Seeking for Any Advice on Potty Training

I have been doing a lot of reading on this as we are approaching the age...from what I read you can't really help them get muscle control until they are ready. It sounds like you are doing the right thing, he just isn't all the way there yet.

hi A..

i suggest you slow down. i made the same mistake with my first-born, a boy. it ended up taking forever! all because he wasn't completely ready. they have tp be emotionally and physically ready. while they may very likely show "some' signs, doesn't mean they know how to put it all together. i had alot suggest to me that with #2 son, i wait it out a little longer until he was between 2 1/2 to 3. i did, and he broke both ways in 2 weeks! did the same for the next 2 boys (4 total), and it went great as well. with yours already being 2 1/2 it may not be much longer. on the other hand, it might be awhile yet. try to be patient. best wishes, and good luck.

C.

I just finally got my 3 year old potty trained. It was not easy. It took a good six months to get him to understands. Not to mention I stayed home with him for a full week to work on it because you need to have consistency. Here is what I did...

I stopped pullups all together. Just undies, (except at bed). Every 15 minutes I asked him to go potty. He gladly did. If he went, he got to take one m&m out of a bowl in the bathroom. My husband and father realized he liked to pee like a big boy, so they taught him to stand up. That was the easy part. Pooping was hard, but eventually he just started going. I tried to catch him before he did it in his undies. We also rewarded him by taking him to ride the camels at the zoo. Make sure every time he goes, you throw a "potty party", because it gives them great joy to see you so excited about it. I hope this helps. Write if you need anything else or would like to discuss this further. Good luck. Undies are great! LOL!

From what I have heard you can't really force the issue. Unfortunately, kids work on their own schedules, especially with potty training. I'd say you're off to a good start, but unless *he's* ready it will just turn into a battle.

2 1/2 is still young, though not impossible, to be potty trained. If you will be sending him to pre-school next year, I'm sure he won't be the first to go in diapers. :)

I have two boys (3yrs, and 8 months), and potty training became a HUGE issue in our house. We (or maybe I should say I) wanted my eldest son to start Preschool. He had to be potty trained for the school to allow him to attend. I worked like a mad dog to find anyway to get him to go potty on the potty. He would pee, but flat out refused to poop. I tried stickers, cool training pants, suckers, even getting all the "CARS" matchbox set. Nothing worked, it became his will over my will, and he won everytime. His Ped told me to lay off, and not even flinch when he pooped and made a big deal of it. So that's what I did (gave up, convinced my son would be in diapers until the age of 8-9). Three weeks later after my surrender, he decided he wanted to try pooping in the potty. He peed, pooped for two weeks straight, no accidents, perfect. Now he is not pooping in the toliet again, and his preschool days are starting soon.(in a burst of excitement I registered him for preschool starting in September). The morale of my story, don't force the issue, or you will loose. The only thing the 2-4 year olds have say over, what they will eat, when they do decide to fall asleep, and whether they will pee and poop in the toliet or their pants. I learned the hard way, don't force the issue. I wish for you the best and healthiest solutions.........

Mel

ok seems like he's off to a good start he is telling you he has to go, a little late but he understands and knows what's going on and that's a good thing and a big step in this whole process. my question is what happens when he tells you and is already going, can he stop and let you rush him to the potty to finish or is it in a puddle at his feet before he gets teh words out. if it's the later then i would suggest pullups and a little more time for him to get used to teh sensation of what it feels like to have to go. if you can get him on the potty before he finishes then jsut keep that potty handy, even if it's in your living room, untill he gains more control. as for keeping his intrest, prizes, stickers anything and lots of praise make it the biggest deal ever when he goes and he'll want to go jsut for the party and the surprise. good luck.

Start potty training with your 4 month old now! I know you think I'm crazy, but I have done infant potty training (Eliminiation Communication or EC) with all three of my kids. My first was accident free at 14 months, my second at 16 months, and my third at 14 1/2 months. My third is now turned 15 months on the 3rd of June. She just goes and sits on her Baby Bjorn little potty when she has to go or comes and gets me. She usually looks at me and says "Ma!" really loud and I know what that means.

The only trouble I have is that other people refuse to believe she's potty trained. We had my MIL watch her last night. I brought over her little potty, but my MIL had some diapers there and just put one on her. Hopefully, you can get your childcare provider to help out when you're at work.

I could list some great websites to help you get started, but it's easy just to google "infant potty training". There's also a yahoogroup: http://www.groups.yahoo.com/groups/eliminationcommunication .

He will potty train in his own time. My son was doing the same at that age and I pushed the whole potty training thing trying to get him potty trained by the end of the summer. If he is really ready he will pick it up. If he is not, it will turn into a struggle. My sons daycare teachers had worked in the toddler room for more than 10 years together. They had an "odd" way of potty training, but it is also the same way my grandmother potty trained 10 kids, and my mom potty trained for 4 kids. Its just different than todays options. Don't use pull ups. They give a false security. If he is staying dry for 2 hours at a time during the day, or you can time how long it takes between potty breaks for him, then you can try. For two weeks, you put him in underwear. You continuely remind him to go to the potty, every 2 hours or as often as he goes. You ask him to sit on the potty. If he sits he can have a small treat or do something he really likes. If he pees he gets a little party, with little horns and such. If he has an accident, you encourage him to change himself as much as he can. Don't punish him, but try to stay very calm, and a blah like personality. So he gets the hint that it's not right. At the end of the two weeks, you evaluate how you are doing. If the potty training is improving then continue, if it has not improved at all then maybe he isn't ready. Put him back in diapers and try again in a month. Now, my son could do this at home for any amount of time, but any time he went anywhere he would get thrown off. With boys, they get busy doing other things and forget to go pee. With underwear they will feel the wetness, and hopefully react to it. They wouldn't with pull ups, not even with the feel me ones. The pull ups make it easier for mom and dad but not easier for the child to understand whats going on.

To be honest boys are harder my twins (girl/boy) are now three and when they turned three i totally took the diapers away and i tryed pullups but that got expensive. So i went to big girl and big boy panties well it took them a couple of weeks with accidents but Allenna is doing great and Jonathan he still has accidents once in a while but it takes time. So i would just get panties and try it time will tell.