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Potty training

Is your child ready for potty training at nursery? Here's the place for all your toilet training questions.

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Original poster

Help. DD has decided to potty train herself.

16 replies

MiaSparrow · 08/08/2013 22:29

I was planning to start in a couple of weeks anyway, but it looks like she's beaten me to it and has decided that's it, nappies are for babies. (typical DD!) She's nearly two and a half.

So, it's really taken me by surprise - we had a potty already, but no knickers at all. (I have them now).

I hope we're doing all the right things. I was going to read the little Gina Ford book and do it boot camp style. I had planned on using the coming bank holiday weekend to start, but this is a bit awkward now because DP and I are busy over the next few days so she'll be with babysitters and I'm sure they've got plans to take her out and about in this sunny weather this weekend.

I just hope she doesn't lose her momentum and enthusiasm! Any tips? She's not in nappies at home at all now apart from at night of course. We've had way more successes than accidents so far (maybe 10/2?). And she's OBSESSED with her new big girl knickers, so that's good.

I think she's slightly confused about poo though - she started going today in her pants so I whipped them off and put her on the potty, so we're calling that one a half success. Also, she took off a pooey nappy and gave it to Nana on the day this all started. "Here you go, Nana, I've done a poo."

So at the moment I'm still putting her in a nappy when we go out. I hope this isn's detrimental. The Gina book is literally in the post. DD couldn't even wait until that had turned up.

Any advice very welcome. Thanks!

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Original poster

MiaSparrow · 08/08/2013 22:32

Oh also, I should mention that last night she came running into our room at 2am shouting I NEED TO DO A WEE! But obviously she had a nappy on. I hope this is OK and it's not stressing her out. I guess it's good that she now knows she needs to go and is telling us. Just not at 2am...

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Crikeyblimey · 08/08/2013 22:32

Don't panic. Ds decided himself and had about 4 accidents over a few days and then had it all sorted. I kept him in nappies till he'd been dry overnight for a few weeks (I then Put bed mats under his sheets for a bit longer) and we never looked back. He's 10 now :)

If she's ready, she's ready. Go with it. :)

WideScreenViper · 08/08/2013 22:36

It all sounds good! If she can communicate clearly about it, sounds like she can, babysitters will be fine. If she is nighttime training as well best get geared up for that quickly too!

I never found using the odd pull- up for out and about confused mine but you have to see what suits your single-minded wee one!

Original poster

MiaSparrow · 08/08/2013 22:39

Thanks Crikey yes, I've heard it can happen like that. She seems to be on top of it and I think she's been influenced by seeing some of her friends with knickers on/using a potty outside. I've ordered one of those Potette things for outings, so quite excited about that.

She'll probably have it down pat by the time that book turns up!

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Original poster

MiaSparrow · 08/08/2013 22:42

Viper yes, she's a really good communicator and definitely knows her own mind, so I know when I'm not to push her, too. I'll see what happens tonight with needing to wee. It's all happening so quickly!

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ScariestFairyByFar · 08/08/2013 22:47

My dd did the same at 2.3 I really wasn't ready!! She's done really well one accident a day for the first week nothing since and it's been 3 weeks. Have a look at Sarah Ockwell Smith's blog she has a great one on potty training.

AnythingNotEverything · 08/08/2013 22:48

She sounds ready. Follow her lead, and then quietly thank your lucky stars!

Original poster

MiaSparrow · 08/08/2013 22:50

I like the sound of that Anything! Thanks Fairy will have a look at the blog. xx

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Original poster

MiaSparrow · 11/08/2013 21:01

Hi, quick update - a week on DD's doing brilliantly well. She's going around telling everyone who'll listen that she doesn't wear nappies anymore and that she's now three!

But, we have a problem at night times - she's now waking up in the night shouting at us that she needs a wee and seems quite stressed about it. I don't know if she remembers that she's in a nappy, and even if she does she's really not happy weeing into a nappy anymore.

Is this a normal reaction? Anyone tried day and night time potty training at the same time? It's almost as if she's desperate to go on her potty when the need to wee is waking her up.

Really need some advice on this. I don't know what to do at all!

Thanks! xx

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Amiee · 11/08/2013 21:08

My dd refused to wear nappies at night a couple of weeks after day training. She has only ever wet the bed twice but still has accidents occasionally in the day?! turns out her bladder is more than ready but if shes playing she doesnt care if she wets herself. We put a potty in her room just in case.

AnotherStitchInTime · 11/08/2013 21:12

She is doing really well, but the nights can take longer to master

Try reducing fluid intake before bedtime and take her to the toilet or the potty in her room before you go to bed yourselves. We did this with dd1 who decided at the same age that she would no longer wear a nappy at night (she was daytime trained at 2). By 3 she was able to go through the night without waking for a wee. Bed mats are great just in case of the odd accident as they act like a nappy and draw the urine away from them if they do have an accident so that they don't get cold lying in their urine.

RNJ3007 · 11/08/2013 21:13

We put a potty in DDs room in case she couldn't manage getting to bathroom quick enough. Stopped the screeching!

VinegarDrinker · 11/08/2013 21:16

My DS - 2y5m - decided to PT himself a month ago (when DD was 2 weeks old, on the same day DH went back to work - to say I was not ready would be a massive understatement!).

Anyway he's been absolutely fine. Can count the accidents on one hand, and most of those were at nursery. We've only had one "public" accident - as he was trying to get his pants down to go behind a tree..... No accidents at home at all. We have been out and about since day 1 with no pull ups.

He started waking with dry nappies & trying to take them off to wee, so we put him in pull ups overnight and put a potty in his room. Again I was expecting night dryness to be months/years away but we haven't had a wet morning pull up in 10 days, he gets up in the morning and goes in his potty. He doesn't seem to need to go overnight.

Neena28 · 11/08/2013 21:30

Ds did this. Just started of his own accord just before he was 2. We had no problems at all and let him get on with it. I suppose I didn't really know any different as hasn't even thought about it. He had about three accidents which were when we were in the car and couldn't stop quickly enough. He was also very communicative as a toddler. When he was 2 and a half he kept taking his nappy off when we put him to bed and dropping it over the side of his cot! Moved him to a bed and had a few weeks of getting up in a hurry and then he started going through the night with an epic wee at about 6am!!

Dd wasn't quite as easy and I'm still not unconvinced that it wasn't cos I was more cued up about kids and times/ages etc by then and I made it more of a 'thing' of it.

Just go with the flow and see what happens. Maybe set a timer to try on the potty every hour to help her?

Original poster

MiaSparrow · 11/08/2013 21:48

Thanks all, great advice. Will have a think about maybe giving her her night time milk earlier. And thankfully she's already in a toddler bed so she could easily get out and put herself on the potty if she needed to.

My goodness, this is all happening so quickly! I had envisaged night time nappies for another six months or so.

I know there's the argument that pull-ups are confusing to toddlers but a night time one, for now makes absolute sense. It's being unable to or rather not wanting to go in her nappy that's stressing her out at night. Will look into the mats too.

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VoldemortsNipple · 11/08/2013 21:49

Its a long time since I potty trained mine, but I seem to recall a twilight wee thingy being popular for night time training. Just before parents go to bed, you would gently wake your child (or sleep walk them) and take them to the bathroom for a wee and guide them back to bed where they should hopefully sleep through and stay dry.

Hope Im not getting confused with twilight feeding

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