Suggestions on potty training?

Question

I have a 2 year old that is about to be 3 in a couple of months, and she still wets and dirties her diaper, she knows what a potty is and what it is used for, we've got the book with Prudence and her potty (can't remember the name..we call it the potty book) and she will go on the 'big' potty if she's getting ready for a bath, but any other time she'll just go in her diaper
Any suggestions?

Answer 1

The most important thing for you to do is not show anger or frustration while you do the potty training. Inevitably, the process tests your resolve.

If you can find them, buy several plasticized or rubberized waterproof training pants. These go over the child’s regular panties. Even if you cannot find them, get her out of her diaper during the day. The wetness is so uncomfortable that it encourages her to go to the potty. Leave her in the regular panties during naptimes too. Make sure you put a waterproof mattress pad on her bed. For the first couple of weeks, put her in bed for the night with the diaper. You want to conquer potty training one-step-at-a-time. (We tried the pull-up-style daytime diapers, but quit using them because they kept the child from feeling wet.)

The technique I use is to set a timer (the one on my watch works great) to go off once per hour. Put the child on the potty and require she stays there for fifteen minutes, unless she does her business.

Make sure you stay consistent with the timer and putting her on the potty. After fifteen minutes, if she has not done her business, allow her to get off the potty. Ten minutes later, ask her if she needs to go potty again. Keep asking until it is time for the next fifteen-minute routine. Clean her If she wets or messes herself after not going during the scheduled time. As you clean her, talk to her using a child-friendly voice. Tell her you expect her to be a big girl and use the potty. Avoid chastising and punishing, as both become counterproductive in my experience.

As you probably already know, just-before-bed snacks do not make for the best friend when trying to potty train. The child needs to finish the last snack or drink at least one hour before bed or before a nap. Keep all these before-sleep-snacks. This is a good time to begin teaching teeth brushing before bed. At two-years-old, the child should understand the logic of not eating after bedtime teeth brushing. Set a one-minute timer for teeth brushing and remain with the child to prevent accidents. Do not put your child to bed with a bottle or a sippie-cup.

Once you achieve some success with the daytime potty training, begin the nighttime potty training. Depending upon the time you put the child to bed and the time that you go to bed, you may need to put the child on the potty more than once. After the first 90 minutes of sleep, carry and place the child on the potty for about ten minutes. If the child does not awaken completely, this is fine. Do this again two-hours later, or a few minutes before you go to bed. For the first week or two, continue to use diapers for nighttime sleeping. As the task becomes routine, switch to regular underwear.

Expect many nighttime accidents, and resist the urge to punish or chastise. You may give her the warm wet washcloth to clean herself if you need to change the sheets at night. (We sometimes put a beach towel over the wet spot in the beginning.) This begins teaching her that going to the potty is her responsibility. If you must change the sheets in the morning, have her assist you, the whole time speaking matter-of-factly, but calmly, about the importance of her becoming a big girl. Do not consider the tasks you give her as a punishment, rather as on object lesson.

Praise the child often for successes! Sometimes the praise can be indirect by bragging to someone on the phone about how your child is becoming a big girl now because she uses the potty. Let the child overhear the conversation so that she can feel some pride knowing that you think she is doing well.

Good luck!

Will D
Enterprise AL
http://www.notagz.com

Answer 2

I toilet trained seven kids and each one was different. But the best suggestion that I can give is to take her out and let her pick out the *big girl* pants that she wants.

Don't let her put them on right away though. Wait until you have both had a good nights rest and then start in the morning.

Do not put a diaper on her no matter how much easier it would be and make it clear to her that now she is a big girl and big girls use a potty chair.

You have to be strong and determined and when she has accidents (and she will lol!) just go with the flow and let her know next time will be better.

I used regular training pants at night because pulls up are just glorified diapers (nappies) and rubber pants (plastic pants).
We had to change bedsheets every so often but for the most part the kids were trained within a week.

As long as there is cotton touching their skin and not a diaper they tried really hard to stay clean and dry.

Good luck!

Answer 3

I found with mine that a diaper, sometimes even the pull ups were difficult at times when they had to go. She's still learning how to control those muscles and what not. Try her with some underwear. She will most likely wet them for a while, but nothing washing cant fix. Just buy lots. Eventually she will get tired of getting dirty. With a diaper there's less wetness because it retains the bulk. Going into the underwear takes patience, but it does work. Also it might help if you move the potty seat somewhere else, perhaps near the tv or where she can get to it quicker. Also ask her frequently if she has to. Good luck.

Answer 4

get pullups for at night and get around 30 or more pairs of undies then put her on a scedual every half an hour to 45 minutes make her sit on the potty even of she says no. It is a pain in the but, yet worth it. My son is ^ and autistic and we still have to do this. With my 9 year old girl this worked great.
If you make a chart with te date on it and give her a sticker every time she pees and poops on the potty that will show her that using the potty is rewarding ( no bulky diapers and clean undies being the ultamute reward)

Answer 5

My daughter will be 3 next month and she just started peeing on the potty 3 weeks ago. All kids are different - some respond to bribery (favorite candy, new toy etc) but I found that nothing will make them go if they just plain aren't ready for it ! Every day my daughter asks for a lollipop and I tell her No way not until you poop on the potty. She still refuses. I let her pick out the big girl underwear...didn't matter either! The dr tells me this is normal and she WILL do it when she is ready. Trust me I understand the frustration ! Good luck to you !

Answer 6

First of all, make sure she isn't feeling insecure about something in her life. Children tend to regress and to stop progress in development when they are experiencing stress. When she wets her pants, try and see if there is something going on that happens every time she does it.

Second, be brave and just use panties. Diapers and pull ups these days work so well that kids hardly know they are wet. For a week or so you will have messes to clean up but it will help her in the long run.
In my years of working with kids, I have potty trained 200 kids that way!
Good Luck

Answer 7

Talk to her ask her why she still goes in her diaper. Tell her that she is a big girl now and needs to go on the big potty. Tell her she really needs to tell you when she has to go because that is a big part in being a big girl. Try taking her to the potty periodically during the day especially after she eats and know when she is going to poop. Good luck!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 8

I let my daughter watch me when I go and when I have to pee I ask her if she has to pee too. Usually she just comes in and sits on her potty, but she has the right idea. Make a big deal out of it when she does go-or at least tries to go! Take her doll in there and act like the doll has to pee and congratulate the doll on going. Get big girl underwear and let her pick them out herself! I got the Elmo goes potty doll, she loves it. And ask periodically throughout the day if she has to potty.

Answer 9

Potty training takes it's own time...My son is going to be 3 in Feb and he goes to the big potty ~ like your daughter..just before tub time...and sometimes he tells me he has to go..during the day..he's just NOT ready yet!! Give her time and pretty soon she won't like that nasty(I would think it would GROSS them out.!!)feeling in their pants...I know I can SMELL when Joe has gone poop and I ask him if he did stinkies in his pants...he looks at me and says.."Nope...I'm fine" and goes off and plays until I smell him out of the corner he's hiding in...THEY will out grow this and be potty trained...just don't rush her..