My daughter is 2 1/2 years old and she has been completely potty trained for about four months now. In the past few weeks I have become concerned about her lack of peeing. She only goes 3-4 times a day, and most often only with bribing. She never has accidents and she goes poop without a problem when she feels the need to go. I always ask her if it hurts after she pees and she says no. This past Monday we were at the doctor because she had a stomach bug and was vomiting. I asked him about the minimal peeing and he said it was normal for a toddler, but he did a urinalysis just in case and it was perfectly fine. Yesterday, I was sick in bed with the stomach bug so my husband took care of her all day. When she was going to bed I thought to ask if she had peed all day and the response was once. So I got up and put her on the potty and she cried and refused to pee and eventually I gave up. She went without any problem this morning when we woke up. Has anyone else experienced this? I am definitely concerned about the one time yesterday, but realize it may have just been extenuating circumstances. And even though the doctor said 3-4 times is normal, I am still a little worried, especially since at least half of those times are major battles to get anything out.
Thank you so much to all of you for your wonderful advice! I took into consideration all that was said and applied it to the best of my ability. And the reassurance was particularly helpful. She is still going only 3 or 4 times a day (although she went 5 today!), but it hasn't been stressful at all. I am not worried and so I have changed my attitude. I'll say, "We are going to the store! Let's go pee pee really quick!" No questioning, no worry or forcing in my voice, and she goes if she has to go. I think the stomach bug had dehydrated her a bit. And the input and output thing is definitely true. I think my feelings towards it was skewed a bit by the fact that at 8 mos of pregnancy I go pee about 10 times a day! Also, a little humor at my husband's expense- when I asked him how much she drank that day she peed only once, he responded (rather defensively) that he had given her a drink every time she asked for one. Well, the next morning when I opened the fridge I found two sippy cups full of water, two opened juice boxes nearly full, and a nearly full water bottle of chocolate milk. Dads! Can't blame them for trying!
Hi L.,
My 8 year old daugther doesn't pee a lot and she's fine. I do remember one day I was worried (she was around 4) she peed once that morning and went the entire day before peeing again. I thought that wasn't normal. But she's fine. Some of us have better bladder control than others. As long as she is getting plenty of liquids and is peeing 3 to 4 times a day; she's good. Take care.
I was amazed at my daughter's iron bladder, which I mostly noticed on long car trips. I never bothered about it, since she wasn't bothered. Be thankful!
My dau just turned 3 & she has always been a minimal "pee r". Even when she was a baby, she had fewer diapers than her 23 month older sister who seems to go twice as much. It seems like she can hold it forever even after she says she has to go also unlike her older sister who tends to have lots more accidents still. She is healthy & I think it is just normal for her. I wouldn't worry about it & I also would not take my 3 year olds word for how many times she went during an entire day. Their ability to remember that well just isn't completely developed yet. Good luck & hope you're feeling better.
L.,
I was glad to see your post since my 4 year old daughter is the same way. She goes 3x a day. She knows she has to go before she can have breakfast in the morning, she has to go before nap and before bed. Her beverage of choice is milk, which doesn't really create much pee. I recently bought her a Dora water bottle and she likes to drink water if its in that bottle or if it is in a clear cup and colored! I really tried to encourage water this summer and those are the 2 things I came up with to encourage it. She still only goes 3x a day. If she is at pre-school (she goes 2 mornings/week) they take a bathroom break and she goes then (she's at the age where she can tell me if she went or not and she's sure to tell me if she pooped at school.) As long as she's not having accidents I wouldn't push her too hard. I'm happy to hear I'm not the only one with this question! God Bless!!
OK...this is funny, but I had a dr's note in my file at school that said I was able to go to the bathroom whenever I asked. This was after I peed on myself in 3rd grade, after begging to go. I have had to threaten more than one of my older daughter's teachers that I'd get a note from a dr for her. My grandmother, father, myself and my daughter all have small bladders -say pee and we have to go. My grandmother actually had to have her's stretched by some medical procedure.
My sister, on the other hand, has to remember to go. My dad calls her a camel. My 2 1/2yr old daughter makes it thru the night dry and goes 2-3 times a day. I have to remind her to go when she wakes up. I am thinking your daughter has a bladder with a good capacity. When she goes on her own, is it a lot? People are different. As long as the urine is not dark yellow or strong, she should be fine -after all, you've had the urinalysis done. Please be careful not to make too big a deal about it. If you're worried, she might think something's wrong with her. Since she's already potty trained and unless she starts having problems, I wouldn't bribe her to go -it's a bodily function!
Good luck, and congrats on your expected bundle.
~K.
maybe she's just not drinking enough WATER throughout the day! take a look at how much she actually consumes in the way of liquids each day. children need lots of water, less kool-aid and sweetened drinks, and more water. I agree with the doctor that it's normal for your baby girl to only urinate 3 or 4 times per day. I'll bet if you give her more to drink throughout the day you will see her running to the potty more often! test the theory and see for yourself. Then you will feel comfortable with her normality being only 3 or 4 times a day.
relax MOM, watch her intake and output and keep a record for some weeks including giving her more liquids and comparing the differences in her output. Then if you still feel uncomfortable or concerned you can return to the doctor with documented information to show your concerns!
God Bless and Good Luck!
My daughter is 12 and ever since she was small she very rarely pees. Somedays she only goes once a day. When she was smaller she occassionally had an accident because she held it too long and then couldn't get to the bathroom soon enough and she has had a few UTI's but other than that she is perfectly healthy. I think maybe she just doesn't feel the urge like most people but it doesn't really cause any problems.
You can not believe how many times my sister and I talk about this same problem with both of our little girls. They hardly ever pee-pee and they drink plenty during the day. Our little girl who is now 8 can get up in the morning, eat breakfast and still go longer before ever going to the bathroom. I have to insist she go before school. Just this morning I asked if she had used the bathroom yet and she told me she couldn't remember, I told her she hadn't. She could go at that point, but sure does act like she doesn't need to. The bad part is that our girls have suffered with several urinary tract infections but it doesn't seem to be associated with their not using the bathroom. We joke about the fact that they'll be the BEST girl-friend/wife because the husband won't have to stop for many bathroom breaks when traveling. If your daughter is staying well, don't worry about it (it's hard, I know!) but it appears this is just one of those times that we're all different on.
My daughter had similar symptoms and ended up having a bladder infection. Did your doctor use a pee cup to take her sample or a catheter? I ask because sometimes you get false negatives if the pee cup is used. If continues with once or twice a day I'd get her back in for another test.
Hi L.,
I think that if the urinalysis was fine and she's not showing any signs of dehydration (a combination of symptoms like sunken in eyes, very dry skin, and fatigue) that everything is perfectly normal. If you are really concerned, you may try offering her more to drink throughout the day. As her fluid intake increases, the frequency of her urination, or at least the quantity of urine, should increase.
C.
Yes for her it is, my daughter is the same way, the other day she just went twice, and it's great for traveling we hardly have to stop except for my who has to go all the time. As long as there are no accidents, and no infections it must be normal for he, she just has a graeat bladder.
And one who travels with teen girls who have to go to the potty every two hours can make a long trip much longer.
Your doctor is not worried and that's just the way she is, so don't make a big deal of it.
How much and what is she drinking? Our 'output' is fairly equal to our 'input', so if she's not drinking a lot (especially water), she won't go very often.
She sounds normal. The one time yesterday was probably because she was a bit dehydrated with a stomach bug. Once you get her re-hydrated with clear liquids, she should be back to her normal 3-4 X per day.
It may be normal - I had the same issue with my daughter and the doctor told me she was fine. And she was. However, if she goes a full day and never goes, I would definitely be concerned and demand that the doctor do further testing. There could be a different issue - with her ovaries or falopian tubes. I would keep an eye on it and do what your motherly instinct tells you. The best advice I ever received with my first child was, "Your child is more important than an adults hurt feelings"
Good Luck !
My concern would be if she is getting enough to drink. De-hydration can easily be tested. Is her pee clear or yellow or a dark yellow. Just look in the toilet if you can tell its yellow, give her more water to drink. Believe me if you put it in, its coming out in about an hour. Water will be good for her to get in the habit of drinking. I can't even begin to tell you the benefits of water to your body and tap water will give her the floride that her little teeth need to. Lovingly P.
After getting potty trained, choosing the time to "go" is one small part of their world they have control over. My son does it too and also with eating dinner, and he fully understands that I will put his plate in the fridge and if he tells me he is hungry, that plate gets reheated, he also understands if he chooses not to eat that he goes to bed hungry, he is normal height/weight, this is just his choice right now.
Hi L. - I understand your concern about your daughter peeing only 3-4 times a day. I have a 5 year old boy and an almost 4 year old girl. Our daughter had some urinary tract infections about a year ago. The pediatric urologist we ended up seeing says kids should go to the potty about every 2-3 hours. However, if I can get both of my kids to go pee at least 4 times a day, I count it as a good day. My son will not pee at school (in kindergarten all day) so he ends up going only three times during the weekdays. I guess the best advice I can give is don't stress. Take her to the potty to try and if nothing happens, then wait 30 or so minutes and try again. Another tidbit - the more the kids drink - the more they will need to pee. We found out it's best to drink lots of water so we made a game out of it - "Who can drink all the water (in their small kid's) cup first?" Or - something like this - "You don't have to drink all this right now, but when you do drink it all gone you will get _______" You fill in the blank. For a while, when one cup was gone we rewarded one M&M candy. Then another time we were on a Smarties kick. Whatever works for your child. Good luck and God Bless
By the way, there is no such thing as a stomach flu. What you are describing is probably a mild case of food poisoning. It is very common. Has that mayonnaise gone bad? Check especially your meat, dairy, eggs, leftover rice (toss cooked rice after three days; sooner, if it's been left out), and things prepared with these ingredients. They're the worst offenders.
If your daughter's pee is not yellow, she is well hydrated. (Post-vitamin yellowing doesn't count in the hour or two after taking it.) If it is yellow at all, get her to drink more. The yellower it is, the more dehydrated she is. But be aware that there is such a thing as water toxicity, and it is fatal. Don't ever force (or bribe, or otherwise encourage) her to drink lots of water in short periods of time.
Don't force her to stay on the toilet. If you sense that she is holding it so that she doesn't miss any fun activities, you will need to work with her on this, but not by forcing her to stay on the toilet for extended periods. Get a discipline book like Easy to Love, Difficult to Discipline by Becky Bailey, or the Sears' Discipline Book for ideas that work and understand a child's thought processes around these issues. Also, you might be focusing on the wrong end! If she truly isn't going often enough, it could very well be a hydration issue. IF so, don't resolve it with high-sugar drinks (even 100% fruit juices are very high sugar; that is why fruit is sweet). Water them down (a lot - gradually increasing the water percentage, if you have to, if she's already used to regular juice). Sugar is extremely dehydrating.
L.
How is her fluid intake? Do her hands or feet seem swollen? If not, she's probably okie dokie. You can palpate, or feel the bladder right above the pubic region. If it is distended, it will feel like a little swollen balloon, and pressing gently on it will be uncomfortable for someone who is retaining urine. If her urine analysis was okay, and her urine looks okay, and she is not having any discomfort, then she probably is fine.
What goes in will come out. My guess is your husband didn't give her much to drink or push the issue. My 2.5 year old is kind of similar. He really fights being asked or encouraged to go. I have to keep coming up with gimmicks. Right now...he likes to "surprise" me with a full potty, so I will tell him to go surprise me!
hi L.
i am C., about your daughter, she may not be getting enough fluids in her system. so get juices and water with like maybe kool aide in it. that may help her go more often. but stop giving her fluids one to two hours before bed time. if need to be, drink fluids with her together. kids love to eat and drink out of the same glass and dish that you are. if feel better about this suggestion, take her to another doctor for a second opinion. hope this helps. have a great day and congrats on your new baby.
