3 1/2 Year Old Waking to Go Potty

Do you hold it all night? Not many adults can, so it doesn't seem fair to make a 3 yo hold it either. How about letting her know she can get up and go anytime she needs to. Maybe if you don't put undies on her at night she'll be able to go herself and not struggle w/ her panties in the middle of the night.

I wouldn't break the habit. She's waking up to go potty and that's a really good thing. Especially if she's going right back to bed.

3 1/2 is fairly young for them to hold it all night.
You could try to encourage her to take herself with some nightlight set up so she can see well.

I would be willing to bet that there are a LOT of Mother's of 3 and 1/2 year olds out there who would willing trade you a trip to the bathroom in the middle of the night for changing sheets because their child sleeps right through the urge and wets the bed!!! Count your blessings that she is willing to go right back to sleep and just take her to the bathroom. Before long she will be able to get up and take herself to the bathroom without disturbing you but right now this is just part of the job of being a Mom.
I don't know a lot of people who are able to make it through the entire night without a potty break...and since young children tend to sleep longer than adults do...I don't see how you could expect her to either.
R. Ann

my daughter just turned 2. we are just starting potty training. she wakes up in the middle of night to go. if i tell her to go in her pamper she will cry and take it off, so of course i take her. i would just let her go.

Ruth is right - what I wouldn't give to have my son wake up and go in the middle of the night! :) This may sound callous, but for now I would just suck it up and deal with it. The fact that your little girl is waking up and not just peeing in her bed/pull-up is AMAZING! Just keep telling her she's a big girl now and can do it all by herself. I would make sure there aren't any toys in the floor/path to the bathroom, use a couple of night lights and see if you can get her to go on her own. If not, just be thankful that your'e not changing sheets every morning! :)

As she wakes you out of yet another deep sleep, just remember one day she'll be 5 or 6 or 10 (and mortified to have you take her to the bathroom) and you'll get to sleep though the night then.

No advice really on how to keep her from her nightly potty trip...but seriously Yay that she is waking up. THis is great honestly = ) It sure beats the alternative of you having to get up and put clean sheets on the bed...right? Maybe in time she will get up independently to go potty, do you leave a light on in the bathroom? I know plenty of mommies who would trade you this "problem" = ) Have a great day...
B.

Hi R. - Don't know if this will help or not but my daughter did the same thing. It turns out that she didn't like the dark or the noise from the toilet flushing. We put a night light in the bathroom and told her that she didn't have to flush in the middle of the night. Also, you might start out by telling her that she can call out to wake you up and you will acknowledge that you hear her but that you aren't getting up to take her. Then move from there to her not waking you at all. Hope this helps.

What a good job your daughter is doing she is telling you she has to use the potty would you rather have her be a bedwetter.Get up with her then tell her it is time for bed again tuck her in and be done.Let her know you'll see her in the morning and praise her for going potty.

I would love it if my 5 year old daughter would wake up to go potty rather than wetting the bed. Is the issue that she is waking up or is the issue that she is waking up everyone else?

If she is waking up everyone else maybe there are some ways to encourage her to be more independent in using the potty at night? Are there things you can do to make it easier? Is it safe for her to go by herself? Are there lights to make potty trips easier? If you go in to her bedroom but let her walk to the bathroom by herself would she go by herself? Can she get back into bed by herself? If not, is there a way to make this part easier? Could you gradually encourage her to do the potty trips more independently.

Otherwise, waking up to go potty may be something she outgrows. Alternatively, if she does not outgrow this over the next couple of years she will learn to do it more independently on her own with little disruption to her sleep or to other's sleep. Of course there are no guarrantees that there won't be something else that wakes her and you up.

Good luck.

Good for you for taking such great care of your precious little girl. I also think it is wrong to restrict fluids.
Be proud that your daughter actually wakes to go potty in the night. Bedwetting runs in my family and I have a 7YO nephew who wets the bed. My SIL said that her ped. told her that the bladder is the last organ to grow. My husband and I still wake to use the bathroom in the night.
What I am saying is that I don't think there is anything you can do but be positive. Your daughter will not use the bathroom on her own in the night until SHE is ready. You can not force it, nor can you force her to stay asleep.
The best thing we parents can do is be patient.
She will get it in time and it will feel so good to both of you when either she does it on her own or if she stops needing to wake in the night.

Is it possible for you and your husband to trade off nights getting up with your daughter?

Hi R.,

You and your daughter are doing great. The nightlight certainly helped with my 2 girls. As your daughter gets older, she will not only feel more comfortable going by herself in the middle of the night, but her bladder will get a little bigger as well. These little ones can only hold so much at a time. I think it's fantastic that she is able to wake herself up. What I did for mine that might help is that right before I went to bed, I would just go and get my girls and take them to the potty, and then they would not wake up after that. Try it. It might work. Just be thankful that you don't have to worry about wet sheets.

Have a good day!

J.

Hi,

I have two adult boys age 26 and 22. I have a 5 year old granddaughter who sometimes sleeps through the night without having to go to the bathroom and sometimes she doesn't. You should be glad that her system alerts her mental to wake up during the night to use the bathroom instead of being lazy and potty in the bed. Then in the morning, if you are not using a pad in her bed, you now have to change her sheets. So you can restrict her intake of fluids by stopping them at 7:00 or 8:00 in the evenings. You can either give her nothing to drink after that time or give her very small amounts of liquid. I hope this helps.

Y.

I don't know what to suggest really, just wanted to say I would be so happy if my son was waking me up to go potty at night. He's turning 4 in December and still not night trained. He's been potty trained during the day for a year, but still wets at night.

Good Morning Reneé, Your little gal is awesome to wake up to potty at night. WTG Angel!! Night lights are a must in each room she needs to pass through on her way to the bathroom. I wish I only had to get up ONCE a night to go weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee lol
She will get to where she can go without your help really soon and then you will be wondering what she got into if you didn't hear her...lol Our oldest would get in the frig, or the cabinets. Once he had flour foot prints across the counter tops.

I for one am very proud of your daughter that she feels the need to go.

God Bless you Reneé, your little gal is doing great

K. Nana of 5