I have an 8 y/o so I'm not a first time mom, but my youngest boy just turned 4 y/o. I don't remember how to teach my son how to wipe his bottom. I have been trying to cut down how much milk he drinks (b/c it makes his BM squishy). To make a long story short: I let him try to wipe, but he makes a huge BM mess & ends up needing a bath. Is he too young? Maybe his arms are to short right now to wipe properly.
He has been potty trained for a little over 1 year & very rarely has pee accidents (he is in the bathroom when they happen). We also use flushable wipes as he just tears the tp trying to wipe.
I would be very grateful for any sugestions on how to help him!
Thank You & God bless!
My son always liked to stand up while wiping. Let him do it and then you can "bat clean-up"!
I have 5 kiddos.. and my second to youngest, just turned 4, we still wipe her (every once in a while she "tries" because she wants to, and usually is a mess.).. She rarely goes bm at preschool, and if she does, obviously has to do it herself, and when she gets home, I can tell!.. I have always wiped my kids, w/wipes, until they really get it themselves.. and you'll know when that is. I just have them try every once in a while, for practice... and she of course does the wiping when she goes #1, (so she's practicing a little there).. but, you're talking about a boy, so that's different. Nothing to worry about, he still just a little to young to do it well... and we use flushable wipes too, just makes it a cleaner process (and a little easier) when they do try. He'll get it soon enough, don't worry!! :)
You got it , arms are too short and motor skills are underdeveloped for him to wipe properly. You need to assist him until he grown a bit.
Each child is different... to me, he obviously does not have the full coordination/ability to wipe himself yet.
It takes time.
This is common.
There are different positions for wiping: either while sitting on the toilet and twisting to reach back there... or while standing up and then wiping back there.
See which he is more "able" to do, or comfortable for him.
But, he'll get it when he is able.
Good luck,
Susan
His arms are NOT too short and he is NOT too young I worked for La Petite Academy and I can tell you it is Required that all 3 year olds be potty trained and use the toilet independently without a teachers assistance. It takes patience and practice. The flushable wet wipes are great, you may need to put them in a different container I have had a lot of experience with them being difficult to get out of the supposedly "easy" pop up packaging, what is easy for us as adults is not so easy for young children. I always told my kids to wipe until they didn't see any "poopy" on the toilet paper. You may have to deal with some dirty underwear for a bit, and maybe when you are at home you can help a little or do "checks" LOL I was doing bottom checks for a while with my son and telling him he needed to wipe a little better all the way up until kindergarten age! Don't give him a complex and make him take a bath after every BM though! Sorry I wish I had better advice, but honestly time and patience are the key.
Good luck!
B.
