Potty training a child with Downs Syndrome

Potty Training a Child with Downs Syndrome

If you read last year’s blogs I did a whole blog on her pooping!! Yuck!! But it’s very interesting as Lani has always struggled and suffered from constipation which is normal for children with DS. From my understanding it’s because of Lani having Hypertonia (low muscle tone) and her internal organs cannot move the poop along and out without a real struggle. This is still the case for Lani, it has got slightly better and she will now go every other day or so, but Lani can still have a really tuff time going. 

From when Lani was a dinky little girl I have always said “good girl Lani your having a poo” and then showed her the results of her efforts and said “look Lani it’s a poo” and signed poo. What is the sign for poo???? Well in Makaton which is what we are teaching Lani they only sign for toilet so having watched “Meet the Fockers” we have taught Lani to pull her thumb for poo and sign “toilet” for wee.  We have also always told Lani she is having a wee when we have felt it happening in her nappy and also if when we change her and she goes we again say “Lani your having a wee, good girl”, I also have had a potty in the front room for about a year and showed her teddies sat on it and told her that teddy is having a wee on the potty. My next step was to sit lani on the potty every day and ask her if she needs a wee or poo, this was always done during nappy free time and the amount of times she will sit on the potty – get off and then pee all over my floor!! But even then I never told her off I just re-iterated “oh Lani you’re doing a wee, good girl”. Now the potty is kept in her bathroom and every time we change her nappy she sits on the potty and has a wee while we sign “wee” to her. The other day Lee had a break through and when Lani didn’t get up after her wee she signed poo and carried on sitting down then….. yep you guessed it – she did a poo all by herself on the potty. I cried I was so happy, it may not happen again for ages but that’s ok its happened – so chuffed.  I imagine most mums take for granted that their kids go for a poop on their own but not me, everything Lani does is an effort and an achievement and we celebrate. I am very proud of Lani.

So what is the next step? I am not too sure to be honest, she understands what having a wee and poop is but how do I now get her to sign when she wants to go?? One of my worries is that what if she does sign it and I miss seeing the sign and so she goes for a wee, if I miss the sign when she first starts to do it would she give up trying to sign?? Maybe I am over thinking this?? Who knows, I just worry a lot.

 I have been told about filling in a time sheet, so every half hour you check her nappy and mark down if it is dry or wet to build a picture of when she has a wee ( I would say she has a wee about 15 mins after a big drink!!) but maybe that is the whole point of the chart, it would confirm this and then I could help her to the potty before its due to happen. If anyone who is reading this has any ideas please let me know, willing to consider / try anything to help her. 

Diary

This morning I took Lani to our local woods and did a photo shoot in a Halloween outfit – pics will be posted at the end of this month on Halloween. Then this afternoon we went off to hospital to visit Lanis OT (occupational therapist) he sorts out all of lanis equipment. I will do tomorrows blog about what equipment Lani uses and how it helps.