Oh Crap! Potty Training at 25 months old – WEEK 1 & 2

A few months ago, I picked up a copy of the Oh Crap! Potty Training by Jamie Glowacki at my local library just to get some background information on this inevitable topic. Then I realised that we were right at the critical age of 20 – 30 months for toilet training.

 

Initially, we were not planning to get straight into the training yet. We were busy doing a few home improvement projects, and the little one had only just turned two. There will be plenty of time, right? So, despite the book advising us to start training within 2 weeks, we procrastinated for a couple of months. Until one day, my daughter suddenly decided she doesn’t want to wear nappies anymore!!! While being plunged head first into potty training, we have since learned a few things about it:

 

PREPARATION

Teach your child to get dressed/undressed

This is something we are still working on because we started a little late. It takes a while for them to get a grip on this ability. I suggest that starting at about 15 months, begin teaching them to “push” their pants down and pull their pants up. It helps move them to toileting independently much faster.

 

Fiber and water

Before starting toilet training, make sure there is no issue with hard stool or constipation. it will be hard to convince the child to use the potty if the experience hurts. Start making sure they drink enough fluid and consume plenty of fiber in their diet. Consult your doctor before giving the child any supplement or medication for their bowel movement.

 

Get a potty, or two!

We were fortunate that we have already purchased a potty at around 18 months of age. Since our bathroom is upstairs, we needed a potty in the living area. I like that The Munchkin Arm & Hammer Multi-Stage 3-in-1 Potty can be used as a potty, a step stool, and a toilet ring for when she is ready for the big toilet. It is also quite inconspicuous when placed in the living room. However, my daughter found the potty a little too tall for her. So we also bought the IKEA Lilla Potty which she finds easier to sit down on her own. The shorter potty also promotes a squatting posture for easier pooping. In addition, it is great to take out on a daily basis, especially when most public bathrooms are closed during the pandemic time. One thing that the Oh Crap! Book emphasised though, and where we had made a mistake, was the importance of not showing the potty to the child until they are actually going into the training. we had the potty lying around for a couple of months but not making her use it. After we realised we were sending her the wrong message, we packed the potty away immediately. And when training time came, our daughter fortunately still found the potty interesting and was very engaged in the activity.

 

Get the other carers on board

Talk to your partner and any carers about your preferred potty training method. It is very important to have a consistent method so that the child knows what to expect. Also, with the Oh Crap! method there will be a lot of cleaning up initially. Make sure everybody is prepared accordingly.

 

Clear the stage

Now we are actually doing it! On the first morning, we scrambled to remove all of the textiles from her activity zones. If you’re more organised, do it the night before. Be it rugs, cushions, seating pads, throw blankets, anything that cannot be wiped clean or scrubbed down goes straight to storage. If there are carpets, I suggest laying down some tarps, disposable table sheets, or even a shower curtain to protect the area.

 

 

Set the scene

Initially, we placed one potty at each end of the living area, which was really a little overkill. But have lots of towels at hand for cleaning (we used our flat cloth diapers), as well as a basket of books for the child, toilet paper/wipes, and hand sanitiser. Line the floor with a towel to keep the drips from spreading is very useful, especially when the kid decides to stand up and dance mid-business. And give yourself plenty of room around the potty, because you’ll need to sit and read with them the whole time, wrestle them to wipe their butt, and be on all four to clean their mess.

 

HOW ARE WE DOING?

 

Block One

Day 1 – Day 4: Naked from the waist down, stayed home all day.

 

She went from dribbling all day on Day 1 to showing control of her bladder and bowel on Day 2 quite quickly. She began to self-initiate on Day 2 and has not had a poop accident since then. There were still small misses, mainly because we were not able to see her pee signal (“pee-pee dance”). So we switched to monitoring fluid consumption instead. By Day 4, we were able to keep everything in the potty.

 

Block Two & Three

Day 5 – On Going: Wears pants but no undies. Going out and using potty away from home.

 

We combined Block Two and Block Three. Since there are no public bathrooms available during the pandemic, we have been bringing our own potty out. She refused to use the potty in public on the first day. Then later, she was much more comfortable to do so when we were at a more familiar location (our local playground) and I was sitting down with her on the floor and reading a book.

 

On Day 6, we suffered some major drawbacks as we were busy and used TV as babysitter. She was too distracted to go to the potty and had many accidents. (See more details below on Things We Have Learned). We reversed back to Block One (no pants at home) for a day before we were sure she could move forward again. Since then, we have had zero misses during the day, both at home and out, but still see an average of one accident every two to three days in the evening. We are putting it down to her higher fluid consumption in the evening, causing her to need to pee more frequently than we can prompt her, as well as the distraction when TV is on.

 

THINGS WE HAVE LEARNED

 

Do focus on the positive

It might seem like we were mopping the floor all day (and that we did), but the progress is much easier to see when we focused on when she managed to score in the potty. Knowing that there will be a lot of accidents, we were less stressed about those misses. At first, our daughter was a bit startled by pee coming out of her and going everywhere. In response, we simply casually pointed out that she got wet and the pee and poo need to go in the potty. She gradually became more relaxed and had time to process what had happened.

 

 

Don’t over prompt

Initially, because we have not figured out the rhythm of her toileting habit, we could not help but ask her constantly if she needed to use the potty. The right way to prompt, as we revisited the oH Crap! book later is by telling (not asking) the child to use the potty at a consistent schedule each day. For example, go to the potty every two hours, after a meal, before playtime, before going out, after coming home from outside, etc. It helps the child to create a habit of self-prompting. This also leads to:

 

Understanding consumption and output

According to Brenner Paediatrics, a two year-old has a bladder capacity of about 120 mL (~ 4 oz). It is reasonable to expect them to need to use the potty after consuming a similar quantity of liquid. As for the amount of fluid consumed, 470 to 700 mL (~ 16 to 24 oz) daily is a healthy range. Dividing that by their bladder capacity, they should be needing to pee at least four to six times during their waking hours, i.e. every 2-3 hours. So keep an eye on the clock.

 

Give her a minute

This is something more than about toilet training. I found that many of her accidents happen right after we asked if she needs to use the potty. As she was being over-prompted, she mostly responded “NO!” out of reflex. By the time she realises she actually needs to go, we had moved on and were not at hand to help. Children at this young age need at least 30 seconds to make a response. When you ask a question, give them a minute to think. Ask again after a minute to make sure. And NO OVER-PROMPTING!

 

TV is not your friend

Toilet training was out of the window when the TV was on. We had the most number of accidents when she was engrossed by the screen. Make sure she uses the potty before the show starts. Some parents suggested that having a show on when they poop helps them relax. But in reality, the business is super fast and, once they are done, it is always a pain to shut it down. Just skip the screen and only make them sit down when they really need to poop.

 

Get the book

Potty training does take time and you will forget important information. Make sure you have the Oh Crap! book on hand to refer to during the training. I borrowed mine from the library and did not have one with me the whole time, a lot of back-tracking ensued. So just buy one, or get one second hand. It is worth your penny~

 

WHAT’S NEXT?

Going into the third week, we are not in a hurry to move her toward Block 4 yet. Underwears will have to wait until she is 100% accident-free. But the biggest hurdle is going to be night training. Some have done this alongside Block 4. Some have waited until their child was closer to three and a half years old. We are going to wait until she has at least a dry nappy after a nap, and is able to dress and undress more efficiently. For now, we are just going to stock up on two-piece pajamas.

 

 

Have you potty trained your child? Or maybe you are considering it? Share with us your thoughts below!