5 Yr Old Still Peeing Pants

Just to be safe, you probably SHOULD take him to the doctor - there are medical issues that can cause this. Sorry I don't know anything else to try either.

First you need to rule out a medical problem, I have an 8 year old who has a very small bladder and has to go a lot. It could easily be a control thing, when he is mad or angry or upset this is what he does, and the only thing you can do is modify the behavior, be consistent at all costs, if you take something away and tell him he doesn't get it back until he is consistently using the potty for an extended amount of time then you need to stick with it or he will know that you will enventually give in.

Another issue could also be nerves, some kids when they get nervous or anxious about stuff will have issues, especially upcoming kindergarten, that is a big thing for a kid and can be a very high stressor in children.

Doing this is also an attention getter, and we all know that to children any attention be it negative or positive is still attention. So you have to focus on positive attention getters. Start small things like going 1-2 days without accidents will result in say a special time with mom or dad or a special book, I MUST WARN DO NOT REWARD WITH NEW TOYS OR GOING TO MCDONALDS, STAY AWAY FROM MATERIAL REWARDS.

Kids are sensitive creatures and no child is like the other something as simple as fighting with a sibling or hearing a parent disagree or not getting their way about something can trigger an aray of negative behavior, encouraging your child to talk about things or if he doesn't want to talk and will draw about how he is feeling are good ways to get to the bottom of things that may be bothering him.

Good luck hope this helps some.

Rebecca,
This sounds like a control issue. He is using going to bathroom as a way to get attention and be able to control something in his life. Does he use the bathroom regularly? Are there some other medical factors effecting him? You may wish to evaluate what is going on at home. Is he getting the attention that he would like, or is he only getting your attention when he wets his pants? Are there other factors affecting his day to day activities?
The other thing is when he goes to Kindergarten, most kids out grow it. The peer pressure issue kicks in. They also have a set schedule when they use the bathroom.
Good Luck,
J..

You should take your son to your family doctor or a urologist and see if maybe he has a bladder infection or some other disfunction. My daughter used to wet all the time, she would get recurring bladder infections and had some other medical issues. You don't want to scold him if it something beyond his control. If there is no medical reason then I think you are doing the right thing by taking privledges away. Also you may want to look into going to a chiropractor

I feel your frustration. My daughter just turned 6 and still has the occasionsl accident. Mabey 3 times a year. She fully potty trained at two during the day. Then came spring and summer and she was having two or three accidents a day. As frustrating as it may be try reminding him ever hour and a half. They get sick of hearing you tell them to use the bathroom and decide they are going to stay dry so you quit bugging them. Also make sure they have pants that slide on and off easy. It came down to the fact that my daughter got buisy and waited to the last minute and then couldn't get her pants down quick enough. With reminders and sweat pants we were good to go. Good luck.

Definitely a control issue. The three of you really need to get to a child psychologist for the best strategy on how to deal with this issue, and any underlying causes. Does he play with friends and stay dry during those playdates? What about preschool? You could use TV as a reward system, say if he stays dry for 4 hours he gets a sticker. 2-3 stickers gets him 1/2 hour of TV, but he needs to go potty Before he starts the show! Stay with him or just outside the door listening to make sure he goes. Set a timer for every 2 hours that he needs to use the potty when the timer goes off. Increase to 3 hours as things get better if he cooperates. My guess is he may refuse, this is why you need professional help. We can give our support but w/out knowing your family or child it's only idle chat really.
Best wishes!

Rebecca,
we have been dealing with similar issues. I finally took the twins to the Dr... and guess what- there was a medical reason. Here we thought it was a control issue, had been told by so many others that it was too... and there was a VERY good medical reason for it. It is a simple appointment. The other thing I can say is my daughter had the same problem all of a sudden. We were doing all these medical tests for it and happened to take her to the chiropractor at the same time...just to get checked. I didnt tell him about the problem (didnt think it mattered) and he came out and said, I need to see her 3 more times. He then asked if she had been having any trouble with incontinencce or kidneys, bladder, etc. It turned out the spot in her back that was out of whack was a key trigger for kidney and bladder issues. He fixed it and voila! No more problems. I am sure this is not the average situation, but worth a shot.
Good Luck!

I have 3 boys as well and I study natural healing. My oldest was the hardest to train,especially to go number two,this seems to be the hardest for most children. what I've learned is that this is something that cannot be forced and they cant be made to feel ashamed or be punished. Its hard and can be frustrating to deal with and its hard not to get upset when this happens frequently ,but children sense stress and this can make it even more stressful for him.

There are a variety of emotional reasons for bedwetting. For example, when a young child begins bedwetting after several months or years of dryness during the night, this may reflect new fears of insecurities. This may follow changes or events which make the child feel insecure: moving to a new environment, losing a family member or loved one, or especially the arrival of a new baby or child in the home. Sometimes bedwetting occurs after a period of dryness because the child's original toilet training was too stressful.Children develop complete control over their bladders at different ages. Nighttime dryness is usually the last stage of toilet learning. When children wet the bed more than twice per month after age 5 or 6, it is called bedwetting or nocturnal enuresis.

Children who were dry for at least 6 months and then started wetting again have secondary enuresis. There are many reasons that children wet the bed after being fully toilet trained. It might be physical, emotional, or just a change in sleep.

Children who have never been consistently dry at night have primary enuresis. This usually occurs when the body makes more urine overnight than the bladder can hold and the child does not wake up when the bladder is full. The child's brain has not learned to respond to the signal that the bladder is full. It is not the child's or the parent's fault.

Parents should remember that children rarely wet on purpose, and usually feel ashamed about the incident. Rather than make the child feel naughty or ashamed, parents need to encourage the child and show faith that he or she will soon be able to enjoy staying dry at night.

Parents may help children who wet the bed by:

Limiting liquids before bedtime
Encouraging the child to go to the bathroom before bedtime
Praising the child on dry mornings
Avoiding punishments
Waking the child during the night to empty their bladder

Hi Rebecca,

I agree with the prior post. He wants control. I remember when I was in kindergarten we made fun of a little boy that peed in his pants. As an adult I think that was terrible, but our 5 year old brains just saw, "Fellow kindergartner peeing in pants hmmm . . . " and we went with it. I believe after day three of our taunting he stopped and would ask to go to the bathroom. Years later in about the 8th grade we had a good laugh about it and he said we helped potty train him.