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Parenting

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Original poster

is my 2 year old too early to be potty trained???

31 replies

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 14:16

Help!!!

potty training is going from bad to worse...

my nearly 2 year old was playing without her nappy on. i kept asking her if she needed the potty and she kept saying no.

a little while later i heard her shout DIRTY.. i went into the hall way to see what had happened and she had had a poo in the corner of the hall way...

that was fine - easy to sort out but she had decided to wipe it into the carpet and all up the walls... yuk!

am i starting too early?? is she not quite ready??

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nickytwotimes · 03/06/2009 14:18

I know a couple of kids who potty trained at 2, but most are older.

Was she showing signs of awareness of peeing/pooing?

JudyBlume1019 · 03/06/2009 14:19

wouldn't bother tbh, sounds like far too early. Try her again in 6 months

Maveta · 03/06/2009 14:20

My ds went into pants at 22months and I know I'm not alone even if it's not as common these days. So it is possible. I wouldn't necessarily rely on her to be able to tell you all the time especially if you've only just started. Can you just take her to the potty/toilet at regular intervals and see how that goes?

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Original poster

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 14:21

yes. she tells me when she has had a wee or a poo in her nappy and will also bring me a new nappy for me to change her, but she will not do anything inside of her potty. well except for standing in it or using it as a hat

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Original poster

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 14:23

i have got the whole family involved. taking her to the toilet and seeing what we do. she claps along and cheers everyone but won't do it herself.
my 7 year old even went for a wee on the potty to try and encourage her

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Piffle · 03/06/2009 14:24

my son was 2 in march
If I put him on the toilet he will squeeze a wee or poo/fart out but rarely knows when he needs to go

nickytwotimes · 03/06/2009 14:25

NO harm in gentle encouragement, but it is very young so I wouldn't sweat it.

Maveta · 03/06/2009 14:27

don't worry about it. If you aren't in a rush then there's no need to risk putting pressure on her/ stressing yourself out. Just leave her in nappies but have lots of nappy free time at home if you can and keep going with the offering of the potty at regular intervals. If even this stresses her/you out and leads to loads of accidents don't have nappy free time, just put her on the potty when you change her nappy, if she gets straight back off let her, no big deal.

I think it's great to introduce it to them early on and kind of 'demystify' it so it becomes just another part of the toilet routine instead of being this big momentous change in their life.

plimple · 03/06/2009 14:34

Play it by ear. My dd is just 2 and we've been using the pot, she's great mostly and likes wearing knickers. She managed with no nappy on a park trip this morning (did a wee in a pot in the car before and after), but then after lunch did a bit of wee on the couch before making it to the pot for a very long one! This morning she did a poo on the pot while I was upstairs first thing and came up to me with wipes to wipe her bottom!
We've been sitting her on the pot in the evening since Christmas and haven't dared let her go nappyless until she was able to ask for the pot or go to it herself. Why not try using it with tv as a treat? e.g. after dinner she can sit on the pot and watch the night garden, but if she gets off it is switched off. If you make sure she's just had a drink she's likely to do a wee and will then know what it feels like.

plimple · 03/06/2009 14:35

If she has never done a wee on the pot it's a bit much for her to know what it's like. Long bouts of pot sitting are first step I took. No idea what any books or experts would say about it though!

Original poster

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 14:37

Thank you all so much for your advice. I didn't realise how hard and stressful potty training would be.

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Original poster

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 14:41

books drive me nuts. they all say the same thing. sit with them, keep returning them to the pot when they get off, follow them around with the pot etc... etc....
i have given up on books... i prefer a bit of advice from people who have had experience.

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Maveta · 03/06/2009 14:45

it really doesn't have to be stressful so just pull it back a few levels. Don't think you are or need to potty train her. Just think of it as introducing the potty, don't put any pressure on either of you to 'get it'. If she's telling you when she's peed/pooed in her nappy then she's pretty aware, you just need to help her make the connection but do it gently and slowly.

Maybe when she says she's gone, take her nappy off and put her on the potty. She'll probably get straight back off. don't worry about it. Have a couple of potties lying around. Pop her on at change time and see how it goes..

ilovetochat · 03/06/2009 14:46

hi sammy, i think you should put her back in nappies but offer the potty after drinks, before bathtime etc and then when you catch a few wees/poos in the potty then introduce some nappy off time with potty nearby and progress slowly.
when she tells you she has weed or pooed just tell her she could try and use the potty next time.
this is the slowly slowly method we used, dd shoed interest from 17 months, pooed on potty from 18 months and potty trained at 21 months so it is possible but only if they are ready.

plimple · 03/06/2009 14:47

We used the pot in the evenings for a month or 2 before she actually did a wee, then it took another few months of bare bum after the bath and a few wees on the carpet before she started to go on the pot herself. It's taken a few months from then to the situation now when I can have her out of nappies all day except nap time. I still wouldn't say she was "potty trained" though. I won't expect to be able to switch off alert mode and hang up the wee cloth until another few months at least - Plan is to be out of nappies by October when new baby comes.
My sister looks after a little boy who wasn't interested in the pot at all and so potty training was never tried. On his 3rd birthday he asked for no nappy and has NEVER had an accident since!

Original poster

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 14:49

will give it a go. i have been calm about it and have clapped and cheered her when she has sat on the pot. i think its grandparents interfering thats making me start potty training my little one. they love to tell me that she is ready and how im holding her back.

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Maveta · 03/06/2009 14:53

ignore the grandparents! I would say "you know I think I might try taking ds out of nappies soon" and mum would say "well yes you know I really think you should". Then after a couple of accidents I'd say "maybe he's too little still" and mum would say "yes I think so, he's still very little you know, you don't want to rush it"

thanks mum

Original poster

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 14:57

i know they think they are helping but sometimes you just want them to leave you alone to figure it out for yourself. does that sound awful??

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nickytwotimes · 03/06/2009 14:58

Doesn't sound awful at all, sammy.
They interfere a lot do Grandparetns! All of it is well meant, but best to smile, and and ignore.

nickytwotimes · 03/06/2009 15:00

Also, they potty trained us earlier in those days and (subconciously) want to prove that they did things 'right'. No doubt we will be teh same, lol.

Original poster

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 15:00

Will remember your advice tonight nicky when they come round and start asking about how the potty training is going.....

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Original poster

sammynixon · 03/06/2009 15:03

got to pick my boy up now. will catch up later.....

thank you all so much...

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SarahL2 · 03/06/2009 15:04

I think it's more to do with readiness that age. DS is 2.3 and pretty much potty trained but before I started he was showing all the signs - being upset by being in a dirty nappy, being able to tell me he had wee'd or poo'd, going for long periods with a dry nappy, etc

I just let him run round the house naked from the waist down whenever we were home for a couple of weeks then tried pants. We have a Potette that we take out with us and he is incredibly good at telling me when he needs to go now. It still takes quite a bit of effort on my side in reminding him and asking him if he needs to go when were out but we haven't had accidents for a while now.

My MIL was amazed. None of her other grandchildren were ready to start training until they were at least 3 and she thought it was too soon to try DS but even she now agrees that he was just ready.

It's never going to be a completely clean process but the more ready they are, the easier it will be.

CatIsSleepy · 03/06/2009 15:08

we tried the potty with dd1 when she was 2 years 4 months-too early

about 3 months later tried again and she got the hang of it very fast
actually our childminder started it-just putting her on the potty after naps etc
then we tried her with a bare bum around the house for a while

tbh i think it's more trouble than it's worth if she's really not ready...

vesela · 03/06/2009 15:12

I think the main thing is not what age she is but whether she seems keen overall. It's definitely possible to potty-train before 2, but only if they're up for it. After a little while more of watching you, brother etc. and thinking about it, she might well be keener.

i.e. no need to forget it totally just because she's not 2 yet - just follow your instincts.

What is she like when she's eating - if she spills some milk or something does she want you to wipe it up?

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