My 4 year old has had constipation trouble ever since he was an infant... And I mean SERIOUS constipation trouble... I've used stool softeners (as per doctors advice) until his body became used to it...

My son is so supremely picky he refuses to eat anything with lots of fiber.... I can sneak some into his diet at times, but it's hard to...

He refused "pooping" on the potty because it became painful... so would hold it in even longer... He will go to the potty now... but It's heartbreaking to hear the poor guy grunting and pushing (does NOT like me in the bathroom when he's going poop)

I finally started working mineral oil into his diet, but then he would get diarreah, so I would bump down the dosage... and he would get constipated again!!

I'm so frustrated, is anyone else having this problem??

YES! my youngest has major potty problems just as you are describing. When he was an infant I had to use suppositories for him. He is always bound up. What I am currently doing is giving him fiber capsules. I am fortunate that at 6 years old, he can choke down that horse pill. But he knows that it will help him to go, and he hates the stuff that you add to water and he has to drink. ( I even tried to add it to jello) But to teach him to swallow a pill, I started with skittles. I gave him a skittle, and told him to just gulp as much water as he can until it goes down. Another thing that seems to work, I make Kyle drink A LOT of water throughout the day. Water or apple juice, is all he gets to drink, ...... okay so he gets milk too, but for the most part, lots and lots of water. Hope this helped.

OH! and also, watermelon. He loves it, and it works. Just don't let him eat too much or you're back to the diarreah again.

hi, i've just potty trained lace, shes 4 and diagnosed autistic, her diets not good, however, i give her magnesium supplements, 7.5 - 10ml per day, its a liquid with added fruit juices, she also likes oranges, pear juice apples and pears, she poops great! when we first started potty training she didn't want to let her poop go, hence she got a bit constipated, she was on 5ml of magnesium so i uped it and she now has no problems, hope this helps good luck.

Hey,

I'm not quite sure but I do know that many medications have constipation as a side effect. Whether or not your son is on medication, I don't know.

You want to try and get him to take Fibercon, a fiber supplement since he doesn't want to eat food with fiber. Of course, ask a doctor first. Considering your son is obviously young, maybe he shouldn't take the whole pill, I don't know. Also make sure he drinks a lot of water.

Have you tried removing the dairy? That was E's biggest problem. I now give her an enzyme whenever she has any dairy - I just mix it up in her food. The one she's on is Serenaid - but there are a lot out there to choose from.

Thanks for your replies... no he's not on medication yet... he will be starting Dexedrine for his over hyperness.

I went to pediatrician today, and he was his normal out of control self... and the doctor was shocked. She wanted to know WHY I hadn't told her how bad he was... even though I was telling her how many daycares he was getting kicked out of. So she wouldn't let me leave without the Dexedrine. She said that if we are to assess him properly for Autism, he MUST be under control enough to be able to work with him.

She says at the moment, he sounds like he has BOTH ADHD and Autism... I'm supremely depressed about starting him on meds, I held it off as long as I could, but can't anymore. The Pediatrician told me she does NOT like to give ANY kind of medication to children under the age of 5, but for his case - he's a RARE exception.

I'm hesitant about starting him on it, and she told me that it's normal to feel that way, or even scared about it. But she said I should notice results almost instantly (that day)... and after a few days, I would be kicking myself for not asking for this before.

He's already getting into trouble with the babies at the dayhome he's at because he wants all of the attention from the adults.

Will keep you updated.

Tamarlynn, My oldest has the DX Aspergers with ADHD. I KNOW how rough it can be, and is. We started him on meds at 3 1/2. the doc. told us to give this a try, to see if he could benifit from ritalin. He told us to go home, prek a nice strong pot of coffee, make it sweet so that he likes it, and wait. I thought the guy was nuts! I actually asked, "okay, are we going to try this little experiment at YOUR house?" I was amazed at the difference in him. He was so much more under control. That is why we decided to give the ritalin a try. HE is 8 1/2 now, and we are trying like hell to get him stableized on another med. The ritalin started causing a really nasty attitude. We have been treading water ever sence trying to find something that works as well as it used to. I have never heard of the drug that your doc. prescribed for your child, can you tell me about it? is it working? We have tried SO many meds with Devin sence the ritalin started making him mean. Trazedone, Rispredal, Strattera, Topamax, Zyprexa, Depakote, Focalin, Concerta, and the newest being Clonidine. He has only been taking it for a day, so it is too soon to tell if it will work, but I am interested in hearing about any new options. Wait, is Dexedrine Ritalin? I can't remember at this point.

HI thanks for your reply! I just started him on the medication this morning - unfortunately I am working, so I'll find out from my dayhome how he was today.

I gave him his meds at about 6:30ish this morning. He's usually really hyper and whiney... but didn't seem so bad this morning before I dropped him off. I'm not sure how soon it takes for the meds to start working.

I have him on the SPansules - 10 mg.

Here is my testing plan: (remember he is only small)

Week 1: 5 mg (1/2 of a 10 mg pill, broken apart and sprinked on something he can swallow)
Week 2: 7.5 mg (1/2 of a 15 mg pill, broken apart....)
Week 3: 10 mg pill (broke apart, since he cannot swallow anything like that without choking)
Week 4: 15 mg

I am to observe him closely... If I notice he starts "zoning out" or become "zombie like"... go back to the previous week's dose, and stick with it until my next appointment.

So I HAVE to allow him to get zombie like only once... then I'll know which dose to use...


THe bad side effect of this pill is loss of appetite (I have to monitor closely because my son is skinny enough as it is). He might not want lunch... but will eat lots after work.

This pill lasts between 6 - 8 hours (Spansules)... you can follow up with a 5mg tablet (lasts 2 - 4 hours) after the other wears off (but not mandatory).

I'm in Canada, and the trial medication costed me about $34 (for the month)... not sure how much it will cost later... but we'll see once we find the proper dosage.

I will keep you updated.

Tamaralynn, I hope the new med is going well for your son. I am Happy to report that Devin is doing great on his new med. Had his first day of school yesterday with no problems at all! YAY! for clonadine.. oh and of corse YAY he's back to school!!! LOL!