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Poop - Fecal Smearing and Autism
by Tara
(Waterloo, ON Canada)
My five year old son is Autistic and has been fecal smearing for 3 years now and most recently has started diaper shredding. No one has any real solutions for us and it's been so frustrating.
Impractical solutions like overalls, plastic pants and velcro. He can open complicated locking mechanisms and the professionals are suggesting velcro???!
I recently found some sleep suits guarnteed to prevent fecal smearing and diaper or pad shredding but they are from a company in England that won't ship to Canada. I found someone to accept the package there and then ship it to me. I haven't received them yet but I really hope that they work although if they do, I can't keep ordering them this way. Why is there nothing like this in Canada? Surely hospitals and institutions have been looking for something to put patients into to prevent this behaviour, what do they currently do here? What do the group homes do?
I am at my wits end and have had days when he has done it 5 or 6 times and all I can think is, "one more time and he's living somewhere else."
It has to be one of the most depressing issues to deal with. No one wants feces smeared all over their home!
I had tried what Anna suggested about jumpsuit with the zipper in the back, but my son who is 6years and on autism spectrum, arrived to take out his arm out. Unfortunately for us, it worked for couple weeks until he figured out how to take it off. Please, give us more ideas. Thank you.
Concerned mom
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Hi. Sorry to hear that you are still having the problem. I am heartened to hear though that the reversed one-piece pjs did work for a while. That makes me think that the idea maybe just needs adjusting?
One tip that the manufacturer got from parents like yourself is to use safety pins to keep the top closed, so that the child can't get to it.
Maybe that's worth a try!
one-piece footed pajamas to stop fecal smearing are available here by: Anna
Lots of people have found an effective solution to fecal smearing by wearing these jumpsuit style footed-pajamas.
Simply use the garment with the zipper in the back - the child won't be able to get to their diaper.
Autistic children also have a tendency towards excessive touching of genitals, and this can help for that problem too.
These garments are made of polar fleece - very comfortable and comforting - and can be worn as a jumpsuit, regular one-piece pajamas, or as footed pajamas.
i have a 6 year old grandson with cerebral palsey and doesnt communicate verbaly. my daughter telephoned this evening and sobbed,totaly frustrated and worn out after clearing up smeared poo then having to clean out the bath as he had done it in there too ! This is getting to be a regular thing now.i noticed you mentioned a company in the uk and wondered which one and if you have had any success with the product.i would be interested and welcome your reply. thankyou.
