Potty Training 3 & 4
Hi everyone.
We're having a hard time potty training our 3 & 4 y/o toddlers. We've tried different potty seats/toilets. No diapers. And more with minimal to no luck. Our 4 y/o can hold it all day, not exaggerating.
Would love any tips or tricks or anything to get them headed in the right direction (AKA no diapers).
Thanks!
Jan 13, 2023
Parent Replies
Hello!! It’s a difficult and draining time… it sure is. I can highly recommend following literally step by step the guidelines in the book Oh Crap by Jamie Glowacki.
I found the first weeks a mixed bag until something clicked and it worked! She also has blogs and a network of potty trainers in case you want 1:1 advice.
good luck!
Have you seen the little targets you put in the toilet, either in the regular toilet (they stick on) or float on the water? Or I saw one you put in the bottom of the kid potty, and warm pee makes a dinosaur show up. How fun is that? In general, I think we got more results with better bribery, to be honest. Make it worth their while - sticker charts for BIG prizes at the end.
I'm sure there'll be lots of great tips and resources, but just from my own experiences, have you tried showing them potty training videos for kids and/or reading kids' books about potty training? My 3yo daughter was also resistant (after showing some initial interest) but we started watching "I'm a Potty Princess" video on YouTube and I read her the "Potty" book by Leslie Patricelli and she started being really interested in trying to potty after that. She still likes watching the video and reading the book every now and then, after being fully potty trained (even through the night)! Good luck and hang in there, it'll happen!
I had a similarly hard time to begin with with my fiercely independent and strong willed 3 y/o, who would also quite happily hold his pee all day. I found the advice in the book Stress-Free Potty Training really helpful and our experience ended up being just that (stress-free, easy and child-led). Good luck!
Oh do I remember these days. Mine would hold and hold and hold. She get to the point of bursting, and one day I was able to coax her onto the toilet with a hole cut in the pull-up. No joke, a hole. She didn't see there was a hole but she was willing to sit.
I used the Oh Crap method which totally stressed her and me out. After going back to pull ups for awhile, we ended up doing the following:
1. Visiting the bathroom to pee in pull up (she could tell me when she needed to go). She peed ONLY in the bathroom.
2. Got her to sit on the toilet still in pull up and pee in pull up.
3. She would hold all day at school and one day I put her in pull up with hole when she knew she needed the toilet bad. She tinkled and the pull up cannot hold that much pee so the pee escaped and went into the toilet bowl. She was AMAZED and told me she peed in the potty. We were very happy.
4. I cut progressively bigger holes.
Three days later she abandoned the pull up and never looked back.
Good luck. This was our hill to die on and I feel you. It'll happen. I swear.