2.5 Year Old Terrified of Flushing in Public Bathrooms

Completely normal. Both my big kids ages 6 & 4 still hate the loudness of the flush of public toilets. I usually cover their ears with my hands and flush with my foot or they cover their own ears. Make it a game of sorts and let him pick which foot you flush with. It will get easier with time.

This is pretty normal. Have him plug his ears while you flush the toilet. If it's the type with the flush sensor (the kind that flush by themselves), hang a piece of toilet paper over the "eye" so it doesn't accidentally flush while he is sitting/standing there. Both of my girls went through a phase where they were afraid of loud toilets, but they did eventually grow out of it!

Normal. Just work with him. Eventually he will get used to them..

He will soon realize, yes it is loud, but will not hurt you, but we still need to always flush.

common in our house at least :) i carry hand sanitizer because not only is my son afraid of the flushing, he refuses to wash his hands if (like at walmart) the automatic sinks have warm (actually really warm, almost hot) water coming out. and forget about the air dryers.

i kind of just deal with it. i do flush, and he has to deal with it. i will wait until he is out of the stall. but it is a pain, trust me, i know! but it's not something i'm willing to cater to him on. it's just noise. it doesn't hurt them. we are all afraid sometimes, and we still have to do certain things, like flush the toilet. i don't really see it as an option.

The VERY first time my newly potty trained daughter told me she had to pee in a store, i rushed to the bathroom and was so proud of her. just after she started to go, the automatic flush triggered and flushed loudly. she freaked out and jumped off and didn't want to go in public again for a while. it was probably 3-4 months before she had to poop, so she had to go at taco bell.

anyway, i read about carrying post it notes to put over the sensor. it works. she also likes me to flush after she has left the stall. you can't help others flushing while you're going either, so he'll just have to get used to that. my daughter still flinches if someone in a stall nearby flushes while she's going! she plugs her ears a lot.

Cover his ears and say here it comes! Flush with your foot.

My son had exactly the same problem. Unfortunately, for a long time he would cover one ear with one hand and try to cover the other ear with his shoulder while he quickly flushed!!

M

Been there.

For the auto flush ones, I drape toilet paper over the sensor so that it won't flush when they move. Then I open the door, have them wash their hands, then (if possible cuz no one is waiting) I go flush the toilet and if need be they put their hands over their ears after they've washed.

Normal! He'll grow out of it eventually.

We have the same problem. My son steps as far away from the toilet as he can before I flush. At 4 he now will use a public bathroom if I promise not to flush if he is close to the toilet

So common! My son went through this too!

If he's scared of the noise, block the flush (post its help, if it's automatic) til he's done and then maybe ask him to cover his ears and sing.

My 5 yo is now just starting to get over this. For the longest time he would refuse to go near a public bathroom. He learned to hold it up to 8 hours. It even affected his kindergarten placement (he had to be placed in a room with a small private bathroom that he refused to use for the first 2 months). Finally his very patient kindergarten teacher took him aside and told him that as long as he promised to pull his pants up himself, she would let him crack the door, stand outside nearby and ask if he was alright, and promise that no one would flush until he was safely outside. She also gave him rewards for doing it. Within a month he was going in the hall bathroom with the rest of the kids. He still covers his ear with one hand and stands 10 feet away, so his aim is horrible, but it is progress. Try not to flush in his presence and be patient. You can also give him small rewards for going into the public bathroom and waiting outside, and then for using it. Kind of like a re-potty training thing. I always used to get upset using a bathroom when no one flushed, now I totally get why!

Normal. My niece is five and still afraid of "dramatic potties" (took me forever to figure out that she was trying to say automatic potties).

Very common. My 5 year old makes me cover up the sensors on the auto flush ones still. She's always wanted the toilet to be flushed after she's all done and her pants are pulled up.

My guy is almost 3 and I guess the weird one then, he loves the loud flushes and laughs and laughs...sing a funny song with your son, I make them up on the spot sometimes when I need to divert attention from something, like shots at the doctor, and act as silly as you can to show him it's not a big deal to flush. He'll hopefully get to the point where he thinks it funny, too ; )

I had to click on yours because i can relate! Its just a phase. My daughter did the same thing. She was petrified, even if the person in the next stall flushed-she would jump off the toilet and not want to go. I wish i could say-"everyone quiet, and please don't flush till my daughter is done" hahaha. It will pass-hang in there and just keep reassurring him.

One thing you might consider if he has other issues with loud noises is Sensory Processing Disorder. (There are many facets to SPD, not just sensitivity to loud noises.)

My grandson was recently diagnosed with that, and he also, didn't like the loud noises in the public restrooms (fans, echoing, loud flush). He is getting better, though, as we keep introducing noises to him.

Yep, totally normal. I used to tell my son (who was trained by 2 so he was a very little, young and sensitive guy) ok here it goes, it's gonna be loud...and we would cover our ears and close our eyes.
Turning it into a silly game helps. Kind of like picking up toys, or any other unpleasant task :)