When Should I Start Potty Training My Son?

Teaching your little one how to use the potty will need patience and time on your behalf, as well as an acceptable degree of motivation and cooperation from your child.

When Should I Start Potty Training My Son?

There is no “right” age when your child will be ready to start using his potty. However, most kids gain the proper skills and abilities they require to being training between 18 months and 3 years old.

The most important thing you should keep in mind when potty training your little one is beginning when he`s interested, willing and able to do it physically. While certain children are ready as early as 18 months, other ones might not be so prepared to learn all the potty insights until past their 3^rd birthday. Some specialists think that little boys stay in diapers a little more than little girls as they are usually a lot more active and might be less prone to stop and take the necessary time to learn how to use the potty.

There are a few things that you need to take into consideration when determining if your little one is ready to start using the potty.

Cognitive & Verbal Abilities

The process of using the potty requires a complex combination between the physical and cognitive tasks. The child needs to become familiar with his body`s functions, to associate the physical sensation with the action itself, to imagine what he wants to do, to make himself a plan regarding the possibility to reach the potty, to be able to give his pants and underwear down, and after that to be able to urinate or poop in the potty. He must remain on the potty as much time as he needs to excrete, these actions requiring concentration and memory.

While you are teaching him all these steps, the child needs to be able to understand all your explanations, all your commands and reactions, he must be able to put it all together and to understand the entire process (very complex for him, as you can see).

When you are thinking to the potty training in the light of all of the details above, you`ll figured out on yourself while your child must have all these cognitive and verbal skills to succeed in learning all that is required from him. It all starts with the awareness of his body and his functions, and his ability to associate the sensation of feeling full with the result, in our case with the ability to urinate or poop. The association isn`t made automatically – you need to repeat this association each time, based on your observations: he may start squatting, growling or blushing. He may also stop from the activities he`s performing.

Around 2 years old, children become aware of their body parts, being your responsibility of teaching him what everything is for. Use simple words that you can use whenever necessary, reminding him of their role in the “potty” operation. The next steps requires the baby`s ability of symbolic thinking, planning, problem solving and memory actions. The child needs to be taught that when he wants to use the potty, he needs to find a way to reach it, undress and then poop or urinate. – Learn about this!

The child needs to think complex, draw his own conclusions and solve the problem. He needs to understand that when the moment comes, he needs to stop whatever he`s doing and try to reach the potty.

Physical Abilities

• Your little one doesn`t poop at night.
• He has soft, formed poops at regular periods of time.
• He has dry periods of time of at least 1 or 2 hours.
• He wakes up with a dry poop after having his nap.
• He manifests an interest when he sees you use the bathroom.
• He is able to dress or take his pants with a small amount of help on your part.

Behavioral Abilities

• He is interested in pleasing you and he likes when you praise him.
• He manifests discomfort when his poop is diaper is dirty or wet.
• He shows signs of wanting to be independent.

Tips on Starting Potty Training

Parents shouldn`t be worried on following a specific timeline regarding potty training, although having a common sense of general timeframes might aid guide you in you’re the potty training journey of your little one. Some tips to remember are:

Around the Age of 2 Years

• Around 22 months: Most little ones discover they don`t poop at night anymore.
• Around 24 months: Parents need to start watching for any signs regarding their child`s readiness for potty training. Not many children will be completely train before 24 months.
• Around 24 to 36 months: If you didn`t by now, now it`s really the time to start having potty conversations with your little one about the meaning of potty.

Around the Age of 3 Years

• Around 36 months: 40% to 60% of the little ones are fully trained in the arts of the potty until they are 36 months of age. Most kids make the leap to their potty training around their 3^rd Still, some kids will not be potty trained until after they`re 31/2. Generally speaking, little girls have a tendency of completing their training around 3 months earlier than little boys.
• Around 3 to 4 years: This amazing journey isn`t over just yet. Although it isn`t a big deal, accidents may happen! Every now and then, your little one might have an “oopsie” when feeling sick, tired or when he`s really occupied with something. This is part of the learning process and something perfectly normal.