Potty training a toddler PART 2 - Poop training

(Have you read Part 1 of the potty training series yet? Go HERE to learn how I got rid of diapers and trained my toddler to pee in the toilet!)

Just before my mom started potty training Krishna, we bought a potty seat reducer, thinking he could sit on the toilet to poop. I remember coolly telling her that poop training would be a breeze because he usually gave really obvious cues like a certain face expression and/or trying to find a private corner and just standing there. I wish I could go back and whack myself. This was the hardest thing I have ever done.

Till I left India to go back to France with my baby, Krishna refused to have anything to do with the seat reducer. He would just hold it in till it got unbearable and then have accidents in his underwear.

I spoke to my paediatrician and she advised offering a diaper for him to poop in. She reminded me that poop isn't as instant as pee and that freaks some kids out. But he didn't want a diaper either since by then I had given birth and "diapers are for babies."

So I just persisted and kept cleaning up accident after accident while staying alert for his cues and constantly offering a small potty seat he could squat on instead of a reducer. At one point we had one in every room! It was frustrating because I also had a newborn and it was SO hard but I tried not to be angry. I did point out though that this was really tough to clean and that it would be easier if he just went on his potty seat. We read some books too about kids using the potty.

It clicked after almost a month and he started going on the potty seat about 50% of the time. I didn't overdo the praise, but again spoke about how easy this was to clean and that it was good that he was trying.

And now, about 6 months after he was pee trained I can say that Krishna is 100% potty trained, two months before his third birthday. He always tells me he has to pee or poop and follows through. No accidents of any kind in several weeks, despite more travelling and currently living in a different house with a new potty seat.

There's one major piece of advice I can give about potty training, especially with regards to poop: be patient. It is easy to resort to sticker charts and punishments and quick fix methods but ultimately the child has to learn about his bodily functions on his own and that won't happen if you are not consistent and persistent and as gentle as humanly possible.

Who knows maybe your kid will take less time than mine did. Or more. Whatever. Just go with the 'flow'! ;)