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Original poster

*^*^*^*POTTY TRAINING - WHERE DO I START??^*^*^*

15 replies

MadameWeb · 19/03/2007 10:25

never done it before!

my son is 2.3 and i think its time we started, hes shown interest in the potty and has sat on it, but wont wee up to now (has farted on it! - which he got lots of praise for!! )

i have lots of underpants ready to wash!

but how do i start?

(am probably going to start thursday - as hes a bit poorly today & am out on wednesday)

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LadyOfTheFlowers · 19/03/2007 10:29

will be watching with interest. ds1 is 20 months and seems to want to get started!!

schneebly · 19/03/2007 10:31

my advice is wait until you are sure he is ready (nearer 3 for my DS) and no nappies at all apart from bedtime - ask him if he want the loo at reagular intervals and hope for the best! My DS was dry day and night doing this after about 2 weeks but he was almost 3.

castlesintheair · 19/03/2007 10:36

Definitely don't do it when they are ill, so good start.

Once you've decided to go for it, put them in pants and don't go back to nappies/pull-ups. Ask them every half an hour if they want to go or if they need it, put them on the potty. Expect lots of mess. I just cleaned it up and didn't say anything. Just lots of praise for anything that goes in the potty.

This is my personal view: if after a couple of weeks, of endless accidents and silent hair-pulling (by you), put them back in nappies and try again in a couple of months or whenever. Summer is a good time to do it btw, as they can run around outside and have accidents there so you might want to think about that.

With my 2 eldest ones, I tried at 2/2.5 failed miserably then tried again at 3 and they were literally clean & dry day and night within 24 hours.

Good luck

sunnysideup · 19/03/2007 11:03

I agree with castles, I think if it doesn't work within a week or two then it's not going to just yet and I really don't think it's a problem to stick them back in nappies for a while.

My ds 'potty' trained the same day I started so I think he was ready! Basically from the first day he had no problems using the loo, we even missed out potties completely and went straight to the loo.

There's LOADS to be said for waiting till they're ready! It isn't really potty 'training' I don't believe kids can be 'trained', they're either ready or they're not.

Good luck.

Original poster
MadameWeb · 19/03/2007 11:05

see advice is so conflicting, most people in RL say 'ooh havent you started yet' or 'you should start soon'

but now alot of you are saying hes too little!

OP posts:
madmarchhare · 19/03/2007 11:09

We tried a couple of time when he was too and it was only just short of 3 before we had any real success.

Be ready for the poo side of things to take a little bit longer. Not all are like this but its not uncommon.

Get loads of cheap pants from Primark.

madmarchhare · 19/03/2007 11:09

when he was two .

PetitFilou1 · 19/03/2007 12:11

I started ds at 2.4. He got the wees quite quickly but was pooing in his pants for SIX MONTHS. He's 3 and clean and dry day and night now. I would seriously wait until your ds is older if I were you - I wished I had heeded all the other mums advice which was to leave it as long as possible.
Agree with no pull ups, pants all the time (inc for day time naps if you're brave enough) and no going back once you start. You need to be resilient and determined!

mamma2kids · 19/03/2007 12:26

Agree with castles. 2.6 with DS but had regular accidents for nearly a year after (don't go anywhere without spare pants and trousers). Also be prepared to have to stop the car and wee in the street (or get off the bus) as when they need to go they can't wait!

milkymill · 19/03/2007 21:17

Hi, i am in the same situation with dd (2+3) but have only been doing short periods of time for a few days without pull-ups. If we just go for it and ban nappies completely, how do we tackle outings?

rowan1971 · 19/03/2007 21:18

Get a Tommee Tippee Portapotty for outings. Ours has been a top buy. (Although someone did post a hilarious story here recently about using one for a pig poo on a very steep hill.)

margo1974 · 19/03/2007 21:28

Does anyone else think there are potty training stages?

i.e.
home potty training wees
home potty training poos
potty training out and about
Learning to hold it
Learning when to let go at the right time
Hygiene (hand washing and wiping their bottoms)

I think my dd1 is more or less home potty trained in the wee department after about a month of running around with no nappy on

mamma2kids · 20/03/2007 12:54

Don't bother with a portable potty, just wee behind a tree (or the car) no one minds.

Original poster
MadameWeb · 20/03/2007 12:55

unless its twoisplenty, lol

OP posts:
LittleMamaT · 21/03/2007 10:48

The key is to wait until the child is ready - I think it is a mistake to start this because you feel they should be out of nappies because they are a certain age. DS1 was 3.6 when he ditched his nappies. We had tried before when he was around 2 and again at around 3 but he got upset and wanted to wear nappies and refused to go near the potty or toilet.

I used to feel slightly embarrassed when I had to go and change his nappy when all his 'peers' were wearing pants but never made a big deal of it. I think it was much easier because he was older and completely ready - he's had hardly any accidents and went straight to using the toilet rather than potties.

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