Need Brilliant Ideas to Get Potty Trained Daughter Back on Track!

About that age with my oldest, we just put him in back in diapers. Seriously - we could not keep up. It had become a battle of wills with him and his Dad, and as is often the case with potty-training, poop won.

What worked was to have an older child he adored at the house consistently and repeatedly for two weeks. He wanted to be more like his friend....who used the toilet.

I like the answers you've gotten so far. My grandson experienced some "slippage" maybe a year after he was completely trained. He was just too involved in play to want to take the time to stop. More frequent reminders, and taking some time to clean up accidents, helped quickly. It just doesn't seem quick enough until you're looking back at how brief it actually was.

Here's an incentive program that has great reported results from moms I've known who have used it. You might compare it to the "carrots" you've tried and see if there are any new ideas here:http://www.rogerknapp.com/medical/pottytrainingrefusals.htm

Good luck!

How about having her help you clean up the mess when it happens? If you make the process of cleaning up the mess take a long time, then maybe she will find it's less work to just go in the potty than to do all the clean-up.

You could have her take a bath or do some form of extra long clean-up of her body, followed by a pre-rinse of her clothes and underwear, followed by helping you do laundry to wash the clothes. Have her be involved in the process or at least present and helping as much as she is capable.

It will probably be inconvenient for you too, but maybe it will help get back on track if she sees how much work it is and how much it keeps her from playing...especially if she misses out on a specific play activity because you ran out of time. Something like, "Oh we don't have time to do X before dinner now because we had to spend all our time cleaning up the potty accident. Next time, you can try going poop in the potty and then we can have time to play instead of cleaning up."

You don't need to be disappointed or mad or unhappy about it. It's just matter of fact...oh, we had an accident....now we must clean it up.

Mine haven't had an issue with regression so I haven't tried that, but it's what I would do if my kids went back to wetting their pants on a regular basis.

Patricia stated my first question, which would be if there had been any other significant changes in your daughter's life. New siblings, new caregivers, changing the living arrangement-- all of this can affect toileting.

I agree with everyone who says reminders are important. A simple "in two minutes, time to go potty" will help. Also-- is there anything inhibiting her from leaving her play? (Is she afraid someone else will move/alter what she's playing with?-- I found with my preschoolers that if we used a scarf to 'save' their place, they felt easier about moving along to the bathroom.)

Yes, let her be involved with the cleanup, too. You had some excellent suggestion on that one.

Did any major changes happen around that time? Children do not have adult coping mechanisms, so that may be a key. Call your pedi and ask for their input to be safe.

Found this through google:

http://life.familyeducation.com/toddler/emotional-develop...

Make sure she is cleaning up after herself. Rinsing the panties, dumping the poo in the potty, putting the undies in the sink to soak, washing her hands after. I think that should be sufficient motivation to "remember" to go potty.

I had this issue....and others out here suggested that I totally ignore it.
AND IT WORKED. :)

It's an attention getting behavior.

Don't react. Don't help her clean up. Don't put her clothes in the laundry.
If you notice...do nothing and say nothing.
If she says something to you, say "yep, you're wet. better go clean yourself up."
It took a week for DS to get the message that I wasn't fighting this battle anymore.
No more issues. :) (He was 3.5 ,also)

Go back to reminding her. My DD did something similar and when she peed 2x in one day at school (including on her mat and another kid's mat at circle time...) I was mortified. The teachers started telling her to go to the bathroom and we reinforced times to go - before you leave the house, etc. She rallied and now has not (knock on something) had an accident anywhere in weeks. There is a little boy now going through potty trouble (I overhear occasional comments at the end of the day) and they are just doing the same for him. It's messy and annoying but not uncommon. I also reminded DD when she fussed and cried that she was taking up HER time for TV or play. If she wanted more TV or play time, she needed to use the potty first and not have to wait while I helped her, cleaned up, etc. If she doesn't like to stop, she won't like having to stop for longer.

You could try taking away her underwear/pants when you are home. I've done this with both my girls and have only had 1 puddle which she had to clean up herself. Most girls don't like the feeling of pee going down their legs and underwear stops a lot of that uncomfortable feeling. I usually just put them in skirts/dresses and nothing underneath so they're covered if someone comes to the door or something.

Have you actually taken her to the doctor? I've never heard of vaccines changing potty habits - don't know where that came from, but there are other problems that can cause it. A UTI, bladder problem, and constipation. You can actually be constipated and have liquidy poop come out from around the impaction. She may not WANT to poop, but finally it comes out in her pants.

I'd talk to the doctor about it and rule out physical problems. Strong willed kids sometimes have physical problems too...

Dawn

My first thought is has she been checked for a kidney or bladder infection? If she does have an infection, it could be that by the time she realizes she needs to go, it's too late.

Another thought would be if she had a fall or injury to her back. These symptoms are common with that also.

If it were me, I would go back to setting a timer and reminding her every hour or so. Also, when she messes, take her to the bathroom, give her a shower, and redress her in the bathroom. Don't have her walk unclothed down the hall to her room. Sometimes this happens when kids just want a change of clothes ...

Why on earth would your mind gravitate to vaccines? I mean that wouldn't even be on the radar for most people.

The problem is the carrot is what she is already getting out of the behavior so figure that out, stop it, and she will stop when her reward is taken away.

Has she been constipated at all?? That can really effect bladder control etc. Look up some info on it. I've been going through lots of problems potty training with my daughter. She is 5 1/2 and sometimes still needs a reminder because she just gets distracted. Good Luck!! And try to be as patient as you can!

Are you reminding her?

My daughter loved the pink toilet paper you can buy in the grocery store. We used this when potty training and it was very motivating for her. She was only allowed to use it when she used the potty. that was our "carrot"!
Good luck

This is normal. Some kids just do it because they get involved with playing and don't want to stop. Sometimes it is because something is happening in their lives that is stressing them... like parents are having a new baby or starting a new school. My son did this because he didn't want to stop playing. We used a behavior chart. For every day he stayed dry he got a sticker. Once he had 10 stickers (you pick the number... it doesn't have to be 10 in a row) he got a special present or treat. It worked after a couple of months. Hope this helps!