Hi,
Can any of the experienced mothers let me know from which age i should potty train my baby? Also please share ur experiences on the process of potty training. I have no idea how to start.
Thanks
We cannot really tell when to start potty training but we can encourage our babies and sharpen their skills for the readiness to potty training.
I keep delaying to potty train my baby from one week to another 
I bought the potty(ies) since she was 6mo and have them placed in every rooms in the house-I bought the cheap one $3 each. Just making her familiar with that thing because what I heard from other moms, their kids refuse to sit in the potty, let alone to wee or poo in it. I take her nappy off for half an hour every evening before bath and she sits in the potty to wee (for now lol ). That’s just my preparation but I think I want to follow the ‘potty training in 3 days or less’ (http://www.babycenter.com/0_potty-training-in-three-days-or-less_10310078.bc) where you let your baby butt-naked all day. Here are the skills you can look for in your child to find out if he/she is ready for potty training.
Physical skills
1 She is able to hold onto wee for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
2 She has a dry nappy after her daytime nap.
3 She will sit or stand still for a while when doing a wee or poo in her nappy.
4 She makes a grunting noise when doing a poo in her nappy.
5 She will squat when doing a poo in a nappy.
6 She will show discomfort at a soiled or wet nappy.
Self-help skills
1 She is able to sit quietly for a few minutes engaged in an activity.
2 She will potter off and play on her own for a shirt time without adult help.
3 She may attempt to take off her nappy if it is wet or soiled.
4 She will try to undress - for example, attempting to pull down her trousers.
5 She will take an interests in other family member’s toileting habits.
Understanding
1 She is able to follow a simple instruction.
2 She is able to understand what is expected of them when you ask them if they need to sit on the potty to do a wee or poo.
Communication
1 By spoken language or gestures, she is able to communicate if they need to a wee or poo.
hope that helps
My babies did it from birth and loved it. It is when you trained them to use the diapers and do their business in the diaper, that is when it is difficult to “un train” them. Baby normally does not want to be dirty or wet, so it is the easiest to meet baby’s needs in the very beginning, when they are so clear about them and when they were not yet trained to go poop and pee in their pants Of course diapers are more convenient for us as parents, because if you do potty with the baby you need to watch and be attentive to signs and then to put baby on the potty right away, when she/he asks. But it really worth the try. However once you did teach your baby to use diapers instead, you need to be understanding and gentle in “retraining them” to get back to their original knowledge and motivating them to use potty. It is like with any new acquired habit, it is not always easy to change and once it is developed ( the habit of going into the diaper) you will need to be able to reason, gently explain, encourage, motivate, help, etc. That is why I think in lots Western Cultures we see children getting potty trained at a very late age…
So I would say if you have a newborn, see for the signs and follow them, earlier the better. If you already have a baby who used to using diapers, don’t expect fast results, see what she/he is ready for, and follow your child leads. Lots of babies once they realize that there is a way not to be in a dirty diaper would pick it up pretty soon, others would be different. Be patient and don’t expect fast results, follow your baby’s leads.
Our older girl never used diapers till the birth of her brother ( we were busy with birth and new baby, and were not able to attend to her potty fast), at the age 2 weeks she would miss one time out of 20-23 changes ( so once in a few days), we kept a chart just for our future reference, and she kept that pattern till the birth of her brother. Then we just had to juggle two kids, so we missed sometime :nowink: He brother was the same, but again with two kids we are not always as attentive or fast to meet his potty needs so we do use diapers on occasion.
We use cloth, and that also makes it easier…
There are lots of schools of thought out there, and a lot of depends on what things are important to you (do you prefer to do it quickly, do you prefer to do it early, can you be patient for a long potty training experience, or would you prefer it to be a quicker process), and of course your baby’s individual temperment. I don’t think there is one right way or time to potty train.
We chose elimination communication, or infant potty training. My baby is a little older than yours and has pooped in the potty about 95% of the time for a few months now. She’s never really had the association of pooping in her diaper, so whenever she started to poop she’d cue for someone to bring her to the potty. When she has pooped in her pants, she’s not very happy about it. --some of this is individual personality, of course, my oldest could care less if poop was everywhere…
I also know moms who wait until the child is 3 and do it in just a few days.
I think it totally just depends on what might work best for you and your baby.
I really liked the book “Diaper Free Before 3”. The author advocates starting when the baby is old enough to sit on the potty unassisted. We started my youngest on her potty when she was about 5 months old (before that, we would sometimes hold her over a toilet, though I’m not convinced there was any benefit and would skip starting at birth if we have another). She would sit, we would read books (basket of board books by the little potty). Then, we’d go about our day. I would take her every hour or after wake up or meal times. Sometimes she went, sometimes she didn’t.
By 11 months, she wore panties at home, and had started asking to use the potty and predicting her poops, pees were still hit and miss (still are, really, but I know her pattern and can get her there frequently). I know a lot of moms doing this step (trying to take their child to the potty according to their natural pattern) at 2 and its more frustrating because by then the toddlers are in the “do it myself” phase and are less likely to want to do what you say. But, I know a lot of moms who didn’t have issues with that at 2, so…
Hope my ramble could help. lol
Since your daughter is 1 and is used to being in diapers I would say :
I would start when she starts having drier diapers for longer periods of time
Knows the feeling of when she is going ( holding herself, grunting when going poo etc)
The big factor is when they are staying drier longer. As long as your child doesn’t have any urological problems. I say this because some children do have them and it makes potty training difficult.
You could start now by just introducing the potty to her. Get one, let her sit on it with her diaper on , etc. Get her acquainted.
Get those big girl potty books and read about how great it will be to be dry and wear big girl underpants.
Since I am with my son 24/7 I have gotten to know his patterns and when he does not go at his normal time I stand him up and and tell him it is time to go I count 1,2,3 and I breath in and out deep he copies me and sure enough I see his face look like he is concentrating on something and shortly he does his business and then he laughs. My parents think Im just imagining things but when they hold him standing up and he hasn’t done his business recently I let them know he will and most of the times he does. I don’t know if it is easier for him to go standing up rather than when he is laying down.