Posted by lorisephy on October 16, 2001 at 13:13:51:
In Reply to: one step foward two seps back :( posted by kathy on October 15, 2001 at 10:30:23:
Kathy,
Kids go in stages with potty training. And, it can drive us crazy as parents. I've got 3 kids who are potty trained, and one who is THINKING about potty training... I'm holding off on her AS LONG AS POSSIBLE!!
I've been through quite a bit with my kids as far as potty training. And, as difficult as this advice is to take, remember that it does us NO good, to get all upset about it. It pays to remain as calm and collected as possible, and to try not to let your child know how much her not being potty trained is bothering you. Because then she's got the upper hand, and will know how to manage you.
I've found that pull ups DON'T work. They're fine for going out of the house or at night, but kids will train better NOT in pull ups. Yes, it's messy, yes, you'll be doing a lot more laundry, and yes, you'll find yourself scrubbing up wet and poopy pants. But, they KNOW better that they pee. They can feel it more. Pull ups just pull the pee away from them, so they can't feel it.
If you are iffy about sticking with the cotton panties, there are a couple things you can do. First, give her a choice each day. Ask her if she wants to be a Big Girl, or a Baby. A Big Girl gets to choose which pair of panties to wear, and gets help Mommy help her be a big girl by working REALLY hard to keep the panties dry. A Baby HAS to wear a pull up diaper (and I'd use the word diaper instead of pull ups) and doesn't get to do any special Big Girl things. Second, you can set up a sticker chart, and let her put a sticker on the chart when she goes on the potty. Accidents always get frownie faces. You could get a bunch of small things from the dollar store, and keep them up. Everytime she goes a whole day without an accident, she can pick one prize from the bag. You could make it that anytime she has an accident, you have to "start over" on things. For example, if you tell her that 1 whole week with no accidents will get her a trip to McDonald's playland, and she's on day 6, and has an accident, you just simply state that you are very sorry, but now she has to start all over, and she has to go another whole week with no accidents.
Another thing, when she regresses, and has accidents, don't make a big deal of it. Just don't say a word, help her clean up and change, then let it go... and, when she succeeds, keep giving her LOTS of positive attention!
BTW, I tried ALL of these, and more... everything anyone ever suggested... with one of my kids... and NOTHING worked, until HE decided that it was time. Then, HE started using the potty... both pee and poo, day and night, all by himself.
And, advice from my dr.... No one ever goes to Kindergarten in diapers.