Potty training is a huge milestone in your child's life. Find the complete guide to potty train your toddler from reading his cues to all the gears needed!
Now that Mishika is almost two years old, Mayank and I find ourselves in yet another toddler development milestone phase also known as ‘potty training’. I still remember a couple of weeks back Mishika came to me and said ‘pee-pee’. I thought that she was referring to her wet diapers and needed it to be changed but instead she held my hand and walked to the bathroom and requested me to help her sit on the potty seat. I was shocked, it was definitely one of those parenting moments when you feel super proud of your little tot and amazed on how independent they are getting but also feel extremely emotional that they are growing up too fast :).
It has been a couple of weeks since we had started to introduce potty training to our daughter and so far, we have been successful in daytime potty training but nighttime is still ongoing! If you have been reading my previous blog post, I am sure you know that I am someone who really likes to research her topics before I get into anything new. What I am sharing with you is all my knowledge that I have gained so far on potty training my little one.
When is the right age to potty train your kids?
Well, there is no easy answer to this question. The age to start potty training varies from child to child. Some kids show readiness to be potty trained from as early as 18 months and some are not ready until 3 years of age. The ideal age to start potty training your child is between 18 to 36 months but again it all depends on when your kid starts to give you signals that they are interested in being potty trained. One way to speed up this process is to introduce ‘potty talk’ when your little one turns one so that your child starts to take interest in this. You can play potty games and pick up their favorite toy and say ‘teddy want to go to the potty?’ or maybe get potty training books to show visuals of what you are trying to imply.
What is the sign that your child is ready to be potty trained?
Remember the most important sign of all is ‘Readiness is everything’. Look out for signs which show that your kid is ready to be potty trained otherwise the entire potty training can feel very daunting and a big struggle. Some of the signs to keep an eye on for your little one are as follows:
- Can remain dry for up to 2 hours at a time – If your child is able to remain dry for longer periods of time or maybe wake up dry from a nap that is a sign to start potty training. You can slowly start by leaving them diaper free at home during the daytime and then taking it from there.
- Hide to ‘pee’ or ‘poop’ – Another big sign is when your child tries to hide to ‘pee’ or ‘poop’. It could be behind a chair or anywhere but the thing to notice is that your little one has developed an understanding that this is something that is private and needs to be done alone.
- Makes faces at dirty diapers – There will be a phase in your toddler's life when they would start to make faces or run away from stinky diapers. It’s basically because they are starting to notice it as a ‘mess’. If this happens, never call their diapers dirty in front of them instead take them to the bathroom and throw their waste in the pot and show them how to flush. This can help them understand the process better.
- Signal to change their wet or dirty diapers – When your little one starts to pull on their dirty diapers signaling you that it’s time to change.
- Mimic the entire bathroom-potty play – Lastly, when they hold your hands and start taking you to the bathroom signaling that they want to sit on the pot and try to mimic what they have read in the books or what you have shown them
With my little girl, I had started to notice the above signs from her when she had turned 16-17 months but we decided to hold off potty training until she was 22 months. It was only until she had started to show us the last sign a lot that we decided that it was time to potty train her.
What are the potty training gears that you need?
Now that you have started to see signs in your little one signaling towards potty training, it’s time to get ready with all the potty training gears that you would need along the way.
Potty seat vs potty chair
One of the biggest question, that had come into my mind when I was starting to potty train my daughter was whether to go for a potty chair or a potty seat. You will find a lot of information on the web talking about the pros and cons of potty chair vs potty seat but honestly, it’s what your kid is most comfortable with. It’s more of a hit and trial to figure with what your child adapts best to. Some kids like the potty chair as it’s low and is scared to use the big adult potty directly. Whereas some kid likes the idea of sitting on a potty seat attached to the adult potty (which basically reduces the opening of the bowel area so that your kid can feel comfortable). If you chose to go with the potty seat make sure to order a step stool along with it so that your child can reach comfortably to the potty seat and also place it’s foot or apply pressure when pooping. Below are some potty chair and potty seat options to chose from and also stepstools options to order along with the potty seat.
Pull-ups
When you start to potty train, ditch the fancy pants or overalls and stick to pull-up pants so that your child can easily remove it when they have to go. Also, switch the diapers to pull up diapers so that your child thinks of them more like pull up pants. The only drawback is that the pull on diapers can suck the moisture leaving your child absolutely dry and hence lengthen the potty training process.
Underwear
Make sure to order big boy briefs or big girls underwear before you start to potty train. Start leaving your little one absolutely diaper-free during daytime in their underwear.
Flushable wipes
Teaching your child good hygiene from the start is very important. What you imbibe in your little one from the beginning is what forms their habits. After when they go potty or pee make sure to show them how to use the flushable wipes and help them clean their privates and then flush them in the toilet.
Mattress pad
Nighttime potty training is definitely what takes the longest. Some kids do have night accidents even when they are 5 to 6 years old. It’s normal!! To be prepared for that to happen make sure to order a mattress pad that can observe the moisture and not destroy your mattress.
Training books
You can start to show your kids visuals on potty training in books and talk to them about it so that they can start developing interest in this. Potty training books can come in very handy for this.
Faucet extender
Lastly, install a faucet extender in your bathroom which is nothing but a device that helps children reach the faucet to wash their hands. The Faucet Extender brings the water to the child rather than you bringing the child to the water!
How to start potty training?
Now that you have the gears ready it’s time to form a schedule and actually start the potty training.
- Chose the right time – Make sure to potty train your child when there is no stressful situation around or a big change happening in their life. If you are moving somewhere, changing homes, or expecting a new kid, it’s best to hold off potty training until the situation is back to normal so that your little one does not feel too stressed out.
- Ditch diapers during daytime – It’s important to show your little one that you trust them and so try ditching diapers completely during the daytime. Be prepared that when you start to do this initially there might be accidents, that is when the next part plays a great role.
- Form a schedule – When it comes to kids, always stick with a schedule. You can start by taking your child to the potty every 2 hours and making them sit on it. You can sing poems or have potty talks so that your child starts to get comfortable with the idea and understand that they have to go to the potty to ‘pee’ or ‘poop’.
- Offer praise and rewards – This works like a gem. What I did with my daughter was making a simple potty sticker chart former and so every time she pees in the potty I would give her a star to stick. Well, we are still in the training phase, but for poop, you can offer to give them two stickers and once your child has 5 stickers you can reward them by taking them to the park or maybe for an ice-cream treat. The trick is to keep the rewards really simple and nothing too fancy.
- Teach proper hygiene – Lastly and most importantly, every 2 hours when you take your little one to the potty, perform the entire process even if they go or not. Make them flush, give them a flushable wipe to clean their privates, and make them stand on the step stool and wash their hands with soap. Showing them proper hygiene steps will help them develop good habits in the long run.
Night-time potty training
Nighttime potty training is what takes the longest time. Kids are known to wet their beds even when they are 5 or 6 years old. It’s absolutely normal! The most important thing is to be prepared in case this happens with mattress protection or even pull-up nighttime training pants. Introduce nighttime training to your little one only when they have made the transition from their cribs to the toddler beds so that they can easily get out when they have to go. Also, be in close reach to your child if they wake up in the night and need to go then they can easily call out for you.
What are the potty training problems?
Besides accidents here and there one of the biggest problems is that your little one might give you signals that they want to get back to diapers. It’s normal and it does happen. You can definitely try to help your kid decide otherwise but if your child is getting frustrated, being cranky, and also in some cases holding in which can eventually lead to constipation then it’s best to go back to the diapers for some time. You can wait out and then try again when your child is ready. Potty training is a normal thing and don’t worry if your child decides to take a little longer to get used to it. It will eventually happen only the timeline differs for every kid.
How long does it take to potty train?
Potty train can take anywhere from 3 months to up to a year. Nighttime training might take a little longer.
Lastly a few helpful tips along the way!!
Potty training is a huge milestone in your child’s life. It can be easy or it can be frustrating but just like any other parenting tasks there is out there., this one too just requires your utmost patience. Some helpful tips to remember along the way!
- Make the entire process fun – Keep it positive. Tell stories, sing poems, and have happy talks during potty training.
- Do not scold or get angry if an accident happens – Never get angry or scold your child in case an accident happens. It’s normal to feel stressed about the mess but scolding your child when this happens can make them get scared and lose their will to potty train.
- Praise and give rewards – Make use of the potty training charts available online or you can even make one on your own. Praise every time they have a successful attempt and also do give rewards to boost their confidence. Remember to keep the rewards as simple as possible and nothing too fancy.
- Patience, patience, and patience – Lastly and most important just like the up-teem parenting tasks that there are out there, this too just requires one thing that is common to all, lots and lots of patience from your end. Potty training is nothing but a normal milestone just like sitting, standing, roll-over, or any other milestone that your kid has gone through in the past. It will come to them naturally but it’s most important as parents to keep calm and push through it.
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Awesome!