Tips on Potty Training

“He should be potty trained already.” This was my mom’s statement about my fifteen months old son then few years ago.  I was living with my parents that time when I gave birth to my daughter. My mom was the one who started to potty train my son together with my then nanny while I was trying to recover from my CS operation and nursing my daughter.

Dodo was completely potty trained at the age of 26 months. It was a great fulfillment but the process wasn’t glorifying. I expected too much from him as a toddler and I have regrets of it up to this moment. The should-be fun on potty training was lost because I never looked at it as fun in the first place. I looked at it merely as stage that we both have to accomplish without enjoying it.

Now that I am in the process of potty training my daughter, I promised myself that this time would be different. I won’t let pressure overwhelm me and we should both enjoy it together.

Tips on potty training:

• Ensure the readiness of your toddler physically, cognitively and behaviorally. Look for signs that your toddler can now pull down and up their underpants, remove their diapers and can sit for few minutes without fuzzing. Make sure also that they are able to follow simple instructions and can identify pee and poo. Check for the consistency of the stool, if they have constant formed stools and don’t poop in the evening, then they are physically ready. When they are also uneasy of having poop in their diaper and if your toddler is also inquisitive when you go to the loo and frequently asks questions about it and it’s signifies their readiness for the training. When I was potty training my son, I seemed to miss the cognitive part. He wasn’t able to identify the pee and poo yet and what mom did was she constantly makes my son go to the loo without educating him what they were doing. I wasn’t really prepared to potty train him yet because I wasn’t equipped with facts on how the training goes without the stress on it. So I ended up getting frustrated as to when he will be able to do it properly. I wasn’t also emotionally ready for the accidents during the process so I get furious and he gets terrified every time it happens.
• Remove nappies in between. This way it would be easy to make them use the potty while they are practicing how to control their bladder. Make sure though to keep a rag handy or a mop to dry if there are untoward accidents.
• Be an example. Children love to imitate what we do. So if you can tell them what you do inside the restroom this way, you are educating them while they process on how they will do it on their own.
• Ritual and routine. My kids have rituals when they are about to go. Dodo would run inside the room back and forth while A presses her tummy on any flat surface. You need to be keen with these rituals and instead of dropping their poop inside the diaper; you may want to place them in their potty and continue the ritual there. They also love to follow a routine, and most likely when they get used to it, the moment when they need go sets a time in their daily routine too.
• Sing a song. A loves singing these days and the only way she won’t be bored sitting on the potty is for us to sing a song while having fun doing it.
• Praise them for a job well done. These tots love to be acknowledged for a job well done. It is also their assurance that they are doing it right as well as the love from their parents.

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It is not bad to compare notes in rearing a child as well as the developments they make. But let us make it as a guide to properly raise them well not to pressure us on what are we supposed to do. These processes may or may not be applicable to your children as they have their own unique personalities. Let us not be overwhelmed by the pressure to rush things. Let them be kids and let us just have fun being a parent and enjoy every single way. I will not be a hypocrite and tell you that motherhood is easy, it is hard in the true sense but it is not a hindrance to spoil the happiness that should’ve been.

Happy potty training mommies! I hope my tips would help you. How about you? How did you potty train your tots? Share yours.