stay in them for the next year or two, and have to poop in a diaper and have the other kids know.

A.,

Welcome to mamapedia!

I'm sorry - if your daughter hasn't had a bowel movement in two weeks? There is a SERIOUS problem and no amount of bribery will work.

She is going to hurt herself by holding it. The rectum can stretch only so far and then it will lose sensation. She will NOT be able to hold it in after that. It will leak. And she's too young to be on a colostomy bag for the rest of her life.

Give her EXLAX to get her bowels softened.
Make sure she drinks PLENTY of water.
Yes, poop smells, that's because it's everything our body does NOT need. Instead of fighting her on this - teach her about her body.

If she doesn't go in the next 12 hours? I would take her to the urgent care nearest you and get them to help her. Worst case scenario? Her bowels stretch to the point of leaking and she gets sepsis (internal infection that causes her body to shut down). She could get an impacted bowel and they would have to do something drastic to help her. Personally? i wouldn't wait. I would call my pediatrician and let them know the problem - they will most likely tell you to take her to an urgent care and call ahead for you.

Good luck!

My mom would tell me if I didn't poo the poo will come out of my mouth. That surely convinced me and I pooped. Also I would by air freshener to spray the toilet so it doesn't smell.

My GS had the same situation as Mrslavillie - it is very serious. Get her to the doctor TODAY!!!!

I agree with everyone here. This is something very serious and must be discussed with her doctor. Maybe it hurts her and thats the only way her 4yo self can express it saying it stinks. Anyway,dog, baby or a 30 yr old has to poop everyday. 2 weeks is a medical prob. Goodluck