How To Potty Train A Child – Useful Tips For Parents

How to potty train a child? Sooner or later all parents are faced with the need to teach their baby to do without diapers. We have prepared recommendations for you to make the transition to a more independent period in your baby’s life a little easier for you and your loved one.

When it is time to potty train

It is believed that the child will be ready to use the potty in 1,5-2,5 years. If possible, it is better to start accustoming the child in warm weather. At first, there are often “accidents”, not always the baby has time to report his desire to visit the toilet. This is a very important age, since the child for the first time has something that he can control himself, regardless of the adults.

Signs of readiness to learn

Before your son or daughter will consciously ask for the potty, he or she will have developed skills such as:

• Control of urination, defecation: the baby will stay dry for a couple of hours.
• The ability to feel squeamish about soiled panties.
• One of the most important skills is communication in gestures or words, even the simplest ones (“to drink”, “to pee”), the child should correctly understand the adult’s speech.
• Readiness is also indicated by a baby’s ability to sit down independently, take and then put items back.
• Sometimes children try to go into seclusion when they feel the need to go to the toilet.

Stages of accustoming the child to the potty

First of all, it is important to observe regularity and consistency. If one adult baby sits on the potty, and the other adult prefers to put a baby diaper, and not drop off, then this inconsistency greatly complicates domestication.

Regularity is expressed in the fact that the potty to sit immediately after waking up before/after eating, before a walk, just after returning from it, as well as before bedtime. It happens that a child can forget, play, so until the development of strong habits task of adults – to monitor the regularity. It makes no sense to reprimand a child for forgetfulness at this stage, he will only get scared.

Here are a few more important points:

1. Identify a place for the potty so you don’t have to look for it in a hurry and risk missing a good time. Introduce your baby to the potty before you start potty training. Tell her what to do with this object, and what not to do. It is important for your baby to understand right away that it is not just a seat and not a toy. If the child is very sensitive, he may feel stress, so parents will have to “suck” him on the potty. You can say something like, “Look, what a beautiful potty! It’s yours and only yours.” And you can also put a funny sticker with a favorite character from a fairy tale.

2. Observe. Notice signs of urges: the baby may strain, cross his legs, blush, suddenly freeze or squat. If you can correctly identify the moment, your observation will be rewarded.
   
3. Consistently voice your actions and those of the baby. Show how to unbutton and remove clothing, help him/her to get comfortable in a seat, wait for 5-7 minutes, help him/her to get up, do hygienic procedures. At this stage you should praise the child, especially if the attempt was successful. Put your clothes back on and go potty wash. For the last stage, some children do not feel much interest, and some with enthusiasm waiting for an opportunity to press the drain button on the toilet.

4. Gradually give up diapers. At first, you can leave diapers for a daytime nap, at night, for a long walk or an event. It is because of this stage pediatricians advise to accustom the child in the warm season, because he can wet more than one pair of underpants before he can recognize his urges and report them. At the time of domestication, dress your baby in as simple clothes as possible, without complicated fasteners, so you can quickly remove them and easily put them on.

If you are concerned about the dryness of clothing, you can use special training panties for potty training. On the outside they resemble the usual, but sewn from waterproof material, the inner layer is made of very soft absorbent fabric. Wearing these panties, and regularly put the child to sleep. They will replace diapers and make it easier to switch to regular panties.

For convenience, it is better to buy a set of 2-3 pieces or a couple of sets of 2 panties. It is a reusable underwear, and you can wash it at 40°C in a washing machine or rinse it with warm water by hand. The size should be adjusted to the age of the child. The panties are not adjustable, but thanks to the soft elastic band they adjust to your body shape.

Getting boys and girls accustomed

When you first start peeing your baby, there is no big difference whether you have a daughter or a son: the process will look about the same. Empty the bowels and bladder at first will have to sit and boys, since they have physiologically these processes are not yet distinguished. A boy will learn to urinate standing up when he masters his body coordination with confidence and begins to well distinguish between the urge to defecate and to urinate. Usually this happens after two years, and the example of peers plays a big role.

The oval shape of the container is considered to be universal – it is convenient both for girls and boys. The round shape is more suitable for girls.

What pot to choose?

To accustom – this is only half the battle. It is equally important to choose a comfortable and beautiful potty, so that the baby was interested in using them more often.

Pots differ in shape:

• Classic, in the form of a seat with a bowl and sometimes with a back or handles. Such a potty is easy to wash, can be transported. Stable form and anti-slip rubberized pads on the base reduce the probability of overturning the baby sitting on them to a minimum.
• As a small toilet bowl. These instances can be equipped with a capacity for wipes and a button with a sound to drain the water. The bowl is removable and easy to clean, and the child gets a toilet bowl almost like an adult. A great way to learn something new with fun.
• Folding potties with bags and telescopic silicone inserts. There are times when it is easier for a child to learn to use the toilet right away. In this case, you need to choose a seat for the toilet and pick up a suitable height footrest. They should be made of a material that is easy to clean. Make sure there is a non-slip surface on the seat and the footrest. Some children need something to hold onto to keep their balance, so there are models equipped with special handles.

If you have planned a trip, it’s not a reason to give up on domestication. On the contrary, when traveling or just after them, children often have leaps in development. For convenience, take with you a travel potty. This is a seat with folding legs. To use it, you need to attach a special absorbent bag. Dispose of the package can be like a normal diaper.

Also, this potty can be used in conjunction with a silicone insert – this option is suitable when the toilet is near and there is an opportunity to wash the insert immediately. And the best part: you can use it as a seat for a regular toilet bowl. This multifunctional device will help you more than once.

Reasons for possible failures

It happens that parents are in a hurry to get their baby accustomed to the toilet, and he is not quite ready for it yet. This does not mean anything, except that the time has not yet come. Try not to worry or compare him to other children. You need to be patient.

All children have a phase of interest in their own genitals. It is a healthy, normal process. If the baby is not disturbed, he will not dwell on it, as well as be ashamed of his body. Sometimes children refuse to go to the potty only because they are very ashamed. Because of this there may be a psychological stupor.

The child endures for a very long time, the feces become hard, it is harder to get rid of them. If the baby remembers that potty training leads to a lot of discomfort and pain, it will complicate not only planting, but also everyday life of parents. Sometimes it comes to the need to see a doctor.

If the child is stressed – went to kindergarten, or changed the group, even if only the teacher has changed, it may be difficult to go to the bathroom. Also affected by teething, moving, divorce of parents, illness or personality traits. It happens that the baby has learned to go potty by himself, but suddenly something went wrong.

There is a reason for everything, and not always this cause can be affected. Have patience, do not demand from yourself and your baby more than you can do now. Make sit on the potty and scold for failures can not, as he may have aversion and anger to this process and all that accompanies it.

Mistakes of parents in accustoming the child to the potty

How to potty train a child? No need to scold the baby if he accidentally peed in his pants. He himself does not like it, and parents can involuntarily signal: “to go to the bathroom – it’s not good. The child will avoid this process by all means, which can lead to constipation or neurosis.

Comparison with other children does not stimulate the baby to start going potty. The child receives not motivation, but he/she hears: “you are bad, and he/she is good”. In this case, if the children spend time together and at least one of them goes potty on their own, gradually the rest will also learn to do it.

It makes no sense to teach the baby too early, as he will not yet be able to understand this process, to control it. Many early methods of domestication are based on the fact that the child can be forced to go to the toilet. However, a truly mastered skill lies in recognizing the need and being able to meet it or communicate it.

It is undesirable to practice toilet training when your baby is upset or clearly resisting something. This can cause aversion or even hatred of the pot, which is very difficult to overcome later. The child’s psyche when there is a lot of stress for a while as if it rolls back to earlier stages of development, so you should return to the development of new skills when the level of stress has decreased.

The urge to urinate should not be stimulated by gurgling water from the faucet, because in this way a kind of reflex is formed, from which it is very difficult to get rid of, and because of which in the future there may be embarrassment.

If the baby does not do something, he was visibly nervous during the planting – take him off the potty, distract him. Resume trying after a while, when he calms down. The same recommendation is relevant for parents: if you are very anxious, annoyed or tired, try to return to training later.

There are times when you get discouraged and it seems like it will go on forever. We want to encourage you: all adult, capable, independent babies do just fine without a diaper and use the bathroom on their own.

Good luck teaching your baby an important new skill!