- My child has been completely potty trained for a while and
suddenly has had eight accidents in a row. What is going on?
Any number of things can cause a sudden backslide. Obviously,
big changes in the child’s life: a move, a separation, a new sibling.
Sometimes it’s a little change to you but a big change to the child: a
new classmate, a new teacher, a new routine. It can also be a
developmental change, physical or mental, or new teeth coming in
that throws a major glitch in potty training. A growth spurt can
muck things up. If your child suddenly has a wealth of new skills, the
potty training ball can suddenly drop for a few days. Or it really could
just be a bad day for your child. First, ascertain: Is this a pattern? Is it
every day? The same time every day? Try to get to the root of what
might be new or what the pattern might be. Almost always, the
solution is a quick run through of all the blocks. As I mentioned with
poop, you want to take away any potential barriers the child might be
having. Run through all the blocks and refresh the learning. - If I even mention the word potty, I get resistance. What can I
do when my kid is screaming no at the mere mention of the potty?
When a child is presenting you with a ton of resistance, it most
often means you are putting too much pressure on the process. You
might be prompting too much, you might be staring them down
watching for a pee, you might be hovering too much within a prompt.
I talk about this prompting a lot in chapter 5, “Ditch the Diapers!
The How-To.” You have to back off and allow the child to: (a) make
mistakes, and (b) fully own this. I realize it’s not easy. It’s finding a
delicate balance between being vigilant and putting pressure on the
child. Hovering within the prompt is a common pressure. You
barry
(Barry)
#1