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Lily and Liam are at the doctor’s office. Liam has complained of a tummy ache for the past couple of days, and it hasn’t been getting better. Lily decided it was time to see the doctor. Liam likes Dr. Andrews, but that doesn’t mean he’s not nervous. He brought his teddy once again to keep him calm. When their names were called, they followed the doctor to the exam room. Liam had a seat on the table while Lily sat in a chair close by.
"Lily, I’m scared", he said, holding Teddy tight.
"It’s alright, buddy. The doctor is going to help make your tummy feel better."
Dr. Andrews steps inside and shuts the door behind him. "Hello, you two. Hi, Liam."
"Hello", Liam says shyly.
"Last time I saw you was for your physical checkup. Can you tell me why you're here today?"
Liam looks at his shoes, not wanting to make eye contact. "My tummy hurts", he whispers.
"Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. How long has it been hurting?"
"Days."
"Oh dear. Well then, it’s a good thing you’ve come to see me. I can help make your tummy better."
"Sissy told me that."
Dr. Andrews laughed. "I bet she did, and she’s right. Can you lie down for me so I can take a little feel of your tummy?"
Liam shakes his head no. "It hurts."
"I know it does, but I need to feel it to figure out what’s making it hurt. You can hold your teddy the whole time."
Liam lies down on the table.
"Well done, Liam. Good job." Lily praises.
Dr. Andrews puts on his gloves, lifts up Liam’s shirt, and feels Liam’s tummy. Liam whines and squirms.
"Oh, I’m not hurting you, am I?"
"No, but my tummy feels all blown up."
"Like a balloon?" Dr Andrews says playfully.
Liam giggles. "Yeah."
"Okay, buddy. You can sit up now."
Liam sits up and holds Teddy in his lap.
"So Liam, tell me, when was the last time you did a poo?"
Liam looks down again, clearly embarrassed.
"It’s okay, Liam. You can tell me. I poo, you poo, we all poo." Liam giggles.
"Did you go for a poo today?"
"No."
"Yesterday?"
"No."
"Monday?"
"No. But Monday was my first day of school. I’m in 7th grade now", he said proudly.
"That’s exciting! Did you have a good time at school?"
"Umm, kind of." Liam shrugs his shoulders.
"What do you mean?"
Flashback to Monday…
Liam was in English class and felt his tummy ache. He felt a poo in his bottom and knew it needed to come out. He was too shy to tell his new teacher that he needed to go potty. He also didn’t want to sit on the new toilets. So he held it in. It was difficult because he really wanted to push but couldn’t bring himself to ask to be excused.
Back at the doctor’s office.
"I needed to do a poo, but I didn’t want to sit on the toilet."
"Is that because it was new and a bit different?"
"Mhm, and I didn’t want to tell my teacher I needed to go."
"You felt shy?"
"Yes."
"That’s okay, Liam. You’ll soon get used to everything again, and you’ll feel comfortable around your new teachers", Lily said.
"But I think I know why your tummy hurts. You’re constipated."
Liam looked confused. "What does that mean?"
"Sometimes, not doing a poo for a while can make us feel sick and make our tummies sore. You might have some poo in your bottom that’s stuck."
Liam scrunched up his face in disgust. "I don’t like poo."
"Oh, you don’t have to. Poo is just stuff your body doesn’t need."
"Like garbage?"
"That’s right. When your body tells you it’s time to poop, it means it’s time to take the garbage out."
"But when I tried to poop this morning at home, I sat there forever, and nothing came out."
"That’s because your poop is a bit dry and hard, so it won’t come out easily."
"So, will my tummy hurt forever?" Liam asked worriedly.
"No, it’ll come out soon. There are a few things that might help. Plenty of exercise, eating lots of healthy fruit, and drinking plenty of water will help make your poop soft. Getting a toilet routine might help too."
"What’s a toilet routine?"
"Going to the toilet at the same time every day. Like after breakfast, lunch, and dinner."
"Okay."
"And remember, there is nothing to worry about when you need to go for a poo. No need to be embarrassed or scared, alright? When you’ve gotta go, you’ve gotta go."
"Okay."
"Do you have any questions?"
"What if I still can’t poop?"
"Then you and Lily can come back, and I’ll give you some medicine. But I know you’ll be feeling much better in no time."
"Thank you, Dr. Andrews", Liam said, hopping off the table with Teddy.
"You’re welcome, Liam."
Lily stood up. "Ready to go, bud?"
"Yup!"
"Thank you", Lily said to the doctor.
"My pleasure."
A few days later…
Liam’s class just came back from lunch, and they are in science class now. Liam had lots of fruit for lunch and nearly drank out all the water in his bottle. His teacher put on a video about lab safety in preparation for their first lab next week. While watching the video, Liam felt a small cramp in his tummy. He really had to poop. He once again felt shy to tell the teacher but remembered Dr. Andrews’s words.
When you’ve gotta go, you’ve gotta go.
And right now, Liam had to go. He really had to pee, too, because of all the water he drank. Instead of going to the teacher, he went to the assistant, who he felt more comfortable with.
"Ms. B?"
"Yes, Liam? How can I help you?"
"Can I go to the bathroom, please?"
"Of course. Just take the pass on your way out."
"Thank you."
Liam took the pass and hurried to the boy’s bathroom. When he got to the bathroom, he went into a stall and locked it behind him. He pulled down his pants and underwear and hesitantly sat on the toilet. It felt different, but it wasn’t too bad. Liam began to push gently.
Hmmmmm, he pushed.
He pushed a few times, applying more pressure with each push. On the 10th push…
Plop!
Hssss!
"Ahhhh!" Liam sighed when his poop finally came out, and his very full bladder was now emptying.
When he finished his pee, he wiped his bottom and stood up to pull up his pants. He flushed the toilet and left the stall to wash his hands. He was so proud of himself for using the toilet and sticking to his toilet routine. His tummy felt much better. Liam grabbed the pass and headed back to class. He couldn’t wait to get home and tell Lily what he did.