Oh Crap! Potty Training

Just in case I haven’t beaten you over the head enough with this
time frame, I’ll reiterate. Between twenty and thirty months is the
perfect time to potty train. Trust me. It’s almost freaky how much
resistance you will encounter if you attempt to potty train after thirty
months.
Now, let’s say your child has all of the markers I’ve been talking
about, and you’re just not convinced of his readiness. Or you are
wildly unsure. Or you don’t want to eff this up. Or everyone but
everyone is telling you that twenty-four months is too early to potty
train.
I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH: if you are attempting to
potty train and you have major doubts, it will NOT go well for you. I
have seen it time and time and time again. YOU MUST BELIEVE
YOU ARE DOING THE RIGHT THING. You must know that your
child is capable of this. It’s okay to be a little unsure, but you must be
determined. If you are in two camps—sure and unsure—your child
will be, too. It will look like a hot mess. I have no other words to
explain this phenomenon by which your kid picks up on your attitude
other than woo-woo words, like “vibe” and “energy.” If your mind
isn’t made up, your child will pick up on it and mirror being sure and
unsure. Whenever I get a client whose situation suggests a lack of
determination, I usually start with the “Are you sure you are
committed?” speech. My blog is peppered with the importance of
determination and we’ll discuss it more in later chapters. I used the
w o r d vibe earlier because I’m all airy-fairy, but if you’re not,
nonverbal cues work, too.
Nonverbal cues can be easier understood if you’ve ever been
around animals. Especially dogs. I used to not be a dog person. Since