How to Get a Stubborn 4 Year Old to Poop in the Potty: 15 Ignored Secrets

No mother wants to have to deal with the trouble of having to clean a non-potty trained child for long. At first, it seemed like a mere task that could be handled with some tricks and gimmicks, but I got the shock any nanny could get when my first job as a nanny while working side jobs after school in college made me have to deal with how to get a stubborn 4 year old to poop in the potty.

So, in few days, I found myself typing to get answers on the internet on how to get a stubborn toddler to poop in the potty.

And guess what? in my case, it wasn’t one stubborn kid, they were 2 Yea! Imagine the trouble of cleaning up a mess and worrying about having to clean another one in few minutes.

It could be fun with kids, but the episode spent with non-potty trained kids could be not so nice. So, I’m happy to let you know how to get a stubborn 4 year old to poop in the potty.

This article spells out 15 tips on how to get a stubborn 4 year old to poop in the potty with some additional tricks that could be applied while training your child or child under your care on how to use a potty.

Why are Toddlers Afraid to Poop on the Potty?

First things first I’d say is to get the fear off their minds. Children could be scared of anything. But when enlightened about it, they feel free and can relate to what they are dealing with. They might not be as daring as adults in some cases.

Therefore, why are toddlers afraid to poop on the potty? Fear, uncertainty, insecurity and many more could make a toddler not poop in the potty.

However, let’s use this section of how to get a stubborn 4 year old to poop in the potty to highlight children’s fears about using the potty.

As we take note of those fears, we can then go on to learning how to fix their potty problems.

• First, when you ask yourself,” why will my 4 year old not poop in the toilet? or the potty? Well, here’s a quick answer to that. Some are scared of falling into the toilet if they use it all by themselves!

• And with some research and questioning done around the neighborhood which you could also try, some mothers have asked their toddlers some questions and they got some shocking answers to that.

One child answered saying; “mum! that toilet looks like a ditch! One time I tried using it when you were not home, I thought I was going to fall inside! I’ll never try it again” Most other children had similar experiences because of their inability to hold stable while sitting on the water closet.

However, when mothers tried getting them a potty to solve this, some said, it looked like the toilet seat they sat on. Some were however so curious to know where the poo went after they emptied their bowels into it.

So in summary and highlights, the below are the fears of children who are afraid to use the potty.

1. Sitting on the wide toilet seat

2. Aiming pee directly into the toilet and not messing up the toilet walls for boys especially

3. Having to pee or poop alone in the toilet or potty by themselves

4. Fear of leakage or poop drop before they reach the toilet

5. Sharing potty when not home (they know they don’t have to share diapers if that was what they were wearing).

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4 Year Old Poops in Pants and Doesn’t Care

4 Year old poops in pants and doesn’t care! So what do you do if your child won’t poop in the potty? and would rather do it in his or her pants.

Imagine the worry of having to take a non-potty trained 4, 5, or 6 year old out with you to parties or other social gatherings? Embarrassing right?

Having had the fears of toddlers in using the potty highlighted above, now let’s see how to get a stubborn 4-year-old to poop in the potty. Made quite easy for mothers and child caregivers.

1. Sing some potty training lullabies. Children love to do almost everything with singing. It relaxes them about what they are involved in and makes it look like a play to them.

2. Show your child a demo of potty training using a doll. A demonstration could help them see it’s not quite bad to use it.

3. Read some potty training books yourself to know varying kinds of tricks. Continuous self-enlightenment is the key to learning how to keep dealing with situations.

4. Readout stories that involve kids using the potty or make them view funny cartoon characters that use the potty

5. Eliminate those diapers and let them find it nowhere! When it’s not around, it makes alternatives a no-way to them.

How Do I Get My Stubborn 4 Year Old to Poop in The Potty?

Should a 4 year old be potty trained? Yes, I’ll agree with that because even a 6 year old won’t poop in the toilet if not trained to use the potty earlier.

The potty is like a model of the toilet system to them. So if not trained earlier, they can refuse to use the toilet even at the age of 6!

So, let us answer this question on “how do I get my stubborn 4 year old to poop in the potty” with more tips on how to get a stubborn 4 year old to poop in the potty.

6. Get a fancy potty. Probably one with their favorite cartoon characters. It stimulates their interest just like getting a child to sleep by reading bedtime stories to them.

7. Make them wear loose and comfortable clothes as well as potty training underwear. You can search the internet for such potty training underwear to order. Being able to easily pull off their clothes can make the use of potty a quick option. Else, they might just prefer you wore some diapers for them.

8. Set toilet use targets for them, like in the mornings, after waking up from a nap feeling uncomfortable. Make sure they know some regular times to go use the potty or toilet at intervals.

9. You should write some instructions on the use of potty or toilet on a sticker and paste it in their room.

10. Make them play a game with puppets who got to use an improvised potty. Seeing a supposed human model or character do this can make them see reasons to do the same.

4.5 Year Old Not Potty Trained

Are you surprised that a 4 year old and a 5 year old won’t poop on the potty? Well, I’d say it’s not possible if such 5 or 4-year-old won’t potty train.

There comes training before proper usage even for adults who want to learn the use of any instrument or equipment.

So for those 4.5 year old not potty trained children, look below for more tips on how to get a stubborn 4-year-old to poop in the potty for more clues on how to handle the situation.

11. Stay with them for the first few months and years that they got to use the potty before they graduate to using the toilet

12. Work at night time. Help them use the potty before bedtime and whenever they feel uncomfortable in between sleep time. So you’ve got a lot of checking up to do at night.

13. Provide handwashing soaps and sing a rhyme to make hand washing fun after the use of the potty. It’ll make them look forward to using it again when they have to.

14. Make sure the potty is always clean. Some kids get turned off when they see a dirty potty. They could rather poop on their body.

15. Allow them to practice again and again. Essential because kids get used to using or doing something when they do it often.

15 Tricks to Get Toddler to Poop on Potty

Having had some 15 tips on how to get a stubborn 4 year old to poop in the potty highlighted above, here are some plus 15 tricks to get toddler to poop on potty.

Here are your 15 tricks on how to get a stubborn toddler to poop in the potty.

1. Get closer to them

2. Turn a favorite rhyme into a potty rhyme

3. Read funny stories

4. Decorate the potty

5. Put potty stickers on the wall

6. Get rid of those diapers!

7. Play a potty training tune while they use it.

8. For some time, read bedtime stories on potty usage

9. Don’t be pushy, make them see reasons

10. Talk to them about their fears

11. Make them gain your trust on this.

12. Promise them some cookies if they use the potty

13. Make sure they are watched while using it

14. Keep the toilet and potty clean

15. Tip them with extra lunch packages if they use the potty at school

What could put a smile on a mother’s face today? If not some of these 15 tips on how to get a stubborn 4-year-old to poop in the potty. The freedom of having to deal with cleaning up the mess here and there make mothers lightened up and cheerful knowing they could have time to deal with other stuff around the house.

So, send a tip a day to a mother/ or a child caregiver, babysitter, or nanny. Put it on your social media platforms and recommend the link to someone today!