B.V. asks from Virginia Beach, VA on October 27, 2006
Ready to Potty Train?
My son, is 18 months old, and soon he'll outgrow the size for diapers... (I think biggest size is 6?) and I'm wanting to know if I should have a potty around for him and introduce it to him to draw out some interest?
If so...What one do you recommend?
Why do you choose that one?
And how old was your son when you potty trained?
~B.
More Answers
G.C. answers from Tuscaloosa on October 30, 2006
Try using pullups. We had to do that with both of our children, and it worked great. 18 months is awful young to potty train. I'm not saying it can't be done, but most boys are around 2 1/2 or 3 before they train. My sons were 2 years and 3 1/2! Luckily when I potty trained my oldest, my youngest son caught on so they trained at the same time (one nice thing about the competitive streak in my youngest! lol).
S.B. answers from Huntsville on October 28, 2006
Thats real early. My son just decided to be potty trained 2 months after he turned 3. If you think he might be ready..try pull-ups maybe
M.G. answers from Gadsden on October 27, 2006
Well...have a potty around to get used to the idea, but don't expect him to use it for a while. They should be about 2 when u start and some kids arent ready until they are three. My daughter would sit on the potty everytime I went..so she got used to the idea ....for boys ( my sister-in-law has 5 of them), it took them til 3 and 4 to get fully potty trained....I don't know if that was just her or not. However, I heard if u put cheerios in the bowl and have him aim then he might enjoy going. Also, clothes that are easy to get off are really important. If he can't take his pants off or underwear then he is not ready yet. I did my girls in the summer time with dresses.
Hopefully the six's will last a little while or you might have to get pull ups...and those are on the high end. If he gets too big for the pull ups ....good nights work really well too.
Also, my daughters used pullups like a diaper, what worked best for them is to wear panties or being naked under their dresses course that would be harder for a boy lol.
A.D. answers from Charlotte on October 27, 2006
I have four boys and one girl (baby of the house). All my boys were three, or three and one half before they were potty trained, not for lack of not wanting. LOL! I just finished potty training our twin boys who are three, quite an experience. I didn't get them a potty though, I bought one of the toilet rings @ Walmart with a cartoon on them. They liked that because they were using the big potty. I would start introducing the potty to your son, talk about it. Let him sit on it if he wants to start to understand somewhat of the concept and maybe you can start it slowly with him. Our oldest son (now 11) was a big boy and hit the size 5 diaper at 18 months but they didn't have size 6 back then and he regulated after hitting two and stayed at a 5 for that year. Hopefully your son will too. All that walking he is doing, it's like more exercise, some a little baby fat should start coming off soon! Good luck!
E.I. answers from Dothan on October 27, 2006
Hi B.!
I know you would like for your son to be potty trained, but really, 18 months is too soon. This is just going to be more hassle for you and him both if you start now. And little boys usually take longer to potty train. You should really wait until he is 2 1/2. My son didn't even show interest until this age and wasn't fully potty trained until he was almost four. Good luck.
~Lee
C. answers from Tuscaloosa on October 27, 2006
You should have dad taking him into the potty when he goes so he isn't scared of it and know what is going on. BUT GOOD LUCK. Boys are horrible about potty training. I've tried several times with mine he will be 3 in Dec. I didn't activly try until after 2 1/2. The best thing I have heard of though is letting go bare bottom. Outside is preferable. That's something I don't want to do. But I know 3 peoplee who have done it that way and had them potty trained in 2 weeks. But they didn't try until after their little boys were 2 1/2.
S.K. answers from Augusta on October 27, 2006
A great book to read is Early Start Potty Training by Linda Sonna. It has advice for teaching babies to be diaper-free at any age. Really, it's only in the last few decades we've started waiting until kids are over 2 before introducing the potty.
I started teaching my son to use the potty at two months old. He's now 9 months old and uses it about half the time (I'm not hard core about getting him out of diapers yet since he's in daycare). Google the terms "elimination communication," "infant potty training," and "diaper-free baby" for more information.
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