Potty Training - San Diego,CA

Hi C.,

Is your son even ready to be potty trained? Does he show an interest in wanting to be PT? Because it will be a battle between the two of you, making it difficult.

When my son showed an interest, we had him choose his potty chair and we rewarded him with stickers that he placed on the lid of his chair. Also what really helped was this DVD called, "Potty Power" I recommend buying it or borrowing it @ your local library.

Consistency and patience are the keys to PT. Work with your son on a daily basis. There's going to be plenty of accidents with PT, but be patient. Even when you're going out, bring your potty chair with you in the car. Lots of praise and love will motivate him to go too.

Take care and good luck!

C.,

My son just turned 3 last week and about 4 days before he told me he wanted to wear big boy underwear. I had purchased him a few pairs and tried putting him in them a few hours a day. He is now potty trained. I would try underwear instead of pullups. When we first did this with my son he was having about 3 or 4 accidents a day. He was aware of what his body was doing though. After a little while in the undies he didn't really have any accidents. I think the pullups are a great idea, but my son felt like he could just go to the bathroom in them like a diaper. That's why we went to underwear. Yes, it is messy for a few days, but he'll get it.

L.

when did you start PT? familiarizing a child with what the potty is and what you do on it and all that great stuff should be started around 2 yrs (if they don't show any interest sooner). please do not force him, or you won't get the results you want. kids should be put on the potty about 20 min after a meal. praise him even if he doesn't potty. but give him "through the roof" type praise when he does potty.

my son is 21 mos & he's starting to get a lil more consistent with actually peeing in the potty. we introduced it around 14 mos.

basically, having a potty routine is the key. and praising appropriately. hope that helps.

rah

I'm happy your son is becoming cooperative. I've trained 8, and am actively training 2 (family childcare). The kids always want to do what everyone else is doing. I let them sit on the potties, get new ones from thrift stores or yard sales so there's new interest, and reward any and every attempt. Every kid responds to a different "payoff". For my daughter, if she did whatever step we were working on, we'd light a candle, sing & do a potty dance and she'd get to blow the candle out. Kids want two things, to please you and to get positive feedback. Give-em all you've got, it takes time and consistency.

I agree with using big kid pants instead of pull-ups when they're ready. Just be sure not to give too much attention to accidents. I usually lift them into the tub, take their shoes and have them remove dirty clothes. Then I come back, wash them up, wrap them in a towel, hand them clean clothes and take the dirty ones. The less I say, the better. They know what to do and don't get rewarded by spending time with me or punished by any scolding. They just need to clean up. Sometimes I'll remind them they missed out on play time because using the potty is faster.

Either put him in big boy undies (he can help pick them out), or a pair of cotton pull-up pants or sweats when you're at home. Remind him often to tell you when he needs to go potty. We usually say something like this (in an upbeat voice), "Don't go pee pee in your pants. Tell mama if you have to go potty and we'll run to the potty! Pee pee goes in the potty, not in your pants." You'll both know right away when he starts to pee and you can excitedly run to the potty together. He'll get the hang of it after having to change wet clothes several times.

You can also ask him to help you clean up the mess if he's peed on the floor. I tell DS, "Uh oh! Pee pee doesn't go on the floor. Now we have to clean it up." I give him a washcloth and have him help me mop up the pee. Then I have him toss it in the hamper. It's not a punishment--just a lesson that if you make a mess, you have to clean it up.

DS has been out of diapers completely since 17 mos (he's 21 mos).

With my son, I would make it a game. I would have him run around the house either bottomless or just with his pull-up and tell him to tell me when he has to go pee-pee. I would ask him / remind him every hour and when he had to go, we would run together and he would go on the little potty. Then, afterwards I'd give him a high five and a sticker for doing a great job. I found that especially when he didn't have a diaper on, he would be more aware when the feeling of needing to go pee was more apparent and we made it fun, not a chore. If he had his pull-up and started to make pee and realized it, we'd quickly run and do the rest in the potty.

Good luck,
G.
mom of a 5 year old and a 9 month old