Please Help! Child Regressed!

Hello,
it is not unusual for children to regress after being sick. my daughter did too. how we helped her to get back into the potty training thing we had her clean up her messes like what was suggested by other people. we also did a positive reinforcement when she did go potty all on her own. we have a good job chart and give her a sticker every time she goes potty all by herself, including remembering to wipe and wash hands. this proses has gotten her back to going potty on her own without us reminding her. good luck.

My daughter regressed and we went back to taking her to the potty every hour until it annoyed her enough because she had to stop what she was doing that she started doing it on her own again. We set the kitchen timer and took her to the potty whether she wanted to or not.

Good luck.

M.

C., Good Morning. Don't worry he will go back to where he was before. We JUST went through this with our 3 y/o Gr. son. He ran a very high temp for 5 days spiking at 104 several times, before we Finally got him in to dr. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Wanted to slap a knot on the back of Dr.'s forehead too. lol
We did the pull up thing to, cause he just laid around doing nothing but sleep.
He will be ok just give him time to re-adjust. Keep taking him to potty, even when he says No he doesn't need to go.
We are just about back to where we were also. He pooped twice in potty so far. YEAH!!!

Side note, Not sure what your Dr said about a fever, But I was livid with ours, and it certainly makes sense the way he explained it. Oh But I was ticked!! A Temp ( numbers ) isn't important ( ONLY TO WORRYING over reacting GRANDPARENTS ), it's only important that they have one, it means their immune system is doing it's job. He said it was like a Very Sick person with Aids. They are some of the sickest people ever and they have No fever cause their immune systems are shot. Also he said Using the word lathargic is Thrown around by Parents Way to much.

Hang in there C., he will get back to where he was, just going to take some patiences on all parts.

God Bless
K. Nana to 5

my daughter did the same thing. Instituting rewards for accident free days worked wonders! Every day with no accident she got to put on a temporary princess tattoo. She looked a little werid for a while (most went on her tummy), ut she stopped the accidents!

Just be consistant in offering him potty breaks during the day no pullups if he has an accident try not to scold but remind him that peepee is for the potty not your underpants.I know he may seem completley potty trained for 2 months but it does take longer to be completely potty trained.He was sick and just needs encouragement

Oh goodness! I know what you are going through. My son has pulled this on me at 3 1/2. We went away on vacation when it started and then shortly went back to his regular routine until he caught a high fever. I have read that you are not suppose to punish them for this. I guess any change in a normal routine can cause them to regress and since they have complete control of their potty function that is the most common form of regression. What to do....I don't know. I do feel for you! Hang in there! If you need to talk I am here.

Please be patient with your son. Physical punishment as a training tool will not be as effective as positive reinforement. Get some small toy or fav food and explain that when he uses the toilet he will get thses things. Reward him at every chance, In about a week he should be back on trasck. Slowly lengthen the periods between rewards and maybe culminate his success with one bigger reward when he seems to be back on track so you can cease the positive reinforcement tactics since he has achieved his goal.
One of my daughters regressed in the same manner after the birth of a younger sister. I started to treat her like the baby she had regressed to become. Then when she wanted to do "big girl" stuff like color or go outside, I reminded her that only big girls could do those things and that she was a baby. If she wanted to dio big girl things she had to act like a big girl again.

My son regressed after a public toilet automatically flushed on him. But he did get back to it in his own time (it couldn't have been more than a month, probably sooner). He's 6 now with no problems. Your son will do it again, just keep encouraging him and be patient. Good luck and God bless!

This is actually normal for almost ALL kids...after a few months the "glory" and attention of being potty trained wears off a bit and they all tend to regress. I agree with exactly what Esther said. Making him change himself (without making a big deal about it!) tends to nip this in the bud very quickly. Of course, don't make him do more than he is physically capable (ie. tie his shoes, the snaps can be tricky, etc.) because that's not really fair, but he should certainly be able to remove his soiled clothing on his own, clean himself-you might have to help slightly to make sure he gets really clean but let him do it first, and re-dress to a certain extent. Once it becomes a bunch of work for them (and they usually fight this bigtime and hate it and have a big fit), they start making the time to go on the potty.

Maybe he isn't feeling so good yet. He sounds like he was VERY sick. I don't think I'd bounce back so well. If I were trying to bounce back from being that sick the house would fall apart a bit. It would be hard to get everything done. But this is his biggest "work". It's hard for little ones to behave maturely.

That said, I'd tell him you are staying home until he decides to be a big boy again. No visits to friends, parks, going out in the backyard, treats etc. It's summer and he wants to be on the go and doing things. If you don't go many places and that's not an incentive you may have to look for other motivation that will mean something to him. But be gentle with him. He'll get back to it with some positive persuasion.

Suzi

I like what Esther said about having him clean up his own mess. Put away the pull ups and put him back in the big boy undies. When he goes on himself don't make a big deal about it and don't change him until he asks. After a while he won't like the feel of wet pants or shorts and possibly shirt and undies too. But do have him clean up. That goes for poopies too. He'll change his tune fast and get back on track. Good Luck and God Bless.

Dear C.,

Don't fret, he's been through alot lately with being sick and not feeling himself. Anyway positive reinforcement may work, since you have other children refer to the other children as him being the "Big Boy". Right now may be the battle of the wills, but he will come around. If anything, just make him go every hour to the bathroom, I know that's sooo inconvenient, but eventually he'll get annoyed having to stop whatever he's doing to have to go to the bathroom. Tell him "Big Boys" go the bathroom not in their pants. Remember this is only temporary and I know its frustrating. Be consistent and good luck. Best Wishes!

Hi,
He maybe relating potty time to a bad feeling he had. Have you ever been sick from something that you ate. Well, I bet it was a long time before you wanted to eat that again. Well, it could be similar with him. So, be patient and not make his feelings about it any worse. I would expose him to other kids his age going to the bathroom. If your out and see other kids his age going into the restroom, point it out and compliment that there goes a big boy to the bathroom and then ask do you want to go, even if it is to wash his hands. He will open up to it, if he feels like he fits in with the other boys his age.

Dont punish him and dont make a big deal about it. Have him "clean up" the mess so he can see why you are so frustrated with the situation. He probably enjoyed the extra attention he was getting while he was sick, and now sees the pottying in his pants as a way to continue getting the extra attention. Just act like you dont care and it does not bother you and he should stop.

My son was potty trained for about a month after recently turning two... then he also came down with a bug, and had diarhea for two weeks!!! that completely threw him off...

then pregnant again and having CRAZY morning sickness, I gave up the potty training for a while longer because I couldn't handle it. Now that I am better, I have introduced it again. He is two and a half and some days he will be potty trained and others, he just simply doesn't WANT to go. I blame myself for this regression because I gave up the potty training during my first trimester. I am hoping he will get better as long as I keep introducing it and making it available.