I've been asked multiple times about potty training. Some parents will take months and months to complete this process or to have minimal success. Parents: Don't make your job so difficult. Follow these easy steps for success in two weeks. Be consistent, attentive and ready to forgive.
Is This Good Timing?
First and foremost, decide if the time is right....
If there is other stress going on in the home, WAIT.
If you can't dedicate two weeks of constant training, WAIT.
If you can't do laundry for some reason, WAIT.
If your child is sick with an illness, WAIT.
If you are sick with an illness, WAIT.
Is Child Ready?
Is your child expressing interest in the toilet?
Is your child able to tell you when she/he has filled a diaper?
Can your child use enough words to express himself?
Have you talked about using the potty with him/her?
Materials
A child size potty or potty seat that can be placed directly onto adult toilet.
Child step stool
Towels
Thick underpants (Training underwear)
Regular underwear with fun colors (let child pick out first package)
Little treat for reward (we always used smarties)
AVOID GIMMICKS
DON'T BUY PULLUPS. They only impede the process. The ultimate key for a child is to understand that urinating in pants is uncomfortable. Pull ups don't allow for the kids to feel the wetness thus impeding the process. If you feel you must use pull ups, this process will take months longer, and trust me, your frustration, and the child's frustration will grow.
Prior to Training
A few weeks before actually beginning potty training you should casually talk with your child about the upcoming training. Every time you change his/her diaper talk about how soon they will be a big kid learning to use the potty, and how fun it will all be. A few times a day bring the child into the bathroom and show them the potty, show them the fun potty chair they'll use, or the special insert potty seat that will go on the adult toilet. Explain that pretty soon, no more diapers. Flood the days with talk about becoming a big kid. (There are even children's books that you can read to him/her). If possible include Dad, and ask him to reinforce how exciting it will all be for the child. If there are older children in the home, include them too, everyone can share in the upcoming excitement of becoming a big kid! Go to the store, allow them to pick their new big kid underwear, but tell them, it's when they have learned how to go potty. Show them the thick underpants and tell them, 'These are first, then the fun ones.'
Pretty soon, the child, after hearing so much about the potty will ask you, "When can I try?" or will say "I want to do it!" When there is so much excitement surrounding the training, the child will want to do it even the more!
Remember that timing is key. If you can detect reasons why this particular time isn't quite right to start training, put it off a few days, maybe a week. Get yourself ready and the house ready to be on alert.
Ready to Begin
When you have determined that the house, the child and you, yourself, are ready to begin, then start bright and early in the morning. Get him/her up and explain today, you become a big kid, and big kids don't wear diapers anymore. Then, take the child with you and let the child see exactly what you are doing. Gather all the diapers in the house, put them all in a big bag telling the child, 'We are giving these to babies now who need them. Now you are going to be a big kid. You don't need these anymore.'
Take that big bag and put in the garage or trunk of the car, out of sight is key here, for the child, but also for you. There is NO TURNING BACK. There is always the temptation that if things get frustrating, which it will, to go back to using diapers. DON'T DO IT. (Unless, you gave a full two weeks of serious effort and the child simply hasn't developed the muscle strength yet....then back to diapers, and try again in a few months.)
Put the child in his/her thick underpants, and have a few sweatpants ready for when accidents happen. Give them a few minutes to walk around the house. Then, put them on the potty. Let them sit there for several minutes asking them if they can let anything out. They may want to get down quickly, but try and have them sit there until some success. If nothing happens, tell them, 'Good try. We'll try again later.'
Then the marathon begins. Forget whatever you might want to accomplish that day. It won't get done anyway. Keep the child drinking water often throughout the day, even giving them crackers or pretzels to make them thirsty. The more fluid they get in, the more that will come out! Put them on the potty often through out the day. How often?....I would say at the very least, every hour.
With every success, even a tiny amount of urination is success....reward with a small treat. Remember you will have many small successes through the day, and you don't want the child loaded on huge treats. We always used a smartie for success with urination. A peanut M&M for success with poopies. (What kind of treat doesn't matter too much, it could be a sticker, a stamp, or other small treat. However, I do recommend a slightly bigger treat with success with poopies.)
You will have to help them wipe when success happens. Every time you wipe for them, explain what you are doing, and how you are doing it. Remember especially for girls, wipe front to back always...and teach them this too. It will take a while before the child can wipe for themselves, but talking them through it helps them quicker. Of course, always teach to wash hands after success as well.
Between potty visits, be asking them, frequently if they need to use the potty. 'Want to go potty? Do you want to try for a treat? Do you have to go potty?' You are teaching them to be conscious of the full bladder feeling. They may say 'no', but if enough time has gone by, tell them, 'Let's try anyway.' They may say 'yes', then move on it, and quick. Some kids seem to understand the full bladder feeling quicker than others.
With every success exaggerate your happiness. Clap your hands, sing a song, jump up and down, something that lets your child know he did it, and you are SO PLEASED!
Between potty visits, you will most likely have a few accidents. Have your towels spread over the couches or anything that you don't want urinated on, that the child might sit on. Also, pay close attention when they disappear for a few minutes, or make a face like they are going to push something out. Act fast, put them on the potty right away, even if they poopied in the pants. Cleaning up the mess, dump the poopies into the potty and show them right away that the poopies go in the toilet, not the pants. Tell the child, 'Honey, tell Mom when you need to go poopies. We'll put them in there.'
Be Consistent
Be consistent and available for the first few days. You'll be doing laundry, children often wet the bed at night. This will improve if you stay consistent. Every time, and I mean every time there is an accident, put them on the potty tell them to try and let something out, that pee and poopies go in there.
No Need for Anger
It can get frustrating. However, remember that you prepared yourself. You knew this might take two weeks to master. Give yourself a full two weeks of dedication before allowing any frustration. The child wants to make you happy and earn rewards. They are just trying to understand how to achieve that.
Success
Within a few days you will see dramatic results. You need to keep up asking them if they need to go potty, and pretty soon they'll tell you on their own. In two weeks time, you will see success after success with less and less accidents.
One Last Note
Ages vary on when to start potty training. We always used the month before their 3rd birthday to start talking about it. The day after they turned 3, we would start the process.....with varying success depending on the child. It seemed that when we associated a big day, like a birthday with becoming a big kid, it made all the more sense to the child, that they are not a baby anymore.
Good Luck!
Is This Good Timing?
First and foremost, decide if the time is right....
If there is other stress going on in the home, WAIT.
If you can't dedicate two weeks of constant training, WAIT.
If you can't do laundry for some reason, WAIT.
If your child is sick with an illness, WAIT.
If you are sick with an illness, WAIT.
Is Child Ready?
Is your child expressing interest in the toilet?
Is your child able to tell you when she/he has filled a diaper?
Can your child use enough words to express himself?
Have you talked about using the potty with him/her?
Materials
A child size potty or potty seat that can be placed directly onto adult toilet.
Child step stool
Towels
Thick underpants (Training underwear)
Regular underwear with fun colors (let child pick out first package)
Little treat for reward (we always used smarties)
AVOID GIMMICKS
DON'T BUY PULLUPS. They only impede the process. The ultimate key for a child is to understand that urinating in pants is uncomfortable. Pull ups don't allow for the kids to feel the wetness thus impeding the process. If you feel you must use pull ups, this process will take months longer, and trust me, your frustration, and the child's frustration will grow.
Prior to Training
A few weeks before actually beginning potty training you should casually talk with your child about the upcoming training. Every time you change his/her diaper talk about how soon they will be a big kid learning to use the potty, and how fun it will all be. A few times a day bring the child into the bathroom and show them the potty, show them the fun potty chair they'll use, or the special insert potty seat that will go on the adult toilet. Explain that pretty soon, no more diapers. Flood the days with talk about becoming a big kid. (There are even children's books that you can read to him/her). If possible include Dad, and ask him to reinforce how exciting it will all be for the child. If there are older children in the home, include them too, everyone can share in the upcoming excitement of becoming a big kid! Go to the store, allow them to pick their new big kid underwear, but tell them, it's when they have learned how to go potty. Show them the thick underpants and tell them, 'These are first, then the fun ones.'
Pretty soon, the child, after hearing so much about the potty will ask you, "When can I try?" or will say "I want to do it!" When there is so much excitement surrounding the training, the child will want to do it even the more!
Remember that timing is key. If you can detect reasons why this particular time isn't quite right to start training, put it off a few days, maybe a week. Get yourself ready and the house ready to be on alert.
Ready to Begin
When you have determined that the house, the child and you, yourself, are ready to begin, then start bright and early in the morning. Get him/her up and explain today, you become a big kid, and big kids don't wear diapers anymore. Then, take the child with you and let the child see exactly what you are doing. Gather all the diapers in the house, put them all in a big bag telling the child, 'We are giving these to babies now who need them. Now you are going to be a big kid. You don't need these anymore.'
Take that big bag and put in the garage or trunk of the car, out of sight is key here, for the child, but also for you. There is NO TURNING BACK. There is always the temptation that if things get frustrating, which it will, to go back to using diapers. DON'T DO IT. (Unless, you gave a full two weeks of serious effort and the child simply hasn't developed the muscle strength yet....then back to diapers, and try again in a few months.)
Put the child in his/her thick underpants, and have a few sweatpants ready for when accidents happen. Give them a few minutes to walk around the house. Then, put them on the potty. Let them sit there for several minutes asking them if they can let anything out. They may want to get down quickly, but try and have them sit there until some success. If nothing happens, tell them, 'Good try. We'll try again later.'
Then the marathon begins. Forget whatever you might want to accomplish that day. It won't get done anyway. Keep the child drinking water often throughout the day, even giving them crackers or pretzels to make them thirsty. The more fluid they get in, the more that will come out! Put them on the potty often through out the day. How often?....I would say at the very least, every hour.
With every success, even a tiny amount of urination is success....reward with a small treat. Remember you will have many small successes through the day, and you don't want the child loaded on huge treats. We always used a smartie for success with urination. A peanut M&M for success with poopies. (What kind of treat doesn't matter too much, it could be a sticker, a stamp, or other small treat. However, I do recommend a slightly bigger treat with success with poopies.)
You will have to help them wipe when success happens. Every time you wipe for them, explain what you are doing, and how you are doing it. Remember especially for girls, wipe front to back always...and teach them this too. It will take a while before the child can wipe for themselves, but talking them through it helps them quicker. Of course, always teach to wash hands after success as well.
Between potty visits, be asking them, frequently if they need to use the potty. 'Want to go potty? Do you want to try for a treat? Do you have to go potty?' You are teaching them to be conscious of the full bladder feeling. They may say 'no', but if enough time has gone by, tell them, 'Let's try anyway.' They may say 'yes', then move on it, and quick. Some kids seem to understand the full bladder feeling quicker than others.
With every success exaggerate your happiness. Clap your hands, sing a song, jump up and down, something that lets your child know he did it, and you are SO PLEASED!
Between potty visits, you will most likely have a few accidents. Have your towels spread over the couches or anything that you don't want urinated on, that the child might sit on. Also, pay close attention when they disappear for a few minutes, or make a face like they are going to push something out. Act fast, put them on the potty right away, even if they poopied in the pants. Cleaning up the mess, dump the poopies into the potty and show them right away that the poopies go in the toilet, not the pants. Tell the child, 'Honey, tell Mom when you need to go poopies. We'll put them in there.'
Be Consistent
Be consistent and available for the first few days. You'll be doing laundry, children often wet the bed at night. This will improve if you stay consistent. Every time, and I mean every time there is an accident, put them on the potty tell them to try and let something out, that pee and poopies go in there.
No Need for Anger
It can get frustrating. However, remember that you prepared yourself. You knew this might take two weeks to master. Give yourself a full two weeks of dedication before allowing any frustration. The child wants to make you happy and earn rewards. They are just trying to understand how to achieve that.
Success
Within a few days you will see dramatic results. You need to keep up asking them if they need to go potty, and pretty soon they'll tell you on their own. In two weeks time, you will see success after success with less and less accidents.
One Last Note
Ages vary on when to start potty training. We always used the month before their 3rd birthday to start talking about it. The day after they turned 3, we would start the process.....with varying success depending on the child. It seemed that when we associated a big day, like a birthday with becoming a big kid, it made all the more sense to the child, that they are not a baby anymore.
Good Luck!
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