Tips To Help Your Resistant Kiddo Prepare For Potty Training

Is your kiddo resistant to peeing/pooping on the potty but you can tell they are demonstrating signs of readiness? Don’t force it, but keep the learning process going by teaching them other aspects of potty training to help prepare them and give them the confidence to begin the potty training process!

There isn't necessarily a set order in which the steps of using the potty need to be learned! Keep your child engaged and the learning momentum moving forward by using a little redirection.

When children are introduced to a new skill quickly, it can become overwhelming and even a little frightening for children who don't like change. Learning to go pee and poop purposefully in the potty is a big transition from going mindlessly in their diaper or Pull-Up.

Because of this, we can offer small ways to introduce them to the potty training process one step at a time until they feel comfortable enough to give it a go! Today we are going to talk about tips to help prepare your child for the potty training process. Each little step counts to empower our children to believe that they CAN do it!

If your child is resistant to potty training, you can work on:

• Learning how to wash hands - Teaching your child to wash their hands independently will help them not only create a sense of confidence in their independence, but it will also put them one step closer to mastering the potty training process.
• Push down pants - When we tell our children to "pull down" their pants, they can misunderstand the instructions because we are essentially pushing down our pants when we go potty on the toilet. Altering our language in this small way can create more clarity for our little ones.
• Sitting on the potty - Even if your child refuses to sit on the toilet naked, you can start with baby steps and have them sit on the toilet with their diaper on or even with their clothes on. Getting our children used to the sitting position will help them transition into the training process that much easier.
• Flushing - Flushing the toilet can be scary at first because of the loud noise, and also because everything "disappears" into an unknown hole. Getting our little ones used to flushing and even making it a fun part of the potty training process will help to take away part of the fear surrounding potty training.
• Putting the toilet lid down - Kids who are at the potty training age often love to "help" their parents with small tasks. Asking your child to close the lid to the toilet after you go to the bathroom is just one more way to help involve them in the bathroom process.

By doing these things with your hesitant kiddo you will still be preparing them and teaching them potty training skills in the bathroom, which will continue to help your child feel more confident and will eventually lead to the end goal, being successful potty trained!

Even if your child is physically ready to potty train, they may not be quite there emotionally and that’s okay! I know it can be frustrating as a parent because you want your child to succeed and succeed quickly! But new skills like this take time, and it's okay to take baby steps. As long as your child is moving forward, that's all that matters!

Oftentimes, even as adults we are capable of executing a skill physically, but we may not be emotionally prepared or confidant enough to do it right away. New skills take time and gaining confidence also takes time!

You can both do this! I believe in you!

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