Sue's tips for effective potty training
When should I start trying to potty train my child?
Most children begin to express an interest in moving out of diapers in their
2nd year.
At one point baby notices that they are the only ones wearing
diapers. They also now find it uncomfortable sitting in their
own poop until someone finds the time to change them. At this
point BABY is ready for potty training.
But are YOU ?????
It's a time of change for both of you, but imagine:
- Going out the door WITHOUT a diaper bag !!!
- No diapers, wipes and cream at the grocery checkout !!!
- No bottle at night !!!
- Not having to take special care with your garbage!
- Solid food !!!
Yes... all this can be yours....
If you spend the 3 or 4 days to start the process with your children.
This is all it takes; a few days of the proper routine to move to the
next phase.
If you let the child “work it out themselves” you are setting
yourself up for another year or two of training pants and
unhappy interactions with daycare providers.
It is ridiculous to expect a daycare provider to potty train your child.
This is something that really has to be done by the parents since it
involves:
- Emptying a bedpan repeatedly
- Keeping a smile on your face
- Saying phrases with gusto like “Good Job !! Nice Poop !!!” (Yes, you
will hear yourself utter phrases like this…)
- Washing your hands 10 times a day
- Cleaning the bathroom repeatedly
A big change in baby's routine will be no bottle at night
It’s unreasonable to expect a 2 year old with a bladder the size of an
orange to sleep through the night if they drink a bottle before bed.
If you make sure they fill themselves up with solids before bed, then
take a bath and put them to bed with only a few ounces of water in a cup;
the first few nights it will be rough (since they are accustomed to having a
bottle every night since day 1...) but after a few nights they will get into
the new routine.
The children themselves will understand the two are related since they
desperately don't want to soil the bed (once again, no fun sleeping in a wet
bed). At that point they will eventually wean themselves off the bottle.
Step by step
Don’t
expect to graduate to the full-sized toilet immediately, start with a
training potty for the first few weeks. It’s annoying and messy, but the
children are afraid of using the “big pottie” right away, they think they
are going to fall in or get flushed away and they want you to be nearby
until they get comfortable.
Soon THEY will be the ones asking YOU to put them up on the big one; just
smile and say “sure”; since you know you are more than way there.
Bearing down
One reason its good to start with the potty on the ground is
that the child is able to place both feet firmly on the ground
when doing their business.
The
benefits of this cannot be overstated - when trying to push you need some
resistance to make it happen. Once you move to the full-sized toilet
remember to provide a stool or block so they have the same ability to push.
Try it yourself; sit on the toilet and put your legs 3 inches off the floor
and try and do your business. You will see what we mean…
Cotton Training Pants
Save yourself a bundle by moving from diapers to cotton training
pants. They are not easy to find (since there is alot of money
to be made in keeping your children in disposable diapers...)
and are nothing special, just padded cotton underpants.
Machine
washable, baby will prefer these training pants; they are much closer to
REAL underwear. While not a big deal for you or me, they are DEFINITELY not
diapers, the kids know the difference and this is a big deal for them.
We find "pull-up" style diapers convenient and handy for situations like
long trips in the car but are expensive and delay the "moment of reckoning";
when you have to "hold it" until you can get to a toilet. Not an easy skill
to learn, but one we have all mastered.
KIDS THINK POO IS FUNNY
Don’t be grossed out by your child’s interest in their own
excrement. The human body is amazing, try remembering what it
was like to discover yours all those years ago.
It
may seem weird to give your child “high fives” after an especially big
movement; but remember; it’s a big day for them and they are VERY proud of
themselves. Agreeing that yes; that one really IS a monster; is not gross,
it’s what you are supposed to do to encourage them. For a toddler this is
normal and OK.
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