I think my son has Asperger's he is 6 and not yet potty trained

My son is 6 years and is not yet potty trained.  We took him to be evaluated and the doctor said he has the signs of Aspergers Syndrome.  I was just wondering if other children who has Aspergers Syndrome found it difficut to potty train.  I have two daighter 8 and 9 and I had no one ounce of trouble training them.  I feel like I am doing something wrong, I need help thanks

[Jason C Bourret, Ph.D., BCBA-D]

My first recommendation for you is to have your son formally assessed for autism-spectrum disorders by a specialist with experience doing these diagnoses. I’m not sure what “signs of Asperger’s” means but finding out if your son should officially receive a diagnosis can be a good first step.

Sometimes toilet training individuals with autism-spectrum disorders is more difficult than it is with typically developing peers. However, with the proper intervention, there is no reason at all that your son can’t be toilet trained now. In fact, while this training might be relatively intensive, it typically doesn’t take all that much time. Usually these teaching approaches involve giving the child a lot to drink in the morning, putting him in regular underwear rather than diapers, having him sit on the toilet very frequently (perhaps every 5-15 minutes) to try to catch elimination in the toilet before an accident happens, and then reinforcement of voiding in the toilet (typically with lots of praise and special treats). I highly recommend that you seek out a board certified behavior analyst in your area (www.bacb.com is a place to search) who has experience implementing toilet training programs with children like your son. This problem is definitely solvable!