To ask for potty training tips please

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DD is 20 months, I’m going to start introducing the potty to her soon so she knows what it is and what it’s used for, I’ve already started taking her to the bathroom when I need the toilet, as well as telling her when she has done a wee or poo in her nappy. I don’t think she shows any signs, she doesn’t tell me when she’s done anything but if I ask if she’s done a poo she’ll say yes if she has, she can communicate well. I’m hoping to potty train either just before or after she turns 2 in April, can anyone give me advice or their best tips please.

I’d say don’t rush it, wait for signs that she is ready, like the desire to get rid of her nappy. It’s much better it be their choice and an aspiration if possible, than a change we impose upon them.

You could start helping her learn to take her own trousers down, that’s an important part of the process developing that skill.

I think for now just get her into the habit of sitting on it at a time she's likely to want to go. Then build up to doing that regularly through the day.

When you want to actually do it properly then ideally stay at home for a few days take her nappy off and plonk her on it v regularly. Before doing this take her out to choose some knickers so she gets the idea that this is how she becomes a big girl.

Bubbles and reading to pass the time when she's on it. A smartie when she produces something (bribery works!)

(I don't agree with the idea children really have to show they're ready - nothing wrong with waiting for that if you want, but previous generations didn't, and many children will quite happily sit and fill their nappies long after they are quite able to be potty trained.)

Mine are;
-lots of positive reinforcement e.g. verbal praise, treats, picking out underwear with their favourite colour or character
-lots of patience (tricky one when they have weed themselves 3 times in 1 morning)
-potties everywhere.

Lots of vibes. We finished toddler training our twins a few months ago

Buy Crocs. That's my only advice. Wet, stinky, pee-soaked shoes are no fun for anyone. Crocs can be rinsed and dried and put back on.

Don't do it til they are ready - takes much longer if you force it and more stressful

You can’t potty train until they are ready. Setting a timeline can lead to frustration and other complications like refusal and constipation.

raisingchildren.net.au/preschoolers/health-daily-care/toileting/toilet-training-guide

Read some potty training books together. DD loved one about some animals that used a potty as the potty was red like hers and she got her toys to also go on the potty. I started reading the books 3 weeks before we took the plunge. I also love the toilet seat steps so they can be as independent as possible. Carry me potty for the pram. I also have a potty by the back door if we go in the garden so dont need to faff as much as getting them to our loo (depends on your house set up) be positive and encouraging even if a part of you are dieing inside coz of the mess. We put easy clean matts down in the living room and had several strategically placed cleaning stations to easily deal with accidents. Get them involved in cleaning up. Explain when they are wet and when they are dry.
add in the sign for toilet so its
clear what they are saying (depends on language level DD is very young and toilet trained but she needs to do the sign sometimes as lots of words all sound the same to me)

dont wait for signs of readiness if you do

dont wait for signs of readiness if you don’t want to. I didn’t worked fine

read "oh crap". a fantastic book if you ignore some of the scaremongerer stuff. potty trained mine with minimum fuss at 2yr 4 months, 2 yr 4months and 2 yr 2 months

Mine didn't have signs - we just went for it. Just after he turned 2.
Don't over complicate it.
Have a quiet few days at home. Put on potty frequently. Lots of praise or a sticker. Bribe with chocolate if necessary.
Just accept accidents will happen (for a while), no big deal.
Get a carry potty for going out, a potty upstairs and downstairs so there's always one nearby.

We started at about 18 months. It was ok, my daughter picked it up pretty quickly. However, it was a good year before I could relax as she would often wee on the floor if we told her she couldn’t do something. It wasn’t anything to do with not understanding when or how to use the potty or toilet, as other times she would take herself off to the toilet and do the whole thing by herself. So maybe with hindsight I would have waited a bit longer. But only a little bit.

Just wait would be my advice. We waited until real concrete signs of readiness, so closer to 3 if not 3 (obviously each child will be different) and had no issues whatsoever, few days and sorted, no carrying a potty around or accidents etc. literally done and dusted day and night. Friends who tried sooner were carrying portapotties, lots of accidents, carrying spare clothes all the time etc and night times took a lot longer so wearing nappies at night etc. Just seemed far more convoluted than just waiting. But this is just my experience, but if you want to try I'd certainly be very open to just packing in and leaving it for a while until they are more ready.

My top tip would be not to do it too early because it will be much harder.

By my 3rd kid I was just done with pissy clothes.
I left her as long as I could and she quite literally potty trained herself. She was just past 2.5, I came home from work one day and my mum said she wanted to wear pants today and that was her.
I could count on one hand the number of accidents she's had.
I used to roll my eyes at parents who said "they were dry day and night in 3 days" because she actually was and I literally did nothing.

My older girl I tried her at 2 and she could do it, I thought I had a genius on my hands. But of course she regressed about 4 times between then and 2.5 when she finally got daytime training.
Similar story with my son only he was almost 2.5 when I started him and it took 12 weeks for him to reliably be able to tell me he needed to pee before the pee started coming out.
But of course he regressed with poops when his sister was born, cue 3 months of pooing in his pants while silently standing beside me, but that's a story for another day!!

Ps night dryness is a totally different ball game and you cannot train that before they are ready

20 months is a great age. Mine were a bit older than that but they rarely had accidents when they were trained. I lived in an area with a lot of kids with parents that were born overseas and they all potty trained their kids really young. Some kids definitely have physical reasons that they can’t be potty trained until older but you won’t know unless you try. My four kids were born in fairly quick succession and I really didn’t want more than one kid in nappies at a time.

My to tip is to give them loads and loads to drink while you are actively potty training them so they have more chance to have that ‘I need a pee’ feeling.

kids must feel so much more comfortable once they are potty trained. I think it’s easier to do it earlier rather than later. It’s also cheaper and better for the environment.

Don't force it would be my advice. It's one thing we weren't really arsed about and it just happened really easily. He was ready himself. There was never any poop problems, occasional wet pants which upset him a bit but not us. Yeah, just don't try too hard and take the child's lead. When they're ready they'll do it more easily.

Don’t wait for signs of readiness. Waiting for it to be obvious that they are capable of toilet training is underestimating them, and is the reason so many children end up starting school in nappies.

Give it a try, but be prepared to back off and wait a few months if it doesn't come easily. There's a lot to be said for training in warmer weather, with fewer layers of clothes.

Pick a time when there's not too much going on.

And then - simple bribery worked for mine: a chocolate button and lots of praise every time they weed in the pot. Worked a charm.