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Potty training

Is your child ready for potty training at nursery? Here's the place for all your toilet training questions.

Original poster

2.5 year old soaked every night - advice?

30 replies

alaska748 · 30/12/2023 09:03

Hello all

wondered if anyone has any advice - our 2.5 year old boy has been waking up in the middle of the night (3am or so) completely soaked through including pyjamas, sleeping bag, sheet etc. We haven’t started potty training - have tried but he isn’t ready yet.

He is a big boy, 105cm and 21kg so I have assumed nappy size may be an issue. He wears size 8 nappies to bed and I then pop a toddler (17-35kg) overnight nappy over the top. He is still getting soaked! I’ve checked and he points down etc when we put him to bed. He sleeps on his belly in case that makes a difference.

Any top tips for me? Thanks so much!!

OP posts:
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rochethenut · 30/12/2023 09:11

motivation for getting going on potty training!

Cheeesus · 30/12/2023 09:13

Won’t necessarily help at night. He’s the weight of an average six year old so perhaps try Drynites for that age.

TenThousandSpoons · 30/12/2023 09:14

Does he drink blackcurrant squash? If so cut that out.
what nappy brand are you using?

stayathomer · 30/12/2023 09:14

Definitely don’t start potty training until they’re dry at night, it is the longest slog you’ll ever meet!! What time is his last drink at. I’d assume you change him just before he goes asleep? Can you throw in another change? Yes nappy size could definitely be it too. Best of luck op, sorry amn’t much help!

oneflewoverthe · 30/12/2023 09:17

stayathomer · 30/12/2023 09:14

Definitely don’t start potty training until they’re dry at night, it is the longest slog you’ll ever meet!! What time is his last drink at. I’d assume you change him just before he goes asleep? Can you throw in another change? Yes nappy size could definitely be it too. Best of luck op, sorry amn’t much help!

Really? If that was the case my 3.5 old old DS would still be in nappies during the day. He never has accidents in the day. At night it's a hormonal thing. Some don't grow out of it for a while. Maybe he's having too much liquid before bed but I wouldn't worry too much about being wet at night.

LillyBugg · 30/12/2023 09:18

Bizarre replies here. One saying start potty training and one saying don't start potty training until dry at night?

Day dryness and night dryness aren't linked, night wetting is linked to hormones.

My DS is 6.5, still wet at night but has been dry in the day since just under 3 and was easy to potty train.

Have you tried other brands of pull ups? We get leaking and it's infuriating I know! I would say double up on waterproof sheets so while one is washing you can have another in use.

Definitely restrict drinks if he's having squash. DS is also a tummy sleeper and I'm always reminding him to lay on his side to try and prevent links.

This sounds miserable OP. Hope you can find an answer.

Rainsdropskeepfalling · 30/12/2023 09:20

Definitely don’t start potty training until they’re dry at night

Sorry, can't agree with this. DS2 wasn't dry at night until he hit puberty, fortunately early at around 10. It's all to do with hormones...

Have you checked which way his penis ends up in his nappies/pull-ups over night? We used to find that made some difference as to whether the pull-ups could absorb all they needs to with out wee seeping out everywhere. Probably worth trying different sizes and brands - pull-ups are/were more expensive but IME can hold more...

rochethenut · 30/12/2023 09:20

stayathomer · 30/12/2023 09:14

Definitely don’t start potty training until they’re dry at night, it is the longest slog you’ll ever meet!! What time is his last drink at. I’d assume you change him just before he goes asleep? Can you throw in another change? Yes nappy size could definitely be it too. Best of luck op, sorry amn’t much help!

really?

dry at night followed when dry during day was well established for us (and indeed anyone else i conversed with on the issue)

Aworldofmyown · 30/12/2023 09:25

rochethenut nope, I have three children and only one was dry at night once potty trained.
One would still wet the bed age ten, it is indeed hormone related.
Op, one thing that can help is ensuring your son is drinking plenty in the day. When I say plenty I mean ALOT it sounds daft but that's how we cracked my daughter.

Singleandproud · 30/12/2023 09:28

Check his nappy before you go to bed and if he has wet it wake him and change it.

You don't need to start potty training all in but having a potty in the bathroom that he sits on first thing in the morning and last thing at night perhaps whilst you read a short story to start building it into his routine can be useful, if he uses it great. If he doesn't it's only 5 mins you've wasted but starts to familiarise him with it. I did this alone day DD just announced she was too big for nappys and that was it.
I think choice of port is also important, in the bathroom she had onetha had a padded seat and a little ladder/steps attached s she could use it independently. I think the hard plastic nes are less comfortable.

Hercisback · 30/12/2023 09:30

Does he drink overnight?

Try to get him drinking morning and afternoon then tail off towards bed time.

Sit him on the toilrt/potty before bed with a tap running.

Original poster
alaska748 · 30/12/2023 09:38

Wow thanks so much for all the replies! He randomly hasn’t started drinking squash but gets through a lot of milk…

Will cut down in the afternoons and before bed as that seems to be a consistent piece of advice.

Also very interesting re pull ups being more absorbent, will try him in this eve and take a closer look at sizing.

@Singleandproud great shout re the potty and having it out, think I need to be better at this!!

Thanks all so much - will report back if any improvement!

OP posts:
supercalifragilistic123 · 30/12/2023 09:41

Is the size 8 too big? If the nappies are too big it all leaks round the side.
My kids never went above a 6. My DS was huge and my DD is 5 and still wears a pull up at night.

Morechocmorechoc · 30/12/2023 09:54

We had this and we were using wrong size nappy. You can't use two nappies they won't seal. I would use a smaller nappy and make sure it seals. Way less milk at bed and I would change his nappy whej he is asleep when I went to bed so it isn't getting too full. Look at other threads on this from the past, people found different brands worked for their kids at certain ages.

Aworldofmyown · 30/12/2023 09:54

I forgot, we used to change the pull up too! Whoever went to bed last would do it.

Mazuslongtoenail · 30/12/2023 09:58

stayathomer · 30/12/2023 09:14

Definitely don’t start potty training until they’re dry at night, it is the longest slog you’ll ever meet!! What time is his last drink at. I’d assume you change him just before he goes asleep? Can you throw in another change? Yes nappy size could definitely be it too. Best of luck op, sorry amn’t much help!

Sorry but this is terrible advice, lots of potty trained children are wet at night for months, maybe years later.

I can’t remember the exact figures but it’s something like 1 in 7 are still wet at night at age 5.

stayathomer · 30/12/2023 12:48

oneflewoverthe
Different things work for different people I guess! I had always heard that being dry at night showed that they had the ability to hold, and it was always true of mine, the second they started to be dry at night it was easy whereas when they were wet at night and we tried it was a nightmare and we had to go back

ElFupacabra · 30/12/2023 12:51

He wears size 8 nappies to bed and I then pop a toddler (17-35kg) overnight nappy over the top.
So you have one nappy on then another over the top? I’ve never heard of this ever. Why? Compression issues is the first thing that springs to mind.

stayathomer · 30/12/2023 12:52

Mazuslongtoenail
But does the reason for those one in seven not need to be looked at? And surely if they’re going in Nappies at night and in pants in the day they’re not potty trained? Genuine question! It doesn’t matter anyway, my youngest is 9 so I probably did it all an old fashioned way, so much has changed in the past few years, it’s just that it worked for us, they were ten times quicker once they started having a dry night and at the time all the books were saying this was the way to go

NigelTheCrab · 30/12/2023 12:56

Hi @alaska748

I don't want to worry you, as it's probably just a case of nappy/pull up sizing, etc. But this started happening to my DS when he was about the same age. I too tried the simple solutions, cutting down liquids in the afternoon, trying different size nappies, etc. Nothing worked. It turned out he had T1 diabetes and the increase in urination was his body's way of trying to get rid of the excess sugar in his blood stream.
Please consider getting him checked, particularly if he is drinking more than usual - in which case do not restrict his fluid intake. Other tell tale signs are loss of appetite and weight loss (our DS had lost weight, but with us seeing him all the time we hadn't noticed).

TeddyBeans · 30/12/2023 12:56

stayathomer · 30/12/2023 09:14

Definitely don’t start potty training until they’re dry at night, it is the longest slog you’ll ever meet!! What time is his last drink at. I’d assume you change him just before he goes asleep? Can you throw in another change? Yes nappy size could definitely be it too. Best of luck op, sorry amn’t much help!

My 5 year old still isn't dry at night!

titchy · 30/12/2023 13:01

stayathomer · 30/12/2023 12:52

Mazuslongtoenail
But does the reason for those one in seven not need to be looked at? And surely if they’re going in Nappies at night and in pants in the day they’re not potty trained? Genuine question! It doesn’t matter anyway, my youngest is 9 so I probably did it all an old fashioned way, so much has changed in the past few years, it’s just that it worked for us, they were ten times quicker once they started having a dry night and at the time all the books were saying this was the way to go

How odd. Of course they're potty trained if they're in pants in the day and using potty/toilet.

My youngest is 23 and the advice then, as now, was day first, then night, so I think you've misremembered!

TeddyBeans · 30/12/2023 13:02

My son went through a phase of this. It coincided with Pampers cutting back their premium protection range to the first sizes and baby dry ones just didn't work the same. I tried so many different types of nappies, dry nites are useless - definitely don't get those. I think they're for occasional overnight wees, not what a 2.5 year old would produce overnight.

We ended up with Tesco nappies and he's still in them now. He's 5 and 8 months and is just starting to get dry nights on occasion. It's definitely a case of trying different nappies and sizes to see what works for him. I'd also recommend getting waterproof bed pads, saves changing the whole bedding in a soak through

Tobleronebear · 30/12/2023 13:07

I would experiment with different brands and sizes. I wonder about compression being an issue also.

Notmetoo · 30/12/2023 13:10

Is he in good quality nappies. I found pampers are much better at night time . And perhaps try with a pull up over the nappy if that's possible .