For potty-training mommies

We are in the potty training section of toddlerhood.  My daughter is 2.5 yrs old and refuses to potty on the potty.  I don't force her by any means and do not get upset when she doesn't hit the toilet for all the #1s and 2s.  She seems to do okay when doing #1 but #2 has been a task.  I was wondering if I'm setting my expectations too high for her age, as I was fully trained at 2.5 yrs.  I know that all children are different, that's why I love her. :D  I have tried everything from stickers to bribing with an M&M.  She is not at all worried that she walks around in her wet or dirty pull-up. LOL!  I would love to hear any suggestions that my ladies out there may have.  Thanks!

[JoyRenee]

I don't think you're setting your expectations high. It's good that you recognize that her personality is different. My SIL had the same problem in which my niece was really stubborn about pooing on the potty and she would deliberately poo in her panties. She was 2 1/2 yrs old as well. I started training my daughter around the same time (both girls are only a month apart in age). My daughter didn't have issues with it, but she did have accidents.

I say just let her come to you in her own time. There's really no rush, right? I think when you show her that you don't care, she'll be more likely to do it. That's just my opinion, of course, but sometimes that reverse psychology stuff really works!

The same niece I just referred to is very stubborn about a LOT, including eating. I used a little reverse psych on her and got her to eat her entire plate. I just said, "Hey! HEY! Don't eat that!" in a playful tone, which made her laugh and eat it to spite me. Or I'd try to grab something off of her plate and say, "Wait, this is MINE! I'm so very hungry..." and then she'd want it back. So you might be able to use the same concept to get her used to pooing on the potty. My niece now eats and goes potty without a problem and she's 3 1/2 yrs old now.

[gillianl]

if your daughter keeps pooing and peeing in her pull up pants why not try her in big girl cotton pants.  These may feel uncomfy for her to start with but the more you tell her these pants are for big girls and big girls use the potty she may in fact start using the potty more often.  i feel pull up pants are just another type of nappy and feel this is why she may still think she is wearing one.  I hope this helps!!

[amy0013]

I heard this advice from someone a long time ago...It's definitely harsh and I don't sense that you are at this point yet with your daughter...BUT I heard someone who would give their child a COLD shower every time they pooped in their pants.  It only took two cold showers before the child was using the potty every time!  I know this sounds extreme and maybe even over board but when you're desperate you'll try anything!  :)

I think you're doing the right things by not pushing her if she's not ready.  It will click for her sooner than later.  I also agree with gillianl...pull ups are supposed to make you "feel" the wetness but they are still absorbant and not always a huge stepping stone.  I know my daughter trained MUCH MUCH faster when I switched and went to straight panties.  Yes, we had some clean ups...but not many!  You could always try cotton panties for a few days and see how she reacts to the accidents and if it changes her behavior?

Good luck to ya!  Potty training isn't easy!  :)

[danielleacor]

My son is at the same age. I'm trying to potty train because he is going into daycare where all the kids are potty trained but him. So what i started doing, is any time i needed to go to the bathroom, i would say to him, ok lets going to the bathroom, come with mommy, and instead of asking him to go. I say him down on his potty, and i sat on mine. I would talk about how he's such a big boy even if he didn't do any action. Now he's at the point where he tells my he has to go potty, but that he tells me after he's already done it in his pull up. So we are getting there. It takes time and a whole lot of patience. Good luck to you. :O)

[TKM22]

yeah im avin the same  my 2 yr old son is using the potty on his own accord  when he wants a wee but he doesnt seem to want to do a poo on there  he waits till i put a new nappy on him for that,  but im sure ill get there in the end.

[Lula0609]

thanks to you all for your support and answers!  It really makes me feel a lot better!!!  I will definitely be putting some of those suggestions to use...:D

[cminamyer]

My daughter is almost 2 and we have been working on potty training for about 4 months now.  She's doing really good now, but it did take a while to get her to poop on the potty.  I would try tootsie rolls and she just didn't want to do it, then one day it clicked.  Now the past week or so she does eveything on the potty, two things worked for our daughter.  She had an accident in her panties and I couldn't get them off with out making a really big mess so I cut the sides of them like pull ups and threw them away, oh my gosh she got so upset!  I told her that I would have to cut off her panties and toss them in the trash if she went in them, and she stopped pooping in them.  She would just hold it until bed time when I put the pull up on her.... And would have the occasional pee accident in her panties, but I wouldn't toss those ones.  Now she has this box that my mom got for her when she was born that has a glass piggy bank pig and a glass frame and boxes in it, well she wants to play with it soooooo bad and I told her that if she pooped on the potty she could, well everyday this week she has.  She'll sit on the potty and before she does anything she'll say "box mommy!" with a big smile on her face, I hate her playing with it and I have to sit there and watch her the whole time, but it worked.  So find something she really REALLY wants and tell her she can only have it if she goes on the potty.  Good Luck!

[JoyRenee]

Wow, Amy, that does seem a bit........ cold (no pun intended)! Desperate times and desperate measures, I suppose.