Will somebody... PLEASE..... wipe my butt!Sep 09 '04 Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line Yes, the child must be ready, but so must the adult. The exquisite words of my five year old son (when he was four). The subject is toilet training. The matter is well, let’s just say it’s a solid situation. You have all heard the term “he’ll do it when he’s ready” when it comes to training a child. Or “never pressure a child to toilet train”. Well when you are standing in front of a mother whose son is a week from being three years old, it is kind of difficult to think those things. At times, it shouldn't be difficult. You must understand one's lifestyle before drawing a conclusion. ------------ I have five children (as most of you know). You can see them on my profile page if you’d like. Out of five children, four of them are trained. Thank God! I couldn’t imagine my 13 year old shouting out like my five year old use to “Will somebody wipe my butt!” My youngest is still too young for the toilet, but her time will come soon enough. I look forward to not having to change a diaper, but I don’t look forward to hearing those words again, or the fact that my last child will no longer be in diapers. My 13 year old was a year old the first time I tried to potty train. The inexperienced mother that I was, I attempted to ‘force’ her to go potty. She wouldn’t budge and I began to feel like a failure. I became over demanding and would just sit in the floor next to her while she would cry. I tried reading books, having suckers handy, even special little toys each time she would go. But, she wouldn’t go…. Eventually, I gave up. I left her be when it came down to the business ‘going to down the water slide’. She was two and a half years old before permanently leaving diapers behind. Next, my oldest son. He was an absolute synch to train. He’d watch his dad go pee and the rest just seemed to follow. By the time he was a year and three quarters old, he was fully trained. My second oldest son, he was two before being total trained. My third son, and fourth child, two and a half years old. Now, it seems as, when time goes by, it takes longer for a child to train. Maybe it’s because I have learned over the years, toilet training is a life long expectancy. Once you are out of diapers, you are out until the end is near, with some people, you are just out of them for good. It is not something that must be done this minute, this second, this very day. However, I do feel there needs to be a time limit on training unless your child is a special needs child. Nathan, son number three, child number four is a special needs child. He is mentally slower and it is being considered by his counselor to have a mild form of autism. It was a little bit difficult to train Nathan, but not so bad that I would have waited. The issue at hand is; do you train even if you think your child is not ready? ----------------------- *Point: Maybe your child is ready, just afraid of the toilet. Let your son aim for the drain in the tub if you desire for him to be trained now. This helped with Nathan. *Point: Maybe your daughter is afraid of going down the toilet. Find a larger ball, bigger than the hole that your waste will pass through and when your toilet is fresh and clean, demonstrate that the ball won’t go down, so neither will she. *Point: “He cries every time I even mention going to the potty.” That may be, but your child also cried every time he needed his immunizations, but he still got them. Work out a deal, sometimes, stickers work as a reward, sometimes offering to spend special time afterwards will work. Bubbles helped with Steven. He loved to sit on the toilet and play with bubbles while I tried to train him. *Point: I don’t have enough time to train him or her right now. Make time. This is your child who deserves to be trained if he or she is ready. *Point: I don’t think my child is ready to be trained. He shows no signs or interest. Well, then, interest him. Let him or her sit facing the back of the toilet if you have to with washable markers and you guys drawn funny faces. If your child has sat there past five minutes and wants to leave, let him do so. Don't stop him from leaving at any time. And don't say things like 'please stay a little bit longer'. If you want him to have more time, give him something special to draw and ask him to watch you draw one last picture just for him. **Tips: Turn the water on while your child is on the toilet. Give the child plenty of water to drink during the day and take the child to the toilet every half hour. If the time span is to long, try fifteen minutes. IF you have two days off to dedicate to this, the second day he or she will more than likely go to day care with a note from mom or dad stating that he is to go potty now instead of go diappie. ------------------ Also, I’ve let my child run around without a diaper or underwear on. This free style enables the child to see what happens in case of an accident. I know how that sounds, but I’m telling you, it works. My son did not like the effects his mistake made on the carpet, nor did he like mom having to stop playing with him, to clean up a pee stain. This also enables you to make a quick run for the potty without something in between as well as it being a reminder to the little guy that he MUST visit the potty during ‘free’ time. ***How to train: Keep your chin up, be creative, be patient and always be willing to spend the extra time it takes afterwards to praise your child. Even if it’s extreme like lifting him and flying him through the house while saying “We’re coming in for a landing” while he is also butt naked. Everyone has their own methods of training. You’ve just seen what I think and the way I handle things. It works for me and my family. If you’ve discovered a method that has proven to be an fail safe method, then you too should write on the subject. If you are new to this though, try different methods until you find one that fits your child’s needs as well as you and your family’s. One last thing….. My youngest son was on the toilet one day, my neighbor came to the door and from the bathroom we could hear “Will somebody …WIPE MY BUTT!.... I later talked to Nathan about what being discreet meant. The next time, I found him sitting in the bathroom, almost twenty minutes later still whispering ‘will somebody PLEASE wipe my butt.’ With huge, drawn out, almost groaning the word ….please… being emphasized.  |
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