Playing with poop

[cincin812]

My daughter is 8 years old. She's adopted, but I've had her since 2 years of age.  She has always had behaviour problems, and now takes medication for ADD.  She does strange things all of the time, and I'm at my witts end.  Her latest thing is she plays with her poop, or does something with it, and then wipes the excess on her bed.  Her biological mother is bi-polar, her biological father has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, bi-polar, and manic depressive.  Are these things that she could inherit.  She also struggles in school, she has a hard time reading because she can't remember words.  She is very smart, but does very strange things. She's constantly going into the bathroom and staying, even at school.  She pours the soap out of the bottles and refills them with water. She hides candy and eats it in her bed, basically she puts anything in her mouth she can. Help me if you can, I'm going crazy. I have 5 other children, boys, 4 of whom are adopted, and none do these kinds of things.  Her behaviour is so off the wall, we can't leave her with anyone.
thanks.

[AShaffer98]

My son will be 12 years old in January and recently in the last month we have found poop smeared everywhere bed, toilet, walls, furniture, clothes and towels, just this morning I found underwear soaked with pee in my couch. My husband has a touch of bipolar and has depression but it's controlled by meds. We have been happily married so far 15 years. We have a 14 year old son as well. So in reading all these comments are you saying that my son is ADD/ADHD?? We had him tested when he was younger but they said no, he is very smart, very active too! Does he have the depression my husband's family seem to have??? What is everyone saying this is??? A Stage????

[Sandman2]

   Oh, and perhaps start your own post.  Its easy to not notice posts tagged on to other posts.

[Sandman2]

    Well kids with ADHD have 3 times more wetting accidents then kids with ADHD.  So that certainly could be part of the problem.  Kids with ADHD tend to hyper focus when they are interested and don't go until its too late.  And, of course, the younger they are - the greater lack of control.
   The sad thing is that if he does have ADHD - taking away privileges, etc.  will not make a difference at this age.  The control is not there.  
   What you  need to do is to roughly figure out when he has these accidents - then make him sit on the toilet for a set period of time.  He can not go back to the game until he has sat there for this time.  He does not have to have a bowel movement, but he does have to sit.  Repeat this every half hour.  
   Kids with ADHD need to be on a very regular schedule and the bathroom is one of those schedule things.  Over on the child behavior forum, this schedule visit is typically recommended for non ADHD kids.
   You definitely also want to talk to his school teacher and find out if she has noticed anything.   And I would also ask her how he does in relation to other kids during quiet study time, etc.
   Please feel free to post if you have any other questions.

[shelly296]

I am continuously finding smeared poop that my almost 7 year-old is hiding throughout the house. His father had ADHD, and I'm beginning to wonder if my son has it too. I've noticed it more in areas around the computer (which he plays on) and in his bedroom (where he plays). He doesn't seem to want to walk away from the computer or TV when it's time to go to the bathroom. I'm at my wits end! I've had numerous conversation about how it can make people sick, and how bad it makes the house smell. Sometimes he pees in the same areas too. He knows it's not a good thing to do, and he continues to do it. I don't know if he's doing it a school or not, but I'd hate for his friends to start making fun of him for it. He loses his privileges, and has to help me clean up the mess, but he still continues to do it. It's good to hear that I'm not the only parent dealing with this problem, but I don't know how to get him to stop doing it.

[dlhibbs]

My son is three and has been playing with his poop, running into walls intentionally, crying constantly, fights with his older sister, tries to coerce her into things, chews on cords. He is going to be four soon and I don't know what to do. He will be starting kindergarten next year. He is not adopted, his father is bipolar manic depressive. I left his father and got full custody. I am doing this all on my own. I have some help from family finally these past few months. I'm at my wits end!!!!!!!!! What do I do???

[jankitch55]

thanks for your recommendation to look at this forum too. it is curiously satisfying to read that there are plenty of people out there going through similar problems with their children! Reading some of the comments, it seems as if most of those posting are from the other side of the pond to me (I'm from the UK) so I'm not sure what help is freely available to you. quality of care even varies and what help is available too. I feel lucky, that my post code just happens to have a very good LA that recruits and trains excellent foster carers and that part of its policy is to put in place people who can help with problem children. unfortunately practical help sometimes takes time to organise, hence my coming to these forums! I have had young people with ADHD  before, but none of them seem to have embraced the condition quite so thoroughly as this one! I believe that most of the young people who come into the care system have some sort of attachment disorder and as a result I have done a lot of research and taken training courses to help me understand the condition more. (Nancy Thomas) is an expert and have spoken with her and heard her speak on attachment, what a charismatic person, would recommend any of you to go listen to her if you get the chance. back to the young person I have now, his ADHD and some of the behaviours we are seeing are out of our experience and it is good to read all the different experiences and advice that is out there. he attends an EBD school, so at least school are very experienced with children who have  ADHD as well as a raft of other behaviour problems. I look forward (fingers crossed) to be around to see the boy become a well balanced, happy and healthy young man and for him to join the many other success (to one extent or another) stories that have lived with us during our career as foster carers. I wouldn't want to have missed a day of it even though we are struggling right now, we will get through it!