Hello, I need advice! My son is three years old, going onto four soon! We have been trying to potty train since he was two years old with no success! I noticed he hold it in as much as he can until night time when I put on a diaper. I have tried everything in the book. I honestly don’t know what to do at this point to teach him how to use the potty. Any suggestions?
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Throw cheerios in the potty and have him “sink” them. Good luck!
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With my boys it took 3 days of them running around naked then 3-4 days of just underwear and then clothes after that. They still had accidents the first couple weeks. My youngest holds it til the last possible second then runs to the potty.
Potty training boot camp works great. Also BRIBERY. Bribe that child with an M&M or fruit snack or whatever every time they potty (big prizes for poo!). It’s not forever, so it’s not gonna kill them. Also, we had our son pick out cool new undies that he got to wear after he was able to go all day without an accident AND a brand new cool toy that sat just out of his reach until he was able to go all day without an accident.
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Diapers and pull-ups only enable the mentality that its ok to potty in your pants , definitely go without either
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Underwear. Put him in underwear and take him to the potty every hour or half hour. After a few accidents, he should get sick of having to change clothes and start to let you know he has to use the potty. Worked for my two boys anyway. Good luck!
My son is 3 turning 4 in October. We finally got him to go pee all by himself and let us know when we are out (close to home) when he has to use the bathroom. We still do pull-ups at night because he is a heavy sleeper. As far as going poop, he waits for us to put a pull-up on or goes in the floor in the bathroom then runs to tell us he has to poop 
still working on that one.
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Mom of 3 boys… just put him in underwear and take away the option of a pull-up through the day. After he realizes he doesn’t like feeling wet and cold he will pee in the toilet. It will take about 3 solid days. I would absolutely keep him in a pull up at night though.
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I just let my boy go without diapers for a few days and kept asking if he needed to pee or poo and now he tells me when he needs to go. He’s 2 will be 3 next month.Some days were frustrating though but it got better.
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Stop training!!! I know it sounds counterproductive. Some kids (& adults) don’t respond to pressure. He knows what to do. Take the pressure off. When he does go reward him with a sticker (outdated calendars are good for this.) Each time he gets 5-7 stickers he gets a bigger reward. When he gets a larger amount (for us when we filled the calendar so 35) he gets a bigger reward. Don’t do anything about accidents. I found with my younger 2 the more people said they should be potty trained or bugged them about going they fought it. Once the pressure was off it just clicked.
You can also get white undies. Let him draw on it with WASHABLE markers. Praise him like crazy for the beautiful picture. Take pictures of his art work etc. Then he wears the undies. When he pees in them say something like “that’s too bad. You’re picture is ruined.” That might make him be more conscious & keep them dry so the picture stays nice. When he’s done wearing them soak in cold water before washing.
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I tried target practice with Cheerios in the toilet, put a little bit of dish soap in the toilet it makes bubbles. My mom tried a gum ball machine with my brother he got a penny every time he peed in the toilet. My cousin was visiting ( many years ago) and ate all the gum all’s. We had one child who like fake tattoos on his arms as a reward for being good.
We got my son a frog urinal that hung on the wall. So much easier!! Then it also teaches him to stand up while using the bathroom there is a thing in it that spins when they pee on it. My son thought it was great
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Ditch the diapers and pull ups and move to regular underwear. Boys tend to take longer to potty train as well.
I bribe mine with his favourite haribo jelly. He was potty train in no time 
I had the same problem with my son… he was four before I got him potty trained…I bought this book called Toilet Time: A Training Kit for Boys (Ready to Go!) It’s on amazon and comes with two posters that match the kids posters in the story and you can choose between a boy and girl in the story. I read this book to at least once a day and pointed out all the similarities between him and the boy in the story. It took me about three days of me taking him to the bathroom every hour at first and then every two hours and so on until he was able to do it on his own we still had a few accidents at first but slowly those went away. This kit is a life saver I really though I would never get him potty trained…
With my son it was a control issue. He wanted to have something he was in control of. He didn’t understand that, neither did we, but like it was said in a earlier response “once the pressure was off” he was in control and nature took its course. There were accidents, but I didn’t fuss about them, just had him help with cleaning up the “mess”. That was the biggest help, because he had to stop what he was doing.
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Toss the pull ups at night…just be patient he’ll get it !!
I would stop the potty training. He may not be responding to the pressure.
Has anybody tried putting underwear on and then putting a pull up over the underwear would that work
No diaper or pants… Au natural… Put fruit loops or cheerios in the toilet for aiming practice…
Mini choc chip for rewards… Good luck!
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For my boys it was peeing outside with the big boys (adults) granted if your not in the country, have a tall privacy fence, or a secluded area it might be different but yeah thats what did it for my boys
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I did the bottomless method
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Is he constipated?
Tried a Chiropractor?
The Chiropractor solved all our issue
My son is 3 in December an only just been fully trained I just let him go round with a top an no pants on he knew where he had to go for a wee an I just took share clothes an potty out when I go out he’s only just got used to wearing pants I trained him with out them lol
Take him to br with you. Make a game…who can go more.Treat him to a chocolate kiss if he goes potty. Tell him to go to br if he wants to go to the park, keep underwear on and remind him if he owes his pants at park the other kids will see.
When I potty trained my youngest who is still the hardest out of my 3 boys I made him go every 20 min then 30 then 45 then 1 hour i would make him sit until he went then praised him for it did a sticker chart and told him diapers are for babies and not big boys. He knew if he didn’t go he wouldn’t be playing because he would get so busy to go. He is very stubborn still but I completely cut out any diapers because he would do the same thing until I put a pull up at night so I stopped using all that and used plastic pants over underwear for a while.
My mom had to teach my brother until my dad got home. So,she got out the cheerios tossed some in the toilet and told him to aim and to try to hit them didn’t take her long to have him potty trained.
Ditch the diapers and invest in a plastic mattress protector. Give a little tiny treat for each time sat on the potty, bigger treat when he actually goes.
We used Cheerios as targets in the toilet. It worked!
My son is 2 most of the time if it’s just us home and no one visiting we let him run around naked and some times just underwear yes he will still pee or poop on the floor and getting the pee smell out of his room sucks and he has a potty outside the bathroom door and he will use it when he wants so half the time he uses it and half the tome he doesn’t put i don’t get mad if he goes on the floor
I’ve heard you have them pack up all the diapers and “drop them off to the diaper fairy” to give to another child. Then put on undies and never look back. Expect a lot of accidents but put them on the potty every 15-20 minutes. I always gave one peanut m&m if she went. If he holds it until night then use those padded cloth undies so he won’t notice. Put a towel on the bed then a sheet then a towel and a sheet and a towel and a sheet. That way if he pees the bed in the middle of the night take the sheet and top towel off and put in the wash and it’s already made up. Eventually he will learn it’s uncomfortable to have peed pants on and it’s hard to hold it all the time and he will learn.
My daughter was the same age. The Doctor told me she will go when she is ready. It is frustrating. One day she asked me for pretty pants. Got her some and that was it. I know boys are different but don’t worry. He will get there.
Have you had bloodwork done? My son had a hormone disorder. He had to take medicine until he eventually grew out of it. I was so grateful for the overnight Pull-Ups🙏
Some kids are just super late with potty training. I have a niece that wasn’t trained until 4 but her brother was trained by 2. Don’t get frustrated or lose patience…and don’t be mean to him, he will figure it out soon.
My twin boys were almost 4 when they were finally ready. We spent last Christmas break with training underwear and every time they went they got a sticker. For every 5 stickers they got a “treat”. Haven’t had an accident since! Good luck, I KNOW it’s hard!!
My pediatrician said not to push the issue that they will do it when they are ready. My son was almost 5 but he did it all on his own came running they the room headed to the bathroom yelling I have to pee and from that he never had an accident.
Let him go outside. I know it sounds weird but that was the easiest way for my boy or put cheerios in the toilet to aim at and make it a game to him. Have him go with daddy everytime he goes to teach him that big boys pee in the potty. Just some ideas…
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All 3 of our boys were potty trained by their second birthday. Would let them go around the house with nothing on from the waist down or just thin cloth training pants.
Put him on the potty and when he goes tell him good boy then give him an m&m. Make sure he sees them and tell him if he goes potty then he can have one
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Mine had an issue with the seat itself he has a sensory disorder…when we switched from a plastic seat to a wood one there was no training necessary he did it on his own
One of my sons was nearly 3 and one day I put a pair of his undies by his dads and told him dad doesnt wet his undies and he shouldnt either from that forward he used the pitty
STOP putting a diaper on him. Use the overnight pull-ups.
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Do you have a chance for him to be around other boys his age to learn from as they play together? That might work.
I put Cheerios in the toilet and told him to sink the boats. Worked like a charm.
I bought my sons their favorite character underwear and said let’s not go potty on them. It worked with all 3 of my boys
I’m following this one. Have a little one who will be there soon.
I used fruit loops with training my son and the different colors he got something just for him if he hit one… Extra tv time, a special treat, he picked dinner that night ( we ate a lot of hot dogs lol) make it fun
Boys are A LOT harder . They will tell you when THEY are ready don’t push it.
Have you tried Cheerios or Fruit Loops to aim at in the toilet with a small reward? Gets them excited about going to the big boy bathroom
I bought this book for my son, it comes with reward chart and stickers and a parent guide too. Also, we didnt waste time using a potty, just straight to the toilet with a toddler seat and stool to help him sit. Send him with his dad (or male relative) to help with copying peeing standing up, and just sit him down with a favourite toy or something in hand for when he needs to sit and poop. Let the child take the lead to feel in control of the situation, but ask them every hour if they need to go toilet. It takes time, but it will happen in the end. Just give yourself time and patience. Good luck!
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My advice, stop trying so hard. My son wouldnt do it until i was like ok, whatever…then just out of nowhere one day he started doing it on his own just before he turned 4.
I know it might sound weird. My little one would only go potty outside. For the life of me he wouldn’t use the toilet until he was going outside for about a week. For poop we would put his little potty on the back porch and that’s where he would go.
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I made dad take him to the bathroom every time he went until he felt comfortable just going by himself and I made no big deal about it! He would say I need to go the bathroom I say ok! If he has a accident I just say ok let’s clean you up and get clean clothes! Don’t worry it’ll come naturally all in good time don’t fight the easy stuff!
I just had to let my son do it own his own time he has been potty trained for a couple of months now and he is almost 5. I tried prizes, new underwear, going every 10 minutes everything you could think of. Then one day he just started doing it on his own.
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Throw away diapers. They are holding you and your son back. Take your son to the store let him pick out underwear. Stay home for at least three days straight let him run around naked. Place a potty chair in a quick and easy place for him to get to. Don’t keep asking him if he has to go potty. Tell him to let you know when he has to go. Make him in charge type thing. Put a trash bags on the bed so if he has an accident at night it won’t be all over the place.
Face him backwards and give him Dry erase markers to color on the toilet tank. It will distract him and it wipes right off when done.
I had to just make a pretty of it ever time it seem like
I used cool underwear I think it was Spider-Man!
Toss a coup!e Cheerios in the toilet and have him hit the targets
Kids r really good with visuals and time training is good if he doesn’t say himself. So breakfast lunch dinner bed going at those times and watch for signs “pee dance” etc or wets himself 30mins after juice etc then you know when to take him.
Umm first off: buy a plastic cover for his bed (if its not a tot bed…stop with the diapers/pullups. Toilet every 15 minutes… Then every 30 and so on. Throw some fruit loops in the pot, give him a sticker to put on a piece of paper for every one he can aim and “hit” Nothing fancy. After 20 stickers are on the paper… Small reward. A special treat. Treat him as a “big boy”
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3 & 1/2 is not uncommon. All mine have been around 3 until this youngest one. She’s 3 & 1/2 has has recently degressed in potty training. It can get frustrating, but don’t let it. If you are frustrated, he will be also. However, consistency and a prize bucket has worked for us in the past. This last one… I don’t know what to say. 
Use a baking timer. This helps both of you to remember starting out. Let him sit down. I didn’t use diapers or pull-ups because they don’t let them feel the uncomfortable wetness. All 3 were trained in 3 days here. Except at nights took a while longer. Once they get older they’ll begin standing up on their own
We did a few Cheerios in the bowl and let him try target practice. He also loved to pee outside on the tree so we let him once in a while. Potty training/game. Potty trained in no time.
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Give him time. My son was completely potty trained by 15 months and then when he turned 2 he wouldn’t do it.
What i have learned is not to push him let him show you when he’s ready after he drinks ask him if he wants to try the potty if he says yes then keep trying have him go potty with his dad?
Take him to the bathroom with you and have him use his own potty. So remember when you go he goes no matter what
Try looking into a potty watch. It works wonders with a young lady who was struggling similar to your son
If you make it an issue, they tend to fight for control. We did naked time during the day and I let them decide when they were ready. Once they make the decision it only takes a few days.
Get him around older kids. That’s what worked for my son
We did the same thing.
Have your husband take Him