Overview
Overview – Elimination Disorders
Elimination disorders involve the inappropriate elimination of urine or feces. Typically, these disorders are usually first diagnosed in childhood or adolescence. They involve the repeated voiding of urine into appropriate places, or the repeated passage of feces into inappropriate places, or some variation on this theme. Sometimes the smearing of feces is the issue. There may be abdominal pain due to underlying medical conditions such as urinary tract infections or constipation.
Elimination disorders tend to occur in children who struggle with going to the bathroom, often due to constipation and the pain of trying to pass the stool. Although it is not uncommon for children to have occasional “accidents”, when these behaviors occur for longer than three months particularly in children older than 5 years, they may have an elimination disorder.
Contributors to elimination disorders may involve genetics, psychological factors, psychosocial stressors, delayed or lax or pressured toilet training, parental neglect, and so on.
A variety of associated psychosocial symptoms may be present including:
- Embarrassment
- Low self-esteem
- Loss of appetite
- Decreased interest in physical activity
- Withdrawal from friends and family as children often feel ashamed
- Avoidance of situations that can lead to accidents (school, summer camp)
Elimination Disorders presents information on four types of disorders, one type each day for four days. These are:
- Enuresis Disorder
- Encopresis Disorder
- Other Specified Elimination Disorder
- Unspecified Elimination Disorder
On the fifth day, the Team reviews each of the elimination disorders, helping you to fix the information in your memory and to reaffirm the strategies for dealing with each type. Typically, the average person needs to review information three or four times to move it from short-term memory into long-term memory.
