Potty training your boy can be frustrating, but it'll be worth it once you can stop taking those trips down the diaper aisle. If you want to potty train your boy, you have to stay positive, keep him motivated, and make the experience fun for the whole family. If you stick to your training schedule, then you should be able to put those diapers away in no time. If you want to know how to potty train your boy, just follow these easy steps.
Edit Steps
Prepare to Train Your Boy
- Look for signs that your son is ready for potty training. Though there's no perfect time to start potty training any child, most children develop the skills to be potty trained between 18 and 24 months. However, most parents don't start to potty train their children until they're 2 1/2 to 3 years old, when their bladders and bowel movements are more reliable. Here are a few signs that your boy is ready for potty training:[1]
- Look for the physical signs. If your boy is ready to be potty trained, then he should urinate a healthy amount at once, have pretty predictable and formed bowel movements, and should be able to stay dry for at least two hours during naps. He should also be coordinated enough to walk and run without difficulty.
- Look for the behavioral signs. If your son is ready to be potty trained, he should be able to easily pull his pants up and down and sit down in one position for at least two minutes. He should also show that he's having a bowel movement, such as by grunting or just telling you, and he should show a distaste for the feeling of a dirty diaper. He should also express an interest in other people's bathroom habits.
- Look for the cognitive signs. He should understand what going to the bathroom means and have words for it, and should be able to follow your directions. He should also be able to recognize the physical signs of having to use the bathroom before it happens.
- Buy a potty. If you're serious about potty-training your boy, then you should get him his own potty so he can feel more comfortable and independent. Many boys are scared to use the regular toilet because they're afraid of falling in and don't feel steady, so pick a potty where your boy can comfortably sit with his feet touching the ground.[2]
- Decide whether or not you want a potty with a urine guard. The urine guard will protect your floor from a few extra splashes of urine, but it could also hurt your boy's penis, and may lead him to have uncomfortable associations with the potty. Some potties have removable urine guards, so you can opt for one of those if you're not sure.
- Pick a bright, friendly color -- even your boy's favorite -- so the potty is a more inviting item.
- Make your boy comfortable with the potty. Introduce the potty before making your child use it. Place it in a play area, so your boy can sit on it and play around it while he gets used to the potty. You can even personalize it by having your boy put stickers on it, or even write his name on the potty with stickers.
- Let your boy practice sitting on it with his clothes on from time to time. After he's gotten comfortable with the idea of the potty after one or two weeks, you can move forward with the process.
- Let him watch. Begin potty training your son by allowing him to go to the bathroom with his daddy so he can see the process. Daddy can even ask if he wants to try too. Don't pressure your child; just give him the option so he knows that he is in control of using the restroom.
- It's likely that your boy has wanted to do other things his father could do in the past, so this should be no different. His father should treat it like a cool, grown up privilege, and your boy will be even more excited about the process.
- It's likely that your boy has wanted to do other things his father could do in the past, so this should be no different. His father should treat it like a cool, grown up privilege, and your boy will be even more excited about the process.
- Pick the right time to start potty training. Potty training should be scheduled so that you are focused on the project and your little one knows what to expect. Plan on spending as much time as possible at home for the first few days. It is very difficult to potty train on the road or while running errands. If you do have to go somewhere, take a little potty in the car with you for emergency situations.
- Pick a time that is relatively stress-free for you and your boy. For example, if you've just introduced a new pet to the family, or you've just moved to a new neighborhood, it may be best to put off potty training for a few weeks until your son is comfortable in his environment again.
Start Your Training Routine
- Pick a training plan that works for you and your family. There are two main training plans for your boy: you can either switch back and forth between diapers or disposable training pants and underpants, or just go "cold turkey" and use underwear full-time, even if your boy is still having accidents. There are advantages and disadvantages to both:[3]
- If you just make your boy wear underwear all the time, he may be trained more quickly because he'll be able to tell if he's wet right away and will feel more uncomfortable than he would in diapers. The downside is that you'll have to clean up lots of accidents.
- If you go back and forth, then your son will slowly ease into the potty training process. If your son's in preschool, then his teachers may also prefer that he's still in diapers when he's potty training, though you should have a conversation about it.[4]
- You can also stick to diapers at night and during long car trips, and underwear during the day.
- If you just make your boy wear underwear all the time, he may be trained more quickly because he'll be able to tell if he's wet right away and will feel more uncomfortable than he would in diapers. The downside is that you'll have to clean up lots of accidents.
- Teach your son the right form. You should first teach your boy to poop and pee sitting down so that he gets comfortable in this position. Tell him to push his penis straight down before he sits down so that he avoids scraping it on the splash guard if you have one, and so it's aimed in the right place.[5]
- Teach him to wipe himself after he has a bowel movement. You can start by doing this yourself and asking for a little help, and gradually teach him to do it on his own.
- Once he's comfortable using the bathroom sitting down, you can teach him to pee when he's standing. He should be positioned right in front of the potty with his feet slightly apart. You can throw a few cheerios or goldfish in the bowl to make the process more fun and give him something to aim at.
- You can make your boy more comfortable with the potty if you give him something to read while he's using the bathroom.
- Give your son some "naked time" with the potty. While your son is potty training, you should give him some time to just play near the potty without any clothes on. This will make him feel more comfortable with his potty, and much more likely to use it. Being naked will make going to the potty feel like a more natural process for your son, and like a lot less work.
- Encourage your son to sit on the potty, even if he doesn't need to use it. This will make him feel more comfortable with it.
- Be prepared for some accidents. If he's playing without pants on, he's more likely to have an accident. This may be a pain, but remember that the less time your boy spends without diapers on, the more quickly he'll be fully potty trained.
- Encourage your son to sit on the potty, even if he doesn't need to use it. This will make him feel more comfortable with it.
Keep Your Boy Motivated
- Stay positive. Potty training your boy can be a long and frustrating processes filled with accidents and uncomfortable cleanup. But that's OK -- you can't control whether or not your boy has an accident. What you can control is your reaction to his mistakes. Make sure to stay positive, and not to berate him or be mean if he didn't use the potty every time.
- Use positive reinforcement to keep your boy on the right path, instead of being negative. If you're negative about his accidents, he will feel ashamed and insecure, and will lose the confidence he needs to be potty trained.
- Remember that potty training for any child can be traumatic. For a little child, it's almost as if he is losing a part of himself. So be empathetic and patient during this process.
- Use positive reinforcement to keep your boy on the right path, instead of being negative. If you're negative about his accidents, he will feel ashamed and insecure, and will lose the confidence he needs to be potty trained.
- Buy cool underwear. Motivate your boy to get potty trained by talking up a trip to buy underwear. Take him shopping with you to show him all the different kinds of underwear out there, and let him choose his favorite, whether the underwear has toy trains, puppies, or spaceships on it. Tell him that once he's fully potty trained, he'll get to wear real underwear like his father or brothers all the time.
- Not all boys love the feel of real underwear right away. If he doesn't like the way the underwear feels on his bare skin, let him wear it over his diapers first.
- Celebrate his success. Don't be indifferent when your boy uses the potty. Cheer, kiss him, give him a hug, and tell him what a great job he did. Make a show of calling his father or other family members to tell them what a big boy he is. Tell him you're proud of him every time he uses the potty.[6]
- Remember to be consistent. If you're really excited when your boy uses the potty some days, but are too busy to give him the attention he needs other days, then he'll be confused.
- Give him rewards for using the potty. You can choose to reward with a jelly bean or gummy bear, or you can offer stickers. Give him one treat when he urinates and two when he has a bowel movement. The reward should be enough to motivate, but not too big that it becomes expensive. Throw some treats, stickers, and small toys in a basket so your child can pick something when he successfully uses the potty.
- You can even keep a calendar where you stick on a sticker every time your boy successfully uses the potty during a certain day.
- You can even keep a calendar where you stick on a sticker every time your boy successfully uses the potty during a certain day.
Finish Training
- Potty train your boy at night. Once your child is comfortable using the potty during the day, it'll be time to move into night mode. Before you start, you should make sure that your boy can stay dry for at least two hours during naps. Then start by having your boy sleep in underwear, and check to see if he's had an accident later in the night. If he can get through a night in clean underwear more than half the time, then you may slowly switch into "underwear only" mode.
- If your boy is still having accidents in the night, don't let him get discouraged. Keep using diapers at night and tell him he'll be able to do it when he's bigger. Then slowly try again.
- One reason why your child may be having accidents at night is because his bladder may be too small to hold his urine. Try limiting his fluid intake after five p.m. or so and see if that makes a difference.[7]
- If your boy is still having accidents in the night, don't let him get discouraged. Keep using diapers at night and tell him he'll be able to do it when he's bigger. Then slowly try again.
- Get rid of your diapers. Once your son has completely been potty trained, it's time to get rid of your diapers -- and to celebrate! Make it clear that this is no small achievement, and tell your boy that you're very proud of him, do a little dance, and even give him his favorite treat or watch his favorite movie with him.[8]
- You can also take him with you to give the remaining diapers to a family with a smaller child. This will make him feel even more grown up!
Edit Tips
- Teach your son to both urinate and have a bowel movement sitting down. This way you don't have to teach your boy two techniques. He will eventually learn to urinate standing up when he is comfortable using the regular toilet.
- Buy some fun underwear so your son is excited about transitioning into the big boy stage.
Edit Warnings
- Don't get frustrated with your child during the potty training process. Remember that boys usually take longer than girls, and if you show any negative response such as anger or frustration, then you could cause your child to be uncooperative, or worse, regress. Just show empathy and patience, and allow him to keep practicing.