potty training is making me lose my mind

it’s been 5 days of my daughter peeing all over the house, having horrible tantrums and refusing to sit on the potty. idk what is happening because before we started actively trying she was very interested in the potty. now it’s a complete nightmare. we’re still doing diapers for nap time and bed so she’s just holding her poop until she has a diaper on. i want to give up 😭😭
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Don’t give up! It’ll all have been for nothing! Keep going and she’ll grasp it x

How old is she?

It sounds like the novelty had worn off, maybe try a reward chart x

How old is she? She doesn’t sound ready.

@Natalie 28 months

@Nicola i’m not sure rewards is the way we wanted to go but we might have to

She doesn't sound ready.

@Lisa she’s 28 months. sometimes i’ve wondered that but she will say she needs to go potty, but won’t sit on it

Ah how come? I mean like a sticker chart and then maybe give her the odd sweet if she’s done more than one wee or a poo on the potty

We are having some issues too but kind of the opposite. In the last 2 hours, my toddler has sat on the potty 8 times! And all at here lead. She will just randomly yell she has to go. And yet she still hasn’t gone! She’s napping now so we put a diaper on her so I’m sure she will go now 🙃🙃 But so much work and she hasn’t even gone

@Natalie i’ve thought that but i feel like she’s definitely capable! i’m not sure how to help her through it. it’s weird because a few weeks ago before we were actively trying she randomly said she needed to poop and sat on the toilet and pooped! so i know she can it’s just there’s this resistance

@Nicola stickers id be okay with but we just don’t want to give sweets in exchange for it

@Haley it’s so stressful 😭 at least she’s going voluntarily

The resistance could be cos she doesn't quite feel ready and the pressure is having the opposite effect to what you want

@Natalie how can i encourage it with putting too much pressure?

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Yeah I get what you mean, definitely see if stickers work, mine only turned 2 last month and a dreading potty training him

Start by putting her on at times when you know she'll need a wee like first thing in a morning. Add it into the routine. Ie get undressed, potty then dressed. I found saying sentences like first we try on the potty then we will go play with.... When sat on it read books, sing songs etc to distract. Encourage to blow bubbles when sat on cos that forces the body to bear down. Stickers definitely worked for us. We did every 5 stickers she got a treat.

@Haley that’s the problem we have too 😅

don’t give up but friend i will tell u its an uphill battle. i have changed at least one poop accident a day since OCTOBER we took a break when i was 8 months pregnant and came back to it after i delivered and same thing 🙃 he’s abt to be 3 in 10 days 🥲

If she's got a negative association, maybe start from scratch and let her pick her own potty? X

Our little was holding his poop until he had a diaper on too. One day, we put his potty in his room at nighttime and closed the door and he finally went. I think because there wasn't much pressure on him he finally did it on his own.

It's not giving up, it's a strategic retreat! Take the pressure all the way off and let her come back to it on her own. Go back to reading potty books and notice how the kids aren't forced to run around without clothes or sit on the potty when a timer goes off. The adults are helpful and supportive of the kid's choice to go. That's where you want to land. Congratulate her for wanting to use the potty, for noticing she needs to go pee, telling you it's time, and eventually for doing all the steps that make it possible. Don't worry, Mama! Your big girl will get there without you forcing it along. This is definitely an area where less is more. 🙂

@Bonny thank you ❤️ should i keep her commando or get underwear ?

@Annie oh god 😩

@Natalie did you have them go commando or wear undies?

When we first tried we did commando. She did well for a few days then got ill so we put it on hold. When we started this time she asked for knickers so thats what we did.

Do what works for you. I have ended up potty training in diapers until they really get the hang of it. I tried the commando thing with my daughter, and she got the idea, but it mostly upset her, so I stopped. My son thinks it's hilarious to pee when he's not wearing a diaper, so that was a no-go as well. For us, I really focused on having them tell me when they need to go, making a show of going right away and heaping on the praise after and saying what a big kid they are. I do give little homemade cookies, but that is mostly because I started early, and I think a behavioral approach works better for younger kids.

Have you tried telling her once she’s potty trained she can wear underwear like mama, and she can pick it out? It worked for my girl. We also did prizes for poops. My nephew was resistant they did temporary tattoos for him.

@Natalie i think we’re gonna try undies/knickers next. thank you for the advice 🙏🏽

My pediatrician gave a class and told us this is about empowering our children. She said, tell the kid, I have a new job for you. Your job is to be the boss of your body. What that means is it is your job to listen to your body and take care of it. One of the ways you take care of it is putting your poop and pee in the potty because that is where it goes. And so since it is their job to be in charge, I mostly left it to my son. I remind or push mostly first thing in the morning and right before bed. I made it part of the routine too. Or occasionally if we are going out. And if you want a reward of some type my parents did hand stamps.

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