Tips For Potty Success

One of parents’ most trying times can be potty training. But don’t despair it will happen. The most important question raised by every parents is “when to start potty training?” The average age of potty training for kids is 30 months with normal ranges between 18 months and 5 years. If you want you can train your child at age 18 months but it takes a lot of discipline and work on the part of the parent. Children will typically decide they are ready themselves between ages 2 and 3. My son was almost three when he decided that he wanted to start peeing in the potty. He had watched an older boy and wanted to be just like him. He stood in front of the potty and did just what the older boy did but nothing happened. Then he looked up at me and said, “It’s broken.” I explained that maybe he just didn’t need to go right then and we would try later. Within a month he was out of diapers. You just need to be looking for the signs that your child is ready to be potty trained. If they aren’t showing any readiness signs and are resisting potty training back off and wait a few months to try again. You’ll both be happier.

Signs that your child is ready to be potty trained include:

• Shows an interest in the toilet and wants to sit on it or flush it. My daughter would come into the bathroom whenever I was going and would flush the toilet for me. It wasn’t long before she wanted to sit on it too.


• Your child is aware of the need to urinate or defecate. Signs might be verbally telling you they need to go, holding their diaper, or pulling a face. Watch for these signs and let your child know what they mean. My youngest daughter would take off her diaper right before she went. Which meant a lot of messes for me, but she was recognizing the need to go.


• Let’s you know when they have a dirty diaper. When your child is requesting to be changed then you know they are getting ready to use the potty.


• Stays dry for at least a two-hour period. When your child starts waking up dry from naps or stays dry for a long period during the day then their system is mature enough to start using the toilet.


• Can easily dress and undress him or herself from the waist down. If you want your child to be able to go by him or herself they need to be able to pull their pants up and down.

• Motivate your child with a special toy, underwear, or treat when they use the potty for the first time. I let my children pick their own underwear that they only get to wear when they start going in the potty. My sister bought her son a Thomas the Train video that he got the first time that he went.


• Figure out what motivates your child and use it. My son was motivated by candy. Each time he went in the potty he got three M&M’s. Just make sure that your child doesn’t eat all the rewards in one sitting like my daughter did. My younger sister loved stickers. Putting a sticker on a chart each time was what motivated her.


• Be consistent. Once you decide to start potty training. Stick with it. Your child might have a relapse, like my daughter right now. But just keep working on it. They will soon decide that going in the potty is nicer than getting a pull-up changed.


• Don’t go back to diapers. If your child isn’t quite ready for underwear try using pull-ups. If your child is having a lot of accidents put plastic pants on over their underwear. This helps contain the mess.


• Talk about going to the potty on a regular basis. Encourage your child to use the bathroom and take them regularly. Even if they don’t do anything at least they sat on the toilet and tried. When they do go make a big fuss out of it. Let them call Grandma or daddy and tell them.


• Boys often enjoy having a target to shoot at. Try putting a Cherrio in the toilet and tell them to sink it. If your child is too short get a small stool that they can stand on.