Encopresis

Dear Adoption Maharishi: What Are Some Effective Strategies to Help School Age Encopresis?

Submitted by Adoption_Maharishi on Thu, 01/21/2010 - 01:24

 

 

Dear Adoption Maharishi,

 

We have a student who has encopresis and RAD. What are some effective strategies we can use to help this 10 year old boy reduce these incidents?

 

Signed,

Evansb

 

Dear Evansb,

Congratulations on your steadfast commitment to this 10-year-old child with severe emotional issues. Many caretakers are unable to deal with an older child struggling with encopresis over the long-term. Because of the odor, shock, disgust, and continuously replacing soiled clothing that either will not come clean or refuse to give up their odor. Some children with encopresis issues also paint feces on the wall, rub their poop into carpets, and refuse to clean themselves appropriately afterward soiling undergarments. These children may also place soiled garments into the laundry hamper without rinsing them or disposing of the bowel movement creating a bigger mess by soiling the entire load of laundry. Continuing this behavior problem, especially at school will result in lost, or non-existent friendships, name calling, low self-esteem, shame, guilt, and lost learning time.

Are the Consequences Appropriate for the Misdeed?

Submitted by JuliaFuller on Wed, 04/22/2009 - 12:28

Pooping issues with older children are frustrating, smelly, and just an all around disgusting problem. However, pooping issues are also quite common with older child placements. If you are parenting a child with RAD, you may experience a full array of repulsive behaviors designed to drive you, the parents, emotionally away from the child. We have a teenager who has tried her darnedest to drive us away during the 11 years she has lived in our home. You may not really expect a 15-year-old girl to have pooping issues, well I would not expect it, in fact, I did not expect it, nor did my husband. Usually teenage girls are extremely self-conscious, worried about fitting in, being exactly like their peers, and trying to be perfect. Unfortunately, that does not describe our teenage daughter with FAS.

Special Needs Adoptive Parenting – Encopresis

Submitted by FosterMommy on Tue, 01/20/2009 - 01:01

Prior to reaching the chronological or developmental age of four, episodes of encopresis are most likely a potty training issue instead of a behavior problem. When a child older than four frequently places bowel movements somewhere other than into the toilet, there is a problem. Encopresis is a smelly and annoying issue to deal with, regardless of whether the stool is voluntary, involuntary, formed, semi-formed, or liquid. Prior to assuming that you have a sticky issue to address, rule out possible medical or developmental issues for your child’s encopresis. Schedule a complete physical informing your pediatrician that you are looking for possible bowel complications so that the correct test are run. Once physical issues are ruled out, you may assume that your child has a behavior issue. Find an experienced child therapist to work with your child using play therapy, games, and drawings to help resolve the behavior. Encopresis is sometimes the result of early sexual abuse.