Here - Health Promotion Agency

Habits and behaviour
‘My mother-in-law kept
telling me that all her three
were potty trained by a year.
At the time, I didn’t know
whether to believe her or not. I
mean, it didn’t really seem
possible, but I wasn’t sure.
Looking back now, I suppose
she must have spent a lot of
time just putting her children
on the potty. They didn’t really
know what they were doing,
but if there was something in
the potty, she counted that as
potty trained. Well, for a start,
I haven’t got the time or
patience for that. And anyway,
it doesn’t seem worth it. Just
catching what comes isn’t the
same as potty training.’
LEARNING TO USE A POTTY
When to start
It helps to remember that you can’t
and shouldn’t try to force your child
to use a potty. In time he or she will
want to use it. Your child will not
want to go to school in nappies any
more than you would want him or
her to. In the meantime, the best
thing you can do is to encourage the
behaviour you want.
Many parents seem to think about
starting potty training around 18–24
months, but there’s no particular
time when success is guaranteed.
It’s probably easier to start in the
summer, when washing dries
better and there are fewer clothes
to take off.
Try to work out when your
child is ready. Most children go
through three stages in developing
bladder control.
• They become aware of having a
wet or dirty nappy.
•
They get to know when they are
peeing, and may tell you they’re
doing it!
• They know when they need to
pee, and may say so in advance.
You’ll probably find that potty
training is fastest if your child is at
the last stage before you start. If you
start earlier, be prepared for a lot of
accidents as your child learns.
What to do
•
Leave the potty around where
your child can see it and get to
know what it’s for. If there are
older children around, he or she
may see them using it and their
example will be a great help.
Let your child see you using
the toilet and explain what
you’re doing.
•
If your child regularly opens
his or her bowels at the same
time each day, take off the
nappy and suggest that he or
she tries going in the potty. If
your child is the slightest bit upset
by the idea, just put the nappy
back on and leave it a few more
weeks before trying again.
•
As soon as you see that your
child knows when he or she is
going to pee, try the same
thing. If your child slips up, just
mop it up and wait for next time.
It usually takes a while for your
child to get the hang of it, and
the worst thing you can do is to
make your child feel worried
about the whole thing.
•
Your child will be delighted
when he or she succeeds, and a
little praise from you will make
it better still, but don’t make a
big deal of it and don’t use sweets
as a reward. You may end up
causing more problems than
you solve.
When the time’s right, your child
will want to use the potty.
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