Potty Training - San Francisco,CA

Updated on April 25, 2011
J.E. asks from San Francisco, CA
9 answers

at what age do you start potty training?

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G.K.

answers from San Francisco on

I introduced the potty to my son when he was around 18-19mo, and since we already had the potty, my 17mo daughter has already been on it for 2 months. Not training, but introducing. My son was day-trained at almost 40 months and still wears a pull-up at night. My daughter isn't showing any signs yet, so *shrug* I'm pretty laid-back for now, but I also recognize that you can't force a child to train.

As a side note, I want to point out that when children were trained at 18mo, it was more of a shame thing besides realistically not changing cloth diapers at age 2. Things are very different now, especially with disposable diapers, but I like to think that I have more respect for my children than to shame them into something they aren't really ready for. Just my opinion......

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S.H.

answers from Hartford on

We introduced potties into the bathroom at around 18 months. He sat on them with and without his clothes on and we cheered. Since he turned 21 months I sit him on the potty every morning (he is very regular) and we read stories and play with toys until he pees and poos (I sit him on the big potty and let his stuffed animals sit on the little potty). He's 22 months and that is still the bulk of our routine - occasionally he will mention having to pee or poo and we will sit him on the potty to no avail.

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K.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

I think eveyone agrees it kinda depends on the kid, but with both my boys, I waited until after two. The younger one is almost trained completely (only wears a diaper at night) and he's three in June. We started casually this winter but a rash pushed us into underwear in March. The old child had no example but his peers at day care. He started mid-late two, I think.

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D.K.

answers from Pittsburgh on

Whenever you like. DS trained just after 2. Many people do elimination communication with infants. The world wide average is less than 12 months. t Almost all children in the US were trained by 18 months when cloth diapering was the norm. Now the age is much much later.

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B.R.

answers from Sacramento on

In most cases, around age two. In your case, be sure you've taken care of the transition from bottle to cup first. If you start that now, there's no reason why you shouldn't be able to introduce potty training at age two,

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P.M.

answers from Portland on

A strong modern trend is to wait until the child is around 26 months or older, can understand the concept and takes a personal interest in it, and has attained the physical abilities to recognize elimination urges and hold the pee until they can get to the toilet. It frequently takes boys longer than girls to reach the needed physical maturity, and some children are not able to be trained until they are 3.5 or 4 years old. But most begin to achieve success somewhere between 26-36 months.

When they are ready on all levels, kids are often eager to train, just as they were eager to walk and talk. At that point, training is more self-taught, and the parents are a helpful support team. The process might be a complete success in a day, or a week with diminishing accidents every day. Kids who are started well before they are ready may be "in training" for many months, until they have reached the needed physical and emotional maturity.

Night dryness is often a separate step, can't be taught, and happens in its own time. For some unlucky children, they are well into grade school before they begin to wake up dry. Pooping in the potty is also a separate step for some kids, occasionally happening before, but more frequently after, pee training.

But in practice, it can depend on quite a few factors, such as how you define potty-training, how much time and attention you are willing to give to the process, and your child's and your personalities. Here's a site that gives some great "readiness" checklists, plus the skinny on the various approaches to potty-training, their advantages and challenges.

http://www.parentingscience.com/toilet-training-readiness...

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C.P.

answers from Provo on

There are so many different signs to look for. You can always get a potty chair and see what kind of luck you have. I would say a ballpark figure would be around 2.

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H.D.

answers from Dallas on

Definitely it depends on the child for sure. My first son had ZERO interest or any concept of the idea until almost the age of 4. He also didn't respond to treats and prizes for going, we had to use distractions (he played his leapfrog while sitting on the toilet). My second child came (girl) and by 16 months of age she'd enjoy walking around the house w/a wad of toilet paper saying, "wipe!" as she'd pretend to wipe her self. She was PT'd in no time, she was a piece of cake. Now my third child (another girl), she's interested but scared, she is now 2 1/2yo. I can tell she'll need a gentle approach to fully get her PT. Just watch for clues, and if your child doesn't give any like my first son, then just do it when you feel your child comprehends what you are saying for them to do:)

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S.S.

answers from Daytona Beach on

it really depends on your child. I worked in a daycare for a number of years with the 2 yr olds. As soon as they came into my room, I started potty training them. It rarely took over two weeks to potty train. My daughter was potty trained by 2.5 (completely night trained also). My son was potty trained by 2 yrs old. However, he still needs a diaper for most nights. I know a lot of parents are holding off until their children are older, but I know that most daycares will not take a child if they are not potty trained by the time they are 3 and quite a few by the time they are 2.

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