Poopy Situation

Unfortunately I went through the same thing with my daughter. The good news is that it didn't last long, only a few months. What I did was put a pair of tights on her under a onesie (so she couldn't take them off). My friend suggested cutting the feet out of a sleeper and putting it on her backwards, but I didn't want to destroy anything. Even a thin pair of leggings under a onesie would work, and isn't too uncomfortable. Hopefully it will pass for you as quickly as it did for me!

I'd try buying a video camera monitor and stopping her when she's about to do it. Good luck, that sounds really difficult.

Have you tried putting pants over her onesie? If she knows how to take off her pants, I would try putting a belt on her pants as well. Also, try investing in a video and sound monitor. That way you can see and hear her when she wakes up before she begins to create the mess. Hope you find something that works.

If you get a sleeper outfit with the zippers or snaps and no feet in them put them on backwards so the snaps and or zipper is in the back. She wont be able to reach the zipper or snaps, im thinking the zipper would be alot harder to get at than the snaps.

Good Luck

Hope it helps

G.

S.,
Sounds like you might have one of the rare early potty trainers on your hands! See if you can make a game out of her getting her poop to the potty, whether she takes her own diaper there, or maybe you could get her there right before she has to poop. Other than that, perhaps a change in nap time would do the trick...she may be regular enough that she goes same time everyday (or after eating, etc.). Poop really sucks to deal with, I know. Have you considered letting her nap on the couch or somewhere you could watch over her?
Best of luck!
L.

My mom has told me stories about my sister doing this as a child. She seemed to like getting the attention and the bath, so my mom's solution was to not say a word about it. Leave her in the crib while you strip the bed down and change the sheets around her. Give her a sponge bath while in the crib and don't let her get out of the bed. No scolding, nothing... She did that one time and my sister never did it again. I don't know if this will work for you or not, but it did for my mom.

I think all little kids do this, unfortunately. LOL. Try telling her it's not okay and she's making it tough on you by throwing it on the floor. Tell her instead to yell for you when she'd dirty at naptime. I know she's still young but it never hurts trying to talk to them.

I'm sure she'll grow out of it. Hang in there. You might try also throwing down a sheet or a junky rug in her bedroom to save your floors a bit.

S.,
I would be rather frustrated too. I have two suggestions; put one of those video baby monitors in her roon (perhaps you could get one cheap at a resale shop) that way you can see her and stop her before she wakes up. Secondly, could you put her in footie pajamas, or maybe a pair of overalls with a onsie underneath. The more layers she has the harder it would be to get to, and with footie pajamas there wouldn't be leg holes. Good luck with this!!!
M.

Would she possibly be ready to potty train? My daughter used to do this to, and she would play in it, and we'd tell her no, but it didn't really help, she had to just outgrow it.K.

OMG...I thought my now 7 year old son was the only one who did that. I had a horrible time with him when he was 18m-2years. I finally took advice from the pediatrition and did the sleeper PJ trick. I pi=ut a zipper pj set sith no feet on backwards so he couldn't get out of them. He didn't like it...but as bad as listening to him cry the first few times...it was nothing like trying to clean poop out of a VCR tape!!!!!!!!! Good Luck! Maybe it'll be nice just to know you are not alone in this.

Have you tried to see if she's ready for the potty. With all those signs (bringing you a diaper and trying to get it off of her) sounds like you can maybe see if sht's interested in potty training. This may show her that there is a place for poop and it's not on her floor, crib or hands.

Never hurts.

Hi S.

I so feel for you, I went through the same thing w/ my son when he was a little younger then your daughter. I had never in my life heard of a child doing such a thing. I thought that a lot when my son was between the age of one and 4. Now I just look up what ever it is he is doing to see if I am a cult of one. I have never found anything I have looked up to be something only my kid does. Anyway, I even took my son to the doctor and the doctor did some blood work. It turned out the only thing he was missing was the knowladge to know better. I guess kids that age don't think yuck like we do.

I like the ideas of putting tights or leggings on under her onsie. I don't know if you have a baby monitor in her room, but w/ one you might hear her sooner after she wakes up. I can tell you, my son is now 8yrs old and he has not played w/ poop in a long time, so this phase does end. I would be sure to tell her though that it is not for her play in, she is old enough to know its yucky and a no no to play in it or touch it. I know she can get up the leg of her diaper, but w/ my son he took the diaper off. So for him I put it on backwards. I don't know if that will help in your situation. I would think the tights, legging or one one peice jammies on backwards is a good way to keep her out of her diaper.

My guess is like w/ anything she is curious. I think kids are most curious about the stuff that comes out of them. I would be sure to let her know it is not to be played in or with.

I wish you all the best and I hope it ends soon. Crib bedding is hard enough to change and when you have the bedding, the crib and the child to clean it can be very frustrating.

Good luck to you, let us know what works.

T.

One of mine did that too. I duct taped his diapers on with the outside overlap ending in the back. When he started wiggling out of those I put him in footie jammies and wrapped a strip of duct tape around his chest just under his armpits - again with the strip of tape ending in the back where he couldn't reach it. He never did figure that one out and he eventually gave up or outgrew the behavior.

I'm no expert but to me it sounds like she's ready to begin potty training.

I wonder if distracting her would work...just long enough for you to hear her waking up. Soon after she falls asleep in her bed, quietly place a new toy or a toy she hasn't seen in a LONG time in her bed with her so when she wakes up she is interested in the toy, not her poop. It's got to be worth a try!!

LOL! I know it has to be a major pain in the rear to clean up, but aren't kids crazy?? If anything you will have a fun story to tell her when she gets older about when she was little, you know...the embarassing story you threaten to bring up with boyfriends or at Thanksgiving dinner? Okay, I'm just being mischievous, but I hope for your sake it passes quickly. I can understand about doing the bath and wash everyday and how that can be tiring. Good luck! :)

Is she ready for potty training? Could you try to get her to poop on the potty before nap time? I'm not an expert by any means, just a thought.
C.

my daughter did the very same thing the first thing i did was ou her in a footy sleeper and safed pined the zipper to the outfit then she learned to undo it so i started to duck tape her diper i put the diper on sung enough to keep her hand out and then put a strip of duck tape around the top of the diper, my daughter loved plaing with her poop i never figured out why she would ge it all over it was so gross-- i got so tired of cleaning it ot of her finger nails and i was constantly washing her sheets. hope this helps my daughter only did it for like a year then stoped.

maybe footed pajamas with the tabs over the zipper? If she's able to still undo the zipper I've heard of people putting in on inside out. Are there any toys in her crib that might distract her from playing with poop?

Have you considered starting to potty train her? Maybe with her fascinantion with poop she'll take to it well and will want to put her poop in her potty rather than in her diaper? My son is only 11 months old, this just sounds like it might work but I really have no idea! haha... good luck.

Hi S.,
I had a friend who went through this as well. She finally bought some pjs that zipped and put them on her daughter backwards. There was no way her child could unzip them with the zipper at her back. I think she cut the feet out and found short sleeved pairs in the summer. Her daughter outgrew it after about 4-6 months, I think. Good luck! I hope you find a solution!
J.

Use pajamas with the feet in them and put them on backwards - you can even cut the legs out of them if it is too hot. Just don't cut them too short or she will go up the leg.

Have you tried a pair of footed pajamas with a duck tape belt? Just tight enough to get through this growing cycle my son did this as well we did that as well as butting his sleeper on backwards and then going for a duct tape belt. Sounds cruel but it worked wonder and its cheap cheap and the crib walls and baby stay clean will save you money in the long run due to the water usage and the clean up time worth a try. mabye the baby just likes bathes and its more to get there or it really could be trying to get more attention with you????

well good luck keep us posted
S.

Hey Maybe you could purchase a video monitor (baby monitor) then you could watch her and listen to it and catch her before she starts the dig... just an idea. We have this monitor and it has been a huge lifesaver for us. My son is very sensitive to noise (open doors and such) so we LOVE the monitor in our room and we can watch him while napping. Let us know what you do to solve the poop problem. Smile AB

I would put her in a zip up PJ with feet- and then zip it to the top and place a few safety pins criscross them if you have too and through the small hole in the zipper and see if she can get to her bottom then!! I work with a disabled child who is older than a toddler but loves to dig as well and that has been a GREAT solution. We also when she is in her day time outfits have her wear a gymnastic outfit the kind with shorts, under her button up shirt and then jeans and she can not undo the buttons and the jeans. Of course there are days when she does happen to get it all off and we still have moments, but it has improved it 99% with the use of safety pins.

safety pin her clothes together on the inside.
W.

My neice did the same thing. My sister tried everythings she could think of. Finally she did try taping her pj's on backwards. I kept telling her she was ready to potty train but my sister didn't think so, so I took her for the weekend and brought her home potty trained. I think she was about 17 months old. Usually girls are ready sooner than boys and if she is giving you signs she is ready and you let that window pass then it will be much harder for her to be trained.