3 1/2 yo girl potty problem

Hi--

Our dd (age 3 1/2) has been stopping the flow of urine half way through
going...then she says she can't go anymore and holds it until the next
time she uses the potty. Sometimes she will empty her bladder fully at
that time, and other times she will stop the flow again and hold it some
more.

Gorgon Park...

Could it be that she currently has a bladder infection? I can remember
the one and only time I had a bladder infection around 7 or 8 years
old. I can remember not wanting to let it all out because the last
little bit *really* hurt. And I can remember my mom sitting beside me
trying to coax me to let it all out otherwise it wouldn't get better.

It might be worth getting her checked out by a doctor just to rule it

PlumLake...

Hi Stacey--

Knowing my DD the way I do, I am almost positive that she does not have
an infection...she hasn't shown any signs of being in pain (and she's
the kind of kid that runs to me with any sort of boo boo whatsoever).
But, I do agree with you that having her checked out by a doctor
wouldn't hurt a bit. I'm a SAHM, so I'm with her all day and am
monitoring the situation...if this keeps up much longer we'll take her
to the doctor.

I really think this is just sort of a game with her...she's a VERY
stubborn girl and I think I probably made a mistake in making this an
issue with her at all...I should've just ignored it.

Thanks for your advice,
Kathy

out.

Jeff...

Could be an infection.

Otherwise, I would let it go. Eventually, she will let it all go, too. What
makes you think she is holding part of urine?

Anne Rogers...

was wondering exactly the same thing, and how on earth do you demonstrate
going all the way, all that's going to look like to a child is you are just
sitting there longer, even if you can feel the flow is slowing down at the
end, but it makes sense that a child takes less time, has a smaller bladder
etc. If the difference you see is her stopping abruptly, when you don't then
I think it's highly likely that's just an advantage of youth!

If you do still think she really is holding on, then it could be an
infection, but it sounds a bit backwards, with infections you tend to feel
that you need to go and can't, so she'd be going frequently and producing a

PlumLake...

Hi Anne--

I know demonstrating how to let all of the pee come out sounds pretty
ridiculous...but I guess I thought it was worth a shot. I demonstrated
it just the same way a parent would demonstrate the proper way to do
anything to a child. All I meant was, since DD was in the bathroom with
me anyway (not much privacy around here!) I made a point of showing her
how I go...made a big fuss over having her listening to the pee pee come
out, told her how good it feels to let it all out and that I always make
sure I get all of the pee pee out so I don't get a tummy ache, etc etc.

I thought that this was maybe a common thing that kids do which is why I
posted on here. Unless I get some responses saying that people have had
similar experiences with their kids I will just assume that DD is a one
of a kind and will stop this behavior on her own soon (or will be
diagnosed with an infection).

Just to clarify, I realize that DD most likely will not urinate the same
volume that a grown adult will...and I know she might just have a
bladder that behaves in this way. It's just that the more I see this
behavior it is plain to me she IS stopping the pee mid-flow. It
happened when we were in a public restroom 2 days ago...in public
restrooms I hold her on the potty (so she won't fall in)...I was
squatting down on the floor in front of her and I could actually see her
stop the flow. Kind of like when you do a Kegel exercise...you can see
the muscles sort of tighten up.

We'll see what happens. Thanks for your advice...
Kathy

tiny trickle.

Maybe the reason she says that she can't go any more is that she can't. Does
she have to pee soon after she goes only half-way?

I suspect that this is the way her bladder works.

PlumLake...

Hi Jeff,

You're right, it's possible she has an infection or just has a bladder
that works this way...but I really do think she is holding part of her
her urine. I probably should clarify a couple of things:

She's still in the middle of potty training...I'm a SAHM, so I'm with
her just about every time she uses the potty. She doesn't do this
"holding back the pee" thing every single time...just now and then (once
or twice a day, tops). She'll start to go and then abruptly cut off the
flow...I know she is doing this because of the way it sounds (full flow
to nothing...no tapering off at all). I can also tell she's doing this
because I can almost physically see her concentrating to stop the flow
and then she'll look at me in sort of a teasing way and say something
like "No mama, the rest of the pee pees are sleeping". When she does
this she usually wets her pull up substantially soon after having just
used the potty (telling me she didn't go all the way).

Anne Rogers...

sounds to me like she is experiementing and learning how to control, I'd
ditch the pull up if I were you, it sounds like she can control, either hold
on to get to the loo and know when to go and wetting yourself all down your
clothes is much more unpleasant for the child, so it reinforces that it's
not a good idea. Pull ups are great for the moments when you really can't
have them have an accident, but for most children, unnecessary in the home.

I mentioned to another poster that if this keeps up for much longer I
will have her checked by a doctor...but I honestly think she's just
playing around and being the goofy kid she sometimes is.

Thanks for your help,
Kathy

DH and I are thinking this can't be good...maybe it could lead to
infection or other problems? Does anyone else have similar experience
or suggestions on how to handle this with DD? So far our attempts at
getting her to empty her bladder fully have not been working...we've
tried explaining that she has to go "all the way" or she might get a
tummy ache...I've (blush) demonstrated how I go and how good it feels to
let all of the pee pee out. We've tried a bit of bribery too, but that
hasn't really worked either.

Thanks in advance for any help.
Kathy