OT Need suggestions for potty training boys!

[Tiggerlovinggrandma]

Dd and her ex husbadn are FINALLY in agreement to begin potty training thier son beginining Monday. YAY!

Some Background: My grandson will be 3 next week. At present he can tell us sometimes he needs to go pee pee and more rarely he needs to go poopy. DD and her ex have agreed to use underwear when child is at home and pull ups when child is away from home. He is still in a crib but his parents plan to break down their cribs into daybeds. Both sets of grandparents are on board to help whenever child is in our care. DGS currently lives with DH and I along with his mommy so he is at our home M-Th one week and M-F the next.

My husband and I only have expierence potty training out daugther and that was 24 years ago. Our memory on the subject is not sharp at all. We so need a refresher course.

My request is for any and all suggestions concerning potty training specifically little boys that can aid us as well as DD, her ex and the other grandparents in making this a good expierence for the little guy..

Basically what has worked for you and your son and what hasn't?

Do you use a potty seat, a coverseat or regular toilet seat?

What flushable wipes work best?

What is a typical length of time boys take to get into the habit?

How do you ward off child "playing" at going to the potty?

Do you begin with daytime training then move to nighttime or do both at once?

What tips help with nighttime training? How close to bedtime do you allow drinks? Do you use pads for under the sheets?

Once child has the freedom to get in and out of bed (no crib), do you find this causes additonal issues and how did you deal with it? (Ex: Mommy I need to go pee pee as a way to get out of bed or room, etc)

What methods do you use when you are away from home, on road trips, etc?

Whien out, what do you do when you can't get to a restroom quick enough?

Any and all suggestions will be much appreciated and most defintitely help those involved, DD, her ex and grandparents. Thank you!!

 

[MSSANDRA]

I'm back

I am also helping to raise my DGS 3. He is with me most of the time and with my MIL some durnig the week and an occasional night at mom's house. Not really any consistant rules or routines. He was 3 in October. Around 2 1/2, everyone sorta played at potty training but only I was being very serious about it. He would sometimes go and sometimes not. About three months before he turned 3, I decided I would take charge and just do it. He was with me, at home for 3 or 4 full days. I put him in regular underwear and took him to the potty every 15-20 minutes. A lot of accidents at first but with in a day or two almost none. Pretty much pee-pee trained in two days. The poop however has been a major ordeal. He
STILL wants a diaper to do this. He NEVER goes in his pants and has not since he was first trained but will not go in the potty. He has had some major constipation issues so everyone has been a little afraid to puch this one. I however am getting ready to battle it alone very soon.

He was staying dry all night at 18mo in diapers so I pretty much put him in underwear from the start at bedtime. He has wet my bed (he sleeps with me) once. MIL & Mom still use pull ups or diapers at night, just in case.He drinks a glass a milk everynight before bed so that is not an issue for him.

He used the regular tolet (standing up) from the start. We went with him to start but by three he would go alone. He had a stool but he is tall and does better without it. In public I go in the stall and he knows not to touch, I raise the seat, flush etc. If the tolet is too high, he stands on my feet.

Little boys are the best for "gotta go now" as you can find a bush if needed!!! DGS can hold it really well but we "all" go before we leave home or somewhere we will not be near a bathroom.

If you get everyone on board it should not be too hard.

good luck!

 

[skx1122]

I trained my son last May at 2 and 3/4 years of age. We talked up the date for months ahead of time, and then on the day we had been telling him was coming (aka first day of summer vacation from preschool) - he woke up to no diapers anywhere.

And so it began...

Day 1 - I kept him naked the whole day and we never left the hardwood part of the house. I had a little potty in the center of the playroom, and I kept reminding him that if he needed to go - he was to go in the potty. I kept a sippy cup of extremely watered down juice in his hand at all times, so we got as many "learning opportunities as possible. I cannot begin to tell you how many rolls of papertowels I went through, but he began understanding the concept of when he needed to go. That evening, we put a pull up on him, and called it night time panties.

Day 2: We added in underwear and halfway through the day started setting the timer to make him sit and try every half an hour. About 2/3rd of the way through the day, things started going better.

Day 3: Added shirt to the undies wear. Continued with the time for the first half of the day, but then he no longer needed it. By the end of day 3 accidents were rare.

Day 4: Did great all through the day. Finally gave in and pooped in the potty.
Day 5 & 6: He made it dry through the night too.
Day 7: We ditched pull ups forever, and we have never looked back.

Also to note, each time he had success in the beginning days, we celebrated with a potty party - he got to wear a special hat, I threw streamers in the air, and we danced like mad people to his favorite song - the theme song to Cars. Then at the end, he got one marshmellow.

It was a rough first 3 days, and my husband and I almost turned back quite a few times. But now, being on the other end - I would do it again in a heartbeat the same way. I think it was important for him to see that we weren't going back. Diapers were gone, and this was the way it was.

Accidents are rare, but they do happen - as will all little kids. Main thing is just to remind them or at least make them try when they are busy playing. I know some people that set a timer especially when they are out and about so the don't forget to make sure their child has gone. Which is a good idea - because every accident we have ever had has been in a playroom.

Hope that helped, Kelly

 

[Kat&Dom]

I started trying to potty train my son at 2 and it was too soon. He was potty trained at home from about 2 1/2 on but at day home, he found her toilet frightening so he refused to use it. He was in pull ups all day at day home but in underwear at home in the evenings and weekends and sleeping through the night in underwear.

At 3 years and 2 months, he wanted me to buy him something and I said I couldn't afford to because I had to buy his pull ups so he decided from that moment on to use the potty at day home. He has been potty trained ever since. I carried a container that I got at the drug store for him to pee in if we were driving anywhere so I could pull over and he could pee in it.

One of my friends got a book on potty training and it suggested a party so her and her son started planning a big boy party to celebrate him not needing pull ups anymore. They went shopping and he picked out the party supplies and the cake. They had the party and he decided he was a big boy and didn't need pull ups anymore.

It seems like it is something that boys just decide to do. I think they understand the concept but they have to decide if they want to use the toilet or not. Once they decide, it is easy and quick.

Now, I noticed that your grandson's mom and dad are not together. My ex and I split up when my son was 18 months old. We had one set back when my son was 3 1/2 where he peed all over his toys. He was upset with his dad because his dad had built him up with a promise of a special toy for 3 weeks prior to the visit and then visit day came and no toy. My son was so upset that when we got home, he peed all over his toys. I threw out all the toys he had peed on and took away all his other toys as punishment. I feel so bad punishing him because I understood why he was angry but I needed him to know that there are consequences to actions. He had a few peeing episodes at his day home then I took him to a counsellor and he was able to express his anger with his dad and we have had no further incidents.

My ex is a deadbeat in pretty much every sense. He doesn't pay child support and he rarely visits my son. He sees him about once a month for an hour. He calls every couple of weeks for a 2 minute conversation. It is sad that he doesn't get the incredible gift of a son that he has. He doesn't seem to get that he is playing with a little boy's feeling and that my son is not a toy that he can just pick up and play with when he feels the whim to do so.

Both parents need to keep their promises and not make promises unless they can keep them because it can cause a set back in potty training. It sounds like your grandson's situation is in a good place though with both mom and dad on board. All the best to you.

 

[mamaLori05]

I trained my dd at 2.5, and my DS at 25 months. I put them in underwear, and we used a little potty for the first few weeks. For DS I would take him to the potty every hour or so, and take one leg out of his pants so he could sit on the potty with his legs wide (which helps point things where they need to go ). We did the same for #1 and #2. He was fully trained within 3 days, same with dd. If he had an accident, we would say "oh no, that's so sad. Big boys go on the potty." and clean him up and leave it at that. When he tried on the potty he got a dum dum sucker and we got all excited. Then we switched it to only getting a dum dum when he went, to only getting a dum dum if he stayed dry all day. Worked for us with both kids.

We only used pull-ups at night. Using pull-ups back and forth is only going to confuse him. If you are going out in public, have him go before you leave, put a towel under him in the carseat, and have him go as soon as you get to the place you are going. (and bring an extra set of clothes just in case). That is what we did and it worked. It took a little more work, but they were trained within 3 days (both #1 and #2).

It is a lot of work, and it takes a lot of patience, but stick with it and you will have a potty trained little boy! It's the best feeling in the world when it clicks and they get it.

 

[kim_o]

I trained DS4 when he was a month shy of 3. I was just done with diapers, even though DS had no interest in the potty. Plus, he was dry all night, so I figured if he could hold it 12-14 hours at night, he could manage 2 hours during the day. I just ditched the diapers and put him in underwear....it was pretty rough since he was extremely resistant. I wouldn't let him get up from the potty in the morning until he peed. Second day was another rough day with endless accidents. 3rd day we had 2 accidents. 4th day he was completely potty trained, day and night. I did use a sticker chart for him to earn matchbox cars or other small toys for the first 2 weeks.

DS2 just trained. He's shown interest since 18 months, but I wasn't ready. In January (when he was 2.5) I decided to start training. Went with the same method as DS1, but it didn't go as well. HE refused to poop in the potty. After a week, he was still having 1-2 pee accidents a day and never pooped in the potty. After 2, I was sick of cleaning up his accidents, so we went to pull ups (a big no-no in my opinion, but I was sick of doing laundry all of the time). After a month his pull ups were staying dry, but he was still having poop issues. We just went on a trip, and he peed through his pull up while standing in the security line and I didn't have a change of clothes. He had to sit in wet pants (I tried to hand wash them in the sink) for the 3 hour plane ride. He hasn't had an accident since and he's now in underwear full time. So, in total, took about 2 months. He does get candy rewards (a hershey kiss), and he's down to asking for a candy reward about 50% of the time