Dear Dr. Heather,Â
I have a question for you regarding my daughter, who turned 3 in October. She has been potty trained (pee at least) since August. Here is the problem….she poops in her sleep. She also poops on the potty if she has to go while she is awake. But mostly, she is pooping in her pull-up during naptime. She also has pooped twice at nighttime. I don’t know if she is holding it to do it while she has a pull-up on, or if she is sleeping so soundly that she doesn’t realize she is doing it. Since she also poops on the potty, I don’t know what to think. Is it possible to influence the time of day she poops? She will be starting preschool soon and I am concerned that she will poop in her underwear at school during naptime. When she does poop in her pull-up, she apologizes profusely. I used to say that she needs to poop in the potty, not in her pull-up, but I don’t want to turn her into a neurotic kid, so I just clean her up and say nothing. Any suggestions?
Thanks for your help.
Marcia
Hi Marcia,
It sounds like you are being sensitive to your daughter regarding her poopy-timing. I'm glad you're not pressuring her about the issue. And the fact that she apologizes profusely shows you that she knows what she is supposed to do, but isn't there yet. You're right; lecturing her about it won't help. And I wouldn't suggest doing anything to somehow manipulate her potty schedule; this would likely be felt as intrusive by her.
It also seems that it wouldn't concern you as much if it weren't for the preschool issue. Many preschools have rules that state the child must be "toilet independent" before starting school. The pressure to be "completely" potty trained before starting preschool MAKES ME CRAZY! It's really unrealistic for many kids, and parents feel compelled to get their kids trained before they're ready. This can cause problems later on.
That said, many schools WILL work with you, if you approach them directly. Believe me, this isn't the first time they've dealt with this! They can support your daughter on her way to being fully potty trained. If her school won't work with you on this -- look elsewhere. You want a place that understands the developmental issues of preschoolers.
In the meantime, continue to praise her efforts, and be neutrally supportive when she has an accident. I wouldn't dwell on it much with her; it sounds as if she KNOWS what is expected, and that's what matters. It sounds like she's well on her way to having full control over her potty needs, and I'll bet that soon, she'll be making good progress.
Good luck and let us know how it goes!
Aloha,
Dr. Heather The BabyShrink