I am not sure that this is normal or not, any comments or suggestions will be greatly appreciated!! I am a first time Mom of a 3 yr. old daughter. She turned 3 in July and then in August decided to start going on the potty. She has had minimal accidents since that time. She wakes up dry 99% of the time. My question is how many times a day should she be releiving herself? Over the last coulpe of weeks she has started going only 2-3 times a day. Is this normal at her age or should she be going more?
Thank you ahead of time for any help!!
Thank you all for your responses. The day after I posted this, she told me that it hurt when she peed, so I took her in and she had a UTI. She is now on antibiotiocs. We have a water cooler that she's known how to work since she was 2, so she has unlimited access to water, so that doesn't seem to be the issue.
She hasn't increased her frequency of going but I feel better knowing that if she doesn't, it is rather normal. Thank you!!
It drives me crazy, but my daughter does the same thing. She seems fine with it, but it was a huge battle for a while because I thought I should make her go more often. I've given up now--what's the point?! She does fine and is healthy as can be
Hi J.,
We have a 4 year old daughter who I would estimate only goes about 2-4 times a day and has since she's been potty trained.I would encourage you to have water available for your little one all day long. She can start a good healthy habit now and it may help her urinate more frequently. Notice I said water...not juice or some of these other sugar laiden drinks. Just plain old fashioned cold water!! God Bless!
With all the kids out there that have accidents there are also those children that can hold it an amazing amount of time. These kids end up with stomach aches and bowl problems because they don't go. My son and granddaughter do this. Ty would be in tears with stomach pain and we could not figure out why. He could hold it from the day before into most of the next day 12 hours or more! I had to start telling him to go to the bathroom. He drank a lot just didn't go. Please encourage her to go. Maybe everytime you go.
J.,
There isn't necessarily any "normal" when it comes to the human body - only a range of normal. The best check is as another posted said, to check her urine. When we are properly hydrated, our urine should be nearly colorless and odorless. If your daughter has dark and/or smelly urine, then she is not drinking enough. If she is dehydrated, you can't make her "go" more. She needs to drink more, otherwise she has nothing to pee.
My girls like having their own sipper cups, which I keep filled with water and they can cary around with them. I also remind them to drink several times a day. Just like me, they forget to take a drink, and once someone reminds them, they realize they are ravenously thirsty and chug half the bottle! You could offer watered down juice if your little one won't drink water, but be cautious how much juice she is drinking. Even natural juices have a lot of sugar in them. My girls will drink water, but they really like it when I add a little tea or a squeeze of lemon. Just a little is enough to do the trick and add a little flavor without a lot of sugar. Tea has beneficial properties also. We have been drinking green tea sweetened with honey, and watering it down by half. I only give it to them at mealtimes, and they think it's a special treat!
Best of luck with your little one,
S.
I don't know if it's normal or not, but my 3 yr old daughter is the same way. She will wake up in the morning dry and I have to convince her to go pee, of course there's alot there, she's gone all night! She usually only goes a couple of times during the day. I think she drinks enough and is hydrated.
I would say this is not normal. I think she definately need more to drink. I think she should be going a minimum of 6x a day. With my kids I give them milk at all three meals and keep sippy's of water in the fridge so they can get a cold drink whenever they want. HTH!
I probably am repeating a lot of what others have told you but having fluids readily available for your child at all times is a must. Children are not always going to tell you they are thirsty but if it is there for them to just reach and drink, they will constantly all day. If you are able, to help keep the tract clean, take cranberry jucin and dilute half and half. This can be for flavor to the water and also the keep the kidneys and tract clean.
First you need to think is she drinking enough. Then see if she is uncomfortable, like she seems to be holding it for a long time. Encourage her to go to the bathroom more times per day. When we potty train children, we tend to emphasize staying dry and holding it in instead of using the bathroom often. So try to encourage her to go. You can set a timer for every two or three hours and tell her when the timer goes off she needs to try and go to the bathroom. And praise her for trying. She might not have to go. But I would see if she maybe isn't drinking enough during the day, and she might be holding it in for a long time.
I was never one to drink enough. If she's going in the potty seat, watch how dark her urine is. It will look lots darker than it would all diluted in the toilet, but notice the color, then try to get her to drink a ton of watered down juice or water, and notice the color when she goes again.
My second son doesn't wet his diapers nearly as much as my first did. He just doesn't drink as much, and never has. He wears three diapers a day, and one i usually only change because it's poopy. I asked the doctor about it, and he didn't seem too worried. I just try to remember to offer liquids every chance I get. I've noticed that he's a sipper. If I hand him his cup, he'll take a few sips. Then he sets it down. If I hand it to him again in a few minutes, he'll drink more. My first is a chugger, so I only handed him a cup and he drank the whole thing, and that was that. So maybe you can pay attention to her drinking style, too.
I watch a little boy that is 6 and I told his mom he can be here all day and only go once! I think that is not good. I make sure he is hydrated too!!
My kids, my son who is 4 goes maybe five (pee) or six times a day!! My kids are water lovers but I even restrict that close to bedtimes. He is 100% at night time as far as potty training but goes before bed, the second he wakes up, again before school, then during school, then when he gets home and maybe again!! So 2 or 3 doesn't sound good at all. Make sure she isn't holding it either as that can cause bladder infections. TAKE her, don't ask to the bathroom every few hours and make sure she goes. I would make sure she is drinking enough too during the day. My kids get juice and water/or milk with breakfast, then they come and drink water throughout the day and milk with dinner. I even send a water bottle with them to school.
I mean, heck I go at least 8 times from getting up to going to bed, but I am old and have had two kids! :)
Doesn't sound right to me, but if you are really worried talk to your Pediatrician.
It's probably because she's in the potty training phase and she's holding it! My son did this when he was potty training and now he's on a very regular schedule.
I think she needs more liquids. She should have a glass of water at least every hour and half. They, she'll go more often. Good luck!!!
My 3 year old daughter who was 3 in april, also only goes about that much. I would say it is normal. does your daughter drink a lot of liquids? My daughter does not drink as much as I would like her to but I would say the 2-3 times is normal.
Hi, sorry if I'm repeating someone, but urine should not be really yellow. If it is, she should be drinking more.
Hi J.,
My 14 year old daughter was the same way. She still only goes 2-3 times a day. I constantly remind her to drink water, thinking that might help her, which it does, but her bladder is big and she can hold it for a really long time. She started waking up dry at about 8 months old, I was astounded. She wouldn't go until about an hour after she woke up. And just from my own experiences, I made sure that when she took a bath that she never sat in soapy water. I had a lot of problems with urinary tract infections and bladder infections growing up, until my mom figured out I was just really sensitive to any soaps. Just keep an eye on things, and follow your instincts. As long as she is regular with her BMs I think she'll be ok. Good luck.
Hi J.,
After my experience, I would advise you to have her go more often. My daughter, who is 6 now, was the same way. Never really had any night accidents and could hold her pee for amazingly long periods of time. She was trained at 3 and about 3 months after turning 4, she started having occasional daytime accidents. I am still not positive whether or not it was related to the birth of her little brother, but about 4 months after the accidents started she got a really bad bladder infection- 106˚ fever, threw up, Dr visit and every test imaginable including blood. She had an infection every month or so for about 6 months and then went on an antibiotic for 6 months to help her get over it. She is doing better now and has only had one infection since going off of the medication almost a year ago.
Anyway, her pediatrician and urologist have both said that if children hold their pee and don't get rid of it all when they do go, it makes the urine become dirty and can cause infections. My daughter now has to go every 2 hours (she has a watch to tell her) and will probably have to for a very long time. It might be worth it for you to look up bladder infections and UTI's in children online.
Good luck to you and your cutie!
S.
