Remember back I thought potty training would be quick and easy?
*Ahem*
I think I may have made a mistake. I think I maybe should have taken the diapers away. Totally. Completely. And just dealt with the messes. And just brought extra pants with me everywhere I went
But I didn’t. We used diapers for naptimes and nighttimes, because I think that’s just common sense. But we also used diapers whenever we went out. And whenever Olivia suddenly declared she wanted DIAPERS thank-you-very-much. And slowly but surely, she has let the excitement of NEW UNDERWEAR die down and she really does not care too much for going in the potty anymore. Not even with chocalate chips and marshmallows dangled over her head.
In fact, this past week was the worst yet in this so-called “progress.” She went through more pairs of pants than I care to count.
I just don’t understand. A couple weeks ago, she would determine that she had to go, rush to the bathroom, take care of the business all by herself, and then come rushing out, beaming with pride.
Now she’s totally nonplussed by her soggy bottoms.
So, rather than let this regress any further, I’ve decided to take some extreme action. We are henceforth banning the diaper (except for nighttime.)
(And maybe naptime.)
(Because, we don’t have a dryer.)
(And washing that many sheets would seriously backlog my laundry routine.)
But when we go out, she will be wearing underwear. I will ask her every ten minutes if she has to go potty.
Which, by the way, she ALWAYS answers with “no” anymore:
“Do you have to go potty, sweetheart?”
“No.”
(Two minutes later.)
“Olivia! Why are your pants wet?!”
Sigh.
Maybe I can compare it to nipple confusion in a baby.
(Nipple confusion is when a breastfed baby is given a bottle, which requires an entirely different way of sucking, and frankly, is a whole lot easier than nursing. The baby doesn’t want to go back to nursing, because the bottle is just too convenient.)
Maybe her little bladder muscles have Diaper Confusion. She goes back and forth so much between diapers and underwear she is confused as to when she has to hold it and when she can just let it flow. And she’s erring on the side of laziness convenience.
So this is why I hereby declare:
“That’s it. No more diapers.”
(Except for naptime and nighttime.)
(Because, you know, the laundry.)
hi. i have been “lurking” for a little while and was just hoping that i might be able to give you some encouragement in the “potty-training” department.
she’ll get it. you’ve probably heard that a lot already, but she will. my daughter is a few months shy of turning three. she peed in the toilet for the first time when she was about 1 1/2. we didn’t try panties then, but it was a novelty she enjoyed and she even had a few bowel movements in the toilet. that “excitement” lasted a few weeks. a little after 2 we had another wave of potty excitement. we even went out and bought a little potty seat for the toilet. she was ecstatic! the big potty! the responsibility! the big-kid-ness! and then there was the pooping. which did not happen on the toilet. after a few days of both of us getting frustrated, i decided she wasn’t ready and i didn’t want to fight, so we would wait… and wait we did… almost a full year. and about a week and a half ago, she decided she was ready. that was it. i let her wear panties (she initiated this), at home, while she was awake, for two days. we didn’t really go anywhere and she wore a diaper for nap and bedtime. (not excited about changing sheets a zillion times, either!) we did go out and get a little potty for her, i figured she needed to be able to rest her feet on the floor to be more comfortable with making bowel movements. (it worked like magic!) on sunday, she had her first out-of-the-house-with-panties day. all morning at church, diaper for nap, change back as soon as she woke, diaper for bed. i would only ask her before we left the house to go and as soon as we got to our destination and again before we left…you get the picture…i kept a little towel in her carseat, just incase. this week, i started letting her keep her panties on for nap time (she usually wakes up dry) but we put a “panty cover” on over them…it’s just a bummis cover. (we do cloth, too, but have only used bum genius one size, so the cover is brand new for her and she doesn’t see it as a “diaper”. ) night time is still a diaper, and will most likely continue untill she wakes up dry for a few weeks.
anyway, all of that to say, be encouraging and allow her to make mistakes. be ready to stop whatever you are doing and be patient and walk her through how to fix them. unless you’re really needing her to make this step, let her take her time. she’ll get it! i thought we’d never get there, but it seems like we have finally arrived…fingers crossed 🙂
i’ll be praying for you both as you you tackle this new stage!
God bless,
ashley
you are so gonna hate my comments…
with both my kids, pullups were a joke, potty training was hard!!!! with both…
it was real undies ALL THE TIME…yes even bed time and nap time….i did alot of laundry and bleached my floors several times a day..here it wasnt just damp undies we had puddles….my dd was ok within 2 months, my ds, was dry in august, it took until the FOLLOWING MAY for him to poop in the toilet…still i never put diapers on him, had extra sheets, lots of cheap extra undies…threw alot out…..put the wet liner things, the vinyl pants when we went out…just to contain a bit better
but eventually we have success…and that may was one month shy of 4 yrs old…
celina in canada
This is typical. The newness has worn off and now she has to be responsible. A big fat resounding NO in her book.
This was a good choice in getting rid of the diapers. You may want to look into wet mats for her bed. The best come from medical supply stores and they can be washed and reused easier than sheets. They can be pricey but so worth it in the long run.
Here is a trick to try. Use your kitchen timer. Set it for 30 min. When it goes off take her potty. After a few days of this she will hate you always interupting her. She should start taking care of it on her own or at least jump and run for the bathroom.
Also never “ask” her if she has to go, say it’s time to try now. This sounds mean but remember you are her guide right now. When she gets to be an adult will be when you can be her friend. When you do your role well with her she will have more respect for you later. You are doing a terrific job so far so keep it up.
I had to resort to plastic pants over training pants for at least one of my children. If he used the potty and his underwear was dry, I’d take them off. If he was wet or dirty, they went back on or stayed on. He hated that and it was what finally convinced him that life is much more comfortable when you use the potty.
I agree with Beckies comment about using the timer instead of just asking her all the time.
My daughter really started to fight against the potty after a few weeks of doing great. Once I made it clear to her that it was the only remaining option (no diapers), it went much more smoothly.
If you have any lap pads, you can always put those down on the bed over the sheet to avoid doing quite so many loads.
OK, so I’ve just started looking into the whole potty training thing so this is totally not from experience, but I’ve heard multiple times to reward being clean and dry and not just going in the potty. So like when you check her (every 10 minutes 🙂 and she’s dry, she gets a treat, sort of thing.
Good Luck! Hopefully we’ll be training within the next few months.
i totally agree with not asking, just take her. also, with my son (3 1/2), he periodically regresses for a week or two. very frustrating, and i always wonder if he’s never going to be completely toilet trained! but i realized he regresses when something is changing in our house, either he hits another learning curve, or when his sister (1 1/2) does. for instance, he regressed during a time that her personality really blossomed, that sort of thing (i think because she was suddenly getting more attention!). be patient, this too shall pass!