3 Year Old Now Refuses to Poop on Potty

My daughter used to do this also, but I would have to give her a suppository to go. She hated getting them but I would explain to her that if she doesn't let it out, that's what I have to do. After having to do that 3 or 4 times, she never held it in again. I would just remind her that if she had to go, she needs to let it out or I would have to give her one and she would go. Not the most pleasant solution, but it did work for me.

C., I have a 3 year old female with same problem could you share with me what you find out.
Thanks L.

I have a son who is 5 years old now but we went through the exact same thing with him. He started having problems when he was 2 and it was awful! My heart broke for the poor little guy everytime he had to poop. I felt like I was coaching a woman through labor when I was sitting with him by the toilet. Miralax (which has since become OTC) is the only thing that helped him. It's a powder that dissolved well in his juice and he didn't even know it was there. I did have to play with the dosage a little because too much would give him stomach cramps and diarreha so if you try it start with a little at a time to see how your little one will react. I tried boosting my sons fiber intake and he's a huge water drinker so I knew he was getting plenty of fluid but the Miralax was a life saver. We used it for over a year and a half and now he does fine without it. Good luck!!

I can really relate to this story. My grandson had the same problem. So we had a bathroom bear and a food bear. HE had issues with both.
I would take the bathroom bear in with him and talk to him about his problem with the bear. It sounds silly but it worked. The bear would talk to him about his problem not wanting to go and tell him to be brave and not be scared.
I figured whatever it took to help him was so much worth it. He finally was not scared anymore and stopped holding it. Found out he had a much better experience when he didn't hold it.
Good luck to you hope it might work for you.

I would give him a little bit of either Miralax (.25 of the cap) or a few drops of Little Tummies Laxative (it is made of senna). This will make his stools softer so it isn't as 'scary' to let them come out. What you describe is VERY common but if it becomes a pattern it will take years to get over. I am so happy you want to intervene right when the problem first arises! If you don't loosen his stool, he will fear the pain of passing a BM (even if he is no longer constipated)and hold it in, thus making him constipated. Eventually what happens is that the child gets a large amount of stool backed up inside and the pressure (experienced as cramps) get worse and worse, making the fear even stronger. Then the stool will start passing around the large stored stool and come out as small amounts of loose stool (because it had to squeeze around the large stool). Anyway, this is actually far more common than most people would realize and usually starts at 3 or 4, but once the cycle has begun usually goes on until 8-9years old. Anyway, basically you can stop this cycle right now before the fear takes on a life of its own by just loosening the stool so he passes it without any difficulty. Good luck! Feel free to send me a message to let me know how this helps!!!
S.

I "4th" the Miralax. My son has been on and off of it since he was a year and a half, first prescribed by his pediatrician and now it is OTC. Half a cap full in his drink nightly for a few days should help a lot. You kind of have to gauge how much he needs, see how he reacts and then lesson or increase the amount as needed.

Unfortunately, constipation can be a vicious cycle. It hurts to come out, but holding it in creates even more constipation. My daughter went through this when she was about 17 months. She would struggle to hold it in, clenching her cheeks and literally shaking at the strain to keep from pooping. She also developed a horrible diaper rash from the "leakage" that would happen when she tried not to poop. It was so small I couldn't smell it and wouldn't know to change her and when I did, she would scream because her skin was so raw. The solution for us was that I altered her diet. I fed her lots of fiber and water. She would eat those strawberry mini-wheats after i soaked them in milk for a while. They're actually pretty tasty. I also cut down on her dairy (no cheese, I still let her drink milk) and raisins, prune juice and lots of extra water. This eventually helped but the hardest part for me, was getting rid of the diaper rash. I know you don't have that problem but the issue to them is POOPING=PAIN. The trick is to loosen the BMs enough to get their little digestive tracks going so they can't hold it in no matter how hard they try. Once they have the first couple of "hard"BMs, the change in diet will turn the BMs softer and therefore, not painful anymore. My then 3 yr old (now 6) son also went through this (but not to the same degree as my daughter) when we were trying to potty train him. He was afraid pooping in the "Big" toilet and would hold it. Eventually, diet change and one children's suppository did the trick and we let him just poop in his little potty for a while. Then one day, he just decided the "Big" potty wasn't scary anymore. Hope this helps! Good luck!

Boy, do I feel your pain! My now 10 year old girl stopped pooping the day she turned 3 because of a rare painful episode. She withheld for about 9 months---but she DID get over it! We gave her all kinds of stuff to help keep her moving---she even tried to hold it in when she was given enemas! I found that in the end, the less I got involved emotionally the easier it was---although she would withhold until she was doubled over in pain sometimes. Definitely talk to his doctor. He/she will give you ideas of what to give him to try and keep him moving. And hang in there--this too shall pass.

Has the doctor given you any natural stool softeners? Try to research online for any kid safe foods that will naturally soften his stool so it doesn't hurt when he has to go.

I second the Miralax. It was recommended by my daughter's pediatrician. She takes 1 tsp every day or every other day. I can tell if we havne't given it to her in a while.

My daughter was put on Miralax too and it solved her cronic constipation. You can buy it over the counter now too, which is great. You can use it every day to keep things "moving" and soon he'll forget about that painful memory.

Boy can I relate to this. I had the same problem with my son. He would crouch down and hold in his poop. I would try to force him to sit on the potty, and it was a loosing battle. Then,I took the laid back route, and tried really hard to not interviene at all. That was not very successful either. What did work was that I had to take my son to the dr. for his shots. The dr. had a very serious talk with my 3 yr old about how one could get sick by holding in his poop. I have had the same talk with my son, as well as my husband, but the dr.'s lecture in the one that worked! Now he poops by himself, almost daily! ( I still have to do the wiping! )

I agree with these other moms. My daughter went through a similar situation at 3. We increased her fiber, and gave her poop incentives.We told her that if she would poop on the potty and not hold it back, Santa would bring her a special gift. I would have used miralax if it was OTC at the time. Good luck, S.

I have been using the kids fiber powder on my son, doctor approved it. Also, a lot of 100% natural fruit juice really gets him going.

Hi! My oldest son (now 9) had the exact same problem! He was holding his poop in so bad, that he would go in his sleep, and it was super hard and full of blood. I brought him to Children's Memorial to a gastroenteroligis, who put him on Miralax ( which is now over the counter ). It helped soften his poop, but he still wouldn't go. He was four at the time. The gastro told me to have him sit on the potty after every meal, for fifteen minutes. Which again did nothing! So, I ended up making a poop chart. If he went poop in the potty, five times in a row, I would buy him a present ( he really wanted a game boy advance at that time ) That seemed to work!

I also have a three year old, who pees on the potty, but refuses to poop. I'm a littly gun shy when it comes to pressuring him about it cuz i'm scared to have the same pooping problem with him as with my oldest.

My opionion: I would just take it easy with him, be patient, and everytime he has an accident, tell him it's ok, and then ask him to try the potty next time. I am a true believer of believing that kids will do it when they are truly ready.

I hope this helps! Good luck!

Not sure about getting him back on track however he probably is associating pain with pooping. As a quick fix you would try a glycerin suppository. I know it's kind of scary thinking of using one as I was afraid at first too but they are FANTASTIC and work like a charm (within 5-10 mins.)Adding more fibers and drinks to his diet should also help alleviate constipation. I can't imagine not going for TWO weeks-ouch!! Hope this helps, good luck.

I've had/have the same problem with my daughter she will be 3 in August. I went to Walgreens and spoke to the pharmacist he told me to try Pedi-Lax (fruit flavor) I just mix 1 Tbls in her milk at night and it's seemed to help.
Put this somewhere where he can't get to it cause they really like it.
I've stopped putting pressure on her about going on the potty I think that was part of the problem (being scared). Try it see if it helps.

GOOD LUCK