Hi Kara:

What a great question... I couldn't find any information in the ADDitude archives about toilet training a child with ADHD or other special needs. But I did scare up a few links to other web sites that might be helpful to you or to other parents facing this challenge:

Potty Training Children with Special Needs

Potty Training Concepts

Epinions discussion on potty training

I hope this helps!

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I'm right there with you. My son is four and a half. He can go on the potty but does not do so on a regular basis. He is lacking in other self-help skills as well, such as dressing himself. I am really trying to work on this with him. It is really frustrating and sometimes I wonder if he will ever get it. He is not lacking in verbal skills but has issues with aggression as well. I wonder if I will even be able to find a preschool that will take him.

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My son turned 5 the end of July and we are still working hard at getting him to use the toilet consistently. He was diagnosed with ADHD last year and is on medication. While it helps a lot with some of the other symptoms, we still struggle with toilet training. We thought he was nearly trained at 3-3 1/2 but the progress stopped. He has been in preschool since he was two and, until last year, it didn't affect school too much because he was there less than 3 hours. Last year, however, after trying to send him in underwear, the teacher asked me to start putting him in pullups again because he was having too many accidents and they were having to take too much time away from class to change his clothes (they would take the kids to the restroom once during class). He would literally be sitting on the "reading rug" and just pee. It didn't seem to embarrass him. He wouldn't tell anyone he needed to go or even after the fact. It was frustrating and heartbreaking. We became more diligent at home - making him go every hour - in an attempt to keep him dry. He rarely pooped in his pants but that became more frequent also. If he's outside playing or at a friends house or whatever, if you don't tell him to go use the restroom, he will wet himself. I've talked to the pediatrician, we've seen a behavior therapist and we've seen a child psychiatrist (as well as researching on my own on the internet and in books). There doesn't seem to be an answer short of him "outgrowing" it. The consensus pretty much is that you shouldn't punish the child or make too big a deal out of it in general because that can prolong the problem. We too, face kindergarten next year. We put him in a 5 year old preK program this year which meets every day but only for 2 1/2 hours, hoping that one more year will make a difference (both with the ADHD and potty issues). My son is not delayed in any other area - learning or physically. He is a very bright, active child. The child psychiatrist I've taken him to recommended another child psychiatrist that he felt might be able to help us. We have an appointment next month. I am considering a pediatric urologist just to rule out anything physical. His urinalysis tests always come back ok. Also, I have to say, that his teachers this year have been wonderful. They don't allow pullups at school and are willing to go the extra mile to work with him and be sure he goes to the restroom a couple of times during class. He is proud when he comes home dry - which he has done every day for the two weeks they've been in school. Also, just as an FYI, my son has NEVER been dry at night. Even when he was much younger and appeared to be progressing in potty training - he always woke up wet in the morning. We're trying not to lose hope and to stay positive. Nobody wants their child to suffer at school and be made fun of. ADHD is a struggle and challenge all its own - to have potty training issues at this age on top of it can be devastating. Thanks for sharing.

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I found this thread from 2008 -- I am struggling with the same problem. How did your children do? How did kindergarten go? Any advice?

My son is 4, ADHD (among other things). His church preschool is about to kick us out b/c he is having toilet accidents every day.

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Hi, I posted the first thread above regarding my son not being trained by almost four. Well, we kept working with him as much as we could; although he never became regular he did start to poop more in the evening when we had him sitting on the potty as practice, although if he had to go another time he would poop in his pull up. But then, all of the sudden, when he was four and a half, one evening after dinner he paused his video, went into the bathroom, and sat down to poop! I could not believe it! After two weeks of that, we switched to underwear during the day and he had one or two accidents a year since then. I am still amazed! We kept him in pull ups at night until he asked not to wear them anymore, though at that point he had been dry during the night for a long time so this was not an issue. On the good side, once he was trained, that was it. For the most part, there is no running to bathrooms at the store because he waits until the last minute, and he seems to have a bladder of iron - he can go hours and stay dry, and at night we let him drink and he not only wakes up dry, he can be up for an hour or two before he goes! I realize we were really lucky about how this all worked out. But, I also realized that he just was not ready at 3 and a half like most kids are, but he was ready a year later. I regret the "potty weekend" at three and a half and getting so crazy when we know ADHD kids are usually a year or two behind. Luckily I can't speak to the kindergarten issue and his daycare at the time (unlike the prior one, which gave this as a reason to kick him out), was wonderful while we were going through this. I'm afraid I have no magic answers, other than don't push too hard, especially before they are a little older before the norm. Good luck!

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