My DS has just turned 4yrs a few weeks back and has been toilet trained during the day for at least a good year although he does wet himself a lot when hes preoccupied, anyway....when he uses the toilet he absolutely point blank refuses to wipe himself...he just wont do it...does anyone have any sugggestions in how to coax him to.....as i want to try and get him into a preschool 2 days next year and im really getting tired of him screaming for me to wipe him all the time....
He is very fixated on being clean and im just wandering if maybe its because he doesnt want to get his hands dirty or the thought of what he has to do turns him off wiping...i dont know...but id love some hints from anyone else whos had similar issues.
A tip.... allow him to wipe with baby wipes, toilet paper is rough and hard to handle. Baby wipes are a little softer, as well as bigger so he wont accidently get anything on his hands.
Listen, it takes a while. This is perfectly normal. Your child is four years old, you are his mommy, it is your job to help him with these things, thats just what mommys do. Most children do not wipe themselves after only being potty trained for a few weeks or even months. It takes a while. Please don't act annoyed towards your child even if you feel like you shouldnt have to be doing this for him. Help him when he needs it. If you need a time away then take a little break and have his dad watch him for a bit. It may not seem like a big deal to you but children are very sensitive and if he knew you were annoyed at having to help him it could really hurt him emotionally.
Good Luck.
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Last edited by * Free ~ Spirit *; 11-07-2003 at 05:24 PM.
Hi, My son had the same problem, it took some time, but he got used to it. My daughter wasn't as bad. Now if I could just get them to remember to flush LOL. Good luck, it'll all work out. And as the last poster said try baby wipes but just make sure he dosen't flush them, they'll clog the toilet it's happened to me heehee. Take care and give him some time.
My son had been potty trained since he was 3 and he would never wipe himself either. He is now 4 and 11 months and he probably only started wiping himself about 2 months ago. But now he thinks he has to use a huge glob of toilet paper lol. I do think that it is afraid that they are going to get it on themselves. Well, Good luck. It just takes some time for them to want to do it on their own.
tami
I understand how annoying this can be. My daughter will be 4 next month and has been potty trained for a year. She still asks me to wipe her. It sounds like this is a pretty common issue with this age. If it helps to know she is in preschool right now and when she is at school she wipes herself. She seems to know that she has to do it herself when she is at school. At home what I try to do when she calls for me to wipe her is to not respond right away. I'll tell her I will be there when I finish this or that. Sometimes she waits but a lot of times she get tired of waiting on me and does it herself. I have not and never will make a big issue out of it. I am sure she will soon realize it is easier to just do it herself. Good Luck!
Thanks for all the helpful supportive replies...im glad to see the person who sent a horrable reply without reading my question prorerly has changed there post........wow........
Ill definitly try some nice smelling wipes as he loves to wash his hands with that nice smelly pump soap so i figure that will help him encourage him to wipe before i check that hes done a good job.
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Ok, I hope I'm not the only one who's dealt with this issue until my son was 9 years old!! I have two boys and they both had a problem until much later (the oldest wanted help till he was 8!) Now as a previous poster has said, they use too much toilet paper, but at least they don't call me anymore. My oldest is definitely clean-conscious. If his brother drinks out of the same bottle of pop, before he drinks from it he wipes it with a napkin! Guess that's a good thing.
4yr old that refuses to wipe himself 
--Andrew Jackson
it's happened to me heehee. Take care and give him some time.
