If you have an autistic child who will only poop in their diaper then you are not alone, it is more common than you may think.

In this article we are going to dive into what may be behind the behaviour. We will also give parents some ideas as to how they can deal with it.

Autism and only pooping in diaper

The first thing that parents will need to do is work out why their child has this insistence. Whilst each child is different there are some common themes regularly in play.

Its all they know

Routines and predicability can be incredibly important to autistic children.

The world can be a confusing place for our autistic kids so when there is something they know, they like to stick to it.

Pooping in a diaper is one of those daily processes which they know and feel comfortable with.

Since the emergence of their first memories they can recall pooping in thier diaper and then Mom or Dad takes it away.

In their eyes if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.

So this engrained behaviour is just a part of their toileting.

Sensory issues

When we examine the topic of toilet training, a common issue is the child not liking the bathroom in general.

There are a mixture of sensory inputs involved, from the smells of air conditioners (or other smells!) to the cold feeling of the basin and toilet seats.

The cold toilet seat is something which many parents reference as being a blocker.

Again if you put yourself in your child’s shoes, in that they are happy with the current process then you can see why sitting on a cold toilet seat may be less than ideal.

Negative associations

There are a couple of ways in which an autistic child may negatively associate a toilet with pooping.

Firstly there is the fact that a lot of autistic children have limited diets and this can lead to constipation.

Speaking personally this is a terrible problem in our household.

When children or (anyone for that manner) become constipated then passing poop can become painful.

Where it can be a bigger problem for autistic children however is that they may then start holding the poop in.

This vicious cycle then can result in them building up negative associations with toilets.

Another negative association which can be present is if parents have tried to really force the issue.

It is not uncommon for parents who have run out of ideas to physically force their child to sit on a toilet.

This is likely to have distressed the child considerably and may add to the overall resistance.

What can parents do about an autistic child who will only poop in their diaper?

Well this is the million dollar question really isn’t it. Again with the caveat inserted that every child is different, here are some things to try.

Let them watch

Probably the first thing which parents try is to let their child watch Mom or Dad poop in the toilet.

Although this is obviously quite a bizarre activity it can help to break down some of those anxiety barriers which may be in place.

Slowly slowly

One of the key pieces of advice we would pass on is to not try to rush the issue.

Physically forcing your child to sit on the toilet will likely set you back in the process. Instead try a step by step sequence of acclimatisation.

Start by perhaps playing in the bathroom with your child to get them used to the environment.

During the process you can try and see if you can get them to sit on the toilet with the seat down.

Perhaps playing a game which involves turn taking could help here with whoever is waiting for their turn sitting on the toilet seat.

Look to then try to progress to your child sitting on the toilet with the seat up, but fully clothed.

If your child feels comfortable with that then try it with their pants down, then their diaper.

Naturally it is unlikely to go that smoothly but the point we are making here is that it may need a step by step series of events.

Make the bathroom more accommodating

If sensory factors are part of the problem then you can look to adapt the bathroom accordingly.

Consider dim light bulbs, neutral air fresheners and even heated toilet seats (yes that’s a thing!).

Even making additions like fairy lights can make a bathroom more appealing to an autistic child.

Show them where the poo goes

Ok so we are going a bit graphic now but we’re all friends here…

One tactic which worked well in our house was to empty our daughter’s diaper into the toilet after she had done a poop.

We’re not suggesting you start scraping it in with a spoon (sorry disgusting I know!) but if it’s possible you can just plop the poop into the bowl.

What this helped with was making an event out of waving goodbye to the poop and our daughter pressing the flush.

We then all celebrated in the process and she walked away more understanding of where poop should go.

Reward system

This is probably the oldest trick in the book for potty training but it can be adapted for autistic children.

As we mentioned above you can try a step by step process of getting them comfortable in the bathroom.

Consider at each point in this journey to provide your child with a gold sticker on a chart to highlight how proud you are of them.

A little bit of positive reassurance goes a long way.

Address the constipation

If constipation is a factor then you may well need to tackle this first.

We’d recommend speaking to a dietician or therapist but making small changes to their diet may help.

Try to give them fibre rich foods like fruit to help relieve the constipation. A doctor may also prescribe laxatives to help with the situation also.

Summary – Autistic child who will only poop in diaper

Having an autistic child who will only poop in diaper can he very hard to deal with.

You so badly want them to lead a life of toileting normality that the problem can be all encompassing.

Firstly we would recommend you really studying your child to learn what their issue truly is.

From there it is a case of sticking to a plan with plenty of love and patience.

Good luck everyone.

Any tips or ideas?

We would love to hear from you if you have got any techniques or ideas for our readers to try.

Be sure to leave a comment if any of the above has helped or if you have any ideas we can add to this article.

Also be sure to search for any other articles you might find helpful.

Try for example searching below for topics like ‘meltdown’ or ‘communication’.