Potty Training During Lockdown!

[LunaHardy]

So now seems like a better time than any and I've decided to potty train my 2yo dd during quarantine! I haven't potty trained for about 10 years and that was with my ds. I've bought her a potty a few weeks ago just to get her used to it but she's still not keen on sitting on it. Any tips please?

First wee of the day done! Phew.

@Indecisivelurcher not sure if he’s ready. But my older child didn’t train until he was a bit over 3. He just didn’t get it at all at the same age as your child. 20 wees on the floor none in the potty. Loads of dribbles, not saying he’d done a wee at all etc. And my now 2.3 year old is managing to do nearly all her wees on the toilet despite being a year younger than he was. They’re so different. So maybe just try but if it’s stressful/a battle then try again in a few months. It really worked for us. As did bribing with chocolate buttons.

I think I've fucked this up. She won't even sit on or look at the potty now let alone pee in it. Feeling really downhearted this morning. Are there other ways that aren't 'oh crap'? It's not working for me.

@Joywillcomeagain We had this with my first child. We didn’t do Oh Crap method but it was a total disaster and my kid started to refuse potty at all. It became a battle. We stopped it as I didn’t want it to become a power battle. Because obvs it’s one you’ll never win. Anyway, I felt like I was failing for giving up. But it was definitely the right decision. Your child is saying they don’t want to do it right now so maybe go back to nappies and try again in a couple of months. I’m not saying you should give up, but if you want to and your child wants to then it doesn’t mean that all is lost.

Also, @Joywillcomeagain when we trained my boy, when he was a lot older, over 3, he basically cracked it in a day. One day. He had a couple of accidents but not full ones. Managed to stop his wee half way through and do the rest on toilet upstairs. And he was in pants and trousers the whole time from the beginning. No bare bum. And after a day he didn’t really have any accidents anymore. Only a few tiny dribbles that wet his pants but not through to his trousers. So there are other ways than oh crap.

@twistyhair thank you. I probably agree with you that he's not quite ready, and when he decides he'll just do it. But I am still considering giving it a try to see... Long as I don't upset him and put him off.

Thanks for your reply. I'm so torn part of me doesn't want to stop and potentially have to deal with an even more wilful older child. But part of me thinks she can sense my frustration and it's making her more resistant.
I didn't sleep very well last night which never helps anything. I just don't feel like we've made any progress at all. When I know she has to go and get her on the potty she just cries and comes off again and goes on the floor. When I get her there mid pee she isn't proud or bothered she just cries. I was so determined but I'm so fed up. If I could see a way forward I would feel better but I can't see how to bribe/ discipline/ seem casual my way out of it. Sorry I'm ranting away. I feel like it's making me a horrible mummy. I didn't feel like this last night but the giant pee on the floor this morning 2 seconds after I sat her on the potty (while I went on the loo at the same time) has broken me!
I hope everyone else is doing better than us!

@Indecisivelurcher please don't let my breakdown put you off. I'm sure it's worth a try.
Worth adding my dd is 2.5 but has got developmental delays (only started walking about a month ago) so we're probably a slightly different case to everyone else!

Argh @joy don't worry I'm not put off, I have an older Dd so I know what potty training is like. I'm just finding it hard to call my ds on his level of readiness.

Not sure what to say re your Dd. Sounds like it's about taking the pressure off you both somehow.

Hiya guys! We started potty training at the start of this but gave up after a week or so because he just didn't seem ready, will happily poo in the potty but was weeing every half hour on the floor and not really being excited if I got him on the potty half way through and praised him etc. He's not a child that I can just put in the potty constantly, he has to do it himself otherwise he gets very frustrated!
But we've had a couple of weeks off and nappy changes are getting increasingly more difficult... He can't make up his mind if he wants one on or not, asks for potty etc, kicks off when I change him. And if he has a wee in the bath he now stands up holds himself and then starts to wee so I believe he may be starting to realise when he needs to go. Oh and he can also say wee now when before he didnt have the word for it. So think I might catch up on all my washing and try again Monday?! What do you guys think??

@Joywillcomeagain after a good day we are getting some resistance too. I think it does seem a bit like a battle of wills.

I’m going to try not to push her to use it too much. So my new tactic is to say (after about 1-2 hours) Mummy is going for a wee do you want to come. If I’m casual or just walk away and close the door a lot of the time she will open it and come in.

@Indecisivelurcher I just think I’d really want to get it done if DD got so upset after doing a big wee in her nappy, or even if she told me she sometimes needed a wee. It sounds like he has a sense of shame about it. DD was showing way less signs that than- no sense of shame or anything. It really does sound like he wants to be out of nappies but you know best!

Much sympathy to everyone struggling with this, sadly I have no helpful advice as only six days in...

We had a massive wee this morning in the potty, thought the coast was clear, but no, massive wee in the car, thank god I put a plastic bag in a pillow case on her car seat, otherwise I would be literally wringing it out.

There's so much pressure and I think it's important to remember they are all different, as we can see with all our experiences here so far! I always like to remember the Michael McIntyre sketch where he points out that they will all get to their milestones eventually, you don't meet adults at a dinner party who are still crawling because they haven't learned to walk... (she says, scrubbing wee out of the carpet... 😭)

@babycornplease I agree!

I’m trying to have a sense of humour about it and not get disheartened when she has an accident as she’s proved she can do it, and at least there’s no pressure to get it done quickly for nursery or to go to play groups and stuff.

I keep re reading the oh crap book and I agree with a lot of what she says so I’m going to stick with it.

Big wee on the armchair. BuT he did try on the potty only 1 min before he did a wee so that's a good sign. And tell me he'd been so good again.

@Indecisivelurcher that’s great.

He's extremely motivated to get some batman pants!!!

If you are not in a good place then I would have thought it’s ok to give up for a while. They need you to be fully ready too. Too much stress and pressure won’t help, and lord knows we are all a bit stressed to start with at the mo!

Mine has refused to go all morning but has just asked for a drink so I’m assuming his first wee was done in his nappy which got left on a bit too long this am... will prompt in half an hour. He gets quite annoyed if I am reminding too much! Says “ I do self”

@Maxmeandbump I’d definitely go back to it on Monday.

I remember I used these years ago for my older one fir that awkward stage where they still have accidents out and about:

www.amazon.co.uk/Dry-Like-Me-Early-Training/dp/B00DSM45AS/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&s=drugstore&keywords=Dry+Like+Me&search-type=ss&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&qid=1587029278&sr=1-1

I found a good compromise which saved a lot of mess without feeling too much like a nappy and thereby undoing the good work... might help some of you?

They’re a bit like panty liners but kid friendly wrapping and correct shape for little bottoms.

@fascinated that’s what I’ve been doing when DD won’t wee, Ive been waiting about half an hour.

Good news is after an accident this morning and loads of refusing she then took herself off for a poo and a wee. Made sure we did lots of praise.

I feel like I can relax for a bit now haha.

@Joywillcomeagain The thing with potty training is it’s just like everything else. They all get their in their own time. And I always think it’s only worth doing if you and child are both up for it and ready. If it’s becoming a stress for either of you then you can just stop and try again later. My first trained quite ‘late’ at over 3 and I definitely felt the pressure that he was still in nappies and others weren’t. But it was making him upset and worried and I didn’t want him to get negative connotations of toileting. It actually took us three attempts before he was ready. Good luck with it!

My husband has just taken our girl out for a walk with no nappy....

@iris243 thanks I think I will. Seems like he has more signs of readyness which perhaps the attempted potty training before had kickstarted! I should say he's 30 months and already has very strong will power so don't want to leave it too long and be dealing with the iron will of a 3 year old!!

@Maxmeandbumo sounds like a good plan. Let us know how you get on

The point about the Iron will is interesting, isn’t it? I hadn’t thought of it like that but it kinda makes sense. Personality is key.

The other thing that kick started it was looking at old photos given to me by my mum and seeing a pic of me in little seventies shorts. I can’t have been more than 2 given the time of year, the house we were in etc but I was clearly not wearing a nappy. So it is clearly possible. It’s just that nowadays we don’t have any expectations of younger kids so obviously they are clueless when we first take off their nice warm dry nappies!

good luck everyone! We’re trying again with the underpants, practising taking up and down too!

When I was training my Dd at just over 2, she was dry for about a month then refused point blank to go, think the novelty had worn off. After a few weeks of positive, I got mad and took her doll away. She ended up with 3 dolls sat on the mantle before she decided she would use the loo after all. She didn't have a single accident after. Defo a case of iron will stubborn!