so much for awareness...

[anarchamom]

My boy has been ECed (to varying degrees) since 5 or 6 weeks old. At about 5 months he started pooping in the potty 90% of the time. He is now 15 months, and started walking about a month ago. Of course when he started walking we missed poops all the time. Not every time, but far more than the previous 10 months. After a few weeks now, I've gotten over it and just change the diaper and don't worry about it.

The thing I'm stressing about right now is that is doesn't seem to care or be aware of what is going on. My saddest moment was last week when I woke up in the middle of the night to a terrible smell. At first I thought I was dreaming, but then I rolled over and found him asleep....IN HIS OWN POOP!. He had a diaper on and it leaked all over the bed and him. It was total disaster and made me feel like all of our efforts were for naught. That said, we had a family round of the stomach flu and he was still recovering from that. But still, why would be sleep through that?

He has been going in the potty more now than the last few weeks, though we have misses every other day or so. I can't say that he isn't aware of what's going on when it is actually happening or even before, but he doesn't seem to care if he is in a wet or dirty diaper.

I just needed to grump a little, but I would appreciate any commiseration or advice.

[emmaegbert]

try not to stress! He's been sick AND just started walking? that is a lot going on. you can always keep communicating and he will reciprocate eventually ;)

[nstewart]

DS is 8 months and we were more or less miss free for poops from 4 months until a month ago when he had a stomach bug for two weeks.  The only miss from 4 months until then had been one when he first started solids (I think he was just enjoying dinner too much to wait!)  Well, the first few days we had maybe one miss, then we started having more and, same as you, one morning I woke up to this awful smell and he'd gone in his diaper and slept in it!! (thankfully it hadn't leaked though)  I was seriously discouraged by all the misses and by the poopy diaper in the morning because we'd been miss free for so long.  I was worried he'd stopped caring or something or realized he could go in his diaper and it wasn't so bad and that we'd be totally off track long term.  It took about a week after he got over the flu and I had to be really diligent but we're back on track now.  So I understand how discouraging it can be but I'm sure you'll be back on track in a few weeks too.  Also, he's probably so interested in the whole walking thing that he just doesn't care to stop to go potty!  From what I've read here and in books that is pretty common.  It'll work itself out!