soon be nocing and experiencing this new fun
vibe around using the toilet!
Use your child’s movaons
What does your child like the most? Is it Spider
-Man or Paw Patrol? Is it vacuums or fans? Is it
watching a piece of string or ribbon dangle in
front of their eyes? Is it airplanes, helicopters,
rainbows, the alphabet, or numbers? Road
signs or subway maps? Whatever it is your
child is into, make that a central part of your
toilet training. Here are some examples of
what happened when some amazingly creave
parents and educators did just that. One child
loved anything to do with airports. His mom
created a runway that went down the hallway
into the bathroom and ended at the toilet.
Another decorated their child’s poy with
hundreds of yellow ribbons; one put a fan next
to the toilet, while another covered their otherwise
plain poy with the rainbows their
daughter loved. This inspired each of these
children to want to spend more me around
the toilet or the poy. This not only made toilet
training more fun for each child but sped up
the process too. We move towards what we
like the most. Make the toilet or poy a point
of interest for your child by using their unique
movaons.
Give control:
The toilet training superpower
This is so key. You can make the toilet fun by
doing what I suggest above and then sap all
the fun out of it by adding pressure, pushing,
or force to the process. There can be a lot of
outside pressure from family members, educators,
and therapists to toilet train your child. If
you take this on, it can spill over to your child,
resulng in you pushing or even physically
forcing your child to sit on the toilet. Parents
have shared with me that they thought this
would speed up the process for their child and
make it a lile easier. However, it mostly has
the opposite effect. When we feel pushed, we
tend to tense up; when we are tense, as I am
sure you can all relate to, it gets harder, not
easier, to pee. If we force our children to sit on
the toilet, they will associate the toilet with
this force, making it something to avoid. As
long as the toilet remains something our children
want to move towards, we have all the
opportunies we need to help them master its
use. You can do this by respecng their “No.” If
they say or physically indicate they do not
want to be near or sit on the toilet, respect
that; let them know you heard them, and you
will try again later. Let go of any meline or
pressure from outside sources. This is not
their child; this is not their journey. What
maers is the fun and ease between you and
your child. This is the way forward.
2. Build interocepve awareness
Interocepon is oen referred to as the
“eighth sensory system.” It is the ability to feel
the inside of your own body, listen to the messages
it gives you, and take acon. For example,
if our children are to successfully learn to
use the toilet, they must first feel when their
bladder is full. Then they must understand this
feeling means it is me to use the toilet. This is
called interocepve awareness. The great news
is interocepve awareness can be increased
and improved just by pung our awareness
there. You will want to build this awareness if:
Your child does not noce they have just
peed or pooped.
They do not show signs they are about to
pee or poop (like a poy dance or a poopposture).
They will go to the bathroom and use the
toilet if you suggest it and take them. But
they do not iniate it themselves or go on
their own.
Building interocepve awareness will make the
process much easier. You can do this by:
Taking off the diaper
Diapers today are wonderfully-advanced. They
are built to be an an-interocepon device.
The whole point of a diaper is to make it so you
don’t feel it when you pee. If we want to build
interocepve awareness, it makes sense the
first place to start is to take off the diapers.
Introduce new and fun big girl or big boy underwear
and sweatpants that can easily and
quickly be pulled down. Use some groundsheets
to cover the carpets and sofas that
your child may be sing on while they are
diaper-free. This way you do not have to be
concerned about ruining your carpets or furniture
and can keep a relaxed, easy atude
when your child has toilet accidents.