My 3 & half yr old son will not wear normal pants for me.

[Jayden3]

I really hoped my 3 & half ur old son would be potty trained by now 😢. I've tried putting pants on him but he gets angry & hysterical. He puts them on at pre-school for his teacher but as soon as he gets home he wants to put his pull ups on. I've tried hiding them as I need them for bedtime, but he gets so uncontrollable & distressed. Any advice please?

[alina_lynden]

Hello, my name is Alina and I work on the ERIC helpline. Lots of children don't take to potty training straight away so try not to worry as this is very likely to be a phase for him. How about encouraging him to wear pants at home with his pull up on top for a little while to help him get used to the pants? This will also give him the feeling of wetness when he's done a wee so he's helped to make the connection with the urge to go and what then happens in his pants. You could also encourage him to sit on his potty or the toilet wearing his pulls ups to get used to doing a poo that way and gradually loosen it at the back to let the poo fall out. Use plenty of rewards and praise along the way and lots of fun things to distract him whilst he's on the potty so that over time he gets used to it and is happy to just be in pants in the daytime at home and pre- school. Do give our helpine a call if you'd like any further information or support. We're open Monday to Thursday 10am - 2pm. There's also a section of the ERIC website dedicated to potty training: eric.org.uk/PottyTraining/p... with a free downloadable leaflet with tips on what to do if it doesn't go to plan at first.

Good luck and best wishes,

Alina@ERIC

[alina_lynden in reply to alina_lynden]

sorry I should also have given you the helpline number: 0845 370 8008.