Potty training at five months????

[LilyLamb]

Someone at another forum mentioned that she knows a lady that started potty training her children at five months and by the time they were a year old they were out of diapers.

Doesn't that seem a bit young???

When did you start potty training your children??

I think we started when they were old enough to walk well, sometime after they turned one, but before they were two.  Most all of mine were well trained by two years old.  I think our last one may have been close to three before he got the hang of it.

 

 

 

[Blynn]

Five months??? Wow. I have never heard of starting that young.

Mine were all well over two years old when we started potty training. They were probably closer to three when they were out of diapers.

 

[VOW]

After I had my first, I of course was curious about EVERYTHING. People give you so much advice, it FLIES through the air like a blizzard! I lived with my parents at the time, and my mother bought a potty chair when my daughter was about ten months old. Momma said, "YOU were potty trained before you were a year old, and your daughter is AT LEAST as smart as you were!"

So, I talked to our doctor. The woman had FIVE kids of her own, so I figured she would have a pretty good idea of potty training. Her advice? Leave the kid alone. Sooner or later, the child will become curious about what grownups are DOING in the bathroom, and the kid will make the connection all by him or herself.

The doctor said with one of hers, she went along with the big push to potty train early. She said when you do that, the BABY isn't trained, but Mommy and Daddy are! She said she couldn't take the kid ANYWHERE without stopping at every bathroom and restroom at practically every gas station and store between home and the destination.

I let my mom think she was potty training my daughter. But I basically just left her alone, and she got the idea. Same with my son.

Neither child wore diapers to kindergarten, LOL!


Peace,
~VOW

 

[Miss Shelby]

Originally posted by LilyLamb 
Someone at another forum mentioned that she knows a lady that started potty training her children at five months and by the time they were a year old they were out of diapers.

Doesn't that seem a bit young???

That seems a bit ambitious to me.

When did you start potty training your children??

I waited until they were both 2.  I don't think they have the muscle control to hold it much younger than that.   My 2 1/2 year old still isn't fully potty trained, but I'm not sweating it.  It will happen when it happens.

I think we started when they were old enough to walk well, sometime after they turned one, but before they were two.  Most all of mine were well trained by two years old.  I think our last one may have been close to three before he got the hang of it.

It's probably not a bad idea to start getting them into the habit when they're around 18 months.  I guess it all depends on whether you use cloth or disposable diapers.  If I were using cloth diapers... I would want them out of  them ASAP!

Michelle

  

 

[Lost]

Hi there!

Being immature and too submissive I let a very rude family of in-laws and an abusive husband force our first to potty train young. I firmly believe this is why the bedwetting lasted so long! (To this very day she remembers some of it and is still upset...at 18 yrs old!)  It is too much for little ones like that!  

They will let you know when they are ready.

With my second child I did what I wanted to. When they are old enough to be walking around the house and imitating you, you buy a little potty chair their size and put it where they can see you going. (No, really!) He would follow me and sit in his own little chair and it was no time that he was potty trained.  It helps a lot if little guys can watch their daddy going.  A friend of mine used Cheerios cereal:  she put one or two in the bowl and told her little boy to "aim at the target".   It goes faster, smoother, and NO Bedwetting!! (Only two or three accidents!)

Also, be sure to purchase one that doesn't tip over easily, it can slow the process down by scaring them.  I find the little wood legged ones are the best. 




Lost

 

[Million Pieces]

Don't freak out, but I have heard of training a child at 5 months, or less in many many cases. The Chinese do it this way:

They atart at age of about 3 or so months, by holding the child over the toilet (some westerners do it over the tub), with their legs in a sitting position, and make a "Shushing" sound, or low whistle, or clicking sound. Eventually (takes about 5-10 minutes) the child will do something, and the pattern is repeated every hour or so. Remarkably soon, the child associates the sound you make with the toilet, and can go on demand. So, yes, millions of Chinese babies are toilet trained by age of 5 months!

On the other hand, I am at the exact opposite end of that scale. My son turned 3 in July and is STILL not taking the initiative of going to the bathroom by himself on a consistent basis.

**sigh**

 

[LilyLamb]

Here's a link to Infant Potty Training http://www.timl.com/tt/

If you read this you will see that these children AVERAGE the same TIME/AGE as children who are potty trained at a later age (and walking).

Doesn't make sense to me ... unless of course someone is just trying to reduce the number of diapers they use ....

 

[lucypevensie]

I took the initiative in training my kids, rather than letting them choose. I knew they were intellectually capable and physically capable. If I had waited for them to choose we might still be buying diapers. Neither of them showed any interest at all! They were both about 2 1/2. My daughter took 2 days and my son took about a month. Ahhhhh....no more diapers......

 

[wildernesse]

My mother has said that if you start potty training before the end of 2 years, you're just training yourself, not the baby. (I don't have any children--but I do like to run my mouth! My grandmother has said that she's noticed that the people with the most and "best" to say about childraising have never had children. bwhahaha)

I can remember being 3 and realizing that using the toilet was a whole lot better than not worrying about a toilet (after an incident where my line of reasoning was--well if my baby brother does it, why can't I?), so when kids get to be a certain age I think they can understand what's going on and prefer an alternative to diapers. Plus, they like to be like grown-ups!

I wouldn't think that it would hurt them to wait til they are older, and if you don't then you might end up frustrated more than you need to be and take that out (even in small ways) on your child.

--tibac

 

[Million Pieces]

Well, tibac, it's not always best to have a 3 year old running around in training pants either. A great many daycares and dayhomes, not to mention children's church, won't take kids in training pants or diapers past a certain age, when realistically they should be trained, especially in recent years of awareness of child abuses in daycares.

There is simply NO logical reason my son can't go to the bathroom on his own initiative. I've been calm and encouraging about it (I learned a hard lesson with my oldest when we fought for months when my daughter was newborn), we've tried rewards, stickers, treats, threats!, bribing. . . etc. Seems the only thing that works is keeping his butt completely bare at home or behind our tall fence in the backyard. But of course, I can't take him shopping or to the bank that way! And still he's only halfways interested. Today for example, he was dry and clean while at home, but when we went out for choir practice, just as we left the church, he tells me "I stinky!" Okay, when he can tell me it STINKS I think it's far beyond time for him to take himself or tell someone to go to the potty. The REALLY stupid thing is, he WAS actually trained, completely dry, day and night for about two weeks during our holidays this summer. The day, and I mean the very DAY we got home from our trip, he goes back to not trying. Honestly, I wanted to bash my head on the wall.

I'm trying my hardest not to get steamed about this, but it's becoming more frustrating every day. Some days it's all I can do not to punish the kid when he's gone through 4 pants that day.

Sorry for my venting, but I had to get that out among other moms who can sympathize. I guess I just need to hear from someone that their little darling was as beligerent as mine.

 

[lucypevensie]

Originally posted by Jn207
Well, tibac, it's not always best to have a 3 year old running around in training pants either. A great many daycares and dayhomes, not to mention children's church, won't take kids in training pants or diapers past a certain age, when realistically they should be trained, especially in recent years of awareness of child abuses in daycares.

There is simply NO logical reason my son can't go to the bathroom on his own initiative. I've been calm and encouraging about it (I learned a hard lesson with my oldest when we fought for months when my daughter was newborn), we've tried rewards, stickers, treats, threats!, bribing. . . etc. Seems the only thing that works is keeping his butt completely bare at home or behind our tall fence in the backyard. But of course, I can't take him shopping or to the bank that way! And still he's only halfways interested. Today for example, he was dry and clean while at home, but when we went out for choir practice, just as we left the church, he tells me "I stinky!" Okay, when he can tell me it STINKS I think it's far beyond time for him to take himself or tell someone to go to the potty. The REALLY stupid thing is, he WAS actually trained, completely dry, day and night for about two weeks during our holidays this summer. The day, and I mean the very DAY we got home from our trip, he goes back to not trying. Honestly, I wanted to bash my head on the wall.

I'm trying my hardest not to get steamed about this, but it's becoming more frustrating every day. Some days it's all I can do not to punish the kid when he's gone through 4 pants that day.

Sorry for my venting, but I had to get that out among other moms who can sympathize. I guess I just need to hear from someone that their little darling was as beligerent as mine.

I'm a bit old-fashioned when it comes to PT'ing. So if you don't like my ideas you can sweep them under the rug if you want to.

I think it's OK to correct (a mild punishment) a kid for deliberately defying your wishes for him to use the toilet. I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT A KID WHO DOES NOT UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT OR HAS A PHYSICAL PROBLEM! Please don't misunderstand! But when the kid KNOWS how to do it and YOU KNOW HE KNOWS but still does not comply with your instructions that is disobedience.

Of course, just because they aren't getting the hang of it doesn't mean they are being disobedient. They might not understand very well yet or maybe they're not confident or are shy about it. I AM NOT SAYING YOU SHOULD PUNISH A KID LIKE THAT.

But if it's disobedience, why not treat it like any other disobedience???

 

[VOW]

Potty training is a power struggle, and a bright child will soon learn that he or she can really push Mom's buttons (or Dad's, LOL) by NOT doing what the parent wants.

I can understand Lucy's viewpoint, about willful disobedience. And I kinda, sorta subscribe to it. My reaction, would probably be an admonishment, or a scolding, something to the effect, "You can't wear the big boy pants if you are going to NOT put your stinky in the potty!" (or whatever terminology floats your boat, LOL)

But my whole concept of potty training isn't doing it for Mom's convenience. Admittedly, Mom is the one who will benefit the most. When my kids were toddlers, I didn't make a big push to potty train. I waited for the kid to show an interest, and then I did my best to "sell" them on how NEAT an idea it was, not to have wet or dirty pants that had to be changed.

I observed, with my daughter, by waiting, that the actual "training" takes almost no time at all. Kid wakes up dry from a nap, you set the kid on the potty and voila! Heavy on the praise!

Of course, LOL, she was a girl.

My son took longer to get the idea. I had daycare pushing me to "get him trained." I just kept them supplied with changes of clothes, I wasn't going to push it. Not only was he a BOY, but he was premature, and if you read all the books and magazines, they tell you that preemies are often lagging in most milestones.

Then, to top it off, he was trained during the day, but wet at night. Now, there's a family history of bedwetting. After I had him checked out physically, I simply LEFT HIM ALONE. I'd get Pull-ups, or the bigger diapers, and he'd use those. I wasn't going to go the route of waking him up in the middle of the night to tinkle. I'd get UPSET if someone woke ME up and made me go to the bathroom! I simply accepted this "problem" as a genetic thing, and we got pretty snappy at the quick bath in the morning and stripping his bed. I even showed him how to use the washer.

Grandma came to visit, and tried to SHAME him into staying dry. Oh, I came down HARD on her for that. Then she told me I should not let him drink liquids in the evening. Sheesh! The kid had ear infections and sinus problems. He was a mouth breather. I refused to let him SUFFER by taking away liquids!

The BEST solution to a genetic bedwetting problem is a prescription nose spray called DDVAP or something like that. It works.


Peace,
~VOW

 

[kimmee]

start tanning them around 18 months. 5 months is way to young. that way when they hit 2 they are or should be fulling trainned day and night.

 

[EJO]

They started at 5 months, and they were trained by the time they were a year?
It took them 7 months, and they probably were not able to even walk to the potty by themselves.
It took us less then a week to trian our kids to go potty, and they walked there themselves.
Sounds easier to wait til they can at least walk to the bathroom.

My 19 month old knows when she goes in her diaper, but she freezes when she sits on the potty, she has no idea what to do there....

 

[fieldmouse3]

I don't have kids, but I think I was between one and 2 1/2 before I was fully potty trained. The funny thing is, I can actually remember being potty trained! I used to get candy every time I did it right.

 

[Million Pieces]

Originally posted by brian_z_babe
start training them around 18 months. 5 months is way to young. that way when they hit 2 they are or should be fulling trainned day and night.

Pardon me, but I really just have to laugh here.  You're 16.  I'd love to see your opinion when real life comes knocking at the door. 

I happen to agree that 5 months is too young, but even starting at 18 months might be too much for some kids.  Physically, intellectually, they have to be ready for it.  I also happen to believe in not expecting them to be dry at night before at least 3 or 4.

BTW, we're having limited success recently.  He was dry all day long yesterday.. got huge praise, sticker on the calendar, the whole bit.  Gonna go it a day at a time.