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MNHQ

Share your tips on potty training with ASDA - £300 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED

339 replies

PoppyMumsnet · 06/07/2016 10:05

Teaching toddlers how to go to the toilet is one of the unavoidable tasks all parents must face - but it needn't be something you dread. There are many who've already been there, done that - and their learnings are invaluable.

So if you're smiling smugly from the other side, share your top tips for parents embarking on the potty training journey. What advice can you offer to make the experience less stressful - maybe even fun?

So, what words of wisdom can you share? How did you know when your child was ready to start training, and how did you integrate it into your everyday routine? Maybe you discovered clever strategies for introducing a potty or tricks for simplifying the transition from nappies to proper underwear?

How did you encourage and praise little ones for a job well done - or respond to the (inevitable) accidents without undoing all their good work? Do you have any potty training tricks for when you're out and about?

Whatever your top tips for successful potty training are, share them with Asda below to be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 ASDA voucher.

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

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Share your tips on potty training with ASDA - £300 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED
OP posts:
moneypenny66 · 10/07/2016 18:31

I wish someone had told me not to stress about the whole potty training thing. I think if it is really difficult, then the child is probably not ready and it's best not to make a big thing of it and try again in a few months.

Marg2k8 · 10/07/2016 18:35

I kept potties in the house for months before, so that we could talk about it and what would happen "when you're a big girl".

barbsbarbs · 10/07/2016 18:45

when I was potty training my four, I got more relaxed about it by the time I got to the fourth one and in fact the more relaxed about it the quicker and easier they were potty trained.

liz1970 · 10/07/2016 19:05

Asking them if they want to go and reminding them where the potty is. also using reward charts :)

lulumajor · 10/07/2016 19:38

don't rush it! it will happen at some point and lots of encouragement

arat · 10/07/2016 19:51

Whatever happens, whatever goes wrong, don't get stressed out about it! We did and regretted it at our significant cost! You just have to stay calm!!

womble40 · 10/07/2016 20:01

I always sat mine on the potty after a meal,they used to have a book or toy to keep them still.

sweetsomethings · 10/07/2016 20:01

dont push it if they are not ready it will only set them back

Ikea1234 · 10/07/2016 20:19

Patience, patience, patience! And take a potty everywhere with you!!

funkyfish586 · 10/07/2016 20:38

I think children make it obvious when they are ready, waiting for that time to come is the best idea & it will be a breeze. if you do it before they are ready, it will be stressful & unsuccessful.

rennie1811 · 10/07/2016 20:50

I bought the little princess book - I want my potty. My daughter thought it was very funny and we spoke about going to the toilet after reading the book. We also bought big girl pants which she looked forward to wearing and had a reward chart for every dry day

Ladybirdturd · 10/07/2016 20:57

Try and have as much patience as you can muster! Spend the first few days at home to take away the stress or anxiety of any accidents outdoors.

Southsearocks · 10/07/2016 21:00

Getting your toddler to blow bubbles while sitting on the potty encourages them to open their bowels. Fact! Grin

pfcpompeysarah · 10/07/2016 21:20

Be patient, time the moment you try to introduce this to your toddler well (i.e not when you are out frequently), reward/praise your child and their success and accept accidents will happen so have plenty of cleaning materials!!!!

Narnianescape · 10/07/2016 21:22

Perserverance is the key to potty training

Hopezibah · 10/07/2016 21:25

had good times and bad with potty training. One thing my son loved was a 'pants chart' instead of a star chart we had all different types of pants that he stuck on with blue tack and then got a reward once chart was full.

Other than that i think it is so important to start when ready and not sooner. I was afraid of using pull ups with first child as i heard it can 'confuse' the child but used with second child and it took all the stress away when out and about which made potty training far more successful.

Spices001 · 10/07/2016 21:39

Always take your child's cue & wait until they are ready

BlackeyedPetitsPois · 10/07/2016 21:41

Lots of patience!! Plus you'll know when they are ready so go at their pace. Never tell them off for little accidents.
Buy lots of pairs of cheap pants/knickers - and let them choose colours/designs etc. Make it into a reward game too with stickers each time they use the potty/toilet.
Have a potty in each room, or at least one upstairs and one downstairs. Invest in decent carpet cleaner just in case!

Pigeonpea · 10/07/2016 21:48

Listen to your little one - It'd not a race
We've been doing potty training for about 12 months - little is adamant she's not old enough for pull ups or knickers, happy to use potty, so we are working with her

compy99 · 10/07/2016 21:58

don't start it too early and don'r panic if it takes longer than you anticipated, they get there in the end, just be patient

hannonle · 10/07/2016 22:00

Reward charts worked with the first two kids. Number 3 knows what to do and will sometimes do it but it's not clicking. I think I'm at the not pushing it stage and waiting it out. Some days she's great. Other days she just refuses.

As part of teaching her about water and how it comes down the pipes etc I asked her where the pipes went to and she said on holiday so I made up a story that when you flush the loo, the wee goes down the pipes and on holiday. She seems to think that is fun and likes to press the flush button. Sometimes we send my wee on holiday, sometimes hers, and sometimes they are friends and go together! It's just something fun that can make her use the loo when she's a bit reluctant.
Also her toddler loo seat is a turtle, so we sit on it and squash it dead haha! Kids, eh?!

littleme96 · 10/07/2016 22:07

Wait until they are ready - if you wait until the right time, it will be so much quicker and easier once you start.

Bribery is good. Stock up on stickers and character pants.

Get a potty and a trainer seat so that your child has a choice of which to use.

Give lots of praise!

planepointer · 10/07/2016 22:10

Not too much pressure - when they're ready they're ready;

pennwood · 10/07/2016 22:21

An Irish midwife advised us at ante natal classes to put the young baby on the potty on our laps straight after feeding as they always go. I thought it very strange but being new to it followed her advice, & sure enough it worked. Baby got used to the potty so I never had problems, & DD was dry in the day at a year old. Friends were amazed, but all the other mums at the class who did it had excellent results too.

Donthate · 10/07/2016 23:20

Let your doc see you go to the toilet and talk your way through it. "Mummy needs a wee, lets go to the toilet..." My Children always wanted to copy everything I did so this worked a treat for us.