What To Do When Your Child’s Not Interested In Potty Training

For some toddlers, potty training is a breeze: they take to it right away, and before you know it you’ve ditched the diapers for good. Other kids take more time to adjust to this big change and there can be lots of accidents and many loads of laundry before they finally start to get the hang of using their big-kid potties.

Luckily, there are many things you can do to make potty training a painless transition. But for starters, you need to make sure you are creating a perfect potty environment for your child.

When a child feels more comfortable using the potty or toilet, he will be much more likely to do it. If he’s afraid of something (loud noise of the flushing) or it’s difficult for him (the toilet is too high or he has a potty seat that slips), it will be one hurdle too many and he might not even bother trying.

Here are a few tips to help you make things as easy as possible:

• Remove distractions.

I know it might seem like a great idea to offer your kids an I-pad or a book every time they sit down on the potty, or to place the potty in front of the TV. You might think, “Why not? They’ll be distracted and won’t get up and run around!” But you don’t want your child sitting on the potty because it’s fun and she gets to watch her favourite show while she’s doing it; you want her to learn that she has a job to do and the quicker she does her business, the quicker she can get back to doing fun things. You want your child to be heading to the potty deliberately because she’s following her body’s cues, not because it means she gets to play with an I-pad.

• Keep it quiet.

Many children find the sound of a toilet flushing upsetting. It can just be too darn loud for some sensitive toddlers. This can be a big deterrent during potty training, so if you suspect it might be a problem, there are a couple of things you can do.

• Close the lid after you’ve emptied the potty bowl before flushing
• Have them put their hands over their ears
• Make up a little song to sing when you flush the toilet to distract the child from the sound
• If it’s really frightening for your child, tell him he can stand outside the door while you flush. Keep the door open so he can still be part of the process.

• Make everything easy.

You want to set your kids up for potty independence, so make sure their potty is in good working order with all the parts fitting together properly. If they use a toilet, put a small stool in the bathroom so they can easily get to the toilet and the sink for clean-up. Make sure the soap dispenser is easy to use, and that there are hand towels for drying at close range. Sometime picking a special superhero-themed hand soap or a princess towel for them to dry their hands on make the whole process more fun.

Most young children thrive on routine, so when they have a step-by-step order to follow and they know what to expect, potty training becomes a normal part of their day instead of something they feel they have to protest against.

If you’re looking for what has to be the most stress-free way to potty train, have a look at:

No-Sweat Potty Training.

It promises to make potty training no sweat and actually makes the whole process a lot of fun for your child!