Re: bathroom issues

[Guest guest]

and Tresse,

Don't know how your daughters would respond, but with our daughter, we set a

number of times each day that she must use the bathroom. First it was only 3

times a day (up from 2); now it is at least four and sometimes 5. If it has

been 3-4 hours since her last bathroom use and she does not go voluntarily, we

set a timer. If she does not go when the timer goes off (about 5-10 minutes),

she loses computer, tv, any other desired activities until she uses the

bathroom. Also, if it is mealtime, she can have her meal, but no dessert until

she uses the bathroom. I also found a book with some good guided imagery

relaxations for kids that we were using (if anyone wants the name, I can check

on it) before the bathroom trips. We have also tried moist wipes intended for

the toilet when our daughter was not wiping well--however, I would not use them

if your child insists on using many pieces of toilet paper as they will

definitely clog the toilet. I found it

was best if I stayed away while she was washing; otherwise, she would start

arguing with me and things just went downhill for both of us.

We canceled two family trips or sent only part of the family because our

daughter could not use any bathroom outside our house for most of the summer. I

do have to say that we are finally making progress--thanks to ERP, Zoloft, and

learning to stay calmer while fighting this battle. She has used a public

restroom 7 times in the last two weeks, despite continued excessive washing. I

was especially proud of her tonight. We planned to visit a quiet out of the way

multi-stall restroom at the mall, but it had no soap. So, I took her to a

multi-stall restroom in Macy's that is quite clean, but turned out to be very

busy. Although she was unhappy about all the people coming and going while she

was washing, she held it together very well, finished in about her usual amount

of time, and did not have a meltdown. I told her both how proud I was and how

this was an indicator that she still does have work to do (she has been getting

a bit complacent--I can

live with this level of symptoms...).

Anyhow, here's hoping your daughters will begin to have an easier time of it and

be motivated to work on their problem areas. Another thing we did at our

daughter's worst, was to post pictures of the good times in the bathroom as a

reminder of what she had to work for (ie, what she could be doing if she were

not in the bathroom).

Best wishes to you both,

>

> Subject: bathroom issues

> To:

> Date: Tuesday, August 18, 2009, 9:51 PM

> ,

>  

> I too have an OCD child with toilet issues. She soils

> herself several times a week. She has to tear the toilet

> tissue in perfect squares repeatedly in order to wipe

> herself. She constantly clogs the toilet, then gets stuck

> sitting for hours afterward. At first she refused to wipe

> herself, which is an issue because she only showers once

> every 7-8 days, and she wouldn't let me clean her. She also

> has to get 2-3 clean towels and lay them on her knees while

> she is ripping the toilet tissue. She tells me she doesn't

> get enough warning before a bowel movement but I know she

> gets too distracted by TV or computer and just waits too

> long. I too tried to get her to do the laundry but she won't

> go near it. Now she just got her period, and she is refusing

> sanitary napkins.

>  

> I know how frustrated you feel . I scream ay my daughter,

> too. She needs me to talk peppy to her in order to get her

> off of the toilet, she needs to hear me say I love her. I

> spend hours in the bathroom just getting her off of the

> toilet. One night the toilet overflowed at 1AM and I just

> about went crazy, thank god my husband was home to

> intervene. It is very difficult.

>  

> She has starting scratching herself so hard she breaks

> capillaries and I am so afraid of what will come next.

>  

> Tresse

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