My 3 Yr Old Son Stopped Peeing in the Toilet! BACK to DIAPERS! HELP!

Sounds like he's feeling anxious. I'd just let him be, as the pediatrician suggested. He'll figure it out.

I think I wouldn't put him back in diapers. When he asks for the diaper, go with him to the toilet and have him try peeing so he'll discover that his pee does work.

His anxiety is increased by your strong feelings. Try to relax. Know that he will once more pee in the toilet. The night time incident was just an accident. Reassure him that you're not concerned. Fake it if you have to.

It feels like a huge regression to you, but your son may simply see it as needing to regroup for another charge. I know lots of moms who have put their kids back into diapers (in despair, of course) after the newness and excitement of potty training wore off. But when the kids themselves realize that they were going back to a system that required them to submit to diaper changes when they'd rather not, they start to recognize the benefits of a quick sit on the potty.

When a child has made that mental connection, assuming he has developed the needed degree of physical control, he's very likely to decide he prefers the big-boy pants. At that point, it's the child's decision, not the parents', and it tends to stick.

For boys, this decisive move often comes later than for girls. You don't say how far into 3 your son is, but it's not at all unusual for a boy to reach that point somewhere between 3 and 4. Sometimes it's only a matter of days or weeks after being allowed to use diapers again.

Since you're still using cloth pants on him in spite of the frequent accidents, I'm guessing you're doing a great deal of cleaning up. He's probably also feeling a great deal of tension and disappointment from you, which means he's more than likely feeling that as his primary (non)motivator. I'm guessing he needs to have a chance to be totally in control while he works this out.

If I were in your position, I would tell my child something like, "You know, some kids get very nervous about using the potty when they're afraid they might fail. Just like some babies are afraid to walk for awhile if they fall down. But I trust you to figure this out just as soon as you're ready. I know you'll want to use the potty when you're ready, just like you wanted to walk when you were ready. I'll ask you every morning if you want diapers or big boy pants, and you will get to decide."

I've seen this approach work well, and sometimes very quickly.

You might find other helpful information at this extremely informative site:
http://www.parentingscience.com/toilet-training-readiness...

Throw out all the diapers! That is your biggest mistake. He knows you have them in the house and therefore he is asking for them. I have potty trained my 2 little girls both at the age of 2. The key is no more diapers. Yes I did have pull ups that they wore at night for bed but during the day it was underwear all day everyday. Don't give him that option to go back.

The bigger a deal you make of it- then the bigger a deal it is.
Chill, and follow your peditritian's advise.
best, k

I wouldn't put him back in a diaper. I would just tell him "no, you are big boy now." It may be a frustrating few days, but if you don't give in to him he will learn what he is supposed to do. If you let him have a diaper he thinks he wins and you have bigger problems lately.