Daughter will only use potty when naked!

[Rainbowm]

Just looking for advice or anybody who’s been in a similar situation and how you resolved it!

Basically, my daughter will only use her potty if she has nothing on her bottom half. She will happily do wee’s and poo’s without even being prompted on her potty. She just takes herself to her potty and does her business with no accidents.

However as soon as I put a pull up, potty training pants or big girl pants on, she just wee’s or poo’s in them! I have explained to her she needs to pull them down or mummy will help her and she says ok mummy but then still just does the deed in her pants or pull ups!

Will she grow out of this or is there anything else I can do to help her?

Thanks 😊

Pull ups feel like nappies so don't use those even though the advertising suggest that they are potty training aids. In my experience they are good for when toddlers won't lie down for nappy changes and you can let them stand and rip each side off if it's a wee.

Can she take off her knickers? I'm wondering if she's forgetting that she's wearing knickers or they are warm so make her feel like she's wearing a nappy? Will she use the potty in a skirt/dress and no knickers?

Hi 👋🏼

She can take them off sometimes, it all depends on what mood she is in however I have told her mummy will help you pull them down when you need a wee or poo and says ok mummy!

Yes when she’s in a skirt or dress she will use the potty fine with no accidents.

I definitely agree on the fact she feels like when she’s got knickers or shorts on she feels like it’s a nappy and she can do a wee or poo in them.

As soon as shes done it she comes straight to me and tells me she’s wet!

I just don’t know how I can tackle it 🙈

My second DD had to be fully naked for a poo for quite a while(a couple of years) , you’ll be happy to hear she’s fully grown out of it now I think sometimes feeling anything on they assume is a nappy with potty training in general we bought a lot of pants and just got them to change every time they had an accident with help and encouragement for next time etc. It did click as they didn’t like the wet feeling but some kids just take a bit longer.

Set a timer! I conditioned DS to wee/poo when the timer beeped and gradually increased the intervals from 20 minutes up to 40 in 5 minute chunks. A chocolate button also works a treat for getting the behaviour you want

Could you dress her in clothes with no pants? That might help her be more aware that she needs to go. If that doesn't work could she just spend lots of time half baked while the weather is ok until she gets used to it?

Ah ok, good to know somebody else experienced it too, just hope it doesn’t take mine 2 years 🤣.

Today I’ve tried changing her knickers every time she does it but after the 7th knicker change I just gave up and let her wonder round with her bottom half naked.

I’m really in 2 minds whether to put her back in nappies and try again in say 6 months but on the other hand I’m telling myself not to because when she’s naked she hasn’t had one accident and is very proud of herself when she uses the potty so I feel she must ready?!

Give her time. They all get there in the end. If she's happier with no knickers then leave them off.

If you're a SAHP I'd just leave her naked from the waist down. It's training her bladder and bowels to wait to go and as they get stronger you may have more luck.

DS absolutely refuses to pee in pull ups or underwear but has no problem pooing in them as he's less confident there so far.

@TeddyBeans thanks for the suggestion I will give it a try, she knows when she needs the toilet but as soon as she has underwear or anything on her bottom half she she just wee’s or poo’s!

@HotPenguin yes that’s what’s I’m doing as much as I can at the moment . Keeping her in dresses or skirts but obviously it’s not practical when she goes to nursery or out the house. Thank god for this weather because she’s running around loving life being naked 🤣

@GrannyRose15 thank you, I think that will be the only option!

My DS wore loose pyjama bottoms for a long time while we were training. He didn't like pants. But once he nailed the toileting we added the pants in later on. I would avoid pull ups altogether tbh they are the same as nappies x

@Rtmhwales I’m currently on maternity leave with my other little girl but will be returning to work full time in a few months so whilst I am home it is ok to leave her naked but I’m worried she will just get used to only using the potty naked and obviously this won’t be practical when she is at nursery/childcare.

Have you been potty training your son for long?

We moved from naked from the waist down to loose trousers or shorts with nothing underneath. Lots of advice says that pants are more like a nappy from their point of view and can scupper any progress made while naked, so give it 4-6 weeks without pants and then introduce them. And even when you introduce the trousers they may wet them a lot initially as they get used to them. We used a combo of trousers when out but naked at home but after 3 weeks my ds wanted to have his shorts on, so they don’t stay naked forever.

@GinPink yes I’m definitely going to skip using the pull ups. I did try loose shorts and pj bottoms but as soon as she has them on she just wee’s or poo’s in them.

@Himawarigirl thank you that’s really good advice

Can I ask you what you did when you went out shopping etc at the start of potty training, did you just leave him in shorts/trousers with no nappy/pull up and just let him have the accidents and change him?

Also what did you do at night time?

I stayed home the first week when he was naked. Then our outings were the park or school run and I just dealt with accidents as they happened. But with a combo of prompting for ‘going out wees’ and the like we didn’t have too, too many. I think I avoided shops initially but would have just dealt with anything that happened. I don’t know how far in you are but week three was hard and felt like it was all going wrong after a good two weeks, especially with poo, but we kept going and then at week four it sorted itself. He’s our third and we did it early using the Oh Crap book as a guide, which I found useful with things like using consistent language around accidents. He initially had a nappy at naptime and bedtime, I called it a sleeping nappy, but actually he has been dry at naps and at night since day one, my friend said that happened with her kids too. So after three weeks I was brave enough to take the nappy off and see how we’d do as my older two were in night nappies for sooooo much longer. Going well so far. But if he hadn’t been dry I wouldn’t have worried about the nights at this point.

[quote Rainbowm]@Rtmhwales I’m currently on maternity leave with my other little girl but will be returning to work full time in a few months so whilst I am home it is ok to leave her naked but I’m worried she will just get used to only using the potty naked and obviously this won’t be practical when she is at nursery/childcare.

Have you been potty training your son for long?[/quote]
Just since mid June. Even a month on, he suddenly has much greater control and will allow us to put underwear on and will now take them off. I think before he was stressed and would just pee his underwear.

@Rainbowm hi. We are in the same situation with my DD 2.5 years old.
The last 4 days, she has been wearing pants, but I have to put her on the potty quite often. Maybe every 45 minutes. If I let it slip, then she has an accident 🙈 but without pants she can go to the potty without being reminded.

I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing or not! It’s so awkward carrying a potty around!
Good luck

I also carrying lots of changes of clothes. But luckily she hasn’t had an accident out the house so far. Just at home!

How old is she? Can she actually put on/take off pants and trousers herself? If she can't do that herself, personally I don't see the point in dragging out a needlessly long half and hearted potting training until she can master that.

If she can remove trousers and pants herself, then keep putting her in them and just keep dealing with the accidents. She will get there. Also keep reminding her to go frequently, don't rely on her to begin with!

Really, your DC should have it cracked in a week. If they take longer they are simply not ready yet.

My DS were both almost three before we even attempted it. And they were both dry within a week.

OP look at oh crap. You dp 3 days og bare bottom to start until they are more reliable with using the toilet, then you do shorts, and knickers is the last thing to go back on after 7-10 days.

We did night time potty training a few weeks after, not at the same time.

Hi @BeHereNowx32 my daughter is also 2.5 years old, what a coincidence!

I’m just feeling the same as you really, doubting myself whether I’m doing the right thing!

@Deloresabernathy she is 2.5 years old! She can pull her pants up and down if she’s in the mood to other times she can’t! She definitely can’t take trousers off herself!

Yes when I prompt her she just tells me she doesn’t need it or refuses to sit on it then seconds later she wee’s herself however when she’s naked she just takes herself off with no accidents.

The only thing that’s telling me not to stop is the fact she can use her potty perfectly when she’s naked so I feel like she is ready.