I'm at witz end with my two year old and his nasty diaper habit!!! Here's my issue...
My two year old (turned two last December) has this fascination with sticking his hands in the back of his diaper. This all started about three months or so ago when he had a constipation problem. His bottom would bother him or itch and he would stick his hand back there thinking he could scatch it or something. We tested him for strep (I learned that you can get strep in you anus and that was negative). Since then we have fixed the constipation issue but now he still stick his hands back there. It's especially gross when he has a bowel movement and gets poop all over his finger. He's not fascinated with playing with it or wiping it anywhere, he just wants to scratch his butt... My first thought is to potty train him but I don't think he's ready...I have a three year old who's potty trained and everyone told me not to try to train him too early b/c they won't get it and it just becomes frustrating. I don't know what to do...all i know is that I'm sick of pulling his hand out of his diaper and hoping he hasn't pooped. I've tried redirecting him, telling him no, smacking his hand, explaining it's a gross habit...I don't know what else to do...should I just try potty training and see what happens? Has anyone else ever had this problem with the toddler before?
I am no real possible answer for you except maybe it has become a habit now...he won't be in diapers much longer so either bit the bullet and start training OR start buying one piece rompers so he can't get his hands in there. Good luck.
Put him in pants that snap at the bottom or otherwise make it impossible for him to access his diaper. Also, you should be at the very least introducing him to the potty by this age. I recommend the book Diaper-Free Before 3: The Healthier Way to Toilet Train and Help Your Child Out of Diapers Sooner by Jill Lekovic, M.D.
Yes, we had the problem as well. It was so disgusting and unsanitary. I put my daughter in "poop" pajamas. The kind that zip up so there wasn't any access to the diaper. This was summer so I had to cut the legs and arms off.
My daughter does this too, she started around 18 mo. and she's 20 mos. now. I have found that putting her in a onesie helps immensely, especially when it's nap time. When she's awake we reinforce that putting your hands in your pants is "yucky"! Hope that helps a little, I am not sure about the potty training thing. We aren't ready for that yet.
My son had issues with putting his hands in front rather then the back, but I put onesies on him as well for about a month and he stopped doing it. I also would remind him that he could touch in the bathtub but not out in public-has worked so far!
EVERY toddler does this and most of us put a shirt that snaps in the crotch and then put on overalls. It's a thing they all go through and just in case it's something "itchy" then just make sure he is very clean and dry before putting on the diaper. Just make in non-accessible.
No, I haven't had that particular issue but the first thing that can to mind was to wear shirts with snaps on them so he can't get right into his diaper...those snappy/onesie kinds of shirts all-of-a-sudden become a pain once they start using the potty so use them now! Good luck!
Hey may have started out by itching his bum, but when he saw it got attention from you, he may have decided it's worth a habit to keep! If every time he does it, he gets your attention (good or bad), he knows that he will keep you engaged.
I second Denise's suggestion to use a onsie. Put footed pajamas on him or overalls or anything that will make it hard to reach.
If you haven't, I would make an appt with the ped just incase he has some kind of virus, worms, etc that are not visible to the naked eye that is causing him to keep wanting to put his hands back there.
When he does it, redirect his attention "See if you can give me five" or any other thing BEFORE he gets his hands down there. If he does and gets dirty, don't say anything but instead take him to the bathroom to wash his hands. Wash, dry then leave the bathroom, not really talking about it or making a big deal about it.
Have him checked for pinworms.
