large bowel movements/ bloated tummy

[bucadebaby]

Ever since my daughter became potty trained she has had issues with bowel movements.  She used to get busy playing and not make it to the restroom leaving a mess in her pants.  Nowadays she has very large bowel movements and a bolated tummy.  She never complains of pain and says it never hurts to go when I ask her.  I give her about 9 grams of the laxative Miralax daily.  If I did not give her the laxative she may not go for weeks. She still only goes about 2 to 3 times a week at some points.   She has been on Miralax for over a year.  She does not seem to have excessive gas.  Does anyone have any experience with this?
Do I dare hope for any improvement?

[Monkeymonk]

I have a 6 year old who became constipated from a medication he was on temporarily.  From that point on he started holding it for up to 3 days.  What I learned is that once they do that they actually stretch out their colon so that after a while they don't realize they need to go until it gets that full.  Then there are seepage issues and sometimes a desensitization when making a bowl movement.  

My son never really progressed like that but after listening to several doctors I realized that this is not something you should let ride.  The first thing I was told is to make sure that the child has a high fiber diet.  Second start taking them to the potty after every meal.  Sit for 15 minutes read a book but don't get too elaborate.  Once they start having bowl movements focus on that time of day every day.  My problem has been the consistency of the last part but we are working on it.