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Potty Training 101 -- Emotional Well Being |
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Written by Jodie Lynn
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Friday, 17 February 2006 |
I am not a fan of potty training children early. In the ten years I have been helping parents with potty training, I have never known even one who was completely trained when starting before the age of three. That doesn't mean that there are not success stories out there; however, completely potty trained means that they can go to bed in a regular pair of cloth underwear (not thick with extra padding) and wake up dry eight hours later. Those parents that say that their kids are trained before the age of two usually regress sometimes before the age of five.
Spanking, yelling and threatening always backfires. If a parent pulls a power play, the child will become absorbed in the unnecessary battle and become overwhelmed. Stress rises to a new, yet negative level. Unfortunately, for parents, the kids win on this one. They can potty (go to the bathroom) in the potty or potty in the underwear as a powerful tool resulting in negative retaliation creating major challenges in switching back and forth from potty training, poor eating habits and mood swings.
Using food as a reward is not a way to entice toddlers into becoming potty trained.
In fact, this can lead to harmful eating habits as well as using food for emotional satisfaction.
Here are a few tips that have seemed to work for others in keeping the process running smoothly as well as maintain emotional well being intact for everyone.
1. Concentrate on potty training only.
2. Use stickers as a reward.
3. Wrap up small gifts found as rewards after each time they successfully go to the bathroom.
4. Do not use food as a reward.
5. After each successful potty trip, clap and say, "Whoohoo. You are such a big boy/girl! Good job!"
6. Make up a calendar with tons of pictures of your child on it.
7. Put Cheerios in the toilet and let the boys aim at them.
8. Buy many books during clearance sales. Keep a box of books by the potty.
9. Monitor food and liquid intake.
10. Ship your precious little one off to grandmas or an aunt's house, if things get too hairy.
Above all else, let the child show and tell you when he is ready. It may not be the calendar timing you'd like to follow, but the frustration and stress is just not worth the repercussions.
Remember, accidents will occur at the least expected time. Stay cool and anticipate it as part of parenthood - this too shall pass. |
