Toddler potty training questions

jenb_99 · July 2014

Maybe some of you can help me with this. DS is halfway potty trained and seems to be stuck there.

He can go in the potty just fine and actually enjoys it when he feels like doing it; he just doesn't bother most of the time. He's shy about praise and comfortable in a wet or dirty diaper, so he's not reliable about letting us know till it's too late. And he's not motivated by rewards like stickers or candy. Where do we go from here? He's so close. I feel like we could get it done in a day or two if I could just figure out what I'm missing.

Oddly, he's more interested in pooping in the potty than peeing, which I hear is unusual especially for a boy.

Is it time to just go all in and try real undies?

haylo33 · July 2014

This may sound gross but it worked really well for my sister. Her youngest son just didn't want to try and was also comfortable in a wet diaper. She took off the diaper and put him just in underwear. He would pee himself and get cold/uncomfortable. She would let him sit in it about 5 minutes. He learned in 2 days. I should also add that it was a bit messy. She has all hardwood floors but if you have carpet, that can be an issue. Ugh I dread when my little guy needs potty trained

ETA: she also couldn't leAve the house at all in those 2 days so it may not be an option for everyone

usernewname · July 2014

Yes no more diapers! Let him experience being really wet. Only use diapers for sleep. Try to avoid them for car rides and errands. It sends mixed messages. If He will probably pee and make a lot of messes at first but he will realize he doesn't have the diaper or pull up to fall back on. I know it's less convenient but pull ups do not work IMO.

I always recommend being neutral. No praise frustration etc. Just matter of fact. "Oh you've peed let's go change" or "it must be uncomfortable to be wet" or (eta) "it must feel good to be dry" or "you peed on the toilet now you'll underwear will stay dry" etc.

Also. Try letting him clean up his mess. It's tedious for anyone but that will send him a big message.

It will happens

keep at it!

ksyknelvr73 · July 2014

I would also agree with going to underwear since wet/dirty diapers don't seem to phase him. It does sound like he is ready and would probably catch on quickly if you did that. Good luck!

liz18t · July 2014

We made a big deal of throwing out all the diapers. Put him in undies and never went back, even at night. There were a lot of messes at first but we thought going back and forth would be a crutch for us and him.

jenb_99 · July 2014

Thanks for the ideas, ladies!

ns1 · July 2014

We had DD go pantless when we had several days off for a long weekend. Kept her in the kitchen over tile and with the potty and it worked well for us.

frugalwife · July 2014

liz18t said:

We made a big deal of throwing out all the diapers. Put him in undies and never went back, even at night. There were a lot of messes at first but we thought going back and forth would be a crutch for us and him.

This is what we did. I read the 3 day potty training book for guidance. It took a few days but my son was potty trained at 26 months.

noice247 · July 2014

I would get rid of the diapers all together. Just plan to stick around the house for a week and let him run around in undies. Not even diapers or pull ups at night because soon enough they learn to hold their bladder while sleeping. My son was potty trained at 22 months and he is 26 months now. He still has the occasional accident but overall does great. He has never used a diaper since. For bed wetting a useful thing to do is put a sheet on his mattress, then a waterproof sheet and then another sheet on top. Then if he wets the bed in the night you can whip off the top two and have a clean sheet ready to go. Good luck!

CamrynnsMommy · July 2014

I agree, lose the diapers, don't even do Pull-Ups. Once he gets his undies wet, it'll motivate him to go on the potty. GL!

cnbean · July 2014

We just started this last week with DS1. We got rid of all diapers and he is just wearing regular underwear, even for bedtime. The other really great suggestion I was given was to get a couple kids potty chairs and have them in the rooms you spend the most time in. That way the potty is right there to remind him. I found a book called "Toilet Training without Tantrums" and that has been my best resource. So far DS is doing really well and is only having a few accidents a day.