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Potty training at 8 months

Hi,

My lo will be 8 months old soon so I have decided to start potty training him, I just wondered if anyone else had started around this age and any advice you could give me?

Thank you for all replies, Sue
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Replies

  • Wow!! Unforetunately I have no advice to offer, but had no idea it was possible to start this young! Will be keeping an avid eye to this post for interest sake!!

    xxx
  • wow! My son is 2 half and still in nappies.

    Good luck. Will be interesting to know how you get on!

    xxx
  • God you are brave trying that early!! I'm just nosing from toddler forum and a lot of us on there are now starting it at 2ish!!! and my boy is 2years 8 months and not going great with it!! albeit boys are renound for being harder to train than girls - typically lazy!!!

    As far as i;m aware babies don't gain bladder control until around 18months so before this it can be hard as they don't recognise when they want a wee, they also need to be able to follow and understand simple instructions which I doubt at 8months any baby would be able to do this.

    the huggies website offers a lot of advice and tips on when your child is ready and how to go about it
    http://www.pottytraining.co.uk/when-to-start

    hope this helps

  • God you are brave trying that early!! I'm just nosing from toddler forum and a lot of us on there are now starting it at 2ish!!! and my boy is 2years 8 months and not going great with it!! albeit boys are renound for being harder to train than girls - typically lazy!!!

    As far as i;m aware babies don't gain bladder control until around 18months so before this it can be hard as they don't recognise when they want a wee, they also need to be able to follow and understand simple instructions which I doubt at 8months any baby would be able to do this.

    the huggies website offers a lot of advice and tips on when your child is ready and how to go about it
    http://www.pottytraining.co.uk/when-to-start

    hope this helps
  • why are you starting at 8 months?

    the only advice i can give is lots of praise, make a huge fuss when they get it right and dont make an issue out of any accidents.

  • I actually just looked at your past topics to see if it was a typo and you meant 18 or 28 months or something! I didn't know you could potty train so early. My niece is 28 months and just starting now. Seems like a nightmare. I'm dreading it and will be putting it off as long as possible!

  • At this age it is not true potty training but all about 'timing' training and it is fluke if you catch them at the right moment or not - there is a lot of info on this in the toddler taming book (not info on how to do it I should add!)

    As some one else said they don't have ANY bladder or bowel control at this age.

    Good luck.
  • I am sorry but I think it is ridiculous to even think about potty training at 8 months! Your baby will not be aware of the need to wee at that age so to expect him to be in some control over it is not going to happen. I would wait until he is at least 18 months to even start thinking about it and even then you might find he is not ready.
  • hey hun, if you want to try it go for it! my LO is 5 months and we bought a potty when she started sitting unaided at 4 months. we mostly wanted to get her used to sitting on it but she took to weeing in it really well and so we now use it as often as possible, and she will in fact pat her nappy when she needs to go (and will frequently go 3/4 between nappy changes just patting nappy for potty, so lots of potty trips but totally dry nappy at change time).

    it is possible to train from a very early age, one of the girls in due in jan posted on my potty thread and told me the proper name for potty training before they can talk (i think the info says it's mostly used in places like africa etc where they carry babies around naked on them alot) but it's basically about recognising your LO's toilet cues.

    i'll go have a peak in my old topic and modify this to tell you what it's called in a min xx

    it's called elimination communication, but it's very full on if you plan to do it to the letter (potty every 30 mins or so) and so will restrict your days quite alot i think. personally i tend to put emmy on the potty if i see her nappy pat but i don;t make a big deal if i don't notice after all she has plenty of time to be properly potty trained later xx

    [Modified by: jemmykins on June 01, 2010 05:18 PM]

  • yes jemmy is right. there has been a thread on this recently too. my mum put my brother on a potty to poop at a very early age, as he always pooped at the same time after feeding. if nothing else it got him used to the potty. some children can be afraid to use it. esme is 10 weeks and i have seriously considered getting her a potty as she poops,l then a few mins later will poop again. i thought if i can get her on a potty in that time when shes ready for potty training it might be easier.
  • well sort of, ds was sitting unaided from 5months so from 6montsh i bought a potty and a couple of times a week would jsut egt it out and let him sit on it (normally before bath time), he's 14months now and we have it out most nights before bath/bed and last week he did his first wee on the potty, most likely a total fluke, but gave him lots of praise anyway and he sat there grinning like a cheshire cat bless him. i'm not expecting him to be fully potty trained any earlier than most other kids, just think its less of a task when it comes to that time if he's already used to it and getting the hang of it before then. apparantly my mum started with us kids at 6 months and by 18months we were dry in the day, and she said she just did that by just getting it out a few times a day and putting us on it, ignoring any accidents and praising anything that did go in the potty xx
  • i guess it must have been quite normal too sugarpuff as both me and OH were both potty trained by the age of one which is why we introduced the potty so early. i am begining to think we're crazt though! we decided to try for a 'dry day' by watching for cues all day saturday and yes she 'told' us every time she wanted potty but i counted nearly 20 wees in 3 hours at one point after a bottle! not the best thing if you're wanting to go out etc! lol
  • i think it would have been easier when women didnt go back to work. if you go back to work when baby is 9 months it couldnt be possible.
  • I'd be interested to know why it is youre aiming to do it at such a young age?

    I can be done, I've seen documentaries on it, and heres a link you might find useful

    http://www.naturalbirthandbabycare.com/elimination-communication.html

    To be honest though, I find it a little unnatural to train babies to do something that they shouldn't be worrying about at such a young age. Going from incontinent to dry is such a big step for children, I am curious to know why people would set this task upon such a small baby? I've been told by HV's and read that childrens brains and bowels/bladders don't connect properly until 2years+ and the best time to train is between 2 1/2 and 3. This is when it is quickest and most succesful. Before this age it can of course be achieved, but youre most likely then to have endless accidents, a lot of stress, misunderstanding, and basically it can take so much longer for the baby/child to finally be properly dry. for instance, you might try at 18months, and have slow steady progress and find they're completely dry by 2years, or, you could wait until 2 1/2 and have them dry within days or a week.

    I'm sure you'll find many many helpful websites to teach you the methods and tips on how best to achieve this, but I think you might be setting yourself up for a lot of hassle, as even once you suss out when she needs to pee, at such a young age they wont have the bladder capacity or control to "hold" it until you find a potty or toilet, Which will mean you'll have to be comfortable with lots of public peeing, be it on a travel potty or in a bush or what have you! The documentary I watched, the mothers on there would literally pull down the babies knickers anywhere and everywhere and be happy to let them pee on rocks/bushes/the ground etc. I'd be a bit uncomfortable with such urgency to get somewhere private or whip out the potty!

  • there are alot of videos on this on youtube if u type in on youtube. i was interested to see what it was all about when readsing jemykins post a couple of months ago.
    it personally isnt for me as i find it hard enough with all the other baby stuff u have to do! i think babies shud just be babies and enjoy them before they grow up to quick!!xxx
  • I have nothing against early potty training but it's far too much hassle for me - at age 2-3 they can tell you in clear terms if they need a wee/poo, can make their own way to the potty, sit on it & do it .... has it really ever been the norm to potty train by age 1? Sure they can wee on a potty as soon as they are sitting unaided but real potty training IMO is a different matter. Ds is 2 and we're planning on starting in a few months when he's showing a few more signs xx


  • Early potty training has been the norm in some countries and at some periods of time, understandably if you lived before central heating and at a time of no option but terry nappies potty training had distinct advantages. But I think that it is not only a case of training children but more training of the parents to see the signs of when the child is going to evacuate. OK if you are going to be the sole carer for your child but might not be so good if you intend to leave your child, be that with grand parents to allow you the occasional adult day or more regularly to return to work
  • Oh gosh i couldn't imagine training at such a young age. I cant help think its putting un due stress on the child when they really don't need to be worrying about things like that. That's just my opinion though (obviously ha ha) My dd is 20 months old and will wee and poo on a potty if she is naked and also tells us when ever she does either but i don't plan on training till shes over 2 plus we have another baby on the way so i don't want to stress her right now.

    I hope it works out for you! Please keep us updated it will be interesting to know if it works or not! xx
  • I think if you are willing to do it go for it, I think its a good idea to start potty training when the baby is walking steady and comfortably on their feet, I think this is something I just picked up from my mum but again if you feel your lo is ready then go for it xx
  • I was definitely out of nappies and in real knickers by the age of 12 months and went straight on the toilet with a step and special seat so it can be done! You just need time and patience!

    Personally, I think I'll wait and see and be led by Lucas, but at the latest I'll try to start at 2.

    Hxx
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