You might be wondering when is the right time to potty train? There are two criteria that will tell you if it is time. First, your son or daughter must understand when they get the urge to go, not when they went. Second, your son or daughter has to have the desire to be clean. Here are some hints on what to look for. Is your toddler hiding from you when he or she poops, or waits until their bed time? Is your toddler asking for you to change them? These are both good signs. Now if it doesn’t phase your toddler if they poop themselves while playing in front of family or strangers; then he or she is not ready. Its not always best to just start early. Its been proven that children who start too early will spend more time training then others and won’t get out of diapers any sooner. According to a study done by Medical College of Wisconsin, researcher have found that on average girls will be potty trained by 35 months, boys on average will be potty trained by 39 months. Even if they are dry during the day its normal for children not to be dry at night until the age of 7. Now there are many different styles of potty training. Some say it takes a day; you just have to pick the right one when time is right. Others will say just let your child go naked for a week or so and they will start to understand. I can tell you that those might not work for all toddlers. Every child is different so I’ll give you a few steps and answers to common questions in here . . .
Once you have noticed those two signs to start potty training the next thing you should do is pick a long weekend or holiday to start working on it with your toddler. Some children might take to it quickly, others it could take weeks or months. If they don’t start showing signs of improvement within a few days to a few weeks, then it would be best to wait and start again at a different time. You wouldn’t want your little one understanding that he or she has let you down and get discouraged. That will just make it harder for you later. Its best to start with putting your toddler in training pants and she what happens. If they make a 10-15 mistakes with no progress then it might not be time. On the other hand if they make 10-15 mistakes and they seem upset about it then your good to go. Your child is understanding what needs to happen. Here is some steps to follow.
Step one – Prepare your self
- Potty training is not a race. So don’t let others make you feel bad if your toddler is taking a bit longer. Its not a reflection of you, your parenting, or your child’s IQ. It will happen when it happens. This is just another milestone.
Step two – Watch for the signs your little one is ready
- Your child will need to be able to control the urge to go.
- It will help if he or she can remove their pants.
- They should know that by using the toilet they will stay clean
- It would help if they want to be clean
Step three – Getting ready
- As uncomfortable as it maybe, demonstrating the use of the potty helps, same sex works best.
- You should be able to talk to your child about it. If they have make a mistake then it would be best if you explained that they just peed or pooped themselves.
- Pick a open weekend or holiday. Staying home is best, you can concur the outing later.
Step four – Its time
- Put your son or daughter in training pants and explain about going to the bathroom. Make sure that they understand the goal is to keep their underpants clean.
- Take your child to the bathroom every couple of hours. My husband and I called it potty buddy and my husband would go with our son in the morning, before meals, nap times, bedtimes, and every few hours in between. My husband would even go with him to show it was time.
- If your child is on a regular schedule for pooping then set that time aside and make sure they go and try.
- If your child wants privacy then respect your toddlers wishes
- If there are to many mistakes with out understand then just start up a different day.
Step five – Starting at the wrong time
- Its ok if your child isn’t ready. Just grin and bare it. They will get it when they are ready
- If your child likes to control the situation by saying “no” at every attempt. Then you will need to pick up again later. Your little one will have mistakes just to get back at you.
- Your toddler will get this down some time soon if you saw signs they are ready. Don’t worry your self over it.
Common Questions
Q- How should I teach my son to pee? Standing or sitting?
A- It is probably best to start with sitting and work on standing later. It much easier for them to just sit and pee then to also add the hand eye coordination to the situation. Although if he thinks he is ready and is eager to be like daddy then let him go for it. You don’t want to stomp out that enthusiasm. Once it is time to start standing then you may want to add something to help him aim. Cheerios worked for my son and it breaks down in the water.
Q- Whats best a toilet seat insert or a potty chair?
A- Every child is different. So it is really your call on what works best for your family. Let me explain why. A potty chair is great if your toddler is potty training at a younger age and has smaller legs; or if your little one is just short for his or her age. The toilet seat insert might just be to tall or hard for your toddler to get up for themselves. If that is the case it will dampen the speed of their potty training since they will always need your help to get them up or down. They aren’t really doing it for themselves. So a smaller potty chair will give them the freedom to learn at his or her pace. Now if your toddler can reach the toilet seat insert even on a step stool then its probably best to get them started on there. There is less mess that way and it will be an easrier transition. They will probably be happier knowing that they are now like mommy and daddy.
Q- My child is afraid of pooping on the potty. What am I doing wrong?
A- Some children have very active amaginations. They might not understand that they wont get flushed down the potty like the poop does. Other children might just not understand why they are lossing a part of themselves. They cant comperhend that it was never apart of them and they are still whole. Either way this is what you will need to do to get through this problem. For the first few days tell your child its ok to poop in their diaper but that they have to be in the bathroom to do it. A few days later tell your child that he or she need to poop on the potty with their diaper on. A few days later, cut a hole in the diaper and let the poop fall through the daiper and into the potty. A few days later, take the diaper away and put your little one in underwear.
Q- My child was fully trained and now is having mistakes again, why?
A- This could be do to stress; whether it be at home, school or where ever. You might want to pay close attention to if their is has been any added stress or major changes. This could be anything from a new daycare, moving, divorce, a death, a new sibling, etc. This could take a few weeks to correct itself. If there is nothing that you can see that has changed, and no new added stress then you will want to go talk to a doctor. It could be a medical problem; anything from a bladder infection, diabetes, or constipation.
Q- My toddler is fully potty trained at daycare but at home he/she accidents.
A- If your toddler is trained at daycare, school, grandmas, or anywhere else then he or she is fully capable to be trained at home. You child is having these mistakes for the attention. Whether it is good or bad. You need to relay down the groundwork again, go over what is expected and what the consequences are. Keep them in underwear and keep the clean underwear in reach. Make sure you are still reminding them to go every few hours. Then if they still have a mistake you leave them to their responsibility. You can still help them clean up a bit but for the most part let them take charge and keep low key. They will soon get the hint that this is not the kind of attention they want. Keep a reward system in place so they have a chance at the right kind of attention.
