Thriving Families

01/11/2026

🚽💛 Is your child frightened of sitting on the toilet?

For some children, painful poos or a freighting toilet experience can make toileting difficult or regression occur with toileting behaviours

This might look like:

😟 Refusing to sit on the toilet

💩 Holding onto poo

😢 Becoming upset or anxious when toileting is mentioned

🩲 Only feeling safe doing a poo in a nappy or pull-up

Your child isn't being naughty or stubborn.

🧠 Sometimes, before we can help a child use the toilet, we need to calm their anxious brain.

At Thriving Families, I use Toileting Desensitisation and Confidence Building to gently help children overcome their fears.

We work on making poos comfortable, reducing anxiety and helping children feel safe and confident with toileting, one little step at a time.

💛 No pressure, no forcing and no shame.

Sometimes, the first step towards successful toileting isn't about sitting on the toilet at all. It's about helping a frightened little brain feel safe again.

🌈 If your child is struggling with toilet refusal, poo withholding or toileting anxiety, I can help.

💛 Thriving Families – Connect • Sleep • Grow - Toowoomba

30/10/2026

💚 When should you ask for help with your child's constipation?

Many families are told that constipation is something their child will eventually grow out of.

And while occasional constipation is common, ongoing problems deserve attention.

Perhaps your child:

🌸 Regularly complains of tummy aches

🌸 Has painful or very large poos

🌸 Avoids / refuses to go to the toilet

🌸 Has ongoing poo accidents in their underwear

🌸 Struggles with bedwetting or daytime wee accidents

🌸 Has been taking constipation medication but things still aren't improving

If this sounds familiar, it may be time to look a little more closely at what's happening.

Constipation isn't always a quick fix.

Some children need more specialised treatment and support while their bowels recover and they learn to recognise their body's signals again.

As a Paediatric Continence Nurse Specialist, I work with families to understand the reasons behind their child's toileting difficulties and develop an individualised management plan to get them toileting independently.

My goal is to help children feel comfortable and confident with toileting, while giving parents the information and support they need.

💚 You don't need to wait until things become really difficult to ask for help.

Thriving Families – Connect • Sleep • Grow.

28/10/2026

🌈 Little habits can make a big difference to help little people poo!

Helping children develop healthy bowel habits doesn't need to be complicated.

Here are a few simple things that can help.

🍎 Enjoy a variety of foods. a wide variety of colour is important of fruit and vegetables helps support healthy bowel function. We don't give kids extra fibre, just a health diet is enough.

💧 Keep fluids flowing. Encourage regular drinks of water throughout the day. to know if they have drunk enough - ask - what colour is your wee today. it should be light straw colour.

🏃‍♀️ Get moving! Running, jumping, climbing and playing are wonderful for growing bodies, including their bowels. And great for sleeping at night.

🚽 Make toilet time comfortable. A sturdy footstool and a relaxed sitting position can make pooing easier.

❤️ Take the pressure off. Avoid battles about pooing. Children learn best when they feel safe, supported and relaxed.

But here's something important: If your child already has significant constipation, food, water and exercise alone may not be enough to fix it. Some children need medical treatment as well.

💚 If you've tried all the usual things and your child is still struggling, please reach out for some support and guidance.

At Thriving Families, I help parents develop practical, evidence-based plans that work for their child and family.

Thriving Families – Connect • Sleep • Grow

25/10/2026

🚽 Did you know that constipation can affect your child's bladder too?

It might sound strange, but our bladder and bowel work very closely together!

When a child's bowel becomes full of poo, it can affect how the bladder fills and empties.

Sometimes this contributes to:

💦 Daytime wee accidents

💦 Suddenly needing to rush to the toilet (urgency)

💦 Frequent trips to the toilet

💦 Bedwetting

💦 Urinary tract infections in some children

And here's the interesting part – your child might not even complain about being constipated!

This is why, when I see a child struggling with wee accidents, one of the first things I look at is what's happening with their bowels.

Helping the bowel work comfortably can sometimes make a big difference to bladder symptoms too.

💚 If your child is experiencing ongoing wee accidents, bedwetting or constipation, a continence assessment may help us understand what's happening. And help make a plan to move forward.

At Thriving Families, we look at the whole picture – not just the accidents.

Thriving Families – Connect • Sleep • Grow

23/10/2026

💩 Poo accidents aren't always what they seem!

Is your child having little poo accidents in their underwear, even though they're already toilet trained?

Perhaps you've tried reminding them to use the toilet, encouraging them to sit more often or asking why they didn't go.

Here's something really important to understand. 💚

Sometimes children genuinely don't know that poo is coming out.

When constipation causes poo to build up in the bowel, softer poo can leak around it and escape into their underwear.

This is called overflow soiling.

Your child may not feel it happening, and they may have very little control over it.

❤️ They're not being lazy.

❤️ They're not deliberately ignoring their body.

❤️ They probably have wiped their bottom well.

❤️ And they don't need to feel embarrassed or ashamed.

What they need is understanding, support and appropriate treatment to get their bowels working comfortably again.

At Thriving Families, I work with children and their parents to understand what's causing these accidents and develop practical, individualised continence plans.

💚 If poo accidents are becoming a regular part of family life, please reach out. There are ways we can help.

Thriving Families – Connect • Sleep • Grow

20/10/2026

💩 Did you know your child can poo every day and STILL be constipated?

It's something that surprises many parents!

Constipation isn't just about how often your child does a poo. It's also about how easily poo comes out, whether it's painful and whether the bowel is emptying properly.

Some signs to look out for include:

🌸 Regular tummy aches

🌸 Very large or hard poos

🌸 Pain or discomfort when pooing

🌸 Hiding, crossing legs or trying to hold poo in

🌸 Skid marks or accidents in underwear

🌸 Not wanting to use the toilet

The tricky part? Some children with constipation are still pooing every single day!

The good news is that childhood constipation is treatable, and recognising the signs early can make a big difference.

At Thriving Families, I help families understand what's happening with their child's bowels and develop a plan to get things moving comfortably again.

💚 If your child is struggling with pooing, tummy aches or toileting accidents, please reach out. You don't have to work it out alone.

Thriving Families – Connect • Sleep • Grow

16/10/2026