We are desperately trying everything to toilet train our son, but he just refuses. He cries for a nappy, and gets very upset at times. He will sit on potty for a wee now and again, but only pooh's in his nappy. If we turn our backs for five minutes he will have put a nappy on himself. He is due to start nursery in October and we are past ourselves with worry that he just wont accept the potty.

A The most important part of toilet training is establishing a routine. Having a calm attitude also helps because when parents are tense this may make the child anxious, so try to take a step back and try to stay calm and relaxed.
The first step is to start to establish a routine by beginning with establishing the sitting on the potty.

• If he is reluctant to sit on the potty let him sit on the potty with his nappy on. The next step is to loosen the nappy but not remove it before you sit him on. When he is happy with this the next step is to cut a hole in the nappy, put it on loosely before he sits on the potty, When he ‘pooh's’ the ‘pooh’ will go into the potty and you can then talk about it positively and give lots of praise.
• Talk about taking the nappy off and how good it will be when he does not need his nappy any longer
• There are lots of books for children about potty training. The one that I particularly like is ‘How your body works’ by Judy Hindley, Christopher Rawson & Colin King. Published by Usborne. Cost £4.79 and available from www.amazon.com. It has wonderful illustrations about the body and how & why it functions the way it does which is good for getting children interested
• Try offering the potty three times a day after each meal.
• Bowel movements are more predictable than ‘wee’ so try to notice the time of day he regularly goes and encourage him to sit on the potty then.
• Be sensitive to his feelings and give him a choice about where he would like to sit on the potty. Stay with him because he will be happy with the extra attention
• Give him a choice of underwear
• Try not to scold punish or nag, instead praise at every step
• Discuss with the nursery the possibility of him not being fully toilet trained by the time he starts and ask if they are willing to implement your routine at the nursery
  

If you require further help and support do not hesitate to consult your health visitor.

health visitor

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