Movicol help

[Holly18]

Hi there

My son is 3 1/2 and he has been on 1 - 2 sachets of Movicol a day for the last 5 ish months. I think we are at the maintenance stage but it can vary. He is mostly doing soft poos but very large sometimes. In between small soft poos come out and get stuck in his bum and he will call me to help him to wipe them away.

He won't go to the toilet when he gets the urge and will hide from me. If I see him do this, I will calmly take him to the toilet , but as soon as he sits down he tells me he doesn't need to go anymore. When he does go properly it's in his pants.

Any tips on how i can get him to go to the toilet when he has the urge.

Thank you - any advice appreciated

[Babi30]

Hi there make it fun make the toilet sitting a game blow bubbles, or throw a little ball to each other or a toilet roll lol hope this helps x

[Holly18 in reply to Babi30]

Thank you for replying. Yes I will try different games and see how that works. Novelty wears of quick sometimes .

Ha toilet roll good idea x

[Helen36]

Try sitting him on the toilet at the same time everyday to try for a poo. Ideally it should be 20 minutes after eating and probably breakfast or main meal depending on when you think best chance of success based on his patterns! Make sure he has a proper toilet seat and a decent step so he has his feet up quite high and his legs are at a right angle to body and knees. Playing blowing out games like bubbles are great for relaxing the bowel and reward him just for trying. Sit for 3-5 min, no more. Given that he hides from you, you might want to try offering him some privacy for a minute or two as well. He's still quite little so I wouldn't worry too much, he will get it, just try and give him and his bowel as much consistency with times of trying and movicol intake as possible. I would use the movicol to keep his poos on the softer side to help avoid withholding. You're doing everything right, just have faith he'll get there in the end. Xxxx

[Luella19]

Would he use a potty still? My daughter was like this at his age and I used to put a potty in her bedroom and leave her after the bath in the evening with no pj bottoms on and she got into a routine of pooing in her potty in her room. She would always need to go in the evening at a similar time when on movicol and with lack of pants or pjs to poo in she would sit on potty.

It wasn’t all plain sailing after that but it was the start of seeing the first steps to improvement.

My daughter used to get the small bits of poo stuck in her bottom too and has done over the years still. She is now 7. It can get better over time x

[Holly18]

Thank you both for your replies. It’s definately given me a lot to think about. I was thinking of buying a higher step as I had read about keeping their legs high to open the bowels. I have a potty which I keep in the living room but I like your idea of putting one in his bedroom and that would also be some privacy for him. It’s trying to get a routine going and being consistent.

I can foresee he will need Movicol for sometime- still trying to get the dose right. He’s a fussy eater and I’m trying to get more fibre in his diet !

Thanks again

[Helen36 in reply to Holly18]

Hello again - potty's definitely a better place to work on first. Toilets can be really scary. Ikea do a good high step.

One other thought (can't believe I forgot this when I messaged before!), our big breakthrough came with a book called ''meet the poos" that explains why we need to let our poos out when we can feel them coming, and that they really want to go in the toilet so they can be with the rest of the poo family. THere's lots of books like this out there but I think this one is specifically designed for children that are withholding so might be worth a try. He's probably a perfect age for it. amazon.co.uk/Meet-Poos-Rob-...

And on the fussy eating point, I feel your pain, my daughter is the same. Childhood constipation is so much more complicated that just fibre consumption so I just try to do my best, make sure she drinks plenty and hope for the best. X

[Holly18]

Hi it’s that the same book that’s also an app. He has watched It a few times on the I pad. I didn’t realise it was a book as well.

I have also just ordered a high step, I have been meaning to do this for a while. The one we have is not high enough.

Thank you for great advice. I’m really working on trying to get him to sit on the toilet after meal times. He drinks a good amount throughout he day- mostly squash which isn’t great for his teeth. He will only take the Movicol mixed with squash which has to be quite strong .

Although I worry about his teeth, it’s more important that he is drinking.

Thanks again- long road ahead and hopefuly this will improve before he starts full time school.