To ask what is the earliest you have toilet trained your dc?

[pandarific]

I have a bright little 16m old ds who is very interested in the big toilet, and always wants to do everything himself - eg he has to brush his teeth himself, he puts his shoes on 'himself' (actually we do it but he wants to put his feet in himself and hold the shoe etc).

As we're in for the foreseeable, i thought maybe I could try to start teaching him to use the potty, if it's not miles too early - I think he might get it! I've seen these little potties on amazon, complete with flushing sounds... what was the earliest yours used the potty?

thegreenlight Well I didn’t mention DS as OP asked about early trainers. He was nearly 3, and not dry at night until 7! He was mostly in cloth nappies too.

It’s one of those things that seem to matter greatly at the time, and will absolutely not matter in terms of their development in the long run. My DCs are 7 and 9 now and I have absolutely no idea when any of their classmates were trained, how they were fed as infants, from what age they walked everywhere, when they first spoke... You really can’t tell!

It's all well and good training them early, but if they can't dress themselves, what is the point? Unless your child is going to be naked from the waist down for the next six months?

IME children trained earlier have more accidents and take longer to get it. Nearer three takes the grand total of a week to train.

My 95 year old aunt told me it was normal when feeding infants to hold them over little potties.

Sorry, this is genuine curiosity not me being sarky - do you mean bottle feeding? Or while giving them something off a spoon (which they did earlier, but not 6 weeks, right?). Trying to imagine breastfeeding while also holding baby over a potty and failing!

I'm in two minds on whether to give potty training a go - DS seems to be getting a bit worried about the whole weeing/pooing thing (he wee-d on the floor before his bath last night and was really upset, even though I was v calm and reassuring and not at all irritated - he kept pointing and crying 'mess! mess!') and I'm not sure if nappies are making it worse, but I also don't want to make it worse by trying potty training if he's not ready?

@LisaSimpsonsbff - in India elimination training is while EBF. Then toilet training is from 9 -14 months after the baby has weaned. It’s a lot easier to train babies and toddlers who don’t wear disposable nappies constantly as they do grow to hate the feeling of wetness / smell associated with soiling themselves.

Haven’t read thread but yes OP go for it! I have a 1953 baby manual that takes for granted all babies will be trained before 18m old. It’s really the invention of disposable nappies that changed the age of potty training expectations! I didn’t really know about it with my first two so waited until they were 2yr to train them, with my youngest I trained him at 18m. Totally doable.

LisaSimpsonsbff she breast fed all of her DC. I'm guessing they were a few weeks old at least. My oldest cousin did confirm she did this with my youngest cousin.

People did potty train earlier even in the 80s and 90s when mine were born. Most children are perfectly able to be trained between 2 and 3. I don't agree that they have more accidents than a child of say 4.

@Sugarfreejelly I don't necessarily think it's 'better', I am somewhat sick of nappy changing and he is a curious and independent little thing - who has started to bring me toilet paper when I am on the loo . I think he'll 'get' it that you use the potty when you need to go, but if not that's okay. Imo it's just another thing to teach them really, he loves learning a new grown up thing, I think he might enjoy it.

I've ordered that mini toilet potty - the legs are only little and our only bathroom is upstairs, so might be better for him to have a mini one downstairs and a big one upstairs to use? Idk, I'll see how it goes.

Dd was 17m I think - she said one day me big girl, no nappy and that was it

Couple accidents, one week later she was dry day and night

Ds was dry by 2 but ages until overnight

My youngest was about 18mo, she was copying dd1 and I couldn't believe she could be ready but she was. No harm in having a go

It absolutely reflects on your worth as a member of the human race if your child is not potty-trained earlier than its peers. If you have any desire whatsoever to be taken seriously in society than you need to get that child dry by 12 weeks, preferably earlier.

Anything else is shockingly lax and your child will never, ever amount to anything. Whilst you're at it, make sure they can speak at least two foreign languages by six months and have mastered a musical instrument by a year. Chop chop!

13 months

You don't need a fancy huge potty with flashing lights. You might want to take it out and about with you and you'll certainly be scrubbing skids off it. You want it to be easily cleanable, not with bells and whistles.

Just get an Ikea one and an Ikea toilet seat thing. Potettes are good too.

18 months.

I wouldn't bother with that potty though, after about a month my daughter just wanted to use the adult toilet and the potty was gone. Get a little seat instead as it is more of a Big Boy/Girl thing than the mini toilet.

18 month old is nappy free today. I wanted to start a couple of weeks ago but I’ve been unwell and didn’t want to add to DH’s stress of looking after us both! We’ve got the log burner on today so decided it was the perfect time to get his nappy off!

@Lynda07 some people still do this with their babies from very early on. Called elimination communication nowadays:) But not quite the same as potty training.

I think 2 is the earliest I'd attempt it for my children OP but if you have no expectations you might be surprised. If it doesn't work just go back to nappies.

My second DD decided at 18 months. Never had an accident, day or night. But it was her decision.

@fatted

The point is that it saves nappies from landfill/washing, lightens the changing bag considerably and if it's something the child is interested in then it should be supported, not ignored because nappies are easier for parents.

People always used to train younger, it's not about a child's ability to learn.

My friends child wasn't trained until nearly 4 because her child dug their heels in that they didn't want to.

A younger child is taught and an older child just grows into it.

My mother told me I was fully toilet trained at 15months. Apparently I stood up in my cot and said "wee wee" and didn't need nappies again.
From then on I used to take myself to the toilet without assistance!
She was very happy about this because my brother was born a few days later.

Rats, I've bought that potty already. Oh well! Good point about getting a little one to take out with us... suppose I'll be putting it behind a bush in the graveyard as that's our regular walk spot at the moment.

We do have a little toilet seat for the big toilet already, I'll just need to get a step.

I'm quite excited about this! (That's weird, right?) to be clear, I don't expect him to be properly trained or dry at night or anything, I'd just be delighted if during the day he could start to get used to the idea of using the potty for poos. Less bothered about wees tbh.

@LisaSimpsonsbff Your ds sounds ready. Whilst starting, then just stay in the house and keep him in just pants, no trousers so easy to pull down. Then just keep him in joggers for a while when you need to go out well, not that anyone can at the moment, so again, easy to pull down. You'd be there to help with wiping and pulling up again - he'll manage, honestly.
It isn't that strange to toilet train children around their 2nd birthday though.
@Sugarfreejelly - cost was a pretty good driver. Why pay for a year's worth of nappies more than you need to ? Plus landfill (if using disposables) or work / laundry if you are using washables. Back when mine were that age (this century, so not that long ago ), you could start going to playgroup once you were 2yrs 6months and out of nappies. Which was another good incentive. Well, it was just what everyone did, tbh. What I genuinely don't get, is why so many people want to keep them in nappies for a year longer than you need to (SENDs excepting, as obviously there are children who aren't able to 'get it').

I think yd was about 18 months when she started to use the potty. She wanted to be like her older dsis.

Disposables are expensive. Makes sense to get them out of nappies where possible

My second very much took the lead with toilet training, insisted on doing all his poos in the toilet from around 17/18 months and has never had a poo accident, Was fully dry day and night at 19 months.

My first didn’t consistently use the toilet until he was almost 6 (suspected SN although still no proper diagnosis) so it was a pleasant surprise to have such an easy time with my second!

I started training my daughter 6 weeks before her second birthday. By her second birthday she had mostly cracked it, with the occasional accident (as do most children) her last accident was in the May when she was about 2 and a half.

I got my comeuppance with my son, who was majorly lazy and disinterested. Took until 3.5 to get him dry and another 3 months to stop him soiling.

He would rather just shit himself and sit in it for hours than go to the toilet or admit he had done it.

He finally cracked it and it was such a relief!

My daughter was always eager to please and learn!

DS, aged 2, took a while.

DD, aged 15months, never sat on a potty, just took herself to the toilet, balanced on the porcelain rim, and told me to go away when I opened the door.

My first was reliable during the day by 18months, my second refused nappies after her 2nd birthday and was perfect day and night straight away, my third was just over 2yrs old. All of them were using the potty from 6m old.