My 8 year old has started messing in his pants

[stormicarla]

My 8 year old son has started messing in his pants and I don't understand why. I have punished him, made him wash his own clothes, and anything else I can think of. I don't know what else to do. Is there a medical condition that might cause this? Any advise you could give me would be great because I am out of ideas.

[Dr. Joshua]

Please do not punish your son, and don't make him wash his own pants. This is the wrong approach, and will only make things worse. Soiling is practically never voluntary. Support him and comfort him, because soiling is causing your son distress, or on the other hand could be a sign of some other issue causing distress. You can have him help you clean up messes, but be supportive.

Repeated soiling at 8 years old is not common, and while the most common cause is constipation, I recommend that you see your son's doctor in order to exclude other causes.