Before my youngest was potty trained, it was not unusual for him to have 2 or 3 BMs a day. Once he was trained, he started going once a day. ????????? Before he was trained, he didn't seem to care whether he was clean or dirty. However, I wonder if he went a smaller amount several times a day because he didn't like the sensation of a lot of waste in his pull-up.
Our ds goes 3-6 times a day every day, and we were told my 3 nutritionists that 3 x a day is NORMAL, so our son exceeds normal most days, but lots of asd kiddos are extreme one way or the other.
still in diapers at 8....sigh!
Wow LeeAnne, you guys have been through a ton of stuff already.
My son R eats twice as much as me (for real) and poops maybe once per day, sometimes every other day. My son C eats well, typical for a 6 year old, but much less than his brother who is an eating machine, and poops twice per day minimum. Ever since they were they were 1 year old (that is the age that R caught up to C in weight), they have weighed the same, R has eaten more, and C has pooped more. Odd, odd, odd.
I don't have a lot to add - I'm not the medical guru - but from my observation of my limited sample here, some kids just poop more than others and it doesn't seem to be related to how much they eat.
Okay, after 6 1/2 years of changing his poopy diapers, I'm whipped. This may be a medical question, but I'll ask you experienced hands first. AndrewsMommy - this might be something you know about.
Cole has probably 3 BMs per day in his pullup, and would happily wander about "muddy" if I didn't smell him and go get the wipes, etc. He has zero signs of potty training readiness, with the exception of him going to a quiet, lone spot and lying down on his back with his knees bent. Yikes - sorry to be so graphic!
When we do the toileting schedule, every now and then (maybe 1/30) he will produce a tiny product, perfect in every way. Maybe a drop of urine or two.
We tested his immune system for the gammaglobulin levels years ago to see if he had food allergies (or seliacs). He is just fine, so I know that the milk-free and wheat-free diet is a waste of my precious energy and patience.
Cole's fine motor skills are pretty bad with his fingers and even wiggling his feet into his slip-on Croc's. His hands are weak - can't depress the little tongue on the outside of the front door and push simultaneously to open it. His little brother has to open it for him.
He was born 14 weeks premature and weighed a bit over one pound. He got fungal sepsis - a deadly infection - and was on powerful meds for a month. Also did 5 rounds of steroids.
Soooo, is there a chance he has weakness in his sphincter - maybe? - like he has weakness in his other fine motor areas? He also had a hypospadius repair surgery (rebuilt his penis because the urethra didn't pee out the end, but mid shaft). Also had a bilateral hernia surgery. So, maybe the nerves surrounding his bladder and penis are messed up?
The doc who said he seems to have a busy, preoccupied ADHD mind told us that he is way too busy to pay attention to the peeing and pooping thing.
So, is it crummy fine motor control? Sensory insensitivity (IS that a real word?)? ADHD? Or just good old fashioned autism? I know the fact that he doesn't care what we think of him peeing/soiling himself doesn't help. Most kids want to be "a big boy"...he is proud of his reading, or computer work, but doesn't show much ego otherwise.
Any suggestion, oh smart people? I feel disgust over this, particularly when he gets a stomach flu (changed 14 small muddy pullups daily for 3 days). When I take him to the potty, and he protests loudly, I'm giving in a bit...yes, I need to make the rules stick and be consistent, but am afraid of making this a power struggle. Its his bodily matter, and therefore a fight I will never win! Thanks.
Everyone's different with BM's so maybe 3 is normal for him? My son Matthew often goes 2xday and my oldest only every 3 days. Maybe diet in general has something to do with it like fiber intake. Also, I know even if you had allergy testing, there are false positives and negatives in allergy testing so you never really know until you eliminate a food. What are the consistency? graphic I know but it's just poop and we all do it
I keep thinking of him having a wimpy trap door that springs open with the slightest pressure. Like, if you have the stomach flu, you will suddenly have to run to the loo because you feel a lack of control down south. Well, maybe he has a lack of control down south from the preemie thing. Or autism. Or the surgeries.
Since he doesn't do the deed into the toilet, I have to judge his "product" like we all did when they were babies in diapers. It's mushy, not firm, not watery. Like Goldilocks said, juuuuuust right! OMG, did I just say that?
I worry that the only thing they will say can pinpoint irritable bowel or something is a colonoscopy. As some of you may have read before, this little kids' been through more pain and unpleasantness than half the occupants in the geriatric ward. I am loathe to do something with the only up side being we start giving him Tagamet or something to sooth his GI tract. He does not act crampy, but then again, he sucks up pain pretty bravely.
He whacked his head hard coming up for air on the side of the pool today, and started really crying...two of us ran over, and he said "its okay, I'm happy. I'm happy. Mom, can I just give you a hug?" while giant tears streamed down his face, and he did a couple quiet sobs. He feels pain like any other little boy and quietly cries. No drama at all - Cole just sort of bears up. He tries to reassure me (and himself) that it will be over soon. Too much experience with pain, I guess. Gotta stop...gonna cry myself.
When Cole's in school, he typically will wait until he is home to start delivering his packages. I think they keep him busy at school, and he doesn't have the opportunity to go have a private moment by himself. So maybe he CAN hold it. They do take him to the bathroom on a toileting schedule, but he rarely actually pees or eliminates anything.
If he has a large meal, then yes - unless he's already gone multiple times that day, we can expect a delivery.
He is not currently on meds, though when school starts back up, we'll go back to Methylin (Ritalin's competitor). Have dumped it this summer since he's doing prettty well in the mornings at summer school, and he's had 4 different viral infections.
He doesn't drink juice, but does consume a lot of watered down Powerade or Gatorade. He refuses to drink milk, and the doc says what we're giving him ought to be okay. But maybe not?