Need help with potty training my 3 yr old son?

Question

My son is 3 years old and isn't potty trained yet. He is interseted in using the potty and is starting to show signs that he is almost ready. When he wets or dirties himself he will come and tell me after he has finished.

What can I do to potty train him? Any suggestions would be most helpful. My husband works 12-8, so he is unable to help.

Answer 1

If your son is in pull-ups or diapers, take him out of them. When my son (now age 4) was potty training, he would mess in his pull up, but if I put big boy underpants on him, for the most part he would stay dry. I only put pull ups on him when he was sleeping or if we were out and about. It worked for him. He was in daycare and it seemed to help him there as well. I never had to buy another package! I think that if they feel a "diaper" that gives them a "reason" to go in their pants. But, if they don't have that, then they are more apt to want use the potty. My son hated the potty chair too...had to use the big potty. One thing to remember though...don't expect your son to go on his own all the time, ask him frequently if he has to go and occasionally suggest that he tries. Also, if your son sees Dad standing...he might want to stand as well and not sit...get him a step stool. My son was potty trained at 2 1/2 using this method. My oldest son (11 years) was potty trained in less than a week at the same age, I ran out of diapers and was between paychecks. He didn't have much of a choice...lol...one thing you hav eto watch for though, even if they pee in the potty, some boys don't like to poo there...they would much rather go in a corner or under the table. Keep an eye on Junior, if he acts suspicious, put him on the pot! Try this for a week and see how it goes. But one very important thing to remember...if he has an accident, DON'T punish him!!! That will make him afraid of not only you but also of the potty. Praise him for EVERY attempt even if there nothing happened...just sitting on the potty is enough for "YAY!! Baby!! What a good boy! You sat on the big boy potty!!" and Any day he does "go" Make a HUGE production out of it when Daddy gets home, or friends stop by...make that boy proud of himself for every little attempt...positive reinforcement works better during this transition. Good Luck!

Answer 2

If you have a general idea of when he goes to the potty like if he tends to poop at the same time each day or if he usually pee pees a certain length of time after he eats or drinks then you can try to take off his diaper and let him set on his potty & you might be able to get him to use it for the first time like that. If he does then make a really big deal out of it with lots of praise and a reward. Now this may also lead to an "accident" if he gets up and goes while not seated but that's part of the process sometimes but if he actually goes while he's sitting there then the pieces of the puzzle start to fall together for them. They know what's going to happen on the potty rather than being afraid of it or disinterested in it like before. My son is 2 and he loves the Elmo's Potty Time DVD and I will play that for him and bring his potty into the room while he watches it so that he is making the connection that way as well. The best thing is just to know that it will happen and to never punish for accidents - and don't punish yourself either. You have a big job with your husband gone for such a long stretch of time so don't be too hard on yourself if it takes a while. You and your son are a team and you'll figure out what works for you. Good luck!!

Answer 3

My son was also a slow learner when it came potty training. I finally started taking him every couple hours no matter what sitting him on the pot facing the tank and pouring warm on his penis it made him go every time. I read it in a book, I can't remember the name of the book it has been so long now. My son is 22 yrs old. Don't worry too much I have never seen a child yet to go to school without being potty trained. He will come around. Good luck. About #2 if he goes around the same time everyday make sure to take him around that time, give him a book to look at or a few toys to play with while he is sitting there.Good luck on this.

Answer 4

My son, who is turning 4 next week, was a tough one to potty train too. We tried the cheerios - didn't work, we tried just sittin him on the potty every hour or so - didn't work - he would sit there as long as I made him and then as soon as he got up and got his pants back on... he was wet and/or dirty. soooo... we went with the reward method. My son had seen Toy Story at his Aunt's house with her girls and wanted that movie sooooo bad. So i bought the movie. I bought a giant piece of poster board. On the top of the poster board I taped the movie and put lots of stars and decorations around it, on the bottom of the chart I made 10 squares for everytime he pooped in the potty and 20 for every time he peed in the potty. I hung this up on the bathroom wall. After he used the toilet, he was allowed to put a sticker in the correct space. When the chart was filled, he got the movie. My son was much easier to train on the peeing side of potty training so the 20 spots for that filled up much quicker than the others, but in the end it worked very well!

Answer 5

My son will be 3 next month and he's a really slow learner when it comes to the potty. Here are the things we are trying. I would say my son is close to 50% trained (better than nothing right?)

1-He couldn't tell at all when he had to go. He didn't associate that "feeling of pressure" when he had to pee or poop so we actually let him walk around with no diaper at all. He peed on the floor. After about 4 times of peeing on the floor in the same day, he understood that feeling of having to go...he understood cause and effect.

2-Everyone told us that he'd be ready to be trained when he could stay dry for 2-3 hours. He couldn't stay dry for more than 30 minutes. I thought he had a weak bladder. But...what I realized is that we have been letting him graze all day on food rather than set meals of breakfast, lunch, and dinner. When food and drink are going in round the clock (small quantities each time...my son is a terrible eater), pee and poop build up round the clock. Now he eats a set breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with 2 snacks. If he doesn't finish, I don't force him. And then BAM!! He stays dry for 2-3 hours at a time.

3-My son didn't get it when I let him watch me go to the potty. So my husband took him. My son was shocked to see "water" coming out. After seeing my husband go a few times, my son understood that pee goes into the potty. My husband also works crazy hours (gone from 9am-8pm). So he showed our son how to use the potty in the mornings, evenings, and weekends.

4-The reward system works well. My son gets 1 sticker everytime he pees on the potty and 3 stickers for poop. He asks to go literally every 5 minutes to try to get the reward. But I'm glad he tries.

5-There's a movie called "Potty Power" with some goofy songs. A lot of parents get annoyed by the lady in it and the songs but my son liked it a lot. And it helped him understand the idea better because the movie shows kids going to the potty and throwing their diapers away. It's available on NetFlix but I think you can also buy it on amazon.com.

Like I said before, my son is only around 50% trained. He doesn't always realize when he has to go. I ask him every 15 minutes. He lies a lot saying he doesn't have to go because he's "too busy." Then he has accidents.

Hope this information helps. Some kids learn really quickly. Some parents lie/brag about how quickly their kids learn. My neighbor says her child learned in 2 days. But I clearly remember the child taking about 6 months. Don't worry too much. Your son will learn. It's not some kind of race. Take your time.

Best of luck!

mari

Answer 6

I know how that goes when daddy is at work,,,,First try cheerios in the potty,,,he can aim to hit them,,,,second,,take him out and let him puck out big boy panties,,,,when he wets those he will feel it!!

Try pull ups at night,,,they really work!

Last resort,,,which i had to do,,,put the potty seat in the living room,,,or where you think he dirties his diaper,,,such as a playhouse or a corner,,,that way he has it handy to the little guy,,,

Answer 7

stop using diapers or pull ups. put him in underwear around the house. and take him to the toilet or potty once and hour every hour and make him sit there for AT LEAST 5 MINUTES sorry about the caps

Answer 8

i did the cheerio trick. worked great!

Answer 9

if he shits on the floor then rub his nose in and smack him with a newspaper and he wont do it again

I swear to god this works