Potty Training

[Christine E]

Hi, did anyone have trouble potty training their celiac child and suspect it was due to celiac disease? Especially pooping on the potty? Is it reasonable to get a doctor letter to allow my 3 1/2 year old son to wear pull-ups to preschool due to the irregularity in bowel movements? I suspect he is often constipated and that may be the problem. He's pretty good with going pee-pee in the potty, but I wonder if number two has to do with celiac, or is it just normal potty training? Any suggestions?

[dandelionmom]

We have the same problem. Julia is 3 and a half and I'm not sure if she can go to preschool in a pull up. She does so well with pee but I just don't think she has enough notice when she has have a bm.

[Christine E]

Do you think it's celiac related?

[CarlaB]

None of my six kids wanted to poo on the toilet. I would sit them there when I knew they had to go, they would hold it, then go as soon as I put the diaper back on.

SO, what I did is, pay attention to when they go ... when you see the signs that it's coming soon, have them SQUAT on the toilet (stand on the seat and hold onto you for balance). This is the position they get in to go in their pants, so it's more natural. The added bonus is, they can't hold it!

We had to hold my son in this position because he would try to stand up straight to stop it from coming out.

After a couple times of this, the fear of pooing in the toilet is gone.

If they're having loose bm's and not making it to the toilet, that's a whole different story. I think many adults here can relate to that!

[vanillazeis]

my little girl turned 3 last monday, and we're dealing with the same situation. i was wondering if i talked to her school if they would make an exception for her to start preschool in pull-ups. im nervous!! although i've been bribing her and telling her that her baby brother goes potty in his diaper because thats what babies do, but big girls go big girl potty. seems to be working, but she still goes in her pull-up once or twice a week. i think the answer here is to quit putting pull-ups on her, but we're still dealing with some diarrhea, she's only been gluten free for a month. i dont have the answer. sorry. if it makes you more comfortable, talk to her pre-school about it, im sure they will be understanding. unless its a public preschool. then i would get a note from my dr!

[CarlaB]

but we're still dealing with some diarrhea, she's only been gluten free for a month.

I really think a doctor's note would be a good idea. We adults even struggle to stay clean when we are dealing with diarrhea. I think it's way too much to expect a newly potty trained kid to be able to handle it ... they have enough stress with dealing with their celiac than to feel bad about "accidents" that are truly accidents.

[covsooze]

I agreee with carla re the pull ups at school but, please be aware that poos on the toilet are difficult for olts of kids, not just coeliacs. We had big problems with our DS getting him to poo on the toilet, but it eventually just clicked. When seeking help with it, we discovered that loads of kids struggle with poo related fears. One day they just get it. I told the nursery teacher about it and she was great, she said not to worry and that he won't be in pull-ups when he's 18! Just wanted to reassure you that you will get there

Susie x

[dandelionmom]

I am sure it is celiac related. She looks so sad when it happens and she says, "I didn't know."

I think she has so much gas that she can't differentiate the feelings. Just today she ran to the bathroom yelling, "I have to GOOOOO!" And she actually did, right on the potty. I don't know how quickly children start to feel better but we've been gluten-free for a week and I'm noticing a marked improvement in her overall temperament so I wonder if the potty success is another sign that she is feeling better.

[Juliet]

Our son is almost 3 years and 10 months and all we've gotten him to do is pee on the toilet 5 times in the last month. We can't get him to do anything else. He's absolutely PARANOID when he doesn't have his diaper on. He begs and cries for it to be back on. He doesn't even like it off when he's taking a bath. He's been gluten free for over a year and a half, and during that time he's only had 2 really bad diarrhea episodes, but the fear of losing control is still there, we think, in part, because it was soooooooooooooo bad before diagnosis. So he always wants it on just in case. We found a pre-school that will take him even if he still uses diapers and we plan on starting him there next month. Any suggestions from others who've dealt with this I'd be glad to receive. In the meantime, I'm jealous of all of you who at least have their kids pee in the toilet!

[vanillazeis]

i dont know if your kiddo still takes naps or not, but the way i started getting bayleigh to pee on the potty was putting her on it right when she wakes up from her nap, at first we read books and sang songs, but we sat there until she went. eventually it turned into always going on the potty. if he wakes up dry in the morning you could try then... or even if he doesnt if he wakes up at the same time everyday, wake him up before he usually wakes up and run him to the potty. i also reward with jelly beans. for my kid it was like she really didnt understand what she was supposed to do, and when she finally got it, it just kinda clicked. good luck!