Dear Moms,
I'm lucky that my son (who's not three till June) is now fully potty-trained during the day. He asks us every time he needs to go (we still have to "help" him; his short little legs don't quite reach.) He wears underwear all day, every day now.
That's where my question begins: he still sleeps in a pull-up. How do I know he's "ready" to wear underwear at night? (To be honest, I'm not sure I'm ready to clean up wet sheets. That's part of my hesitation). He's only really been "fully" potty-trained during the day for about a month (we have an accident now and then). Some moms tell me it'll be months before he's ready to leave the pull-ups behind; some moms tell me to "Do it now!" before he starts to think the pull-up is just his excuse to wet his pants at night.
We already have a liquid restriction after 7:00 at night (he goes to bed at 8:30), and some mornings he wakes up completely dry. I'm just not sure what my next step is!!! :)
Any thoughts??? This is my first child, so of course the potty-training thing is new to me. Any advice or helpful hints you could send my way would be greatly appreciated. The tips you moms gave me as we tackled the "day-time" training really helped me get through it. Thanks in advance!
Thanks, Moms, for all your wisdom on this one. The overwhelming majority of you said that the nighttime readiness will come only when his body is physically able to "hold" it all night. Since he did potty train so early, it seems like this next step could come months from now! So thanks for helping me realize that this isn't anything that I can "help" him be ready for; it will come with time. I'm going to relax and just be thankful he's as far as he is. Thanks again! I love this site! :)
Unless he wakes up dry consistently every morning, he's not ready. He is so young, give him another year or so. My son wasn't day or night trained until he was 4.
I agree, don't sweat the night time training yet. My twin boys will be four in June and though they've been day trained for almost a year, they still need a little protection on most nights and we are completely fine with it. They won't go to college wearing pull-ups, it will happen when their bodies are ready. That being said, my boys love to wake up from nap and in the mornings to check and see if the stars or horseshoes are still there on their pull-ups (there's some friendly competition since there are two of them!) and if they are, they get a small treat like a tootsie roll or something. With my daughter who is now 10 1/2, I made WAY TOO BIG A DEAL out of the night time training, I'm glad I'm mature enough now with my boys that I don't get upset about wet pull ups in the morning. That is the least of my problems :-)
You don't train night time potty habits. When they are asleep, they are asleep. It is a develomental stage where they start to recognize the need to go and get up and go. Waking them up and taking them in the night is not training them to have a bladder that will hold it until they wake nor is it training them to wake up when it is full.
So just let him sleep and don't worry about it. You will know when he is ready when he starts waking up dry. :)
And you know what? Get a plastic mattress cover that lets you swoop down and get sheets to wash and just wipe the mattress cover. It is quick, easy, and you probably will have a few accidents. DON'T make a big deal out of it.
VickiS
My son potty trained at 2 1/2 also. Isn't it wonderful??? It was, however, a few more months before we left the nighttime pull ups behind. We told our son if he went 3 nights staying dry, we would try underwear at night. That seemed to motivate him. We do have accidents at night occasionally (my son turned 3 in January). We do not make a big deal about them, and NEVER make him feel bad for it. We also have a no drinking after 7 rule. Sometimes he wakes himself up, and sometimes he holds it all night. Occasionally if I know he is extremely tired I will wake him up during the night for him to go.
Don't stress over it, it will happen when he is ready. Good luck to you.
Our eldest daughter wore pullups at night for about a year after being able to use the potty during the day. When we decided to give no-pullups nights a go, she wet the bed more often than not. So we started getting her up to potty. She'd go before bed, then dad would get her up before we went to bed, once more in the early morning hours & again when he got up for work. It was't until a few months later that she was able to wake herself. She was three for daytime potty, about 4 1/2 for nighttime.
Our three year old has been using the potty during the day for about a year now; she hated diapers & just stopped wearing them. She refuses to wear pullups, so we do the same as we did for her big sister: get her up to potty a few times a night.
When they're little, they just aren't able to wake themselves when they need to go, so you can't really teach them to do it. I know some moms use some kind of nighttime alarm, but that's not our style.
Good luck!
Dear E.,
It sounds like you have done a wonderful job on potty training. Please don't stress over the night time there is so many more inportant things in life. I am a full time working Granny rasing my 3 1/2 year old grandson Kirk. He has been fully potty trained for about 6 months. He is still wearing a pull-up at nap and night. He wakes up from a nap and at night dry most of the time dry. He will not tee tee in the pull-up if he is awake. It never fails when I don't put a pull-up on I have to change all his beding.
I feel you should just love him and read him lots of books at bed time and take a weekly trip to the Library and let him pick out books and keep pull-ups on hand. Mom I am so proud of you.
Take Care
Welder Granny from Texas
V.
Being dry during the nighttime is a prerequisite for potty control. So until your little one is dry all night, gets up with dry pull ups, goes to the potty as soon as he awakens, he is still not totally ready. Be patient. It will happen. You are doing everything right. He needs a little more maturity and time. Hang tight.
S., PNP
First thing ... if you don't already have it ... buy a waterproof mattress cover for your son's bed. Because there will be accidents. But if you have that wonderful thing ... you won't be mad or even crazy when it happens. :-)
A good sign is if he keeps his pull-ups dry every day for one week. And it will happen. You can encourage him by each time he does have a dry pull-up by rewarding him with praise/or a little prize, sticker, etc. That way he'll be motivated to keep a dry pull-up. We had our son in night-time pull-up and he didn't use it as a crutch at all.
good luck!!
My son turned 2 in Feb. and I potty trained last month both day and night. I did the same with my daughter when she was 28 month old. She never had any accident's at night, but my son has had at lease 2 in the last months. I never put him in pull ups day or night. The first week was hard, but it got easier each day. Now if he has to go potty during the night he yells for one of us to go and get him. I think you just put him in big boy underwear at night make sure to take him twice to the potty before bed time. He will have accidents, but I promise it will only last a little while. I thought it would take forever for my son to start telling when he needs to go potty. It only took 4 weeks and he is fully trained so hang in there and you can have him night trained in no time. Best of luck.
We waited until my son could go over a month with no wet diapers before switching to underpants. We've only had maybe 2 night time accidents in over 2 yrs now and I send him to bed with a sippy of water. I just make sure he goes before getting in bed and he's fine.
Give him some time if he still wets at night. It's just not worth the hassle other wise. Night time readiness has nothing to do with training, intelligence, parenting, etc. It has to do with the body's ability to hold it that long and is tied to the development of some hormone. Dr's typically don't worry until the child is over 6 or 7 so you shouldn't either.
Good luck!
Iam so sorry i dont have advise but how ever i do wuna no how u got your son potty trained at all!!!? my son is 1 yr an a half an i ve ben putting him on the pot an he wont go but has no problem going on the floor plus i hav no support. the reason for wantong to train so soon is becouse iam 6 in a half mo preg an i refuse to hav two in pampers....i just dont think i can handle it let alone afford it!!! please give me some of your advice. Thanks
