Pediatric Bowel & Bladder Clinic

This is not a potty-training program but looks at the deeper issues that might be holding children and young adults from toileting successfully.

Bowel and bladder problems can be multifaceted. Our clinic works as a team to examine a child’s unique nutrition, sensory system, fine and gross motor systems, communication, and behavioral components together. Collaboration with the child’s medical team is prioritized to assess conditions and medication use, including long-term laxatives.

How to Get Started in the Pediatric Bowel & Bladder Clinic

Contact Intake Coordinator, Mary Beth, at mscholtes@eastersealsdfvr.org, or 630.261.6287.

After the initial intake paperwork, there will be two visits scheduled.

The initial visit includes a biopsychosocial assessment and medical history screening to guide appropriate discipline referrals.

During the next visit, a multidisciplinary evaluation will identify factors contributing to toileting challenges and develop actionable strategies to support bowel and bladder needs. The team may decide further therapy or a specialist visit is needed and will share resources.

What Makes Our Clinic Different?

Easterseals DuPage & Fox Valley’s multidisciplinary and collaborative approach is at the heart of this clinic. When a family is struggling with toileting or other issues related to bowel and bladder, it can feel isolating. We provide families with support and guidance, helping small changes lead to meaningful improvements in bowel, bladder, and everyday functioning.

Our multidisciplinary environment has experience addressing bowel and bladder problems in both neurotypical and neurodiverse populations. Children with developmental disabilities are more prone to constipation and this can impact their daily living in many ways. We provide each child and their family with clarity, tools, and relief in this important area. Our treatment and evaluations are non-invasive and individually tailored to each child’s needs and goals.

Our approach helps children feel comfortable by identifying root causes and improving constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating, and bedwetting. By addressing diet, breathing, posture, sensory needs, communication, movement, and anxiety, we improve daily toileting needs.

Nutrition: A pediatric dietitian will analyze a child’s medical, feeding, and therapy history, past and current diet, and the child’s growth. This examination will uncover what efforts have worked well or have not worked well. Children with chronic bowel and bladder challenges often have nutritional difficulties that can impact their growth, learning, sleep, and daily life. Diet is most often deemed the culprit of bowel issues, and lack of fiber or fluid is the go-to blame. Although these two areas do contribute to constipation, the dietician will closely examine all contributing factors.

Mental Health: A social worker meets with caregivers for a biopsychosocial assessment of emotional development and bladder and bowel history. Together we will explore how underlying factors, and possible stressors have impacted a child’s sense of safety to achieve this milestone. The social worker will also provide support to both the child and their caregiver(s) as the family navigates the clinic.

Speech-Language Pathology: is involved within the program to assess communication barriers to toileting independently and confidently. The SLP evaluates feeding, swallowing, and the laryngeal system and may recommend additional therapy or specialty consultations.

Occupational Therapy: is focused on improving a person’s ability to complete daily activities and complete toileting effectively. The occupational therapist (OT) assesses toileting skills, body awareness, sensory processing, and self-care while supporting regulation and independence. During the evaluation, the OT assesses the child’s awareness of sensations and skill management during toileting.

Physical Therapy: identifies and addresses motor components that may be contributing to bowel, bladder, and toileting difficulties. The physical therapist evaluates muscle tone, core strength, and breathing patterns to determine how they may impact a child’s ability to eliminate. Balance, postural control, and alignment can impact how relaxed and confident a child is sitting on the toilet, which lends itself to easier elimination. Children who may benefit from biofeedback for pelvic floor muscle concerns can be referred to a physical therapist specializing in pelvic floor dysfunction.