Waiting for a time when your toddler tells you she has got to poop? Potty training, as dreaded as it is a task, it is heavenly when you no longer have to clear up heaps of poop with your own hands. Is there a perfect age to start potty training?
My daughter is 18 months old and tells me when she has got to poop. Just poop, she is still in her diapers for the pee part. Let me tell you as a mother who loves her daughter to pieces, and I am going to be pretty explicit about it, I love to see her poop sitting on the toilet seat. Gross? Yes, but the feeling that I no longer have to clean up the adult-sized mess is beyond explanation.
When I started potty training her, many people were against it. They said how it is not fair to put such pressures on a really young baby. I started when she was 9 months, she could sit with support on the toilet seat. But, when these people saw the results, they now want to know how I did it. So, this just goes to say that there is no right age to start potty training. I chose a time when I thought she could sit with support to avoid accidents.
How did I go about it? Here are the few points I followed:
- Define specific times when she has to poop – I made sure that I religiously took her to the toilet seat after every solid meal she had. When I made her sit on it, I used a keyword, mine was a hissing sound. You can use any keyword, but make sure every time you make her sit on it, use the keyword. This keyword should not be used any other time for any other thing.
- Look for the killer poop expression – That cute little straining face your baby just made, no she is not amusing you, she is ready to poop. Start noticing that expression and when you see her do that, say STOP and rush to the toilet. But, there is a downside to this. Whenever I did that with my daughter, she just never pooped. I guess she just got scared. If this happens with your toddler too, skip the stop part.
- Invest in a good sturdy toilet ring – I skipped the fancy potty seat. The one in which the baby can sit anywhere and then you have to toss the poop in the toilet bowl. It’s just awful! So, I bought a toilet ring that fits on the adult toilet seat and used that ever since I started potty training her.
- Discipline – You need to religiously keep at it. Incidents might happen and they might poop in their diapers, but you have to be consistent with your efforts. Potty training is tough, but not impossible.
The gigantic task of potty training is only the tip of the iceberg called parenting. But, I guess we can always slowly gnaw at it. I am done training her for the poop part. She has pretty good control over it and there hardly have been any incidents. But, I still have the pee part to overcome.
How has your experience with potty training been? When did you start with the whole exercise? Share your experiences for some expert tips.
