Okay my daughter just turned 2 in December. I wanted to potty train her this spring/summer; however, she decided she wanted to wear princess panties and no longer wants to wear a diaper. I figured if she feels ready I should take her lead. So she has stayed dry during the day and I have been putting her in diapers during naps and bedtime. Today she decided she did not want the diaper at nap time. I don't think she can stay dry while she is sleeping and she is still in a crib so she can't get herself to the potty either. Of course, I told her to call for me if she needs to go, but I don't know if it will work. Maybe she just needs to pee the bed a few times to realize a diaper is okay at bedtime or learn to call for me. She did pee her panties 3 times before she managed to stay dry while awake.
Any suggestions? What did you do during nap and bedtime when you started potty training??
Thank you.
M.
Thank you all for your advice. I put her in little swimmers during nap-time since I didn't have any pull-ups, which she was still wetting. Sunday she had her first accident in the morning, but then stayed dry the rest of the day even at church and through nap-time. She had fallen asleep in her panties so we put a towel under her, but she stayed dry 3 hours! Then Monday she had another accident and wore a diaper to bed. When she woke up she was teething and wanted to stay in a diaper. So we are back to square one. Oh well. Maybe when she's done teething she'll be ready to try again. We'll see.
I used pull-ups for a time, but they cost a lot of money, so I got some reusable plastic underwear covers at Wal-wart. You can get them in different colors. I think I got a pack of 8 for under $10(that was all they had). I like them because the kids can feel if they are wet(unlike pull-ups), and I don't have to change sheets in the morning!
Didn't have time to read your responses and it maybe too late for this tactic.
When my daughter wanted to wear underwear during nap, I told her that she had to be clean and dry in her pull up for 5 consecutive days. It took her a few weeks and she's been wearing underwear since. For nighttime, she still wears a nighttime diaper but hasn't reached that milestone yet to wear underwear (10 consecutive days).
Hope you have much success.
Hi Megan,
If your little girl thinks she doesn't need a diaper, she probably doesn't. You have to believe she knows what she's talking about. If you let her know she can't be trusted not to wet the bed, she has too much pressure not to. Let it be. Just make sure she goes to the bathroom immediately before going to bed. I'll bet she's going to surprise you. My first was 17 mos. old and never had a single wet bed incident. Not once. When she was in a diaper she was dry every morning. This was after 10 hours of sleep. So I know it's possible and I also know that you have to trust your child (or at least make them think you do;o)). Good luck. Some kids are just ready.
i don't particularly care for them, and don't use them, but you can try princess pull ups, or (this is what we do) compromise, and tell her she can wear underwear over her diaper at night/naps, until you can feel more confident that she will stay dry...I personally don't like the idea of wetting the bed and changing the sheets, and this way...I don't have to worry about it!
I let my son decide when he was ready to be potty trained too and the same day he decided to wear his underwear all day was the night he wanted to go without a diaper. Scared me to death! I didn't sleep all night for fear that he would need help out of the crib to go potty or, worse yet, have an accident. My son stayed dry all night...but boy did he pee for a long time in the toilet the next morning! Your daughter might surprise you. My son was potty trained a few months before turning 3 so he was older than your daughter. But he's really small so when he was 3 he probably had a bladder of a 2 year old. I honestly didn't think he could hold it through the night and I wasn't ready to part with diapers at night. I can't relate to the nap problem since he gave up naps at 2, but the night time was scary for me for about a month. He only had two nights when he had accidents and both were during growth spurts. Luckily, we had a mattress pad protector that sat on the top of the fitted sheets and snapped to the crib railings. Thus, dealing with the problem was as easy as snapping off the protector, changing his pjs and putting him back to bed. Thus, if you are fearful of the sleep accidents, I would get some sort of mattress protector that can be easily removed if she has an accident, but let her take the lead and go without the diaper while she sleeps. Hope you sleep better than I did the first month she goes without a diaper in the crib! Congrats on having a child potty train herself so early.
I completely understand your dilemna. My daughter (2 in dec) is doing the same thing. What I have done a few times when she napped without a diaper is put a towel or extra blanket under her. It is easier to wash than wash all the bedding. However she did stay dry. You never know..she might surprise you. I still insist on a diaper at night.
You should be jumping up and down with pure joy! Follow her lead, let her nap without a diaper. Take potty before she goes down for a nap. If you're concerned about a wet bed, get a rubber sheet to put down on her bed. She is more than ready. For night time sleep, again, potty before bed. If she has repeated accidents, suggest a pull up, but continue to work with her to potty train for the night. Limiting liquid intake after 7 pm, potty before bedtime. Get her up during the middle of the night to empty her bladder. Yes, it is work, but it will help her gain control and awareness during the night to wake up and go to the bathroom when she feels the urge. This is also the time to consider a move to a youth bed. Is her potty chair one that sits on the floor or is it an attachment to your toilet seat? You want to make the bathroom accessible for her, give her control without having to ask you to go to the bathroom, waiting for you to take her and deal with things. Congratulations!!!!! Your little girl is becoming independent.
When we were going through this I decided to take my daughter's lead as well. When she told me she did not want a diaper for bed I said OK (while preparing myself to wake in the middle of the night to change the sheets)
Well, maybe we are just lucky, but she has NEVER wet the bed. She has a couple of times had a close call, calling out to us that she needed to go potty, but otherwise she has been great and she is now 3.5.
Good luck-
If she wants to potty train.. let her, don't let her pee her crib, that's gross.. you need to get her a big girl/toddler bed.
A good way to transition is put a toddler bed next to the crib. let her take her naps in the toddler bed for a week, so she gets used to it in the "light". When she feels confident, take the crib out of the room.
naps are short enough, if you have her pee before she goes to bed she should be fine. My boys did use pull ups at night until they had several dry mornings in a row.
Maybe just put a waterproof pad under her during nap time? There are some that you can just lay over the mattress to cover it that might be a great choice. There are also the ones that completely cover the mattress or the littler ones that could work. We've just started potty training as well but aren't dry during the day just yet!
That sounds just like how my daughter was. She refused to wear a diaper at night. So I was just prepared to change her in the middle of the night. I would suggest getting a wool changing pad or mattress protector to put under her.I always had extra underwear and pj's somewhere right by the bed.
If she does wake up at night I assume she has to pee and sometimes I have the little potty and I just hold her on it in the bed (she sleeps in a twin) She is usually upset because she is tired but she will pee and then fall back to sleep.
She is almost 3 and it took her about 6 months to be dry at night, it was very slow going, but now I am glad we did it that way because she doesn't have to wear any diapers at all.
H.
U got many good suggestions on things to do to help with potty training.I'm sooo saving this post.lol
My daughter will be 3 in June and keeps wanting to potty train and then changing her mind.ugh..frustrating but I'm just trying to go on her terms to make it as peaceful and smooth as possible.lol
I agree with wearing her big girl panties over her diaper/pullup at nap/bed times.Thats what we've done with my daughter when we think she should be in a diaper instead but still wants her Dora panties.It seems to make it ok.
When my boys started napping without diapers or pull ups, they wet their beds a few times, but seriously, it only took a few accidents and that was the end of it. I was also nervous to not put a diaper/pull up on at nap time, but they refused as well. I think it may take a few times of wetting the bed but they figure it out way quicker than we think they will. As soon as my second son started wearing underwear he was done with naps at diaper so it was a quick transition for him. If you aren't ready or she doesn't adjust quickly, perhaps you could put her princess undies over her pull up? Good luck!
