I have been fighting a battle with Phillip for over a year now, trying to get him potty trained. He was almost completely trained and then suddenly started wetting his pants at least once a day. I tried giving him a sticker when he stayed dry. I tried praising him for staying dry and telling him what a big boy he was, and even tried disciplinary actions, but nothing seemed to work.

Finally after reading a book about strong-willed children, we started giving him the idea that he was in control by saying, “Phillip, you need to go potty” (stating a fact) instead of “Phillip, go potty” (giving an order). I thought it sounded crazy, but I was desperate and decided to try it. I was absolutely amazed! When I just stated a simple fact (you need to go potty), he stopped what he was doing immediately, and went! This seems to work with him on just about anything I want him to do.

I am extremely glad to say that not only has Phillip stayed dry almost every day this week, but he has stayed dry overnight the last 3 nights! To be fair, I can’t give all the credit to reading a book. Maybe he just decided he wanted to be a big boy and was tired of having his legs break out (eczema) from sleeping in a diaper (plus realizing that little sister is about ready to begin potty training). 🙂 He seemed to suddenly make up his mind to stay dry and then went for it! Regardless of the reason or motivation, I am SO glad to see this finally happening!