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Looking for some advice from other mothers out there please.... I am thinking of potty training our little girl, shes 18 months, was wondering what views/advice anybody may have.... Have read loads on the internet and stuff already so i thought id try here too!!
ShelleyCowie
11-Jan-10, 22:40
Im coming to this soon enough too, dreading it with athrun to be honest.
But my mum said that you constantly have to ask if they need to go to the toilet, and that they will say yes and do nothing at all. But even if you think they wont do the toilet...take them because you can never be sure. :confused I think thats right lol.
I think its just alot of patience needed. And iv heard girls are easier than boys too.
shamrock2007
11-Jan-10, 22:48
Plan a week when you have nothing on & can stay around the house. I took potty in each room we were in for first couple of days & started with just pants, then added trousers etc as we went on & moved potty to bathroom. My two were dry night and day in under a week but were over 2yrs. Good luck. Wee rewards help aswell.
Looking for some advice from other mothers out there
MODS!!!! MODS!!!! Where are the Mods?
This is outrageous, blatant, repressive, man hating sexism.
We have rights y'know.
I'm going to chain myself to the courts of human rights in protest.
MODS!!!! MODS!!!! Where are the Mods?
This is outrageous, blatant, repressive, man hating sexism.
We have rights y'know.
I'm going to chain myself to the courts of human rights in protest.
Sorry Phill and all the other Dads out there, aplologies till ye all.. x Any advice from mothers or DADS please!!
Looking for some advice from other mothers out there please.... I am thinking of potty training our little girl, shes 18 months, was wondering what views/advice anybody may have.... Have read loads on the internet and stuff already so i thought id try here too!!
Ok i'm a first time expecting mum but i have worked in the toddler room at work for the last 6 months and alot of that was spent taking the kids who wee toilet training to the toilet and ecouraging the ones who were almost ready to try so here goes!
Does she know when she needs a pee? Can she tell you before she does it? If she can and does tell you then she is ready but if she is clueless you're wasting your time and you'll just put her off it. If she can't tell you when she is going to do a pee then you're better of waiting for another month or two. You need to do whats right for her and that may mean waiting just a bit longer. Its not uncommon for children to not potty train untill they are almost three. There is something you can do to promote the potty/toilet if she's not quite ready yet though. At every nappy change when she is wet change her standing up and put her on the potty/toilet for a minute or two and if she does a wee pee then praise her. That means if she isn't ready just now she soon will be if you encourage her to use the potty even if she just sits on it. If she won't sit on the potty or the toilet put one of her teddies on it and tell her that teddy needs to do a pee. This worked with a child who would refuse to sit on the potty. She had a faviourite teddy she takes everywhere with her so to get round the potty/toilet issue i put her teddy on the potty and told her that teddy needed a pee and praised the teddy for the imaginary pee lol. Sounds mad but it made her think "oh well i could give it a go..."
Oh now you want our advice!
As mentioned, try it when you have time and are at home. Take them to the toilet regularly and try and get them to do a wee.
Loads of rewards and making a big fuss when the do a wee etc. on the toilet, make a little chart and let them put a sticker on each time the do. Once they have 5 or 10 stickers they can have a treat like a day off from cleaning chimbleys or something.
Ahem...if I might also add my humble opinion on this subject I would say that the secret is to not make a big deal out of it too soon. Personally, I would venture that 18 months is a bit early to think of it. Once they are a bit older they tend to tell you themselves when they want the potty and it comes to them all naturally in time. After all, have you ever seen a kid in nappies starting school?!?:D
For what it's worth, I'd advise waiting until the warmer summer months when you can just ditch the clothes altogether for a morning or an afternoon each day and have a potty sitting out for your "big girl" to use when she needs.
Without underwear, trousers or tights, she stands a much better chance of running to the potty and sitting on it in a timely fashion and she will feel great about it when she manages that. It's even better if she can be playing in the garden where it really doesn't matter if she doesn't make it in time. The most important thing is for you to stay relaxed & happy, and let's face it, constantly having to clean carpets is no fun at all!
And I agree that 18 months is a good age to start, but 3 years is a realistic age to expect a girl-toddler to manage all day without a nappy or an accident. Sorry, Phill, but little boys do often just take a little longer to potty train and that's a fact - but they make up for it later on in SO many ways! ;)
Good luck and remember to keep smiling! :)
Every child is different. Boys (I found when working in child care) are later at potty training than girls. It's easy when they are ready.
Keep asking the child when you change their nappy if they need the toilet. Try and get them on the potty or the toilet and lots of praise if they do something.
If they don't use the potty try a loo seat insert (now available in Lidl,lol). Some kids prefer going straight on the big toilet and, like my child did, refuse to use a potty.
Good luck!
purplelady
11-Jan-10, 23:56
For what it's worth, I'd advise waiting until the warmer summer months when you can just ditch the clothes altogether for a morning or an afternoon each day and have a potty sitting out for your "big girl" to use when she needs.
Without underwear, trousers or tights, she stands a much better chance of running to the potty and sitting on it in a timely fashion and she will feel great about it when she manages that. It's even better if she can be playing in the garden where it really doesn't matter if she doesn't make it in time. The most important thing is for you to stay relaxed & happy, and let's face it, constantly having to clean carpets is no fun at all!
And I agree that 18 months is a good age to start, but 3 years is a realistic age to expect a girl-toddler to manage all day without a nappy or an accident. Sorry, Phill, but little boys do often just take a little longer to potty train and that's a fact - but they make up for it later on in SO many ways! ;)
Good luck and remember to keep smiling! :)
I have all three of mine dry just after two and agree think best to take you time 18 months may be abit early summer time is good let mine run around with no pants and they soon learnt to use the potty and lots of fuss when they do works a treat they also like to think they are wearing big kid pants lol x
wickscorrie
12-Jan-10, 00:59
all of mine were potty trained at 2 within a week, have a week at home, girls usually before boys, boys sometime takes longer to able to potty train. have read that they are ready for potty training when they can manage stairs one foot at a time ie one foot one stair, if you go to the toilet take you little one with you, and encourage them to go potty to.
like with young animals as well after food after drinks, every half hour, even every time they move. they soon get fed up with you asking and get the message to go when they need
good luck
in a years time you ll wonder what it was all about!
agree straight to the big toilet with a set of steps and an insert
Ahem...if I might also add my humble opinion on this subject I would say that the secret is to not make a big deal out of it too soon. Personally, I would venture that 18 months is a bit early to think of it. Once they are a bit older they tend to tell you themselves when they want the potty and it comes to them all naturally in time. After all, have you ever seen a kid in nappies starting school?!?:D
It seems they do!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/primaryeducation/5956231/Pupils-start-school-still-in-nappies.html
over-the-ord
12-Jan-10, 08:45
with my 4 i found it best waiting until they are ready, it comes alot easier to them, ,my daughters were between 2 and 2 1/2 and my son was the 2yr 8months, from around the 18months i encouraged them to sit on the potty, before bath time i used to let them run around for a while naked and try sitting on the potty, and when they did anything, i would praise them like they have never had before and they soon learn peeing in the potty is a good thing, and never force them on the potty!
with one of my daughters i was waiting until i came back from a holiday abroad so we didn't have to worry about finding toilets quickly, but half way through the fortnight she decided that she was a big girl and didn't need her nappies and refused to wear them! she was 2 1/2 and never looked back from that day, dry day and night
good luck when it comes :D
Well my little girl has just turned 2 and for ages at night time i had been putting her on the potty before her bath and at times i thought she needed a pee so she would do something but it was more of a fluke so she just got to know what it was for. And to start with we were just in the house with just pants on but she has got the hang of it no bother and has even been dry at night and in the morning i fined her in bed with pj bottoms and nappy of wanting the toilet! She still has the odd accident if she is distracted but hey its going well, think you have to be relaxed about it all because there will be lots of accidents yet im sure!
Good Luck
igglepiggle
12-Jan-10, 10:12
I have 2 boys and they were both completely different, my oldest i done when he was 19 months, as it was summer time and was running around in pants, he was potty trained in the day time within a week and at nights within 2 weeks. My other son was just over 2 when he was potty trainined i tried him when he was younger but wasnt't ready, he screamed, he hated the potty and went straight to the toilet. I agree with the summer months, it is a lot less washing!!! and a chart, we also had a jar off treats that he got once he went to the toilet. Once he got his sticker, he got a malteaser, or a chocolate button etc, they soon forget about the treats once it becomes part off their daily routine.
I managed to potty train my little boy in a week or two. Its hard work! He was nearer 2 and we did wait till the summer. I had been given a Gina Ford book 'Potty training in 1 week' and read it through and used it as a reference.It had good advice on how to know when your child is ready to start potty training. It did work and the one piece of advice I was given that I found most helpful was not to use any 'pull up training nappies' go straight to normal pants.
Good Luck!
Eighteen months is early to be worrying about it,I would wait until the weather is a bit warmer and then try-unless she is showing signs of wanting to use it? I would avoid trainer pants as they can confuse the child as they still feel like a nappy.Apart from that its trial and error and see what works best for you,I was very lucky with my first-he was out of nappies at 17 months,but he was always a quick learner and he just decided he didnt like the feel of a nappy on his bottom x
Scarybiscuits03
12-Jan-10, 12:57
My advice is to skip the potty and go straight to the toilet, I found it makes them feel more grown up as they are doing the same as mummy/daddy.
I've never understood why train them to pee in a plastic container first - especially when its not something I would consider doing myself!
My daughter was toilet trained and dry at night by 1.5 years.
Probably going to say the same as the sensible people here. Don't get into a blue funk over it. 18 months is a little early. Wait until it is warm and sunny ( well it might get warm and sunny) and your little one can run around without pants on . Praise her for being a good girl and dont' get up tight when she forgets. Easy!
Its not too early to get the groundwork in before starting potty training proper later!
Try letting her sit on the potty at nappy change times and at bathtime to get her used to sitting on it and praise her for just sitting on it if you get a pee even more praise!
Then as she knows she needs to pee and asks to go pop her on the potty!
Then when she is ready move to pants....and accidents and finally dry pants, its a gradual proccess, with trial and error.... its not a good idea to try pants in this weather as you only have 5 secs notice in the beginning and all the winter gear to take off takes way longer than that!
Iona is starting to show signs she is wanting to be potty trained but Im not ready! I have a new baby (2 weeks old) and know I would never manage to get her to the potty in time if Im feeding so we are sticking to just trying the potty at bath and nappy change time at the moment. You both need a few weeks of concentrating on nothing else (and plenty of spare knickers for her)!
im at the same stage,but my girl is 2.5yrs!she will go for hours with no pee,but doesnt seem to know when she needs,but tells me when shes wet,so im thinking shes just not ready.she will sit on potty or toilet,but sitting is not her thing,so we are just letting her have her days that she decides to run around half naked,till shes ready.
i kinda think it shouldnt take weeks of never being more than a short sprint away from a toilet,if they are ready it neednt be a huge fuss,most of the time its just pressure to keep up with(or be trained first)!sitting them on the potty every five minutes will eventually result in a pee,but whats the point in that??
my son was 2,got pants for his birthday and wanted to wear them.it was middle of winter,i was going to wait till summer,and he had never shown signs of knowing,but on went the pants and he was dry,morning and night!!
I would avoid trainer pants as they can confuse the child as they still feel like a nappy.
I would agree with you there. I tried the pull-ups but found them useless. They still think it's a nappy and will quite happily carry on regardless (well my 2 did!). The best thing to do was go cold turkey - put on big girl pants and wait for lots of accidents!! Eventually they get sick of being wet and start using the potty/toilet. I started mine around 2 years old but it took a good 3-4 months before they were totally dry during the day. Nighttime they were both excellent but during the day tended to get distracted. Having said that it was probably my attitude that was the problem as I hated cleaning up after them and that really stressed me out. It's the messiest stage of a child's life (in my experience) and for those few months til they were totally dry it was awful. Sooo glad we're past all that now!! All the best when your time comes!!! :lol:
mums angels
13-Jan-10, 20:46
if someone had asked me when to potty train years ago i would have said the summer after they are two as its best time of year for the washing and the cold doesnt effect the bladder so much , however my last two kids have decided that they were ready before then , my son was 2 months before his second birthday that he started to use the potty in the house etc , took a wee bit longer before he managed the shopping trips as he was a big drinker and needed often . However my daughter surprised us again at 13 months showing signs of knowing when she needed to go , she could control her self once she had started etc so bought her a muscial potty that was a good height as she didnt like the low ones so since 14 months she has been going regulary around the house with very litte problems ( she is now 20 months) . Around the house she just wears pants when i take her out she wears pull ups but they do seem to confuse her as she will forget and pee in them and she then gets upset as she wants it changed or she starts to pee and needs to hold it till i can get her to the nearest toilet but i am not quite ready for her wetting by accident in shops so will stick with that for another week or so yet . Id say go for it if your child shows an interest and has some control if not just leave it until they do .
My problem is that she takes her nappies of in the night if shes uncomfotably wet or is she wakes when peeing ( i think ) so i often find she has peed the bed and really have no idea on when getting her dry at night should be my other 3 were around 2 1/2 but i dont know if i can put up with wet beds that long .
my girl must have read this,shes been naked most of the day and when her dad was filling the bath she said nothing and sat on her potty and peed!:Razz
its not easy to know when to start,my son was going dry all night and then just put pants on and that was it,simple!!
girl is soaking wet by morning,but going long spells,like 3 hours or more through the day,dry
this is harder for me to answer on as both of mine were nearly 4 when they became potty trained.. dont know why with sam.. unless he was just a bit behind, but with ben being autistic it was harder!
potty training is a social behavoir which i didnt know.. until we had the experts in trying to help with ben.
but at the end of the day it was ... take the pull up away.. put them in pants.. reward them big time when they wee or poo in the pot.. dont make a huge deal when they mess up.. and if you have boys.. toss a cheerio in the toilet.. have dad show em how its done.. and then have then play target practice with said cheerio.. its a great game! it took about a week to get it right.. and a good idea for bed is when you are trying for night time nappy free.. take several towels fold them over, slide them under the sheet where they lay and if you have a wet night.. no wet matress and its not running off the plastic sheet.
I am doing this right now, and we are doing ok. Jh can tell me when he wants to pee but he isnt keen on pooping on the potty or the toilet. We are doing pants today and tomorrow and he is doing really well so watch this space folks.
children are all different tho - my eldest was dry thro the day when he was 15 months old, the next was nearly three and i was despairing of EVER getting him dry - he would sit for ages on the potty then get up and wee on the floor. i had a childminder who finally cracked it by encouraging him to pee in the grid at the side of hte house - it was summer and they were playing outside all the time. because he thought he was being "naughty" he just did it and bingo we cracked it. Number three son took just one week.
As for girls i have no idea but ill tell you in a couple of years lol
It seems they do!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/primaryeducation/5956231/Pupils-start-school-still-in-nappies.html
Well you are right enough there.......mind you, I have seen programmes where kids are being breastfed well into primary school age so there are always going to be exceptions!!
on that noet though.. not even play groups will change a nappy. i remember when ben started play group he was still in pull ups.. and not potty trained.. he couldnt help it.. but even still they would let him sit in a soiled nappy instead of changing it.
on that noet though.. not even play groups will change a nappy. i remember when ben started play group he was still in pull ups.. and not potty trained.. he couldnt help it.. but even still they would let him sit in a soiled nappy instead of changing it.
That's horribly wrong and sents the wrong messages to the child. I do think nurseries and playgroups that refuse to allow a child who is not toilet trained in their setting are wrong and are thinking backwards. With encouragment at the right time they will learn.
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