I can't potty train my son! Help?

Question

I have tried everything, like soap in the toilet and let him make bubbles, I've bribed him with stuff, etc. He is nearly 3 years old, and he was scared of the toilet untill about 4 months ago, but he won't use it, I try and make him set on it, but he never goes. Please help!

Answer 1

You can't push kids to potty train. Pushing them is the WORST thing you could do. Let him do it when he's ready otherwise he'll just regress more. Take a break for a few weeks and don't talk about it or anything. Start up again in a couple weeks and see how he does. Don't bribe him because he'll want a reward everytime and that's not a good habit to start. Just get him excited about it. Get him his own potty. Let him decorate it with stickers or put his name on it. Let him pick out his own underwear and tell him he can only wear them if he goes in the potty.

Answer 2

My son was potty trained before 2 years old with the help of his daycare provider and has slept in bed at night with NO diapers and NO accidents ever since. She really helped us!

She set a timer for every 30 minutes. When the ringer would go off, my son knew that it was time to try pottying (I even made a poster to put stars on every time he went . . . and I let him pick out the color). This helps prevent accidents.

She told me not to put pull ups on him because they are just like diapers, so they know no difference. Use regular underwear. This way, when they have an accident, they are uncomfortable and will eventually go to the potty. You'll have a few accidents to clean up here and there, but it is SO worth it! She also would put him in the corner for a minute or two when he had an accident (not scolding him, just time out).

It only took my son about a week to a week and a half to be trained. I had heard boys took longer, but my son was quick! I believe in this method! Good luck!

Answer 3

I'm not a pediatrician with professional advice on this, but I do have personal experience with two sons who both went well beyond age 3 before they got the hang of it. So I can empathize with you, and can also assure you that there will be a happy ending.

My older son wore diapers till he was almost four. It reached the point where I would be changing his diaper, and he and I would be having an intelligent discussion about diapers ... and alternatives to diapers (i.e., using the toilet). I particularly remember the time that I opened his diaper and said to him, "Ooh! There's all this brown stuff in your diaper." And he responded, entirely seriously (and accurately), "Brown is my favorite color."

Anyway, we just continued making the kids aware of the toilet (or potty) alternative and its advantages for them. (They didn't care whether there would be advantages for us, the parents.) Eventually they began trying it, then using it regularly, and in the end became consistent about using it and not having accidents.

Incidentally, girls do better at toilet training. If you have another child, you can hope that it will be a girl.

Another point: Bedwetting is a separate issue, and it ends when the child's body begins creating more of a particular chemical (I forget the name of it) that reduces the amount of urine that is created while he is asleep. And again, you can't rush it. Just be supportive, continue using diapers as long as they are necessary and practical, reduce fluids in the evening, use the toilet just before bedtime ... and wait it out.

One other note: We did ask our pediatrician for professional advice. Here's what he said:
"Don't worry about it. I've never had a patient who went off to college without being toilet trained."

Good luck to you and your son!

Answer 4

Are you ready for some hard work?
My son was three when I started.
Never, never punish him when he has an accident.
Don't use pull-ups during the day. They can't feel when they are wet, when they feel wet or have dirty in them they hate it!
So...........
With your son, go to the store buy some of the real thick training underwear
and buy some of the plastic liners to go outside of them(yeah-they still sell them). It saves the clothes!
If you can afford it, buy tons. Be prepared for a ton of laundry.
I would kinda make sure our son was around when I would wash them so he can see how much work it is for mommy.
While at the store, let him pick out a pair of "big boy" underwear and tell him when he stops having accidents he can wear them.
Then every time he has an accident just encourage him to rush to the bathroom. No bribes, nothing, just encouragement.
Take him to the bathrrom often, and lots of drinking!
Also, buy some pull-ups for nighttime. I didn't even address the night time plan.
Also, potty books are great!
Boys are the hardest! Dr. Phil had a great idea and it worked for us-tell him when he is done and not having accidents he gets to have a big boy party and call his favorite hero (which will be one of your relatives) to tell him the great news!
From beginning to end it took us about three months.
But, our boy is 5 now and he still has to wear pull ups at night. His doc said that could last awhile.
Sometimes you have to walk out of the room and scream, but it's rewarding.
Good luck!

Answer 5

I'm not at that stage yet with my little girl. But here are some tricks I heard so far. Put cheerios or fruit loops in the toilet and tell him to sink them. Also my friend would let her son go pantless around the house. She would put a long shirt on him that's it. She also had a hard time potty training him. He was almost 5 b4 he was potty trained. Good luck

Answer 6

Ask your pediatrition about a device which i call the pee pee beeper. It is very safe but works great. I had a problem bed wetter and within two weeks he was potty trained. It's a device that snaps between the layer of underwear, then I would put a pull up on over the underwear, one little drop of urine on the snapped part sets off a beeper. It makes a loud ringing noise and wakes the child and the parent(lol), so that they know that the need to go to the bathroom. Usual the child stops peeing instantly when the beeper goes. I wish I could remember who made it.

Answer 7

Sometimes they are just not ready! Maybe you should try a potty chair instead of the actual toilet. There are websites you can go to that will help you with ways to make it fun for him. Huggies, cheerios, and Charmin all have websites.I know some kids that didn't get trained until they were four, and it was easy then because they were ready. Just be patient, that is they key, and make it fun!

Answer 8

My son is 2 1/2, and he has just recently started using the potty. It can get really frustrating, but just stay calm it gets easier. First, does your child go to day care? My son is using it all the time now, because he sees the other children using it. If not, see if his father will take him to the bathroom with him, maybe watching his father will help him to try. All little boys want to be like their fathers....

Answer 9

I tried the toilet...they use a potty better...they like to see what they've done. Try the reward system. I gae my son 1/2 a gumy worm every time he wet in the potty...he's pretty good...he's only 2...so you have to take him every hour...but at daycare he's basically trained because all his peers are older than him, and he wants to be a big boy like them.

Answer 10

When my son was about 2 1/2, we ran out of pull-ups and I refused to get more. He already had big boy underwear and was told that he was not allowed to get them wet. After about a week (and 3- 4 accidents) he got the hang of it. In the past year, he has only had 5 additional accidents (2 were bed wetting).