Toilet training?

[EllenandBump]

When do i start toilet training and what do i need to do it? My son is 18months and i am not sure, he is my first, mum said i was dry night and day by 14months. eek. x

I did my daughter (she was easy) at 2.4. Several people I know were quite about it because she was too young. Needless to say my mother wasnt one of them

My DS turned 2 last month, and I've had his potty in the bathroom for a good couple of months and every time I go to the toilet, I tell him I'm going on my potty and why doesn't he sit on his potty (which he does)

The other night, about an hour before I wanted to bath him I changed his nappy and let him roam free for a while and brought the potty downstairs. I told him to let me know if he needed to go, I went into the kitchen and came back into the living room with him making lots of noises to see that he'd actually done a wee in his potty (albeit, 10% potty, 90% floor!) He continued to sit on it throughout nappy free time and did do another wee before I put him in his bath.

I've not had time unfortunately to do this tonight and last night, but will try this tactic for the next 2 weeks or so and then maybe try and progress from there!

Your DS is definitely not behind at 18 months! You're his mum, you can tell when he's ready for things!

Gee, my DS1 is 2.9 and we still haven't cracked potty training, for either poo or wee!

I have been trying to train since he was approx 2.2 months and he has NEVER done a poo or wee in the potty. We can usually coerce him onto the potty with praise and a story but he never performs, even though we attempt to time it for after meals and about once an hour or so.

We have him in underpants and then he does the poo or wee in these, sometimes only ten minutes or so after coming off the potty

Still have him in nappies when we are out and about as there is no way he is able to tell us when he needs to wee or poo.

I am of all you who managed to train so young. What is the secret? I am feeling quite despondent and feel we will never crack it at this rate.

Its all so confusing really and it is a case of what do i ask, how can i ask it...in person it seems a stange topic to bring up oh is your kid potty trained yet? Or is mine behind? then you worry if they are behind everyone will judge you as a bad mother! I dont think he would sit still long enough atm to be honest. But will keep taking him toilet will me so he knows what it is! x

currently starting off ds2, who is 3 next month. Doing the bare bum thing in the house - which works well - but keeping nappies on when we go out. Going to gie pull-ups a whirl and see how he gets on with those.

Not stressing or rushing - my goal is to have everything sorted by Sept when he goes to school nursery as you can't send them in nappies.

Started DS1 earlier - when he was about 2 and a half and it was a bloody nightmare. He is still a bit accident prone at 6 & a half (can't be bothered to go to the toilet if he is engrossed in playing/TV/games etc).

Boys are hard to train and getting really stressed over it just makes everything worse. I have another ds of 9 months, so haven't got the time or energy to make a major issue out of it.

Just play it by ear and let them take their time - it'll happen when it happens.

Currently training 2yo DS (just under) - with 5 days of successes & disasters. Today ended well & I think he is on his way. He has been using a toddler seat on the loo & knows what to do. Used his little travel potty in a restaurant bathroom tonight for the first time - I was shocked at how cooperative he was given his defiant temperament. Pride goeth before the fall though, I'm sure we'll have more poo on the carpet tomorrow.

I hadn't planned on starting DS at this age, but he showed an interest in the loo (and what mummy & daddy were doing) & was peeing on the floor deliberately before his bath and saying 'wee wee' - so I thought we should just start. I worried that we could be tackling this before he was ready, but now I'm sure we won't go back to nappies. In fact, tonight I told him to throw his remaining nappies out (mummy is a bit mad & insisted on this symbolic gesture). At first he said 'No', & wanted to chuck the pull-ups out instead, so I left it, then he walked the nappies over to the bin. From now on pull-ups at night and naps.

don't they say that, in general, if you start at 2 years it will take 12 months to perfect and if you start at 3 years it will take just 1 week to perfect so same outcome. Or something like that.
I know with DS, we tried when he was 2 and a half and realised fairly soon he wasn't ready. About 3 months later we tried again and cracked it really easily. It was really just one day of wet trousers after wet trousers and that was it. The next day I can remember being in Pizza Hut to celebrate him wearing big boy pants, he asked for the toilet, sat down and did a poo which he then delighted in telling half the restaurant about .
And in my ignorance about the difference between day time training and night time training, when he stopped wearing nappies during the day he also stopped during the night. Thankfully, I don't remember that many accidents.

Has anyone ever tried those training pants that look a bit like underpants with a terry towel shoved in? I was wondering about these/cloth nappies for a time to heighten ds's awareness ahead of trying.

Ds is only 2;1 and I have no interest in even trying. Dh is keen as we are expecting again in June but I have read so many stories about toddlers of this age regressing entirely in this department when a new baby comes that I don't think it seems worth it. Good to read a thread that suggests I am not totally nuts!

I am so glad that no one has come on here and said do what he isnt toilet trained he is so far behind etc etc. I was planning on using boots' own brand of pull ups, i think they take longer to take the moisure away from the skin, so hopefully he wil be aware of it! Does having a pretty colour on it help or not? dont really want to waste a load of money. Thinking it best to get a toddler seat that goes over the loo?

Interesting thread. My mother just told me I was completely toilet trained by a year. I'm sure that can't be true!
I've started introducing the idea to DS (18mo) but I think it'll be a while before it takes. He's got a potty and some potty training books and he quite enjoys sitting down on it and then getting up, and then sitting again. I think he's probably actually sat on it for a total of three or four seconds!

Nearly 3 each time. Possibly could have tried from 2.5 but waited for summer hols each time. Niece in Oz was trained just before 2. I would never criticize anyone for training early- good luck to them, but it was very easy for both of mine and think waiting helped. Both mine weren't very physically adept until 2.5 or so anyway and got them both onto the toilet rather than potty after first few days which I prefer- and then they could do it all independently after a month or so.

EllenandBump, I would definitely buy a seat that goes over the toilet seat, but buy a potty too. See what he is comfortable with. If he is ok with the toddler toilet seat you will save yourself a lot of cleaning up & there won't be any issues with the transition from the potty to the toilet. A potty may be less confronting though, try both & see what he likes best. Also good to have a potty just in case your other loos are busy when nature calls.

I would also get a travel potty. We bought the 'My Carry Potty' - which seals up like a brief case. Well designed/functional for use away from home.

Always good to ask questions though, otherwise how do you know? I dont want to expect too much of him but at the same time want to know he is developing correctly. x

"Has anyone ever tried those training pants that look a bit like underpants with a terry towel shoved in? I was wondering about these/cloth nappies for a time to heighten ds's awareness ahead of trying."

Yes, I used bright bots and the bambino mio training pants. They don't stop clothes being messed if your child has a full blown accident, however they soak up quite a lot of the wee. You have to change your child's clothes, but the carpet or shoes don't get weed on. I found that the bright bots are very small. The medium 2 to 3 year sized ones fit my daughter who wears 12 to 18 months clothes. If your child is two years old then I would get the large size. The Bambino Mio training pants are better for a larger child.

Cloth training pants are nothing like disposible pull ups. I think that disposible pulls ups really hinder training as they are just like nappies.

The washable training pants are good for going out, imo, they know they're wet but it saves the trousers most of the time!

We have used both a potty and a seat, seat is better now she is older, but she has little legs so has two steps to make little stairs for climbing up to the loo or she can't reach...

Watching thread with interest! DS is 23mths and, responding to his prompts, we've been gently potty training for a few months now. He'll happily wee on the toilet or potty when we sit him there and sometimes will indicate he's ready to go. Number 2s are a totally different issue and the reason I'm not pushing him into more potty training. He runs and hides when he needs to go and denies it when you ask him, even though he knows exactly what he's doing. My childminder thinks I'm a crazy new mother starting too early and my MIL and DM both think we're a little late starting! Can't win

To go against the tide a bit I'd say introduce a potty as early as possible but don't sweat it. You can't force them to use a potty before they are ready but I think if you leave it too late then you can get into all kinds of control issues. Give you Lo the chance to sit on the potty after meals or after naps (get some toilet humour books to keep them amused) and see what happens. if you cut down the number of nappies you go through that is still a win and they will be very pleased with themselves. If they aren't interested then don't push it, leave it a month or so before you try again.

Both my boys were trained by 2.4months. 4 weeks of pure hell each time but we cracked it. Nursery were fairly unsupportive - believed they were too young and commented that DS2 was not ready. I proved them wrong. Then, when he was done, they kept telling me how amazing it was as none of his peers were trained and they were 3! I thought they were supposed to work with parents on it but I think they couldn't be arsed to be honest.

Hi know I'm writing this a bit late but I really wouldn't worry, my 3.5 year old still isn't potty trained, for a long time I tried but he is so strong willed every time I said to use potty he would throw a tantrum and say no. I now realize he will do it in his own time , he has a couple of times recently taken himself to the toilet and proudly told me after the event but he won't let me take him, and when I think back to the time before I started to try training him he always hid behind furniture to pee or pooh in his nappy, he just likes his privacy. All I can say is thank heavens for pull ups!!!

My ds was 3.7 when he was toilet trained. We left it late due to various reason's (moving house, holiday etc.) and I'm so glad I did. After just one day he was compleatly dry in the daytime, and 4wks after that he was dry at night. We have only had a small handful of accidents, which mainly happen when he's poorly. It was compleatly stress free and barely any clearing up, and no potty's. If we have another I would leave it as late as possible again.

we've just started with ds 25 months, and in the house he's happy to use the potty (mostly standing up and aiming though... not sitting!) but in nursery/at grandparents etc, not a chance - just lots of wet carpet! also wont poo on the potty, when i think he needs to go, i stick a nappy on him, and he sits on the potty and does it in there... dont want him constipated!! it's a bloody nightmare and I cannot wait until hes dry 24/7! good luck everyone else who's training!

I was a 70s baby and according to my mother I was dry (day and night) by 18 months...mostly due to terry nappies and feeling wet, no doubt!
I started toilet training my DD at 18 months, but she had been sitting on the potty regularly since she was about 1, just to get used to it. As it turned out, she HATED going on the potty, so I go a seat to go over the toilet. She was dry in 3 days (2 accidents) and finally got rid of the pull ups at night by the time she was 2. My nappy days seem a lifetime ago!
My only bit of advice would be don't go for pull ups during the day...bite the bullet and go for pants from the outset.

Read this thead with interest as just a xmas there a friend asked me if I had started toilet training my 14 mo and I as totally baffled because what I can't understand is how you potty train before they are able to communicate that they need the toilet- my 14mo isnt that sophisticate yet or do I underestimate him?. I always thought that you were meant to start all this around age 2.

Started training my daughter soon after she was 2, as my friends were having success with their similar aged offspring. It took over 18 months before she was clean and dry. I realise now that I started too early for my particular child. She just wasn't ready, but I let myself be pressured by friends, family and our health visitor. Despite trying all the tricks, giving lots of encouragement and praise she just couldn't get the hang of it, and it was horrible when she said to me 'I'm no good at it', and 'I'll never be able to.' . She started holding in urine and poo and got UTIs and terrible constipation. She has never drunk a vast amount so her bladder was probably not giving her very strong signals. So we stopped trying and left her in nappies, even though all her friends were in pants by this stage.

Then suddenly at about 3 and a quarter she decided for herself that she was ready. After a couple of successes she got her confidence back, and has had very few accidents since (unless she is ill). In fact, she decided a few weeks later that she wanted to wear big girl pants at night, and has been clean and dry all night since (which many of her friends aren't)

So please don't beat yourself up about it. You are the best person to judge if your child is ready to train. You are not a bad/lazy mother if your child is still in nappies at 3. I felt that people were judging me all the time, and it was so hard not to pass my stress onto my daughter. For my next child I will be much more laid back!