About an hour ago, while I was eating my breakfast, Charlie came to me and said "Sit on potty!" He asks to sit on the potty from time to time, but has never been...productive. If you know what I mean. So I said, "Ok, you can sit on the potty as soon as Mommy finishes her breakfast." About 3 minutes later he came to be again and said "Uh-oh! Poopy! Change bummy!" Sure enough...he needed to be changed.
I found this whole exchange simultaneously thrilling and terrifying. On one hand, to have a child who is not only interested in, but showing initiative to use the potty...this is life changing for me! On the other hand, the prospect of potty training fills me with dread and anxiety. Most likely a result of trying (unsuccessfully) to potty train Aubrey for the last 3 years. I can't even begin to express how emotionally taxing it has been for us.
Also, I wonder...is Charlie too young for this? He just barely turned two about a month ago. Is that young? It just seems really young. Is it just me?
But, he has been telling me when he has a dirty diaper for months now. I mean these are signs of readiness, right?
So this is where I ask for help. What can I do to reduce my anxiety about it? How seriously should I take his signs of readiness? Should I go for it, or wait? If I decide to go for it, what method has worked best for you? Going all in, or taking a gradual child-led approach?
I'm just scared of messing things up.
So, if you decided to give me a little pep talk...that would be great. Thanks in advance!
5 comments:
It does seem a little young to me but if he is acting ready then I would go for it. When I potty train I just go all in. What worked best for Sarah was to have Aaron take the boys out all day on a Saturday and we stayed home and did potty stuff all day. We had a potty timer set for 30 minutes and sat on the potty whenever it went off. Also if she had an accident I would say, "Uh oh! We don't potty here on the floor we go pee pee on the potty," and then carry her to the potty and sit her on it. Repeat about 5 times with each accident. M&Ms are also great for when she did use the potty as a reward. Good luck! You can do it! Also if you try for a couple days and it's just miserable and totally not working, don't feel bad to put the diapers back on and try again in a few months. I had to do that with my boys.
Some of my kids waited until 2.5, but the others started just after their 2nd birthday. What worked best for me was to keep them naked from the waist down for about a week. The first couple of days I do everything possible to keep them on the toilet as long as possible so that when they inevitably go we can make a huge deal about it--it seems to really help them to figure out what it feels like when they need to go.
And like Amanda said, don't be afraid to go back to diapers. I honestly don't think any of my kids made it without at least a couple of days back in diapers--it gave all of us a much-needed break and they had WAY better control when we started again (we did diapers anywhere from 2-5 days).
Last but not least (and this is probably a no-brainer) but some kids can do night-training right away and some take years. Just so you know either is normal. My first was night-trained after a week, a couple of others wore diapers for a few years. Right now my two-year-old doesn't wear a diaper during naps but definitely needs one at night.
As a parent of a very stubborn girl, who took forever to potty train, I say follow his cues. If he asks to go potty, take him. Evie flat out refused to use the potty, so we kept a potty seat in the tv room. It wasn't hugely successful, nor was candy rewards or soggy pants. We had the best success when she told me she needed to go. Each kid is so different, just try what feels right to you and don't force or hurry him. I honestly don't believe that any child is 100% potty trained after a day, or even a week. It takes a while, so like Rachael said, don't be afraid to whip out the diapers. You can do it! :)
What an exciting time! I worry a lot about messing this one up, too. I have found that there is a big difference between my kids being able to vocalize what is happening in their diaper and their actually caring about it. I think the ability to pull their own clothes on and off as well as getting on and off the potty are also great indicators of readiness. I tend to lean toward the waiting side, just to be sure that they are ready and so am I, then we commit fully to it- the potty charts, rewards, books, songs, undies, carrying a potty seat everywhere we go, exploring every public toilet in the city... It's so fun! It seems you'll be doing it for months and months and then one day, you realize you're done. Good luck!
Grrrr. I just wrote a really long comment on my phone and it didn't post! Here is what I say-If he is interested, go for it. Give it a couple of days, put him in underwear or let him run around naked until he catches on. If he ends up not liking it and asks for his diaper back, give it to him and don't stress about it. I am a total let the child lead parent when it comes to potty training as I have tried to lead before and ended up completely frustrated and it failed. I try to take the "It's not a big deal and will happen when they are ready" approach. That makes me feel less stressed. Oh and I completely ignore what the "books" say is "normal".
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