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From: essachs@ihuxl.UUCP (Ed Sachs)
Newsgroups: net.kids
Subject: Re: Potty training
Message-ID: <1586@ihuxl.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 26-Jun-85 08:18:29 EDT
Article-I.D.: ihuxl.1586
Posted: Wed Jun 26 08:18:29 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 27-Jun-85 07:23:06 EDT
References: <2797@decwrl.UUCP> <174@SCINEWS.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 27

> My 4 year old son pees in the toilet fine and rarely wets his bed.
> But he still hasn't taken to the toilet when he needs to poop.
> We've tried all kinds of positive reinforcement and have rejected any
> negative forms for obvious reasons. ...
> 
> Funny thing is, for about a week we knew he was secretly doing his business
> in the toilet and carefully cleaning up after himself.  But that didn't last
> too long.  Before we knew it, he was back to going in his pants again (sigh).

We had similar problems with our son (now 9) who REFUSED to have
a bowel movement in the toilet.  Our pediatrician suggested that
discipline was appropriate, the kid has to get the idea that soiling
pants is unacceptable behavior.  Maybe that will work for your son, it
didn't for ours.  In our son's case, it was some toy he really wanted
that we told him was only for "big boys," definition of a big boy was
one who didn't soil his pants (for a week or something like that,
and with the understanding that if he did after he got his reward,
it was taken away for some period of time).

Conclusion:  rewards have to be something meaningful to the kid to
work, its too easy to soil ones pants if one isn't in the mood for
candy at the moment.
-- 
				Ed Sachs
				AT&T Bell Laboratories
				Naperville, IL
				ihnp4!ihuxl!essachs