Encouraging 8 year old to wipe his behind - Any suggetions?

msoulz wrote: My son seems to not wipe his behind, as evidenced by his underwear. I have talked to him many times. I don't want to humiliate him or cause too much negativity but it's really quite frustrating and gross.

Any thoughts are most helpful!

MyBrownEyedBoy replied: My brother was bad about this. And then he just left his underwear on the bathroom floor when he showered. Us three kids had to share that bathroom. My sister and I broke him of at least the leaving the underwear habit. We both put on rubber gloves (because who wants to touch your brother's dirty undies?) and Jen held his pillow and I stretched his underwear over the top of them. Man, he came unglued.

msoulz replied: LOL!!! Literally!

I'll have to run that one past the dh for approval, but I think he won't like it. Apparently he was hounded as a kid about some sort of poop issue and he doesn't want to do the same for jake. The problem with any type of reward system is he will hide any mistakes he makes. I already found a pair of underwear hidden behind a pile of stuffed animals in his room. So I don't want to belittle him and I can't reward him and I feel stuck with the underwear that no one wants to touch!!

mckayleesmom replied: Have you tried maybe buying him some of those cottonel wet wipes or baby wipes to use instead? You can try that. Also...maybe if you make him soak and scrub the poop out of his own underwear....it will get annoying to him and he will start remembering to wipe his butt because nobody wants to clean up a mess like that.





My brother use to have the same problem....One time he was making fun of me in front of all our neighborhood friends and I told them all about how he didn't wipe his butt. He tried to play it off like I was lying and continued to make fun of me.....So I went home and got a pair of his underwear and hung them on the community mailbox....... My mom wasn't too happy about that...

CantWait replied: No suggestions beside what Brianne said about cleaning his own drawers, and getting some kando etc.....

Brianne and Kelly, you two are HORRIBLE

msoulz replied: We do use wet wipes at home - I wonder if I packed them in his backpack if he would use them or if he would forget or be embarassed to get them.

I do like the idea of cleaning them himself - I should have thought of that! Thanks a bunch, I think next week he will be an enlightened boy!



Another LOL!!!

MyBrownEyedBoy replied:
Marie, you obviously didn't have my little brother. He was horrible too. LOL

polyphoniesauvage replied: My sister didn't wipe herself until she was 9. Our mother, an old softy, did it for her. She just couldn't handle the grossness of wiping herself... hahahahaha. My kids never had any problems with it, however. I haven't much advice (and this is a very old thread anyway, lol), in your situation, except general encouragement. Maybe some tough love if it goes on for too long. *Shrugs*

Good luck.

mummy2girls replied: it sounds mean but i would make him clean his own undies if he going to do that. and buy him flushable wipes

grapfruit replied: Mary,

Did making him clean his own undies work??

msoulz replied:
To be honest I didn't try that . I just gave it up but things seem better, or maybe I haven't looked closely enough. I think the black underwear I bought helped!!

grapfruit replied:


Well HOPEFULLY he's getting it. Maybe it's just a boy thing

msoulz replied: I am pretty sure it is a boy thing, or at least a kid who doesn't want to slow down to wipe thing. We shall see in a few years when Erin is that age!

Insanemomof3 replied: It must be a boy thing...Tristan NEVER ever wipes. But yet he never has ANY stains in his undies. Must just be a clean and thorough pooper? LOL

Boo&BugsMom replied: Tanner wipes, but he doesn't pay attention. His underwear is evidence of that. We do use wet wipes at home and that seems to help. When using toilet paper he is constantly leaving poop confetti on the floor. You know, when there is so much and it starts crumbling off. *arg* It's gross. Good luck. I agree about having him clean his own undies. Esp at his age, I think it's appropriate.

Hillbilly Housewife replied: Man sometimes I get a good chuckle out of reading older posts.

Has there been any new updates on the poop issues? lol

msoulz replied: Yes indeed - the most amazing and wonderful thing has happened - my husband has started doing the kids' laundry on his day off (the day I am at the office) so I don't have to see the streaks & stripes any more!! Out of sight, out of mind.

The boy swears he is doing better but I can not corroborate his claims.

And, again, the black underwear helped.

ReinaCS replied: My daughter is the same way. We have wet flushable wipes in by the toiler paper so that she can have her pick but its a hit and miss thing. I can always tell when she has not wiped as she also is bad about not flushing the toilet. Get it?

What works (for a short time anyway) is talking to her about how she can get sick if she did not wipe. Social pressure also works : "what would your friends think if they found out?", etc.

I think its mostly not wanting to take the time wipe. Good luck!!