Starting to Potty Train

Updated on June 03, 2009
C.D. asks from Bentonville, AR
12 answers

Ok. So my 20 month old is just STARTING to get interested in potty training. We're not quite ready yet, but I am trying to do research and the best way to do this. The articles I have found seem very EXTREME (no panties at all?). How did you all potty train your kiddos?

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E.H.

answers from Baton Rouge on

I worked at a daycare and we potty trained in the 2 year old class. It takes time and patience. We would have to take the child OFTEN. Remember they are just learning to control their bladder- they are not familiar with the feelings as we are. Accidents will still happen. Just try to be positive about the attempts and the successful times!

I would go to panties. Diapers and pull-ups feel the same. And aren't as bad if they get wet. Good luck!

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T.H.

answers from Baton Rouge on

I have potty trained 4 little boys and this is how we did it. When I knew they were ready or old enough to be in underwear. I did all my shopping and errands over the weekend and the next week I spent at home with them and that is what we focused on making sure they went to the potty. They had accidents but we did not use pull ups/diapers just underwear or nothing at all. We were home and not going anywhere. It took about 3 days and they got the hang of it. I did do pull ups at night until they were dry for 2-3 nights and then took them off. Again, we had accidents from time to time but they took to it fairly quickly.

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W.B.

answers from Tulsa on

We tried a couple of times with our daughter, I think she wasn't quite 2 yet the first time, then she was 2 and 3 months. She just wouldn't do it. After that, we just decided it would be up to her. So we waited and about a month or 2 later she told us she wanted to wear panties. So we said ok and haven't looked back since! For the first couple months she did great, but then she stopped trying again. So we tried not to get frustrated and just kept putting new panties on her, and she's doing better now. She is extremely motivated by her reward, CANDY! She rarely, rarely got candy before, but now it's her reward so she gets it often. It bothers me, but I just make sure that she only gets it as her reward for going pee pee or poo poo in the potty. Then I make sure her teeth get brushed well.
My advice would be, let her decide! Oh, and I wouldn't recommend Pull-ups or anything, they aren't really different than a diaper. Panties feel wet and it's an ordeal to change clothes, etc. My daughter has Dora panties, and we tell her Dora doesn't like to be peed on! :)The padded training panties are good, too, because they help absorb SOME of the wetness.
Good luck!

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G.H.

answers from Jonesboro on

I have had 3 children of my own that was a breeze to potty train. I disagree with the no panties rule. If and when an accident occurs, the wet feeling is not a good one. They will want those off as quickly as possible. Do not use wet panties as a punishment. Instead, know their will be accidents and try to treat these as no big deal. Stay calm even if you change her with every breath. reward her with an m&m or something that she likes Every Time she uses the potty. She will get the hang of it quickly and then praise such as hand clapping and cheering will be reward enough. Reading books while on the potty is also a good idea. Hope this has helped.

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C.N.

answers from Baton Rouge on

I put my daughter in panties and started putting her on the toilet as soon as she started pulling at wet diapers - about 18 months. I didn't use a potty chair; I got an adapter for smaller bottoms that fit over the toilet seat and a step-stool. I kept the adapter on the toilet all the times, took it off when I needed to use it, then put it back when I was done so that she could get on it any time she needed to.

Yes, she had accidents - that's to be expected. It takes time for them to learn how to recognize what a full bladder or bowel feels like, and still more time to learn how full is too full.

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A.H.

answers from Tulsa on

It's not about when you're ready, it's when she is.I waited on one child, because people told me she couldn't be ready at 21 months. We passed her threshold of "ready" and it wasn't until she was 28 months that she got trained( My oldest out of five). When my 5th child started trying to sit on the potty at 19 months, I jumped on the band wagon. She could pull her "big girl" panties down mostly by herself, and everytime she pottied we all danced around the room and sang "She did it" from the Dora videos, which was her favorite. It was everyone in the family who sang and danced, my husband included!She was trained within like two days. She was my youngest "potty trainer". This was the approach that worked the best for me! Good luck! P.S The training toilet should be centrally located!I can still remember her joy and laughter everytime she got up from the potty and we all sang!

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S.S.

answers from Lawton on

I never did the naked baby routine because I didn't want my daughter to think it was okay to run around the house naked. What I did was put her in training pants. I started out in Pamper's Easy Ups until I could find some thick cloth trainers that would catch little accidents but still let her get wet for the big accidents. That way she got the idea of pulling her pants on and off, but since she was so young (we started at 20mo as well) it allowed for the MANY accidents that come with training. Gerbers are very thin and great for if your kid is almost completely potty trianed, but starting out so young I'd get the thick cloth. I got mine at zoombabygear.com

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A.W.

answers from Baton Rouge on

no panties is the most effective they know immidiately but for my daughter she'd get up and first thing set her on the potty then ask her if she wants to be a big girl today. She told me everyday if she was going to be a big girl or no. No mommy I not big girl. But she only wore a diaper at night. And usually it was after she fell asleep that I would sneak and put it on her for my own comfort but as everyone seems to tell me she was very easy but also make tee tee poopoo FUN BIG GIRL!!!! We sang a song and did the limbo I guess u could say "Veda tee teed potty-Veda teeteed potty yeah Veda!"

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C.D.

answers from Huntsville on

You are very smart to start potty training in the summer months :) I too picked this time to train it is so much easier due to less clothes, britches, socks, shoes etc. to deal with. All though it may seem odd, I trained my two babies a boy @ 18mths and a girl @ 20mths two years apart, without pull-ups or underpants. I took the potty chair and placed it in the rec room in the mornings and afternoon times during their favorite programs I only put them in underpants temporarily for lunch. It was great cause dad was at work and didn't experience much company so it wasn't awkward. You will experience a few accidents but she will soon realize what is happening and when you help her discover to sit on her potty chair and she will recognize the "urge" or feelings associated with going potting, and if you get fun and excited about "Oh no not on mommies floor lets sit on the potty,she will too. In the evening I would move the chair to the bathroom for them to see where we go when others are home, and put underpants on until bedtime. And then we would bring it back out in the morning. It took roughly two - three weeks with few accidents in public after that. Good Luck and best wishes.

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K.C.

answers from Oklahoma City on

Well, I had two totally different experiences with my son and daughter but both potty trained almost immediately when they were ready. My dd would probably have trained with consistency at about 18 months but she was in daycare and they did not have the facilities to help with that until the 2 yr old room so we didn't try that early. At about 26 months, she told me she wanted big girl panties like a friend had. I told her that that meant she had to use the big potty. She said fine and we went on a Friday and let her pick out panties. ( She was a very verbal kid.) The first day she wore her panties we stayed home and she went about every 15-20 mins and sat on the big potty. No accidents but we put the pull ups on that night. Next day same idea but she went every 30 mins - an hour with no accidents. She even played outside fully clothed and came in to potty. After that she had no day or night accidents and we no longer used pull-ups. If we went out, we went to the bathroom first at every store. We new where to go at every restraunt and department store but she did great and became very independent quickly. I don't think it would have been so easy at 18 months, although she would have gotten it eventually.

Now my son....oh boy. He resisted potty training with all of his might. I really think it became a rebellion for him. I say this because we tried everything....all the teachers in the 2 yr room tried their best, too. He was stubborn. He didn't even mind at 2 years 50 weeks running and playing in the yard with soaked big boy underwear on. Just didn't care. However, when I finally decided to just tell him straight out that he would be held back with the 2 year olds ( the babies to him) if he did not get this, he was trained over night. He "decided" right before his 3rd birthday to be potty trained completely. I'm not sure if we went wrong somewhere or if it was strictly a battle of wills from the start but he potty trained when he wanted and it was a complete deal.

I would say if your daughter takes interest in it and shows progress, go with it. If she doesn't seem interested or you get stressed, just wait a little while and introduce it again.

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N.B.

answers from Lafayette on

you just have to stay consistent and bring her to the potty every 10-15 minutes. good luck finding someone to do this for you while you are working. I know it will be hard. You will have to do the best you can on the weekend. My son was completely potty trained by the time he was 20 months and my daughter was potty trained in one weekend but she was 28 months. So maybe if time is an issue just give her a few more months it might not take as long. : ) good luck!

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C.G.

answers from Huntsville on

I started to potty train my now 3 yr old when she was about your girl's age :-)it was early summer too.
I put her in dresses or Long T shirts so it was easy for her to use the potty and at first I left her 'commando'.
For a week or 2 we did this and she really got the hang of it (I started with setting a timer and every 30 minutes we'd go and sit on the potty-she started by the second day running to the potty when the bell rang on the timer ;-).
After a few weeks we put panties back on and she had accidents but she did ok unless we were in the car (I started putting a pull up on her in the car just to keep from having to wash the carseat cover every week).
The most important thing I learned was to NOT STRESS about accidents-they WILL Happen. The more upset I get about them the more it will stress out my daughter and possibly cause MORE setbacks!
Try and keep calm and if an accident happens, don't stress about it-just say OK, we will just try and do better next time.
I also started giving her 1 M&M when she Pee-pee'd and 2 when she pooped that was a BIG incentive and helped a LOT.
After one of the setbacks we printed a potty chart from online and I let her put 1 sticker for pee and 2 for poop in the little squares-she could SEE her progress and that helped a LOT too-combined with M&M's.
Now she only wears 1 pullup at night and is good in the car-I gave her M&M's when she'd use the potty in public after she was good at home-to encourage her to use the toilet at the grocery store etc...
Patience and perserverence (sp?) are key in this process I think.
Good Luck!
C.

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