2 1/2 Year Old Will Only Potty Naked

I dont have an answer for you, but your post made me laugh thinking back when my oldest (7) was younger, he would take his shirt off to poop! He dosen't do it anymore but I forgot all about that untill now! lol

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I hate to say this, but I think you just have to wait this one out. She sounds like she is doing extremely well for her young age. All 3 of my kiddos were not COMPLETELY potty-trained until they were 3 years old, and I have heard others say the same, so I think you just stick with it and hang in there.She will get there soon enough. Surely her preschool wouldn't expect 2 1/2 year olds to be completely potty ready?

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If she can't pull her own panties down yet, you have two options:
1. teach her how to pull her panties down (legging are better than jeans for this)

2. stop potty training all together, go back to diapers and wait until she's able to pull her panties and pants down on her own.

I've also read the 3 day potty training. I remember it distinctly saying not to use pull-ups. If that's the method you want to use, then get rid of the pullups and see options 1 and 2.

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Suggestion - don't expect her to potty train in 3 days if she can't pull her own panties down. She's NOT READY. No wonder she's not interested. She has have the 'ability' to master the task to do it her self.

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Reading your update, I wonder if you can do some work on pulling down panties. Maybe start with dolls and teddy bears. Role-playing is a fun way for kids to learn new skills; practicing them on a third party takes some of the pressure out of success or failure.

Maybe several days of helping "urgent" teddy bears make it to the potty in time will make a difference. She could then expand to helping wet teddy bears change their underwear.

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I can tell you that you're not alone. Only this past week has my son started going to the bathroom by himself (or with help) when wearing pants and underwear. I swear we potty trained for well over a month (prob atleast 2mo) and I would always say that he was potty trained when he was naked below the waist. He would go all by himself (pee & poop). Anytime we put underwear on, he had lots of accidents. We started taking him every hr, then about every hr & a half on schedule. And also before we went out. Never put diapers on once we went to underwear (only for naps & pull ups for bed).
Does she know how to pull her pants down on her own? DS did before we started potty training.
I posted a question about him going only when naked and all the accidents when in underwear (& he didn't care either). I too got ALOT of he's not ready, wait till he asks, etc. I feel that they have to be ready to a point, but it's called "training" for a reason - parents have to help them too. I think your daughter is ready, but she probably still needs the guidance. I would recommend putting the underwear on her and taking her on a schedule.
I hope some of this helps. Good luck and just be patient!

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I think the schools just keep them on a "forced pee schedule", so that they have to go frequently to avoid waiting until the urge comes. You can try the same at home. If youre going every hour you wont have to worry about holding it. I know thats how they did it at my daughters daycare. They set up an alarm and they all did potty time. Hope it helps. As she gets older/more used to the idea she will get better control and then it wont be necessary.

I would get her larger panties so its easier for her to pull up/down. If she needs help she'll ask, its just because your there. When you're not around she will adjust.

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We had a neighbor whose son would only NOT have accidents if he was naked. We got very accustomed to seeing his tushy running around last summer. It was pretty funny as we were also potty-training our 3 year old (theirs was 3.5).

I'd tend to agree with S.H. that these may be clues that she's not yet ready to be potty trained. Being able to pull his pants up/down, etc. were all things we considered when potty training our son.

It seems like all the parents we know who have pushed their kids to potty train have dealt with more regression/accidents than we have by waiting until the signs of readiness were really apparent.

From our experiences in Day Care (we are full time vs. preschool), they're so accustomed to changing diapers and actually deal with that better than frequent accidents.

Good luck! I hope you are successful and that she enjoys being in school.

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I would wait. Potty training means the child stops doing what they are doing, walks to the bathroom, pulls down their pants, goes, washes hands, and resumes playing. If mom or dad has to be their shadow for any of that, then they aren't ready. My son didn't train until 3 1/2, but one day he just woke up, took off his diaper, and was trained. We have had to do NOTHING. He's been trained for 2 months now, and I can count his accidents on one hand. It hard to wait, but if you wait until they are ready, it will be SOO much smoother and less stressful on parent and child! Good luck!

that is too soon.... she's not ready, in many respects. Forcing it won't help.

Just for future reference, these are great "underwear" for toddlers. My friend's son's preschool recommends it as well. This is what I used for my daughter, and my son is using this now. There is a padding built into the underwear. I use(d) these on my kids, until they were TOTALLY in control of their body... and totally potty mastered.
Here is the link:
http://www.amazon.com/Gerber-Training-Pants-Pack-Size/dp/...

Walmart also sells it.

Does the school require complete, potty trained kids? Or can they be still in training? That is also important.
If she can't pull down her own underwear nor pant/skirts or anything with a waistband for that matter... then she won't be able to pull down a pull-up either... in school or at home.

all the best,
Susan