How to start toilet training

amother

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 3:33 pm

How do you start? It's not like the kid, or you, will know when he has to go. You cant just sit him there for 1/2 hr. So how do you start?

ltlesmartmom

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 3:34 pm

you sit the child down after half hour to 45 min. then u see about how long the child keeps it in.

ltlesmartmom

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 3:38 pm

you time the child from when the child goes in the potty and half hour then sit him/her back on the potty. then you will see how long the child keeps it in by looking at the time when she goes again.

amother

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 3:41 pm

No, I am talking about initially starting. They havent gone at all yet. Also just bc they keep it in for a certain length of time, doesnt mean it's the same next time. Most of us dont work on a schedule like that.

su7kids

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 5:14 pm

Every time, from whatever age, that you see your child making anything, tell them, "Oh, you're making pishy", and "Oh, you're making BM" or whatever you choose to call them.

Just mention it, casually. (not out in public and when reasonable)

That way, when they're ready, you can say "Pishy belongs in the toilet", "BM belongs int he toilet"

Be careful also of the flushing, becuase they think they themselves will fall into the toilet and be flushed down/.

yoyosma

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 5:46 pm

I would ask DD if she had to go to the bathroom, she would say yes, sit and do nothing.
Finally I just took her bottoms off and let her run around with a shirt only. When she first had to go she got nervous and either peed on the floor or asked to go to the toilet. Eventually she got the hang of it and only went to the toilet. She had only one BM accident and a few pee ones. She was toilet trained within two weeks.
This method is not for everyone. It takes patience, willingness to clean up often and you are basically stuck in your house for those two weeks. But when its over, its really over!!

greenfire

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 6:02 pm

try scheduling potty time - first thing in morning, after breakfast, before/after lunch, before/after nap, before bedtime - eventually they will tell you or go on their own. and once you take off diaper leave it go except for night time that you put diaper till ready to train for night.

GAMZu

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 6:12 pm

I do it like yoyosma and greenfire.
First, before you begin, buy a potty and do like su7kids suggested. Talk a lot about their body functions and tell them where it goes. Use as little clothes as possible at that time. Put the kid on the potty when he awakes, after he eats, before going outside, upon arriving home form the walk, before nap, after nap, before bedtime, etc.
Tell him to go. If he's ready to be trained and knows what to do, he will be able to relax enough to pee even a tiny bit. That schedule will ensure that he won't need to go between the potty visits. Put real underwear on as soon as you begin the process. He'll get the hang of it pretty soon.

GAMZu

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 6:14 pm

Just wanted to add, play it up. Make it fun for him to have real underwear, a new potty, etc. Toddlers love new 'projects'- he might see it as a new and exciting game.

ltlesmartmom

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 6:17 pm

I don't agree with you, yoyosma. if you take off the panty he/she can get away with murder cuz you will find the accident much later. I let DD have on her panty and when she pees she cries shes afraid!

greenfire

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 6:18 pm

GAMZu wrote:

Just wanted to add, play it up. Make it fun for him to have real underwear, a new potty, etc. Toddlers love new 'projects'- he might see it as a new and exciting game.

that's so funny gamzu I was going to go back and add the fun part too - cute underwear that you take her/him to buy dance with the kid after and say how proud you are with such excitement he's bound to cooperate.

yoyosma

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 6:54 pm

ltlesmartmom, thats how it worked, whether you agree or not. I would find the accident as soon as she made it because she would tell me. My sister and SIL have done it the same way with good results, in fact, my SIL did it with all 5 of her children and I got the idea from her.

She walked around without bottoms because she had to be accountable for where the pee went. I found that when I put on her panties, (too soon) she just made in the underwear because she felt secure. Bottomless teaches them control.

yoyosma

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 6:59 pm

One more thing, although I was confined to my apartment for much of those two weeks, I did sometimes have to run an errand.
I bought training pants for those times. They are cotton underwear with a plastic coating (machine washable), so if she would make in her pants, she would feel it but it wouldnt leak because of the plastic. I used those for a few weeks after I trained her when we went out just in case.

GAMZu

Tue, Feb 13 2007, 11:45 pm

I went out with my kids the day after I began training and put underwear on the newly trained kid. Since he peed before we left, he didn't need to pee outside.

amother

Wed, Feb 14 2007, 12:54 am

[quote="ltlesmartmom"]That's why you shoudl time it then you can judge.[/quote]
Doesnt mean it'll be the same any time after that!

ltlesmartmom

Wed, Feb 14 2007, 9:40 am

amother wrote:

ltlesmartmom wrote:

That's why you shoudl time it then you can judge.

Doesnt mean it'll be the same any time after that!

No it doesn't but I timed it for a few days and then I knew exactly when to make her sit on the potty.

ltlesmartmom

Wed, Feb 14 2007, 9:42 am

yoyosma wrote:

Thats why I got regular panties. They leak. She was scared when she peed.

greenfire

Wed, Feb 14 2007, 9:44 am

I don't mind a kid being naket but why not put the panties on and just bring them to the toilet - regularly - this way you don't have to figure out where they peed?