What does "completely potty trained" mean?

[Anonymous]

DS is 3.75. We did a potty training "boot camp" shortly before he turned 3 and he got it pretty quickly in regard to daytime , but he still does not wake up dry. Ever.

Anyway--he doesn't have any accidents at school but when he's playing at home he will get so into what he's doing that he ignores the urge to go and sometimes has accidents. They're very rarely total accidents, but it does happen sometimes. I'll notice the signs and ask if he needs to go and he'll tell me no multiple times and then it will happen anyway. He just doesn't want to take a break from what he's doing, even when I tell him it's ok to take a break.

I guess I just want to know if this is typical. I see the term "completely potty trained" on this site and just would like to know exactly what that means. It is what it is, but I'm just curious.

[Anonymous]

No need for pull ups. Goes on his own nearly all the time without prompting. Stays dry through the night.

[Anonymous]

I think the overnight thing is iffy as a criteria. Some kids just take forever to get it. My kid was completely day trained at 2.75. No accidents, ever. I stopped carrying around spare underwear at 3.5 (because I didn't trust it, myself). But it took him until after 6 to be dry overnight. We'd go a few weeks with nothing, then we'd have four wet nights in one week. Then two more months with nothing or just one night, and then another weird week.

But feeling good about not jack a change of clothes is a good sign.

[Anonymous]

Argh - auto correct is weird. "But feeling good about not HAVING a change of clothes is a good sign"

[Anonymous]

I'd schedule more times when he has to go when he's home - so when you get in from being outside, he has to try. Before snack he tries, then washes his hands and has snack. And so forth. The reason he doesn't have accidents at school is that every 3 hours there is a scheduled break and everyone needs to go to the bathroom. Because otherwise 8 minutes after going outside, 5 kids will have to go to the potty, argh! So they schedule it more.

He may wake up wet. Or he may wake up dry and then hang out in bed for a little, and knowing he has pullups on, just use those. You really won't know until you try bare bottom in bed. But honestly, if he's never dry when you wake up it might be too early to try for overnight potty training. Many kids get it later, especially those who sleep really, really soundly or those who tend to be anxious kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No need for pull ups. Goes on his own nearly all the time without prompting. Stays dry through the night.

I think night time is a separate issue.

For all intents and purposes, your kid is "completely potty trained."

Occasional accidents are par for the course.

Some kids longer to stay dry through the night. Sometimes as late as age 7 or older.

If your kid turns 5 and still can't stay dry through the night, try a bed wetting alarm. He probably will out grow it over the next year.

[Anonymous]

What you're describing is totally normal. I think this happens to a lot of kids because they are just so involved in what they're doing. I also think it tends to happen much more at home than at school/daycare.

I consider daytime training to be totally different from nighttime. If a kid was consistently dry all the time during the day, I'd call that "completely potty trained during the day." I know many kids (particularly boys) who are still not waking up dry most mornings and at age 5 or 6. It really depends on your kid -- my kid amazingly overnight trained himself at age 3 and basically never has had accidents, but I think that's unusual.

Your kid is probably "completely potty trained" for all intents and purposes.

[Anonymous]

Never ask him if he has to go - ask him instead of he can go. Make a game out of draining his bladder by floating a couple of cheerios in the toilet bowl and having him try to hit them with his stream. Also, start making clean up from even a small accident take a lot of time - total change of clothes, shower, redress, put clothes in washing machine. Not as a punishment but simply as way that things are. Make running to the toilet ten times easier than wetting your pants.

He is almost there but obviously not 100% toilet trained. Try going in to his room about a half hour before he usually wakes up and see if he is dry. My son was - he generally peeing in his pull-up as he was waking up and not ready to get out of bed because it was easier. That was the day we lost the pull-ups and I started waking him up and taking him directly to the toilet.

In our case we had to do it much younger as DS's preschool required the kids to be 100% toilet independent at three or they weren't admitted. So I know it is doable.

[Anonymous]

I consider "completely potty trained" to be "completely potty trained". No diapers ever, even at night. Also, means you are not promptly the potty throughout the day and the child is going on his/her own. Occasionally, bed wetting maybe ok, but would only be on the rare occasion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I consider "completely potty trained" to be "completely potty trained". No diapers ever, even at night. Also, means you are not promptly the potty throughout the day and the child is going on his/her own. Occasionally, bed wetting maybe ok, but would only be on the rare occasion.

I disagree. I think that completely toilet trained means not having day "accidents". At all. For weeks upon weeks. Nighttime? Totally different issue. My daughter PT at 22 months and was night trained weeks later. Both of my boys still wear pull ups at 4 and 6. I don't even know how often they are wet or dry as I don't check- I just know it's often enough that they should wear them. All of the boys in my husbands family ate like this. They hit puberty late too. Our DR explained its a hormonal thing- I'm not worried about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No need for pull ups. Goes on his own nearly all the time without prompting. Stays dry through the night.

This is our definition too. Both children did this before turning three. We never purchased nighttime pull-ups. Just went all in with 3 day training.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Never ask him if he has to go - ask him instead of he can go. Make a game out of draining his bladder by floating a couple of cheerios in the toilet bowl and having him try to hit them with his stream. Also, start making clean up from even a small accident take a lot of time - total change of clothes, shower, redress, put clothes in washing machine. Not as a punishment but simply as way that things are. Make running to the toilet ten times easier than wetting your pants.

No, don't do this. It's seen as a punishment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never ask him if he has to go - ask him instead of he can go. Make a game out of draining his bladder by floating a couple of cheerios in the toilet bowl and having him try to hit them with his stream. Also, start making clean up from even a small accident take a lot of time - total change of clothes, shower, redress, put clothes in washing machine. Not as a punishment but simply as way that things are. Make running to the toilet ten times easier than wetting your pants.

No, don't do this. It's seen as a punishment.

Not if you do it from the start. It's part of being a big kid and having an accident.

I agree, completely potty trained is everything, minimal to no accidents. If the child is having at least one accident a week, night or day, they're almost there, but they aren't completely trained.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never ask him if he has to go - ask him instead of he can go. Make a game out of draining his bladder by floating a couple of cheerios in the toilet bowl and having him try to hit them with his stream. Also, start making clean up from even a small accident take a lot of time - total change of clothes, shower, redress, put clothes in washing machine. Not as a punishment but simply as way that things are. Make running to the toilet ten times easier than wetting your pants.

No, don't do this. It's seen as a punishment.

PP here - I did it and it was never seen as a punishment. It was presented like doing dishes after you've had dinner or making your bed in the morning - just a chore than needed to be done and not a punishment for eating or sleeping in your bed.

All humans will take the path of least resistance. Make running to the toilet the path or least resistance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Never ask him if he has to go - ask him instead of he can go. Make a game out of draining his bladder by floating a couple of cheerios in the toilet bowl and having him try to hit them with his stream. Also, start making clean up from even a small accident take a lot of time - total change of clothes, shower, redress, put clothes in washing machine. Not as a punishment but simply as way that things are. Make running to the toilet ten times easier than wetting your pants.

He is almost there but obviously not 100% toilet trained. Try going in to his room about a half hour before he usually wakes up and see if he is dry. My son was - he generally peeing in his pull-up as he was waking up and not ready to get out of bed because it was easier. That was the day we lost the pull-ups and I started waking him up and taking him directly to the toilet.

In our case we had to do it much younger as DS's preschool required the kids to be 100% toilet independent at three or they weren't admitted. So I know it is doable.

This. All this. Great suggestions.

Also, I would add going commando when you decide they are ready for night training - not even pj bottoms. I have no clue why it works but it does work.