Potty Training - Pittsburgh,PA

I am having the same issue. My son is 4 1/2 and also diagnosed with high functioning autism.We are having a very hard time potty training him as well. We too have tried the sticker chart and the prize angle. Hasn't worked for us. Ninety percent of the time he will pee in the toilet, but pooping is another story all-together. My son also attends DART. I wish I had some advice for you, but I haven't found the solution yet either. I thought you may just want to hear from someone that is in the same boat so that you know you are not alone.

As old as you may feel he is, and think that by now he should definitely be going on the potty completely, is understandable, but it's not abnormal. Especially since he has autism. Autism children tend to develop a bit slower. HOWEVER, my daughter was three and a half until she was potty trained and there is nothing at all wrong with her, besides she just was not ready, and yes, three is old for toddlers not to be going on the potty regularly. My boys were two when they were completely trained. However, any mother of potty trained children and any doctor will tell you that they will go when they're ready, and not until then.

God bless any mom trying to get their kiddo to poop on the potty!!! My son, 3 1/2- just started last week all on his own. I had tried everything....stickers, prizes, special trips out...nothing seemed to work. Just one day, he wanted to do it. I can give you advice from other Moms that i got, getting him a toy he REALLY wants but leaving it in the package-letting him hold it while he sits on the potty trying to poop, then getting to open it when he does. My pediatrician suggested putting a potty chair in front of the TV and letting him sit there while watching a show to distract him-hang in there....he won't be in diapers FOREVER! Do you think he could be constipated? You had mentioned that he had a 'pebble' poop. If that is common for him, maybe he needs to drink more fluids during the day or eat more fiber. Best to you!

I have a 4 year old with an undiagnosed learning disorder (we go to the developmental ped on 3/31) and she doesn't consistantly pee on the potty and is barely sqeezing into the largest size of pull ups. I must admit, I have no advice for you, but I will say I am envious that your son "at least" pees on the potty. I can only say that there are other kids like your son out there. Somehow they will learn. I pray for that day everyday for my daughter.

Patience, patience, patience. Let him go at his own pace. He will do it in his time, not yours.
Congratulations to you and your caring for him, God's creature.

I am a high functioning autisic grown up. I know from experince that if there is not enough fiber in my diet it can two or three days to produce anything. I would not push because he will only push back. Try some more behavioral mod. techs. He amy be confused about your expections. It is possible to train the gut to move at a certian time of day. Iwould split the water express from the solid waste. Have him try right after a meal.

Hi, I feel your pain, my son is 6 and 1/2 and still wears pull ups due to having a Bm problem and the potty. He was diagnosed with Aspergers syndrome.He to will pee on the potty like he has been doing for a couple years, but the BM's are a different issue. After taking him to a specialist, he was constipated and had encropesis they call it and he would "leak" three or more times a day. That is where his BM would go around the mass of back up in his intestines instead of all of it coming out so in turn his muscles stretched to the point where he could not feel the urge to even go BM. Last summer we had to clean him out with daily enemas and keep him cleaned out by using Miralax and try getting him on a regular schedule. We had little success till after Christmas where all the focus was on his potty training then he did start going regularly right before his bath every night. We do have to watch if he does not go or does not go a lot one or two nights in a row, then he might need something to help himn a little. It was going well for a while, where I was comfortable sending him to school in underwear. Unfortunately, being Aspergers syndrome, he had a major change at school and he has not been going Bm on the potty at all again, so we do need to start the process over again with getting hom back on a routine. I feel your pain, it is hard, but it will work out eventually. Hope this was of some help.

I am a 31 year old mom of three children, a 6 1/2 year old with Aspergers, a 3 1/2 year old with hemophilia, and a 2 1/2 year old with asthma. Married to a great guy for 8 years.

Hi, Crissy. I have a son on the spectrum, too, but he's only 3, so I'm not too concerned (yet) that he hasn't made much progress on the potty. It should be very much to your advantage that Jordan wants to be a "big boy" -- lots of ASD kids couldn't really care about things like that, so, yes, definitely play it up. Our behavioral support people recommend fun big boy underwear as a kind of reward. It should feel better than a diaper, too. My son also has "potty cars or trucks", very prefered toys that he only gets to play with when he has some success on the potty. They're always visible in the bathroom and he's reminded, "Go potty, get an M&M, get the potty fire truck." Best of luck!
L.

Hello there. I am a professional who has worked with individuals with disabilities for 4 years and I am a mother. One of the prevalent issues with autism is a dislike of change in routine. It is very hard for those with autism to adjust to changes in routine. This could be one reason why your son has not went poop in the potty again. This small change in his regular routine coud be what is cuaing the delay. I think that your positive reinforcement with reward is a great idea. Also positive reinformcement such as encouragement in the form of "You did great by going poop in the potty last time and remember that great prize that you got." However, as with any child, the progression will move at his pace. Just keep a positive attitude about it and continue the encouragement.

Pooping can be difficult for many kids. It can sometimes be the last thing they attempt. Is it possible that his BM is too firm for him? Maybe give him things to make it more soft and be more willing to come out, like oatmeal, more fruits, applesauce, straight juice vs mixed with water, less dairy, etc. Try to see if there's a pattern with his BM. Some kids will go in the morning, some after each meal, etc. One of my triplets prefer after lunch during nap time so I try to catch him right before he goes down for nap. It does take time. Good luck!

My girls got potty trained with the m&m method. They got 1 m&m for going pee and 2 m&m's for going poo. this was the fastest way to success for me :o) Find something your child loves and give him instant gratification for accomplishing what you want him to do!
Best of luck...
J.

Hi Christine,
I'm not sure how old your son is, but I have a friend with a son with Aspergers (sp?) and I know she had a very long potty training phase with him. Apparently it is very common for autistic kids to have delayed potty training. So, sorry, I have no REAL concrete advice for you but I know my friend's son was a very visual learner (not auditory) and seeing charts helped him a lot. She would display pictures of the morning routine (toilet, wash, brush teeth, clothes, etc.) That way he had a cue as to what he was to do next. Maybe your son is also a visual learner and that could reinforce what you are doing. Good luck to you!

may be he is constipated and his bowel movements may be hard. it may hurt him to go. it sounds like you are a great mom. I wish i knew more about autism. this may be a challenge with kids who have autism. i would buy a book that jenny mcarthy has out. she is the actress dating jim carey and has a son who has autism. i would also talk to your support group if you go to one with parents who have autisitic children and see what they say. good luck.

Hi, C.. My son probably has Asperger's (we're taking him to the doctor next Friday), and he was almost 4 1/2 before he started pooping on the potty regularly. He also has problems with lactose intolerance and constipation and was on Miralax until he was pooping on the potty. (Now we still give him a half of a fiber tablet to chew every morning; he's almost 5 1/2 now.) When we were having trouble with my son pooping ont he potty, I happened to mention it to a friend of mine whose son has PDD. She had taken her son to a child psychologist in Pittsburgh, so she told me what she had been told and which worked for her son. At first our son would run all over the house when he needed to poop. Then he started standing in the kitchen. My friend told us to have him stand in the bathroom and use a sticker chart to reward him. So we did that for a few weeks. She had said to do that for 2 weeks, but it took our son longer before he was ready for the next step. Finally, after we mentioned it a few times, he was ready to try to sit on the potty wearing his pull-up. There was a lot of anxiety for him to get to this step and for a little while once we got him to this step. However, within 2 weeks of him doing this, he started pooping in the potty. Of course, we gave him a reward at each achievement. I really hope this will work for you. It worked like a charm for our son. Good luck!

My daughter had the same problem. I talked to the doctor and explained the situation. The doctor said that she was probably scared to go poop, because her poop was very hard, and it hurt her when she went. So she suggested we add a Tablespoon of mineral oil to her milk every day to loosen it up and she also prescribe Myrolax (which you can now buy over the counter), and use that. The mineral oil seemed to help pretty well, but there were some days that we used the myrolax. Both are tasteless when added to juice or milk, and she never even knew that they were in there. Also, the other thing that helped, was embarrassment. She pooped her pants while playing with 2 friends, who were potty trained, and they told her it was gross. From that day on she wanted to be like her friends and she pooped on the potty from then on.

Hope this helps you.

Dear C.,

I have children with special needs also. Some things are definitely harder and potty training is one of them. I found the Love and Logic books by the Faye's to be the most helpful. It takes real consistency but the thing that I love about their strategies for parenting is that they build independence in our children and put them in situations that are appropriate for them, to take responsibility for their choices. Love and Logic works in lots of other areas that come up for us parents too -- whether or not they have extra needs.

I'd love to hear what you think if you try it. I am starting a cyber charter school and we are using Love and Logic as our foundational philosophy - and I looked at dozens.

Best wishes.

S.

Hi Chris-
For some reason, pooping on the potty is difficult for most kids. They have no problem peeing, but poop is another story. For one, it's not quick and then it's messy (go figure, you'd think the pamper is messier) and then they're just afraid to let it out. I think what you are doing is really great, I would only advise that you keep it up and be patient. He'll catch on when he's ready. Pottying is really one of the only things they know they are in control of, might as well go with his flow with it.
A.