Houdini Diaper Boy - How Young Is Too Young to Potty Train?

My 21 month old daughter has been using her potty chair and the toilet since she could walk (almost 11 months old). We've always had the potty chair in the bathroom so she could get used to it and she took an interest in going very early. She's almost completely potty-trained now, so it's very nice. We haven't been through the diaper pulling off thing, but I don't think it's too early to introduce the potty chair at all. Good luck!

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Try "Once Upon A Potty for Him" on DVD or VHS. There are also several books about it too. The dvd is for your son and the Dr.'s excerpt at the end of the show is for the parent's information. It will give him kid-friendly instruction about using the potty and it tells you about the "readiness" signS.

I have 4 children and my littlest is 1 year old so I'm a mommy who has recently gone through this because my children are still little. I would definately wait if I were you! I read where several moms said "go ahead" but I would disagree. One mom said she started early and had the child potty trained by 1-1/2, I think. That's a LONG time to be fiddling with it. If you wait until your child is ready then you'll actually be able to get him potty trained faster and not have to drag it out over several months. It's equally as frustrating to clean up an accident while potty training because it gets all over and it's no fun especially when you're out shopping. While he's still this little it's usually still contained in the diaper 9x out of 10.

My friendly advice is to not make it such a big deal. Just pulling the diaper off is not the only sign of readiness and you want potty training to be a successful, positive experience instead of a constant struggle with your child. Bottom line...do what works best for you and your son and after kindly listening to all the advice from friends and family...don't allow others to influence your decision:)

It'll happen soon enough! Some kids do it sooner and some later. It happened sooner for my girls than it did for my son actually. Also, it's not like he'll still be in diapers by the time he's off to preschool/kindergarten. Right now he is still a baby. Try to enjoy this time cause they grow up too fast.

And, as for the walking in to a poopy or pee-pee mess after naptime...well, it happens and you just have to keep your cool and clean it up. What can I say...Life is Messy:) and this too shall pass and you'll be onto the next stage. Best wishes!

1 mom found this helpful

My son started potty training at 15 months.
If your son is giving the signals -- go for it.
My mom said I was potty trained by 18 months.
It all has to do with personality types, you and your child.
For a boy, though, I disagree with any potty floor chairs because they are not built for boys. Per advice from my older cousin who reared her boys the direct toilet way, as well as advice from several stay-at-home dads.
Good Luck, M. N.

My oldest did not have any diaper tricks but when we went to buy diapers he said NO! I want big boy pants like Daddy. I really hesitated but got them anyway. We came home and he put them on. I had a little plastic toilet that looked similar to the real thing. I had him pull down his pants and sit down, VIOLA! We had begun potty training. He was 14-15 mos. old. He did really well and only had accidents when someone was in the bathroom and he could not get there. My second one was 3 and a half years old, Third one was around 2. My suggestion would be to give it a try, if nothing else you can always go back to diapers. Good Luck!

If you have a mini potty that can sit next to yours, you could start trying to sit him on it when you go potty and see if he makes the connection and is interested. Doesn't mean you have to ditch the diapers just yet, but he'll eventually have to get used to the fact that grown ups don't go in their pants and if he's interested in learning now, why not? Here are some articles about early potty training:

http://www.drsonna.org/ptresources.htm#The%20Truth%20Abou...

http://www.parentingscience.com/potty-training-tips.html

I believe you would not be successful at potty training this early and you would end up frustrated. This must have been a fluke like you said. there are some good suggestions if it continues. be patient at his age he is probably just as confused as you were how he got it off.

The earlier the better for you who has to change them. When I had to go outside to get fresh air after changing my oldest son at 12 months old, I knew it was time to potty train him. Watch him and learn his signals. My son use to go behind the curtains when he wanted to go potty.
As soon as I saw him I would run, and put him on the toilet (Baby seat attached). I also kept a baby potty in the bathroom. Take the diapers off and give it your best shot. Have your husband/spouse?? take him in when he urinates so he can see how it's done. I had a little foot stool also in the bath room for him to step up on to use the sink and toilet. I took me around 2 weeks to get both body functions in the right place (Bathroom).

My sons are 33, and 32 years old and I also have a 13 year old who all seemed to turn out fine.

I wouldn't. It's a whole lot easier to clean up a diaper than underware and clothes constantly. You'll spend the next 3 years wearing yourself out not to mention driving yourself crazy. Especially when it's runny. :0

I used to go to church with a lady that had 6 kids. We were all talking one time about potty training (lots of young moms in the group) and she mentioned that she had all of the older 4 (2 boys and 2 girls) potty trained before the next one came along. They were all less then 18 months apart. I was amazed! I remember making a comment about whether or not they could even understand the whole concept so young and almost all of the moms agreed that they understood plenty. So, while 13 months might be a little too early, it doesn't hurt to start encouraging him and when he shows signs that he can tell when he is wet or dirty, don't hesitate! Now that I am actually going through it with my 3 year old, I wish I would have done it when she was 16-18 months and first showed interest.

just personally, i think that it's more just curiosity and the thrill of learning something new (taking his diaper off) than being ready to potty train. sorry to say that! but 13 months is really young, and unless he's also taking notice of you using the potty, telling you when he's gone or has to go...i just don't think that taking his diaper off alone is a sign he's ready. i bet it was just a one time thing - or at worst, he'll do it a few times then move on to some other new skill. good luck!

You have just spent the last year perfecting the art of quickly putting on a diaper...now you are about to embark on the art of putting the diaper on backwards. I think all children do this because, well what else do they have to do at nap time? Those little velcro taps are fun to pull at. My son use to do that all the time!! I put the diaper on backwards, because I had experience in that with the other 2 children. But those children were girls and when I turned the diaper around the fun was over for them. Not the little boy though. He figured out over time how to take it off when it was on backwards too but that was just about when he was 2 so it took him awhile and by then we started potty training. I wouldn't say you would need to put it on backwards all the time, just at nap or bedtime.
As far as potty training my best advice after potty training 3 children is to wait and do not push them. It is pretty much with a lot of stuff with children, if you allow them to think that they are doing it on their own for themselves they are more likely to do it and do it better than if you "make" them. Take your time with it, show them where the potty is, talk about what goes in there, how to wash your hands, flush, wipe all of that stuff but pretty much let them decide when they are ready. My son pretty much potty trained himself. He told me when he was ready and we just went from there.
Goodluck and have fun with the backwards diaper!
N.

I would think that he's to young. My friends little boy did the same thing when he was around that age. She switched to pull ups and stopped having trouble with him and he potty trained at the normal age (about 2 1/2).

Good luck!

At his age, I'm inclined to say that it was fluke. He's awfully young to be ready to potty-train. However, that doesn't mean that you can't start introducing him to it...keep a potty in the bathroom and take him with you when you go. Let him sit on it, read him books about it and if he wakes up with his diaper off again, take him to the potty. It's not to early to get him used to sitting on it and getting on it after sleeping.

Hi M. M.

I would say your son is still too young for potty training. When my son was 18 months old, I began "casual" potting training. I'd just sit him on the potty just so he got used to it, and gradually worked into serious potty training. I thought at the time, 18 mo's was young.

My now two year old daughter is being potty trained. I started her just after she turned two in January, and she is doing great. When I took her for her 2 yr check up, her pediatrician told me...in reference to potty training her now, she is six months ahead of the game. She stated most toddlers will begin when they are 2 1/2 yrs old.

Personally, I'd sit back and wait some before starting your potty training w/ your son.

Enjoy that Houdini baby!

Judy

Haven't had that problem yet with my twin grandbabies the only times the got the diaper off is when we didn't get it fastened good but a young friend of mine had 1 daughter who would not leave her diaper on she had to duck tape it round the top, not touching the skin, and cut it off when she changed her. I have wonderd if puting the diaper on backwards would work (tapes in the back) you might give it a try. He is to young to potty train until he shows some interest in useing the potty chair or tells you he is wet or dirty.

It's not too early to potty train.

Have any of you thought of putting scotch tape over the diaper tabs ? It's a lot tougher for the little ones to pull off because you don't leave the end of the tab sticking up.

I think it's ok to try. see if he show any intrest in it.
Wow!! you might want to put him in the circus.lol pretty amazing boy! best wishes

God Bless you

It seems to me that 13 months is too young to potty train but I would give your pediatrician a quick call

My daughter started going on her potty at 10 months old and was completely potty trained, even at night, by a year and a half. It might be time. Granted you will have to put him on the potty a lot. It's summer, keep his bottom half naked. Good luck.

I would guess that either his diaper was uncomfortable or he just got interested in messing with it. I don't think removing a diaper once is a signal that he's ready to be potty trained. And if it is, I would wait for further signs. After potty training my first two kids I learned that it's really got to be when they are ready. I struggled with the first two because I decided it was time, and got impatient. The last two potty trained themselves - early!

Although I will say this - here is the advantage to potty training way early: you don't expect results and you don't feel the social pressure that your kid should be trained by now. When your child is three, you really feel you need to get this done or it's a problem. With my #3 child, at 20 months, was about to get in the bath with her older sister, I just sat her on the toilet for the heck of it before putting her in the bath. She peed. (Yay!) I knew she didn't know what she was doing exactly - it's just something that happened. But I did this every now and then, with no pressure and no conjoling. I didn't really expect her to become trained so young, so I was relaxed...it was great if she peed, but perfectly fine if she didn't. Well, between me setting her on the toilet before baths and watching her sister use it, she just started doing it herself. Easiest training ever. Didn't even have to get out the little potty seat!