How do I stop gagging?!?

Question

I work at a day care and the preschoolers are supposed to be potty trained...well some of them are not. Today I actually had to pick a terd up off the the floor after the child took his underwear off....I gagged about 50 times and I looked like I was crying....I want to do something that isn't going to scare them or make them feel bad. HELP!

Answer 1

ask a friend or a helper in the calss room to do thatt job

Answer 2

I have a horrible gag problem and I am known to vomit on the spot if i see any urine, BM, or vomit- and working in daycare has it's challenges - i've improved massively

if their BM is really bad- massive amounts and there is food in it- i usually wipe once and then look away- take deep breaths through my mouth- i try to get rid of it as fast as i can

Answer 3

its helps me out i hope it helps you.i put a little bit of some smell pretty(perfume) right at he color of my shirt every morning. that way when i have to change a BM diaper or pick any thing up i put the color of my shirt over my nose. that way all i smell is the smell good stuff.

Answer 4

I guess you should just take care of the situation as best and as fast as you can and wash up.  I used to work with another teacher who would gag at the slightest things - snotty noses and cleaning up poopy messes or checking heads for lice -these things happen in preschool and you really need to not react like that  - it can totally affect the child.

Answer 5

Hold your breath that works for me.

Answer 6

On with the latex gloves, a few drops of tea tree in the palm, rub together  directly under your nose. Place kitchen towel/paper over the offending object, from the outer edge working inwards, scoop! Place in bag quickly and dispose of safely. Clean the area with hot water and 5 drops of tea tree oil. Environmentally friendly, has a distracting smell and since poo is 95% pure bacteria its also prevents infection. Introduce the children to proper hand washing when the opportunity presents.

Answer 7

Don't feel bad! I've been working in early childhood for seven years and I'm the same way with vomit.  Every time I have to deal with it, I remind myself why I'm there and think of how the child is feeling. It's a terrible feeling to throw up and it's embarrassing to mess your pants. So I just focus on getting it all cleaned up. While holding your breath as long as possible of course!

Answer 8

Personally I would hand the child a towel and ask then to pick it up and put it in the toilet. They are old enough at the Preschool level to clean up their own messes.

Answer 9

I hope you wore a glove or I would be gagging too. If you stop thinking it is a t**d and think it is just part of your job and that you have to role model correct behaviours as the teacher then this should help you. If you can't get passed this without reacting severely then maybe you are in the wrong career. Wait till you have to clean up vomit that is even more fun.

Answer 10

I have been working in the teaching field for more than 20 years and I still sometimes have moments that make me gag.  It may help if you wrap a lot toilet paper around that kind of thing and keep a can of Lysol in the room.

Answer 11

Things that are gross are only gross because you think they are. A mess is a mess, it doesn't matter what it is. After you've changed as many poopy diapers as I have, p**p loses its ability to gross you out. If it's the smell that does it to you then I suggest breathing only through your mouth while you clean it up (don't plug your nose with your fingers, just block it from the inside). If it's the sight of the mess that bothers you then you need to look away a little while you work. If it's the feel of it on your hands then wear rubber dishwashing gloves. But above all, don't moan and groan about it in front of the children. All you will do is negatively reinforce the action and generate repetition of it. And remember, the child already knows that they've done something inapropriate, they don't need to hear about how terrible it is from an authority figure as well. That will only make the situation worse. No matter how bad you feel about it, I guarantee that the child feels worse and the last thing they need at such an awkward time is someone letting them know it. By telling the child that you are grossed out by their mess you are, in effect, telling them that you are grossed out by THEM. This is highly traumatic and you MUST NOT DO IT.

The first thing you need to do though is reassure the child. You ABSOLUTELY MUST make sure that the child understands that this was an ACCIDENT! Reassure them that you understand and that you are not angry AND that they are not in trouble. Make physical contact with the child as you do this (a gentle hand on the shoulder works for me) Use gentle tones and don't show anger even if you feel it. If you get upset the child will get upset as well and this breeds the possibility of repetition of the event. Calm reassurance will put the child at ease and make them feel better about themselves creating a positive reinforcement from a negative situation.

As you work to calm the child and assure him/her that this is really no big deal, you will find that it also becomes not such a big deal to you either. This will make it easier to clean up the mess without reflexive gagging and allow both you and the child to transition past the incident without undue trauma to either of you.

That being said, this is something that you are simply going to have to get used to. It's happened before and it will happen again. There is no "if" about it; it WILL happen. Prepare yourself and be ready.

It has already been said here but I will say it again: If you can't get past this (and it really is not that bad) then you might think about another line of work.

CHILDREN ARE MESSY! GET USED TO IT!

Answer 12

There is a trick you can use. If you keep a small tube of perfumed hand creme on your desk or on a shelf within reach, dab a small amount just under your nose, then gloves on, clean up messes. The perfume prevents most if not all of the smell from getting to you. If the mess is large, you may not be able to hold your breath long enough to clean it up. Perfumed cream is gentle on your skin and does the trick, actually, you can use a bit of vapor rub as well, it's scent is strong, but it's better than the smells you may be dealing with.

Answer 13

I have a weak stomach as well. Every time I have a gagging spell I do one of two things I either take deep breaths or I start singing and try to look at what grosses me out as little as possible. I know it sounds stupid but when I sing I focus more on the correct words than what I am actually doing. It would probably entertain the kids as well. Hope it helps good luck.