When should I start potty training?

It really depends on the child, the parent and current circumstances. But did you know that the age children start potty training is much later now than it used to be?

According to ERIC, the Children’s Bowel & Bladder Charity children used to be potty trained at 12-18 months, but now the average is 3 or even 4 years. And I’m sure like us, many of you have seen news stories about children starting school not being toilet trained. No doubt, in some cases at least, a knock-on effect of the age at which they started potty training.

Is 6 months too early to start potty training?

This is the age some experts suggest is a good start to start – and we wouldn’t disagree. Some parents may feel confident starting earlier, while others may prefer to wait a little longer.

Guidance from ERIC and Institute of Health Visiting say you start from 6-9 months with the aim of being out of nappies by 18-30 months.

Whatever your view, remember every child is different and it's not a competition to see who can potty train their child first.

Our training is designed to equip parents and carers with the tips and tricks they need so that they feel confident potty training from a young age, while providing the child with the support they need to feel safe and comfortable.

What about potty training from birth?

This is an interesting one. We did this with our two children and it worked for us. But obviously it involved a lot more care around how we held them since they were unable to sit up in the early days.

For us it was all about association. We held them over a potty every single time we change their nappy and, likely down to instinct, they started doing something most times we put them on. Over time they learned the routine and we started cutting down on the number of nappies and wipes we were using very quickly.

In general, we suggest starting at about 6 months, right around the time your child can sit up on their own.

Doesn’t potty training from birth or early cause harm?

In our experience, no. Providing you are supporting your child and they are happy enough to be held over the potty, we think it is an option for those who feel comfortable doing it. Expert opinions also say that it does no harm.

Remember if you do put your very young child on the potty, just make sure you fully support their neck and body (we know you know, just saying :-).

Why are children being potty trained later?

Great question!

Pre-1945, many households didn’t have automatic washing machines and babies wore terry nappies that had to be washed by hand. So it’s no surprise parents were keen to get their children out of nappies as soon as possible!

Then, in the middle of the 20^th century, disposable nappies were invented. This groundbreaking innovation changed the face of the nappy industry and took a lot of pain out of this particular aspect of parenting.

Over time, parents have started to wait longer to potty train, looking for their child to show the signs that they are ready, rather than proactively introducing them to the potty at a young age. Potty training is often seen as a hassle and something that can wait. And there’s no judgment from us.

Life is busy! But we’ve noticed that people who wait longer to potty train sometimes have more challenges including children being scared of the potty, others going off to a corner to poo in their pants – or holding it in leading to other issues – leading to a longer, more drawn-out potty-training process.

Rise of disposable nappies and later potty training

There does seem to be a correlation between the rise in use of disposable nappies and the rise in the age of when children are toilet trained.

The cynics amongst us may see information out there saying that you need to wait until your child is ready to potty train and wonder who that benefits. Of course, if you’re a company that sells nappies you wouldn’t want to reduce your potential market by encouraging parents to potty train early, would you?

Don’t get us wrong, we are externally grateful to disposable nappy manufacturers. They make life much easier for parents.

We just advocate starting potty training earlier so you can reduce the number of nappies you need to use between your child’s birth and the day they are fully potty trained. And when you look at the current cost of nappies, that’s a saving not to be sniffed at!

There’s literally nothing to lose with the Revopootion technique. Contact us to find out more, or look out for one of our training courses launching soon.