Katherine Ryan reckons her eight month old is toilet trained

[WheelieBinPrincess]

Now, if I held my baby over the loo for a couple of hours for want of something better to do on a rainy Sunday, I reckon eventually he’d use it. I could then clap and proclaim I had started toilet training

AIBU to think she’s off her rocker? Apparently, putting your baby in a nappy means you are teaching them to always go in a nappy.

I know she has a nanny to deal with all this as well, who Im sure rolls her eyes at the proclamation that her baby is fully potty trained at 8mo.

Reminds me of a friend of mine who claimed her newborn learnt to use a hand signal for hunger from day 2 or 3 so she didn’t need to cry. She was apparently fluent in baby sign from two months old.

Now it can be really quite late, in the 70s/80s you’d expect kids to be trained by 2

In the 70s and 80s most children were potty trained between the ages of 2.5 and 4. Just like now.

In the 70s and 80s some parents did elimination training from birth. Just like now.

I know because I was there and working in nurseries and hospitals with under 5's and their parents.

Why is she getting so much criticism for just sharing something that has worked for her?

Good for her, wish I could get my toddler potty trained!

Why do people feel that she is trying to make others feel bad?! Some of these comments are rather sensitive.

Babies give cues for the need to go to the toilet. It’s about leaning those cues. Just like hunger and sleep cues. Most babies will as a newborn fidget and cry just before they wee, pop them over the toilet and they quickly learn to release when held in a specific position. They cannot hold, but will learn to release when offered the opportunity, even if they weren’t yet crying and cueing because they needed to go urgently. Babies typically won’t wee in a car seat, sling, or in their sleep apart from if they stir, simply offer an opportunity to go after each of these instances and most of the time the baby will go instantly

It’s practiced in many places around the world where nappies simply aren’t an option and even in the western world, it’s very new to have children in nappies at 2/3. In the 60s/70s children would be out of nappies by 18 months usually

Katherine Ryan has pulled something legendary off! I wish I was onto this with my son. It’s an ideal situation and exists in other countries who do not have the luxury of nappies.

That’s not the same as your baby being trained to know when to go to the toilet or communicate it though, is it.

From what I've read the whole point is that the babies do communicate when they need to go, otherwise it wouldn't work.

The babies may not understand or be conscious of what they're communicating, but that doesn't mean they're not communicating.

Haha, interesting to see this thread revived -I just listened to Katherine Ryan on the Parenting Hell podcast this morning where she mentioned how much grief she gets on mumsnet about this!

Shitting in a Tupperware box isn't exactly my idea of toilet trained but each to their own!!

My mum was a 60s housewife and my siblings and I were all trained before 1 year. It was all handwashing of cloth nappies in those days.

Mum remembered the invention of disposable nappies and how the children pictured on the packaging/adverts got older and older over the years. And then they started making them with materials that meant the child wasn't even aware when it had urinated or defecated! Who actually benefits from this?

Nobody, but it was clearly a good marketing exercise by the companies that make these things. Nappies should be for babies!

I can’t believe how ignorant you are OP!
Please do some research. I’m embarrassed for you.

You can't potty train a baby. Elimination training has always been a thing though, I first came across it 40yrs ago in my first job in a nursery.

I can only speak for myself (my Nanny actually) but yes, fully trained by a year, my sister and me. Oddly enough my eldest DD pretty much self trained by that age too, in that she point blank refused a nappy at night from 9 months (no accidents) and as soon as she could walk at 13 months put herself on the potty whenever she wanted to. Certainly not something I imposed on her, I am far too lazy! Her younger sisters were different, fully dry and accident free at 2, both of them.

Just listened to her talking about this on the Parenting Hell podcast. She fully acknowledges that they’ve got the time and the inclination to do it and that it’s not for everyone.

I did something similar. Wasn't even aware it had a name, I wasn't following any rules. But i did put my babies (from when they could sit) on the toilet first thing in the morning, after every meal, before going out, before bed. No, of couses they weren't trained, in that they didn't know what they were doing, but it does become a kind of reflex, then a habit, and both of my DD's were clean and dry during the day from 18 months. They took forever to be dry at night though and I did use pull-ups overnight.

The benefit to me (and them) was the toilet was a normal thing for them, not scary, they didn't use potties, and we used less nappies, good for both cost and the environment. Win win.

Watched her on Room 101 talking about this - as her bin item was nappies. She came across as really judgemental and pretty nasty. That disposable nappies should be banned - obviously ideal for working mums !!! Fair play to her - but shaming other women is never a good thing. (and no - it was not funny)

I personally think elimination comm is insane but each to their own.

I’ve done elimination communication with both my babies and personally think that using nappies as a toilet is insane. 🤮
DD1 was dry overnight by 10 months, and never poo’d in her nappy. She was reliably accident free and in knickers by 15/ 16 months.
I never had to go through the “drama” of potty training , as it just happened naturally, and I rarely had to deal with the rankness of a 💩 nappy after the first few months of her life.
DD2 is 7 months and does 95% of poos and about 50% of wees in the potty. Over the last couple of weeks or so she has started waking up dry- not always - but often.
EC works!!

In her book, she doesn’t refer to it as potty training and seems quite smug about it. I thought fair enough if she elects EC but presenting it as something different is misleading and inaccurate. I know a few people who did EC and their children were actually potty trained much later than the norm, I think the children got fed up with the constant messing about on potties. Personally I couldn’t care less when people potty train their children, but the implication that those who use EC early are somehow superior grates.

• she does, urgh!

As the lovely Nicky would have said
“ who is she!! Who is she ?